Am I crazy to try to start a mobile saw mill operation on a $4000 budget?

[terrifictimbersllc]

Log like that I'd tell customer be prepared to have me cut off 2-3 feet.

[Magicman]

Yes, in the past when the customers did not have a loader, I have suggested that the customers trim back to 10'.  They have and I can load that, and even turn it using both the log turner and the log clamp.   ;D

[drobertson]

I'll never forget my first 12+ 36"+ log,(red oak) the mill lifted it, I was going by the specs then.  What I'm saying is they get heavy in a hurry,  I've seen enough engineering from the folks with manuals on here to know just about anything is possible,  the main thing is know the limitations, and keep your eye on the possibilities.  It just boils down to hard work.  But the reward is there.

[DR Buck]

I've done 38" and 40"  10 foot oak in the past.  It makes the hydraulics groan.    I have a 9 foot 40"   in the yard now waiting for me to mill.   It takes a long time to whittle something that big down to the point you can pull the first board off.   :'(   

The heaviest I've had on the mill was a 20 foot 34" poplar, fresh cut.    It was loaded with a tractor bucket pushing up along side of my loader arms.    It took 3 guys with cant hooks in combination with the hydraulic turner and the 2 plane clamp pushing it up to turn it over until I got it cut down some.   I cut 3" thick slabs out of it.   I think I remember it taking 7 or 8 guys to move the slabs off the mill onto their waiting truck.

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

A fresh cut Poplar has a tanker full of water in it.  :D

[Magicman]

One very cold morning (~20°) we rolled a 12 foot, 40" Red Oak onto my loader.  I couldn't lift it, so we whacked it back to 11'.  Still no go, but I did load it when we shortened it back to 10'.

I do not know if it would have been better with warm hydraulic fluid?  Also I have learned to use the log clamp, chain, and end tong to assist the loader on it's initial left from the ground.

I have sawed more than one 42" butt log, and they were no fun to whittle/Bibby down.  :-\

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

For a customer....I will attempt a big log like Magic was describing.......but you can bet your sweet Bibby I will be charging by the hour. And thats s fact Jack! 

[SawyerBrown]

One very cold morning (~20°) we rolled a 12 foot, 40" Red Oak onto my loader.  I couldn't lift it, so we whacked it back to 11'.  Still no go, but I did load it when we shortened it back to 10'.

I do not know if it would have been better with warm hydraulic fluid? 

Magic, that 40" log would have weighed between 5000 and 5500 lb (depending on taper), so your mill may have a shot at picking up the 13' log ... 

My little mill had a red oak on last week, 15+' long, about 34" at butt and 30" on the other end, putting it somewhere in the 4500 lb range, picked it up as easy as a smaller log.  Temp in the 20's.  I'm wondering if you might be starting to get some leakage in your hydraulic pump just from normal wear/age? vs a newer mill.  If that's the case, colder (higher viscosity) hydraulic oil will give you more lifting power than warm as long as your pump speed doesn't drop too much from the heavier oil.

Interesting that the advertised capacity on these mills (21', 36" diameter) would put a red oak log at over 9000 lb, apparently way beyond the lifting capability.  Not that you'd ever find a perfectly round 36", 21' red oak log.  But kind of fun to dream about ... let's see, that's over 1300 bf -- enough for Mrs SB's new hardwood floor in a single log!!   ;D

[Magicman]

Both of my hydraulic pumps have been replaced since then. 

The 21' and 36" are both maximum capacities.  I do not believe combined capacities, especially for the hydraulic capability.   

[SawyerBrown]

Just curious ... what drove you to replace hydraulic pumps?

[terrifictimbersllc]

My LT40 Super....or, not and....
4400 pounds, or 36", or 20.5 feet, about 27" maximum board width

That being said, I've sawn probably 5200 pounds, about 42" (oval log 34 x 42"), more like 20 ft 8" without "scooching", and nothing can be done about the 27".

[backwoods sawyer]

If you spend all your $$$ on tools you will need to go make some more to operate on.

Are you crazy, well we need more info to deturmine that ;D

12' x 38" pulled in tight with the clamp is a max load for the hydraulics with loading arm legs flat on the ground. Soft ground and side hills reduce that a bit.
About the time the log is half way loaded, the loading arm legs start sinking in the soft ground, the mill starts to buckle up lifting the inside legs and shift towards the log is when you know you have to much log ;)
Now you have to get rid of it and reset the mill and that all cost time. 

