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Useful sawmill mods

Started by Bibbyman, July 25, 2004, 08:27:09 AM

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Bibbyman

If I remember right,  the Wood-Mizer team that won the first Shootout just stated the engine mill to get it  warmed up, hand rolled the mill in front of the logs,  dropped the front two supports and clicked them in and rolled a log on. They were sawing wood within a few minutes or less.  But like they say on TV, they were trained professionals – don't try this at home.

I never worried about getting an LT40 more than eye-ball level.  I did keep the front two and the center back two up tight and supporting the mill.  I didn't worry about the end supports being tight. 

One other note,  on a portable LT40, the tire on the back side should have some weight on the ground.  It makes a safety outrigger incase a big log hits the back supports too hard!
Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

Chuck White

Quote from: Bibbyman on November 20, 2008, 12:01:44 PM

One other note,  on a portable LT40, the tire on the back side should have some weight on the ground.  It makes a safety outrigger incase a big log hits the back supports too hard!



Good point Bibby!  A couple years ago, I was running my FIL's LT40 Manual and I had the tire off the ground (only about 1.5 inches mind you) and a log rolled against the stops kind of hard and the whole mill tipped until that tire hit the ground again.  It didn't take long for me to find a piece of board to put under that tire and it hasn't been off the ground during operation since.
~Chuck~  Cooks Cat Claw sharpener and single tooth setter.  2018 Chevy Silverado and 2021 Subaru Ascent.
With basic mechanical skills and the ability to read you can maintain a Woodmizer  LT40!

LeeB

Use your lube water jug for a level. Quick and easier to see than a bubble level.
'98 LT40HDD/Lombardini, Case 580L, Cat D4C, JD 3032 tractor, JD 5410 tractor, Husky 346, 372 and 562XP's. Stihl MS180 and MS361, 1998 and 2006 3/4 Ton 5.9 Cummins 4x4's, 1989 Dodge D100 w/ 318, and a 1966 Chevy C60 w/ dump bed.

gmmills

    WM now offers a new outrigger,leg, system. It's called the fine adjustment outrigger, FAO. Uses the spring loaded pin with integral threaded screw jacking system. Makes leveling the mill alot easier. They are direct replacements for the original legs. Have all six legs on my mill updated to the fine adjustment outriggers. They are a difinite improvement over the old system. 
Custom sawing full-time since 2000. 
WM LT70D62 Remote with Accuset
Sawing since 1995

jpgreen

That's what I was thinking about doing with my legs... adding a screw feed foot.

What do they cost GM?
-95 Wood-Mizer LT40HD 27 Hp Kawasaki water cooled engine-

Dan_Shade

It's about $1000 to outfit the entire mill, if I remember correctly
Woodmizer LT40HDG25 / Stihl 066 alaskan
lots of dull bands and chains

There's a fine line between turning firewood into beautiful things and beautiful things into firewood.

backwoods sawyer

Quote from: LeeB on November 20, 2008, 09:19:18 AM
Pardon my dumb, but what's a bang cylinder?

Just a cylinder with a foot on the end with no flow controls ect.

I have to disagree on having the wheel off the ground as the springs would have give as well. I get the wheels just off the ground so the springs are stretched out, giving the head more clearance on the cattle guard that is on the axel. I place a 6" level on the mill and get it close but some locations require digging out under a leg just to get the top of the leg below the bed height while another leg can be fully extended. Setting up in a location like this can take a bit, as when the mill is first pulled into a spot the head is raised to clear the loading arm it can be a bit tippy. Not having to move the head from one end to the other during set up would make for a safer situation.
The last set up I made I had to drive the lower tire of the mill up onto a 6" tapered wedge to get the mill level enough to unhook from the truck.
I set the four center jacks so that they are all solid with the head in the middle of them, if one is loose drive a wedge under it, then set the front and rear so that they are solid as well even if it requires using a couple more wedges. Not having the front and rear legs planted solidly on the ground will put undue stress on the frame. I always check all the legs after the first log and thru out the day and tighten them as needed.
Backwoods Custom Milling Inc.
100% portable. . Oregons largest portable sawmill service, serving all of Oregon, from our Backwoods to yours..sawing since 1991

Chuck White

backwoods sawyer;
But, that wheel on the operator side of the mill "is" an outrigger!

I'll bet it wouldn't take much to roll the mill over on it's side if that tire was very far off the ground.
~Chuck~  Cooks Cat Claw sharpener and single tooth setter.  2018 Chevy Silverado and 2021 Subaru Ascent.
With basic mechanical skills and the ability to read you can maintain a Woodmizer  LT40!

zopi

i sawed on the -15 in it's new home this morning...cut six cypress pecker poles into random cants ready to be barn siding next summer...anyway, moving the water feed to the drive side and adding
the regulator valve works about like I figured...I sawed all six logs on a tenth the water I was using before..the one drawback is that I get more wet sawdust built up on the lefthand rail..it can interfere
with the head unless I sweep it off every log or so..no big deal.

