Useful sawmill mods

[Magicman]

Yup, the my blade guide motor has a soft plastic boot over it but it is still 'hanging out'.  There is always moisture under the cover.  I carry an end cap/brush rebuild kit in my spare parts box.

[Crossroads]

A while back my blade guide stopped going in and out. Tracked the issue down to a broken wire about a 1/4" from the motor. I must have been hitting it when I tensioned my blade. Anyway, I was able to take the motor apart and pull enough wire out that I could splice it back together.  Then I used about a half roll off super 33 electrical tape to wrap the wires tight to the motor and seal it from moisture. Seems to be working okay. 

[MVDeerxing]

This sawmill mod will be good for folks that have there sawmill inside a building or shed where it is a little dark or you have a long mill bed.

Sitting at my operator stand and looking to the far end of the mill is right at 30' A few times after a cut and returning the head to the other end of the mill, I have dropped the blade down on top of the cant and not past it. Not Good.  >:(

My sloution was to ad a 3" low watt led light bar above the blade between the wheels as seen in photo 2. The light will only go on when you return the mill head to the other end of the mill once you release the return lever the light goes out. The blade leaves a shadow line across your log / cant seen between the red arrows. Yours eyes follow that shadow line untill it drops off, at that point your blade is past the end of the cant so now you can drop into the next cut.

You will need to run your hot wire to the return circuit in the electrical box. Call Wood-Mizer for assistance if needed. :P

          Cutting a 26' log here. 30' from one end to the operator stand


 





 

[Old Greenhorn]

That's a pretty neat idea. I have been thinking on something like this to solve a problem I have on the LT50 I run. But are you telling me that the op console on your mill is on the end of the log that the blade comes out of?! I have never seen this. Every mill I have seen has the op console at the end of the log where the blade enters the log. Maybe I just have my head screwed on wrong tonight.

 But I digress. That light is something I have been thinking on for a bit but for a different reason. I work under shed roof and when the sun is bright it can get hard to see indie the shed area and see when the blade clears the far end of the log for lift and blade return. Sometimes I have to step way out to the side to see for sure. I think a light would help a lot and perhaps creating a shadow line would be even better. Maybe I will pull the power right off the original engine alternator, which I believe is not used for much.

 It's a neat idea, I need to work on that in the spring.

[MVDeerxing]

That's a pretty neat idea. I have been thinking on something like this to solve a problem I have on the LT50 I run. But are you telling me that the op console on your mill is on the end of the log that the blade comes out of

I have it set up as seen in the first photo, and I like it. This was the set up Wood-Mizer first showed me in NY. This might not work for everyone, but it works great for myself.

Why wait till the spring? If you think it will fix your issue e-Bay has some good and cheep LEDs. Good Luck.

[Old Greenhorn]

Well, I sure wasn't being critical I have just never seen it before so I wanted to make sure I understood it. That's how I learn.
As for spring, well I am trying to finish current orders and get done for the winter except maybe a critical job or two. I run the mill for a friend and I have my own work to do. I have been so busy since April I have gotten barely anything done in my own shop. I have no intention of running through the winter. I need to make some furniture and do a commission job that has been sitting for 8 months. I'm just one guy and old at that. ;D :D

[MVDeerxing]

Well, I sure wasn't being critical I have just never seen it before so I wanted to make sure I understood it. That's how I learn.
As for spring, well I am trying to finish current orders and get done for the winter except maybe a critical job or two. I run the mill for a friend and I have my own work to do. I have been so busy since April I have gotten barely anything done in my own shop. I have no intention of running through the winter. I need to make some furniture and do a commission job that has been sitting for 8 months. I'm just one guy and old at that. ;D :D

Good Morning & Merry Christmas OG,
I did not take it as being critical, so no worries.  
When I was at Wood-Mizer I was told that I can run my mill at either end, but was trained with a setup outside in the snow with a mill set up as I have mine.
I like it setup this way, for myself it works in my building. I am not looking from behind the mill head, so my view is not blocked at all. Maybe that is why I have not hit any chrome. 8) I have clear view of the log / cant, 100%.


You do what works for you, I am not trying to change anything. The reason I said why wait for spring, it will only take you around 3 +/- hours. If you think it will work for you and make sawing safer, faster, easier, do it. I did it because I did not want to dammage the blade arms when dropping the blade on the cant/log.
All this might not work as it does for myself, if cutting from the other end of the mill as you do. But do what works for you.

[Southside]

70's can be plugged into either end and run towards or away from the sawyer, none of the other WM mills have that option. 

[MVDeerxing]

70's can be plugged into either end and run towards or away from the sawyer, none of the other WM mills have that option.

So I see that you also have a 70 (newer) what end do you cut from if I my ask?
Merry Christmas. 

[Southside]

I have sawed from both but use the hitch end almost exclusively. 

[Dave Shepard]

I've tried running my LT40 (Wireless) from the other end. It's weird.

[YellowHammer]

it can get hard to see indie the shed area and see when the blade clears the far end of the log for lift and blade return. Sometimes I have to step way out to the side to see for sure.

If you install drag back fingers, all this will go away.  When the fingers drop, you're clear of the log and can drag what you have you cut.  So twice the benefit.  I use mine a lot for this, even to the point where I can hear them drop and know the blade is clear.

If you buy and install another power strip on the far end of the mill, and run a power wire to it, then you can operates hydraulics at the far end, which means you can do many movements with the head completely out of the way.  It's very nice with nothing obstructing vision.  

[MVDeerxing]

I was only shown to cut having the head cutting towards me, this way works best in my mill building. I have never tried cutting at the hitch end


At the hitch end I have a Wood-Mizer board outfield table, lumber to the front of the mill and slabs out the back right out a sliding door. Not the double set of doors seen in my photo there is another door opposite my outfield table. No real room for my remote control station.


