Hello new here and have a questions on a mill I am looking to get.

Greysonvalleyrr · January 14, 2020, 10:16:43 PM

Hello everyone, I am new here as of today. Looking to get a bandsaw mill. I am 70 years old and do not want one that I have to put the log on or turn it by hand. So from what I have seen it would have to be a full hydraulic. Most videos I have watched were Woodmeizer, Cook and timberking. I did see a LT40 in action at a woodworkers show in Baltimore last weekend. Was not that impressed on how the head shakes being supported on only one side.I had asked the gentleman sawing with it if he ever measures the board after cutting to see if it is a straight true cut. He said that what a planer is for.
I like the cook Hd3238 looks to be a heavy mill. I have a 100 acres of all timber I just purchased mostly oak , chestnut, Walnut, Cherry and very few pine. Only looking to take down ones that are dead or dying.
I seen how the setworks works on the woodmeizer but cannot find one on the cook.

I want lumber to make bridges for my Scale ride on Railroad actually a lot of them.

Just wondering what some of the people on here would buy if you were me. Thanks John

Magicman · January 14, 2020, 10:34:49 PM

I have been running my Wood-Mizer LT40 SuperHydraulic for 17 years. Something was wrong with the setup that you saw because if the heads normally shook, they would not be in business, and I would be running a different brand sawmill.

Southside · January 14, 2020, 10:50:10 PM

So I have two Woodmizer mills and they are used in my full time business which consists of making a lot of historical replication lumber for flooring, siding, molding, etc. My small mill is a hydraulic LT35 and my big on is a Super 70. Both have the single post design, and if I grab a hold of the head and put 275 lbs behind it, yes it will move, however it does not bounce, shake, jump, when cutting lumber. This evening we finished up 4 side molding about 600 square feet of yellow pine flooring that I had sawn on my 70, 100 pieces all together. From the thinnest to the thickest piece in that pile there was not 3/16" variation in thickness, I can tell you that because if there was then the safety on my moulder would have tripped out. Any variation that did exist was at one end of the board or the other which means that was due to the cant moving from stress while sawing and had nothing to do with the sawmill. The Lt 40 is a very, very, solid design that has untold hours of operation behind it. You can't go wrong with those.

jeepcj779 · January 15, 2020, 12:06:52 AM

See the following thread on cantilever head stability:

https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php?topic=108210.msg1688880#msg1688880

Should answer many of your questions. Welcome to the forum.

Jcald327 · January 15, 2020, 03:18:53 AM

Cooks pride themselves on innovation, and making nearly every piece in house, even the bearings from what I've been told. I've used one and was impressed across the board with how well it performed.

That being said, woodmizer is the gold standard. I'm sure with inflation and the likes, some people have sold theirs for as much as they paid for them, with a lot of lumber in middle. They have a network to find you work, a network to sell it if you dont like, I honestly think you'd have a hard time making less than 80-90 percent of your investment back if you dont like it in the first year or 2.

47sawdust · January 15, 2020, 06:14:15 AM

I would encourage you to visit Marty Parsons the WM dealer in Shade Gap,Pa.Marty is a frequent contributor here and has always been over the top helpful.
I have an LT30 that has performed w/o problem since 1997.I did add a simple set to it and it is a big help for older eyes.The level of support from WM has been at least as impressive as the engineering that goes into there mills.
I also like the Cook's mills,especially the M32.All major mfg.put out a good product or they would not be in business.
Good luck with your search and welcome to the forum.

Greysonvalleyrr · January 15, 2020, 08:20:26 AM

Thank you gentlemen for all of your answers, There is no dealer close to me being in NE Pa. Shady Gap is the other side of the state which is the closed actually. One thing I noticed that everyone has to turn on and off the blade coolant. Wondering why they do not install a switch when the blade starts to move, it would open a solenoid for coolant flow.

The other thing I did notice That I would call the rail that the Woodmeizer drives on a round piece of metal about 1" round. It was a new mill there at the woodworkers show. It was pretty rusted being a new machine (Surface rust) maybe being transported in the salt from there location to the show. I had asked him why they did not make it out of stainless instead of cold rolled steel and forget about the rust. He had no answer. Even thou I don't know much about a saw mill I believe I was asking him questions he did not like. Will have to do some more homework and see if anyone within a reasonable distance has
a open house to actually see them in action and I can bring a caliper gauge to measure the boards as they come off.

Thanks again and you have a very nice forum board.

WV Sawmiller · January 15, 2020, 08:34:47 AM

I have the WM LT 35 hydraulic and am well pleased with it and yes I have measured my boards and guess what - they are the same width and thickness on both ends. If they weren't I would make the adjustments to get them back in spec. I love my simple set for extremely consistent cuts. Using the SS along with my cheat sheet ensures I always end on my mark and saves me a cut on almost every cant.

All mills you mention are top quality machines made by reputable dealers who will give you great customer service support. I'd check the features on each for the ones most valuable to me. Horsepower and width of cut are important to match to the size logs you plan to cut. Go visit other local mills as much as possible and see what features they have and how much they are worth to you. Mostly watch the techniques used to help save labor and motion for efficient sawing. Good luck.