Has anyone ever considered mounting a lawnmower deck wash fitting inside the wheel housings on a badmill? seems like it's be a decent washdown solution...hook in the hose, wash and blow down to
dry...maybe add a corrosion inhibitor...I'm a freak for CPC...must be the sailor coming out...
Got Wood?
LT-15G GO chassis added.
WM sharpener and setter
And lots of junk.

backwoods sawyer

Quote from: Chuck White on November 21, 2008, 11:01:31 PM
backwoods sawyer;
But, that wheel on the operator side of the mill "is" an outrigger!

I'll bet it wouldn't take much to roll the mill over on it's side if that tire was very far off the ground.

However, it is a spring loaded out rigger not much of a stabilizing force unless you have all the weight on the tire. Keeping the mill relatively level side-to-side makes for a solid platform.

Besides, I was having a problem with the head binding up as it crossed over the axel, and after talking with woodmizer in-depth about the issue and considering that my mill was built before they started adding the third rail bearing. Getting the weight off the wheel and loosening the leading bearing on the bottom rail was the fix to get past the crown in the frame with out binding up.

I have not had the mill try to tip over on the operator side but I have had an 18' x 36" log go over the log turner and land on the loading arms while they were in the full up position that just about tipped the mill over. The loading arms went down, and the bed of the mill buckled up, then the log went over the loading arms and rolled 20' away.

I carry a set of dog extenders so I do not loose a big log off the operator side.
Backwoods Custom Milling Inc.
100% portable. . Oregons largest portable sawmill service, serving all of Oregon, from our Backwoods to yours..sawing since 1991

Bibbyman

Quote from: backwoods sawyer on November 22, 2008, 03:14:06 AM

I have not had the mill try to tip over on the operator side but I have had an 18' x 36" log go over the log turner and land on the loading arms while they were in the full up position that just about tipped the mill over. The loading arms went down, and the bed of the mill buckled up, then the log went over the loading arms and rolled 20' away.


I've had that happen to a minor degree a few times and a major degree once. 

From then on, when turning a big logs or odd cant that may flop back over the turner,  I'd raise the loading arms up as high as practical in an attempt to keep everything contained.  Falling 6" over against the loading arms is not nearly as eventful as letting it fall two feet!


Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

backwoods sawyer

Yep that was with the loading arms all the way up.
I would rather have the arms fully up or fully down with a deck of logs lined up, when a log goes over the chain log turner like that. With a big old Doug fir log like that the turner and dogs are not near as high as I would like them to be. Nevertheless, they are what they are, and a set of dog extenders help.
Backwoods Custom Milling Inc.
100% portable. . Oregons largest portable sawmill service, serving all of Oregon, from our Backwoods to yours..sawing since 1991

pineywoods

Finally finished the home made autoclutch for my WM LT40. It's an aold manual model, the factory parts won't work. What I came up with is a wheelchair motor with built in gearbox driving a jackscrew. The jackscrew is a piece of 1/2 threaded rod with a big square nut inside a piece of 1 inch square tubing. The manual clutch lever was left intact.

pic of the complete unit ready to install




rear view




It bolts on to the head cross member right behind the water tank
view from sawyers position





back side view




autoclutch control switch mounted on right side of control box




The bottom end of the jackscrew is bolted to the motor mount plate.
No welding on the mill. The only mods to the mill itself were drilling 3 mounting holes, plus mounting the control switch on the side of the control box.

The whole works is hooked up to my home-made remote control unit. A handheld infra red controller that fits in a shirt pocket. controls head up, head down, guide arm in and out, head forward and reverse, and clutch in and out.  Next item is a nice comfy seat right above the hitch...
1995 Wood Mizer LT 40, Liquid cooled kawasaki,homebuilt hydraulics. Homebuilt solar dry kiln.  Woodmaster 718 planner, Kubota M4700 with homemade forks and winch, stihl  028, 029, Ms390
100k bd ft club.Charter member of The Grumpy old Men

logwalker

That is pretty good. How long does it take to engage after you throw the switch? Joe
Let's all be careful out there tomorrow. Lt40hd, 22' Kenworth Flatbed rollback dump, MM45B Mitsubishi trackhoe, Clark5000lb Forklift, Kubota L2850 tractor

pineywoods

Quote from: logwalker on March 31, 2009, 02:58:54 AM
That is pretty good. How long does it take to engage after you throw the switch? Joe

Never timed it, I'd say 3 to 4 seconds. Didn't want it so fast I'd burn a flat spot on the drive belt.
1995 Wood Mizer LT 40, Liquid cooled kawasaki,homebuilt hydraulics. Homebuilt solar dry kiln.  Woodmaster 718 planner, Kubota M4700 with homemade forks and winch, stihl  028, 029, Ms390
100k bd ft club.Charter member of The Grumpy old Men

Bibbyman

 



I've sawn with this mill for 7.5 years now and I'm not yet sure if the rollers on the tops of the back supports help or hurt.  Seems as many times as the help rolling a cant onto the deck, they will help with pushing the cant over the back side of the supports. 

