Homemade saw mill#2

[mike_belben]

That is sorta how the guides on kalamazoo metal cutting horizontal bandsaws works.  I think youve got a good idea there.  Kalamazoo was among the best for a long time.

[Vautour]

Installed a different handle for my roller guild adjustment today.. hand brake lever with locking mechanism from my Echo... mike_belben.. had to google what kind of animal a Kalamazoo was :D... yeah its about the same set up ... they have a  lock nut type locking set up which is fine for that machine but i'd rather not go in front of a running blade to do adjustment.

 

[mike_belben]

Yeah theyre a set it and leave it clamp but theyre affixed from up high like yours.  Not normal in wood bandsaws but normal in metal cutting.  


I like your E brake toggle lever.  Looks like a de-sta-co clamp. 

[Vautour]

 
 lever for my engaging my band wheels.. lever up is disengages. 
 
and down is engage... its has a pass TDC  lock system 
  My question is?? what size fuel tank should i put on my mill with a 32hp engine for lets say 4 hour work without fueling??   

[JoshNZ]

If it's a manual mill and you spend all your time loading and turning logs like me, a 20L tote would do for 4hours I'd say, fill it to the brim and get 24L in there ahha. Go a bit more 30L if you're fabricating it

[Crusarius]

I just use 5 gallon cans that I swap. makes life easy not having to stand on the mill and hope for no wind to refill a tank.

[Hilltop366]

I had done the same, I drilled a hole in the cap that was a bit smaller than the gas line and pulled the line through, so when it was time to add gas it was just a matter of unscrewing the cap and pulling the hose out to replace in the full can. These were the older style cans that had a separate vent cap I learned the hard way not to completely close the vent. When the fuel heats up in the sun it creates a lot of pressure and leaked past the carb needle and filled the crankcase with gas so if using the unvented cans I would add a second piece of line in the cap for a vent.

[Crusarius]

I also added a fuel shutoff right where it enters the can. So when I need to change I just shut the valve and only lose the fuel in the pickup line. no need to re-prime the engine. Works pretty slick.

When I am done sawing I shut the valve and no issues.

[Vautour]

@Crusarius was just checking your mill and your fuel tank rides with the head all the way down making it easy for tank changing... i could,t believe you were changing a 5 gallons fuel tank if it was stationary at the very top :D...gonna use a 2 gallon tank for now see how that works, also mine will be sitting on the top part of the carriage like JoshNZ's mills for gravity reasons. there was a post a few months ago about "how do you fuel your mill" .. and will just use a small pump to fuel up. 

[Crusarius]

the 22hp predator has built in fuel pump that actually does a very good job of sucking the fuel up. Takes a bit when the line is empty but will still pull a draft and fill the line to start the engine.

I like being able to just change the tank. Especially since all the stupid safety cans now make it miserable to refill anything. its not much more to add a tray right to the carriage and then you do not have to worry about separate pump and long hose exposed to the elements.

[Hilltop366]

I have a question about your tensioner Vautour, I was trying to figure out if you are using the hydraulic cylinder to apply pressure and the bolt as a slack adjuster or are you using the bolt to apply tension and the hydraulic cylinder and gauge to measure the amount of pressure applied?

[JoshNZ]

I can't see a pump or hoses I bet it's the latter.

My tank is just a boat tank with a plain old OMC fitting (or one like it). When I'm done sawing for the day I give the tank a shake if it feels too low to do another session I pull the plug and throw it in the back of the truck, and fill it when it suits at a fuel station. Never lose prime never spill a drop. Its easy enough to lift up there and slide in to its tray.

The predator pumps are awesome too yeah +1. They're a diaphragm pump driven by crank pressure it'll pull 6ft of empty hose in seconds, I remember being impressed when I was playing around with clear tubing while setting up.

[Vautour]

yup Hilltop366 it is the latter, .. the ram is only there for the pressure gauge,.. the large nut is welded to sliding adjusting part and the ram is attached on the head.... finally got a chance to start up my engine today with my temporary fuel tank,  the fist time i started it, it didn't have a muffler and i had it hanging from a chain, so everything is bolted and wired up for a trial...the carburetor is from the engine i took out my 70's hough loader which was a 100hp.. people were saying it probably wouldn't work but i had the engine idling pretty good and this carb has a pump and gives it a snort of fuel when accelerating to a higher RPM,   i was quite Happy, and hopefully it works in the long run.

[Vautour]

 
Decided to add a power feed since i had all the parts..  Always liked the idea of using a simple cable around a drum, but at the moment my cable drops off the drum (anticipated)  so i'm thinking adding Teflon guides on each side just before it wraps around the drum, or lips on the drum itself... i think the guides would be better. worst case scenario, i've got a chain and sprocket for it.   
 

 

[JoshNZ]

It must just be that the cable isn't tracking over the drum right surely. Can't add shims to the motor/drum assembly to raise up the outboard end of the drum slightly?

[RAYAR]

I think what is happening is the cable is moving across the drum as if it was following a thread. What if the drum had a shallow "U" so the cable would always keep slipping to the bottom of the shallow "U" groove as the drum turns.

[Vautour]

 
Tried a few tings this morning and nothing worked,going around a drum a few turns seems to follow a imaginary tread as RAYAR mentioned.. so i added this Teflon with a small v grove and works good. it's powerful enough and i think i'll add to add a drag board.. shouls have my speed control by next week.. total cost about $100  

[Vautour]

 
thinking about adding a wheel chair motor for raising and lowering my head assembly...got a 60,a 28, and a 10 tooth sprocket to play with...if the electric brake is hooked up when power is applied, it should brake on a dime without any overshoot...i think...
 Decide to go the RAYAR method and add a third bearing to my guides   
 

[RAYAR]

That blade guide support is looking good.

[Crusarius]

With the acme rod I took my brake off. the brake is normally closed (spring loaded) when power is applied it releases. My brake did not work very good, the motor was able to power through it.

Hopefully yours will be better than mine was.

[Vautour]

 
Did a trial run today... wheel chair motor ratio is 24:1 , small sprocket has 10 teeth, the larger sprocket has 29 teeth...sooo motor has no problem lifting the head assembly and i clocked it at 8sec per foot so i'm quite happy with that,the brake is holding real good...eventually i'll set up a "Mike Festiva"using a micro switch and notched out rulers system for adjustments. 
 

[Vautour]

 
Made a permanent bracket for my wheel chair motor this morning and once i had it installed i did a test using 24 volts instead of 12 volts,.so for raising my head assembly my 12 volt gave me 8 sec per foot and my 24 volt gave 3 sec per foot ... a 24 volt one wire GM alternator at the local parts place is $100.00... 
 

[mike_belben]

You can get 24v from a 12v system by putting the two batteries in series with a pushbutton in between them, i did it for fast hare scramble starts on a race quad.


  It will take a reversing contactor downstream after both batteries.  You charge the second battery independantly and yes it will draw down but its still faster than a single 12v battery.  You just need to make sure the 2nd one is deep cycle so it doesnt die from big discharges.  The good part is youll have 2 batteries for paralleling when a 12v cold start is needed.  


I can draw the circuit if it im not explaining it well.. If it interests you anyway. 

[Vautour]

@ mike ... i was thinking of using 24 volts for my travel also, but your idea would work in revers to get 12 volt for my engine starter.. tks.

[Crusarius]

I would love to see the diagram. not that I want more batteries but curious about trying it on my mill.