[Brandon1986]

So being fairly green at milling let me pose this question to those of you that are trying to handle those 5k# + logs.  My plan for handling those is trim them down to a manageable size with my 660 and mini mill. Why can't you do that, aside from a possible loss of useable wood which if properly planed wouldn't be that much it would seem to me. Or possibly the time it would take to do it?

[Magicman]

There is nothing at all wrong with trimming logs down, just time consuming.  Even with my sawmill, anything over 36" has to be trimmed either with the sawmill or a chainsaw.  We call it Bibbying out of respect for one of our senior FF members, Bibbyman.

Just curious ... what drove you to replace hydraulic pumps?

A couple of different instances related to the motors, not the pumps.  It was simpler to replace the pump/motor unit than to wait for the motor repair shop to get the necessary rebuild brush rack kits.  I did have one pump that was leaking fluid but it was still pumping fine.  I ended up with a spare pump/motor assembly, so any failure in the future will not cause any appreciable down time.

[Delawhere Jack]

Just skimmed through some of the replies and didn't see this mentioned.

You can mill mobile with a manual mill, but you won't be able to charge as much per hour. Or if you charge by the board foot, it's going to take you longer to produce as much as a hydraulic mill. You're looking at at least a factor of 2x difference.

I started with a manual mill, using a hand winch to turn logs. After turning an odd shaped 1,200 lb cherry log one day, I got home, had one beer and went to bed at 7:30pm.......And slept like a log. :D

You've got to have an idea of what the end cost per board foot is going to be for the client. If that price is going to approach the retail price of comparable lumber (which is also dried and usually surfaced), they aren't going to hire you. Some small jobs I do, say one or two cherry or walnut logs, where the client has no equipment on site, the cost for milling approaches $1/bf. That's ok, because the lumber will be worth much more than that. On softwoods that would be a deal breaker.

Anyway, give it a go. Just keep in mind that $800 pickup trucks have a way of becoming $2k, then $3k, then $4k trucks...... Don't ask.

[JoeB]

Well said Delawhere Jack! X 2

[Nate379]

A fresh cut Poplar has a tanker full of water in it.  :D

I had one last night that at 20ft I could barely lift with the skid steer.  It was over 5000lbs.



I chuckled at the "one very cold ~20* morning".  20* is sweatshirt weather for most Alaskans.  -20* on the other hand is getting pretty cold.  My equipment starts getting cranky... And me too!

[Cedarman]

At minus 20, I don't even crank. :D :D

[Brandon1986]

My $800 pickup was a steal I think I could clean it up a little and sell it for $2500 pretty easy, but thats one of those things that is a debateable sawmill expense in the first place due to the fact that I will use it way more for other things in life than milling, to include a minor restoration project just for fun.

I already had decided on the fact that sawing demensional lumber for profit would be limiting with my set up and the type of local wood, so if I do it profit margin would be VERY slim. I guess I just like to cut lumber and once cut I don't have much to do with it so making it cover itself is all I really want.

Another idea I was tossing around was building and selling sheds. I think selling a finished product would be much easier than selling raw lumber. I THINK (and correct me if this is a bad idea) that if I frame it with spruce and side it cottonwood (when its kept dry it lasts just fine) I might be able to sell those with next to no overhead.

On a side. Note if this post doesn't land in the right spot or looks funny I'm sorry but I am experementing with doing it on my Iphone

[york]

Brandon,ya did ok with your phone-have a friend who is into the shed thing and there is a waiting list for his sheds....

[Tom the Sawyer]

Brandon1986,

"I guess I just like to cut lumber and once cut I don't have much to do with it so making it cover itself is all I really want."

That statement may shoot your business plans in the foot.  IRS deductions for business expenses, depreciation, etc. are predicated on the intent to generate a profit from your business endeavors.  That statement pretty much indicates that it is a hobby and most deductions would not be permitted.

[Nate379]

Swing by the shop today, I'll be here till pretty late.  I have a bunch of bandsaw blades you can have.

[Puffergas]

Another idea I was tossing around was building and selling sheds. I think selling a finished product would be much easier than selling raw lumber.

Sheds are a hot item at two auctions that I go to every year.

[Brandon1986]

Sounds like I found a winner idea then!

[Brandon1986]

Nate just saw you're based in palmer I am suprised to run into someone on a world wide forum that lives so close. Which shop is yours?