To Portable or to not portable

[mrselfreliance]

Ok, need some advice.  I'm either getting the Woodland Mills HM122 or the HM122 Bushlander (comes on a trailer and is portable)  About $1500 CDN more for the portable trailer set up.  (I don't weld, so it would cost me more to make my own trailer)
 
Now, I would like to be able to mill at home and on my property 10k away.  And maybe go and do some work for others sometime.  But I could also get them to bring the wood to me. 
 
Anyone have either of these mills?  Is it worth it to get the trailer?  This is just a side gig/hobby for me.  Never going full time with this.  Mostly going to be making lumber, ie 2x4, boards and 4x4's. 
 
Thoughts?  Opinions?  Advice?
 
Thank you
 
 

[WV Sawmiller]

   The advantage of portable sawing for others is you leave the mess behind for them to clean up. I saw portable and would much rather saw at the customer site unless it is just a log or two. I'm no welder or mechanic or such so I'd lean towards the manufacturer trailer. I have a WM and I assume same with Woodland where they know the balance points and best places to secure the mill, etc. Good luck.

[Magicman]

Just remember that with a manual sawmill you've still gotta get that log up and onto the sawmill bed.

[alan gage]

I have a portable mill that's mainly for my own use but I do some custom sawing and lumber sales now and again. When I first got the mill I was excited about doing mobile sawing but quickly realized I'm much happier with the mill setup stationary. All my tools and support equipment are at the mill site so moving logs and lumber is no problem. Mobile sawing would be a lot of moving stuff around and downtime and relying on customers to provide support equipment to move logs.

Obviously mobile sawing works great for many people but I decided that for the amount of mobile sawing that I'd be doing (next to none even if I offered it) that it would be more trouble than it's worth. I keep myself very busy with multiple projects so I prefer a customer drops off their logs so that when I get a chance I can saw them up rather than having to coordinate and spend time moving and setting up the mill.

I still like having a portable mill though as it allows me to easily move it into storage over the winter and to pull it out of the way for cleanup days.

Alan

[Iwawoodwork]

My Mighty Mite  mill is portable and even if I do not saw for others  and not able to read tea leaves for what the future of the mill might be, I think portable is the only way to go. Just the ease of moving it to the shop , or another site. No dismantle, no loading/ unloading (possible damage) just lower the jacks and hookup and go. When getting to the new  site,  place saw , unhook, put pads down and lower jacks (6) and level mill and you are ready to saw. To me it seems worth the $1500 extra.  Not sure about the frame on your mill but does the trailer frame package add to the stiffness of the saw frame? If it does then that is another plus. 

[Crusarius]

its also nice to remove the sawmill from the sawing area once in a while and do a thorough clean without it in the way.

I don't know how the trailer part is but I bet it could be removed and used as a standalone trailer as well.

[mrselfreliance]

Thanks everyone.  I just talked to my neighbor who welds.  We are going to look for a cheap trailer and attache the mill to it, lol.

I think i'll like having it portable.  

[RAYAR]

Thanks everyone.  I just talked to my neighbor who welds.  We are going to look for a cheap trailer and attache the mill to it, lol.

I think i'll like having it portable.  

I just had a look on their site and that mill would require a solid base to be set up on. The trailer they offer seems more like a small frame work to carry the mill on and would require a lot of fussing to adjust the legs to get the bed level.

I would definitely set it up on a trailer fully supported the entire length. That would make it much quicker to set up and keep it from having to make leveling adjustments often after first setting it up.

I'm also from New Brunswick in the Moncton area.

[ladylake]

 
 

   I do both and prefer portable, a lot less work for me.  Steve

[Crusarius]

Thanks everyone.  I just talked to my neighbor who welds.  We are going to look for a cheap trailer and attache the mill to it, lol.

I think i'll like having it portable.  

you are going to spend more time and headache doing this instead of just ordering with the trailer. I would reconsider this idea.

[RAYAR]

The trailer for this mill is only an off-road trailer also with no lights. If you want to trailer it on the road, you need another trailer to set it up on, preferably with suspension.

[RichTired]

I am just a hobby guy, but I purchased the Wood-mizer LT15 with the trailer package. I have ten acres, with about seven acres of trees, and I really love the ease of being able to move it about my property.
I also purchased their winch & log ramp kit. But you could easily use a 12volt HD or other brand winch and home made ramps. 
So I can stage my logs and haul the sawmill to the logs and when finished haul the sawmill away.

[jasonb]

I'm either getting the Woodland Mills HM122 or the HM122 Bushlander

If all of the logs that you will ever want to cut is 22" or less then the HM122 will work for you.  You can cut a 24" log but there is a lot of physical work involved with doing that.  

The Bushlander is a new product that I hadn't seen until this post and I don't know if I want to tackle cutting a 22" log on it.

If you get the Bushlander or trailer a HM122, you will need a machine or a winch to get the logs on the mill. 

[woodweasel]

There are 4 sawmills including mine in my county. To my knowledge I'm the only portable  mill here. That gives me a  distinctive advantage over my competitors. It does poise some issues, which I have worked out. I always get pics first so I have a little heads up on what I'm going  to encounter. I have a 8 hr minimum and a one way mileage charge. I make sure they have a tractor or enough bodies to load the cants. I make sure I have my mill tuned up and ready to go.  I Have plenty of blades and a few items in my Homer box for breakdowns. I carry just what I need for the job. This took a while to figure out.  So far I've  had only one breakdown, which I was able to repair and continue  the job. I keep my WM well maintained. Plus the scraps get left behind.😀😀

[WV Sawmiller]

   We probably have a mill up every other holler around here. Mostly they are small, stationary hobby mills although some folks do saw a little for their friends. It may take a long time.

   I am probably too tolerant on what equipment and help my customers have on stand by although I do give them a good briefing on what they need to have ready. Often they do not have a tractor or loader and this sometimes slows things down, sometimes not. 

   I make sure my mill is properly maintained and take a tool box with the common tools and spare parts I can expect to break or fail. I have a pretty good kit of tools and such and can load up in a few minutes. Standardizing what I take helps make sure I don't forget an essential item. 

[DDW_OR]

Thanks everyone.  I just talked to my neighbor who welds.  We are going to look for a cheap trailer and attache the mill to it, lol.

I think i'll like having it portable.  

good idea.
also side ramps for loading logs
or use the side ramps on stands to make a log deck
get the LONG sawmill.
GET THE BIG ENGINE.
toolbox on one end of the trailer for tools and blades.
here are some good reading

https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php?topic=105363.msg1640716#msg1640716