One thing I do know is that the rollers on the front side of the supports take away about 1" of blade clearance when half or more the way down.

A couple of years ago the bolt holding the front one fell out.  I just gathered up the parts and "stored" them on a shelf in the shed.  Everything worked fine just that I had to keep judging the height of the back support furthest away as it still had the rollers in place.  A few months back I restored one roller to the down side of the first back support.  I don't know if it helped or hurt.

The other day I was in the hardware store getting some other things so I picked up two 5/8"-3" hex bolts and locking nuts.  Last evening I removed the pair on the last back support and then reassembled one on the down side of each.  Let's see if this works better.  I know I should be able to miss the rollers with the blade better now.
Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

backwoods sawyer

I have not had the rollers on my mill since I bought it. There has been a few times where it would help the log to roll on past. My concern would be if it would push the top of the cant out of square, when in various positions, and how it would hang up on the bark when raised and lowered.
Backwoods Custom Milling Inc.
100% portable. . Oregons largest portable sawmill service, serving all of Oregon, from our Backwoods to yours..sawing since 1991

Bibbyman

The rollers don't come past the front face of the back support so they shouldn't push the cant out of square.
Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

customdave

Speaking of sawmill mods , I just finished building & welding 2 custom tool boxs for my mill. Made from 3/16" polished aluminum checker plate, 1 measures 10"x12"x50", 2nd one measures 10"x12"x56". Should be ideal for cant hooks,tools,spare parts etc . Will take pics when I get them mounted on the mill ,oh & I have to buy a camera!



                                                                      Dave
Love the smell of sawdust

backwoods sawyer

A while back, my fuel tank sprung a leak, and for less, then the cost of a replacement plastic tank I was able to put together this aluminum tank. Then I reshaped the tray to fit the new tank and wrapped the areas where it would rub with an old bicycle tube split in half. Then strapped the whole thing down and plumbed it in solid. (the old tank had been plumbed in solid as well)  While I had the tray off I reshaped the water tank end as well, so that it would hold the wider blue tanks that I can pick up locally. I also had to raise the tray an additional ½" so that the hoses would run under the tray and stay out of the way. This 5-gallon tank holds enough fuel for a 10-hour day.


Backwoods Custom Milling Inc.
100% portable. . Oregons largest portable sawmill service, serving all of Oregon, from our Backwoods to yours..sawing since 1991

ScottAR

That's some great looking fab work there... 

TIG process?
Scott
"There is much that I need to do, even more that I want to do, and even less that I can do."
[Magicman]

Bibbyman

Sure is a nice looking tank!   

How do you put fuel in it?  You got a bulk tank with pump? 

Did you put in any kind of gage?  Or do you just keep track of how many hours you saw?
Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

jpgreen

Nice tank.

Looks like woodmizer will be ready for NASCAR soon..  :D

Did you TIG or MIG weld it?

-95 Wood-Mizer LT40HD 27 Hp Kawasaki water cooled engine-

pineywoods

Neat, I ain't busted my tank yet, but if when I do---- I go through water tanks pretty regularly, leave water in them and they freeze. I get free replacemnts from restaurants, dishwashing detergent comes in square 5 gallon jugs. For a gauge, look for the filler cap off older john deere mowers, gauge is built into the cap.
1995 Wood Mizer LT 40, Liquid cooled kawasaki,homebuilt hydraulics. Homebuilt solar dry kiln.  Woodmaster 718 planner, Kubota M4700 with homemade forks and winch, stihl  028, 029, Ms390
100k bd ft club.Charter member of The Grumpy old Men

backwoods sawyer

 


Here it is aged in place.
As far as filling goes, every morning I just lower the head down to the 1" setting, step up on the rail, and top it off using a five-gallon diesel jug that I modified by drilling a vent hole and plugging it with a course thread screw.
I keep my bulk tank out behind the barn and just carry the five-gallon jug with me when I am off site. I have not found a real need for a gauge, as most of the time it only takes 3-4 gallons to run for the day and I leave the mill idling most of the day unless I will be away from it for more then just a few min. 
Backwoods Custom Milling Inc.
100% portable. . Oregons largest portable sawmill service, serving all of Oregon, from our Backwoods to yours..sawing since 1991

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