Question for you why do you prefer cutting the hitch end, as you have cut both ends of your mill?



Looking at the Wood-Mizer web site the new 70 has the operator the same as myself.



The way I see it I see the whole log, without looking between the post, mill head, board return arm and return fingers.

[Southside]

I use the board return for everything and everything hits a set of take away rollers. Slabs get kicked perpendicular off the rollers to the edger outfeed table. Lumber rolls straight past to the edger where it's either run through or stacked as is depending on what we are making. 

Being there as cuts come off I can see the grade, make any marks on pieces I want guys downstream to see, and when necessary jump off the mill and float where necessary. 

Sometimes I will engage the cruise control, take two steps to grab a board or edgings and place them where necessary and be back at the controller just as the band comes out of the other end of the log. 

Can't do any of that from the far end. 

[MVDeerxing]

Your setup sounds interesting, any chance of a photo?

I do not have cruise control per say, but once the blade is in wood and cutting I run and move what ever I have to off the outfield table. When I am cutting beams I send all 4 faces of the log down to the outfield table any extra outside boards cut off go on the loader arms Finnish the beam then remove the slabs and extra boards to a pile to be stickered and then remove the beam.

[Southside]

On the Supers they call it "cruise control" as the forward speed is regulated by the right joystick so by activating a thumb switch that input value is held, same function as your forward drum switch and potentiometer perform. 

I will get a few pictures of my work flow. 

Do you run an edger or edge on the mill? What do you do about noise and exhaust? Looks closed in there.

[MVDeerxing]

Cruise Control, Got it.

No on the edger, yes edge on the mill. 

Head set for the ears, Commercial fan seen in the photo high on the wall, one other at the other door way behind me so no black nose. Sometimes crack open a front door. The trick is an enough air coming into the building and a lot getting pulled out.
The soot on the ceiling is from engaging the blade higher RPM, but is sucked out very fast.

To date I have not had any issues. If I put on my ceiling fan it messes with the air flow, sometimes. I know a ducked system would be best.

I am under the impression you cut outside, but will wait for your photos.

TY

[MVDeerxing]

I've tried running my LT40 (Wireless) from the other end. It's weird.

Hi Dave,
What is the other end, hitch or tail?
Merry Christmas

[Southside]

20' roof at the peak, 12' at the eves, call it an open building, some walls, but not fully enclosed.  Sawing outside is miserable for a bunch of reasons.  

[Dave Shepard]

I've tried running my LT40 (Wireless) from the other end. It's weird.

Hi Dave,
What is the other end, hitch or tail?
Merry Christmas

I normally run from the hitch, that's where my hydraulics are. The wireless allows me to run anywhere within 900'.

[MVDeerxing]

20' roof at the peak, 12' at the eves, call it an open building, some walls, but not fully enclosed.  Sawing outside is miserable for a bunch of reasons.  

I understand the heat thing as reason #1  8) I did the fully enclosed, 15deg. and blowing snow is time to close up and go to the house, wait another day.

[MVDeerxing]

I've tried running my LT40 (Wireless) from the other end. It's weird.

Hi Dave,
What is the other end, hitch or tail?
Merry Christmas

I normally run from the hitch, that's where my hydraulics are. The wireless allows me to run anywhere within 900'.

Got it. Thank you.

[Beavertooth]

I saw with 70 with the head coming towards me. I always have help on the other end to handle lumber coming off of the mill. If you have the help and can saw with the head coming towards you the benefits are many. One of which is being far far away from having to handle any lumber 😬😬

[customsawyer]

I run my LT70 from the hitch end as I end up cutting by myself from time to time. If you watch some of the "project" videos on Youtube from "Out of the woods", I think he was here in '18 and '19, it will give you an idea of my layout. Mine isn't perfect but it works.

[Old Greenhorn]

I was only shown to cut having the head cutting towards me, this way works best in my mill building. I have never tried cutting at the hitch end


At the hitch end I have a Wood-Mizer board outfield table, lumber to the front of the mill and slabs out the back right out a sliding door. Not the double set of doors seen in my photo there is another door opposite my outfield table. No real room for my remote control station.


Question for you why do you prefer cutting the hitch end, as you have cut both ends of your mill?



Looking at the Wood-Mizer web site the new 70 has the operator the same as myself.



The way I see it I see the whole log, without looking between the post, mill head, board return arm and return fingers.

I have been thinking about this 'which end?" question more than I probably should. First, it's not an option for us anyway, but second, it is hard to wrap my brain around since I never knew it existed. I have been thinking about every little step I do when I roll a log up and many of them seem more difficult working from the 'far end'.
 The main issue for me is: How do you plan your log when you are at the far end? That first cut can be critical to getting maximum output from the log and seeing where you are entering for that cut is important to me. I roll the log to do 'worst face first' in most cases and try to get a face cut width that allows me to produce the desired cant size without an extra cleanup cut later. I bring the blade down to that approximate width and sight right down the blade to see how much wane I might get, then adjust to minimize that wane. I just don't see how you can do this from 30' away.
 Using the toe boards should be about the same from either end, level is level. But a lot of other functions, like not slamming into the end bumper on rapid return and things like that will all be difficult or impossible (for me) to do. Things like guiding that board flying back with the board return can't be done. The 50 I run does not have fingers, it has that drop down fence so the boards often steer themselves into places that would be a disaster if they were unattended.
Again, I am not criticizing stuff that obviously works well for you and your setup (and others too, I see). I am just trying to understand it because it's a brand new concept to me. I just find it fascinating is all.