YellowHammer · January 15, 2020, 09:06:06 AM

Sawmills are sawmills, not milling machines, so accuracy is subjetive. I've owned three WM mills and also purchase a good deal of wood bought from commercial mega sawmills for our business (9,000 bdft just this week, in addition to my own sawing) using circular sawblades as breakdown rigs, as well as 4 to 6 inch bandsaws for miltihead resaws.

Using our band mill, among other things, I cut 4/4 boards to 1-1/8" thick, kiln dry them to 1-1/16" thick, then skip plane them to 15/16", basically taking 1/16" off each side. Most all the boards will end up with a 100% clean face on one side, maybe 100% to 90% clean face on the other side, planing off only 1/16" off per side. So our mill allows me to saw at standard 4/4 hardwood scale and sell at S2S at nearly one inch. That's very accurate for a sawmill, and I've done it with three different WM models.

In contrast, when I buy and process wood from one of the many local megamills, the skip planing process yields about 75% clear face one side and 50% clear face on the other. So all three of my bandmills have historically cut more accurate than the local commercial megamills.

When using a bandmill on a log, there are many factors that come into play to produce accurate lumber, the operator, the mill, the band, and even the stress in the log itself. When people see our wood and how straight it is, the common obeservation from people is that they thought that bandmills couldn't cut straight lumber. This is a sawmill heavy part of the state, I can't throw a rock without hitting a Cooks, Timber King or Woodmizer, sawmill, so the criticism isn't directed to any one brand. Indeed, one of the reasons I bought my first sawmill was that I couldn't buy straight lumber, so I figured I do it myself.

From what I've learned through experience is that if the sawmill isn't cutting straight lumber, it's rarely due to the sawmill.

Dozer_Man · January 15, 2020, 09:37:00 AM

I have a wood-mizer 35hd and yes the outside of the head does appear to bounce a little. You can't really see it from the operator side but as soon as I had someone else running it a year ago and I started stacking from that side of the mill I could see it better.

I have done a full alignment, been setup at different locations, and tried different degree bands, new rollers, new drive belt, and new wheel belts. It didn't really change anything. The wider the cut or duller the blade the more pronounced the bounce. But it still is not enough to make your lumber out of spec too much. Most I have seen is around 1/16 or so on the widest cuts, so not really that big a deal it all gets planed or goes on a side of a barn so not an issue really.

I also seen a new lt70 wide demo at an open house cutting white pine and it also did the bounce. It is made like my 35 with a single mast. I didnt notice the bounce on the new lt40 wide that was demoed maybe because it was double mast. Dont let that stop you from buying a wood-mizer though, mine has been great for the last 5 years and I have cut about 165,000 board feet with it so far. Remember that it is rough lumber and not dressed lumber.

Southside · January 15, 2020, 09:37:50 AM

Are you sure that was a new LT40 you were looking at? A friend picked one up a couple months ago, it's a 2018 model, and it came standard with a solonoid shut off for the lube, and I don't mean the lube mizer upgrade.

As far as stainless is concerned, it's not necessary or commonly used for roller surfaces. My 644 Lull has 80' worth of flat stock for the rollers to ride on and none are stainless. On the WM mills that cam rod is hard, probably heat treated 4145 alloy or something like that, it's not just cold rolled mild steel.

If it concerns you reach out to a few guys with 20 year old mills and see what theirs looks like, it's not an issue.

Dealership wise you have Shade Gap and Hannibal New York in your neck of the woods.

Yes, with any mill a setworks makes the sawyer better, I have one my moulder for that exact reason.

Magicman · January 15, 2020, 09:55:09 AM

I would encourage you to make a call to all three of the manufacturers that you listed and get a list of nearby owners/sawyers. That way you could make a visit and also have a "hands on".

SawyerTed · January 15, 2020, 11:14:55 AM

+1 on the head shake being a non-issue on the Wood-Mizer sawmills. An examination of the lumber coming off a Wood-Mizer that is setup and operated properly (nothing complicated about it) will reveal the lumber is straight and true in thickness and width. Some band sawmill manufacturers tout Wood-Mizer head shake as a problem but it is just a marketing ploy to differentiate their mills from Wood-Mizer. If the head is shaking and it is impacting lumber quality something is wrong with the mill or operation.

Lumber coming off the mill that tapers on the ends or has waves are the result of improper setup/adjustment and/or a dull or improperly set blade. Any band sawmill can have those problems and others that impact lumber quality such as loose drive belt, loose feed belt, build up on the blade, feed speed too high or low etc.

Bruno of NH · January 15, 2020, 11:34:08 AM

I just got a lt40 wide hydraulic 38hp gas this summer from Marty in Pa.
Woodmizer's mills cut perfect lumber.
I made the mistake once of not buying a Woodmizer.
Just my 2 cents

curved-wood · January 15, 2020, 02:45:36 PM

I have a WM LT40 hydraulic with more than 7,000 hours on it. Never had problem with the single mast design. If it is not cutting nice stuff there is something wrong (blade, speed, stress in the log, settings, etc.). My older mill was an Enercraft with 2 rails. I prefer the single mast because I saw a lot of eastern cedar which is not soo big logs and so I prefer to have a deck at the level of the mill than using the hydraulic to lift the log on the mill ( I am stationary ). With a 2 tracks I need to pull some supports to roll the log. Not with a single mast. Never had rust problem on the track and my mill has only a small roof with no walls, so windy rain touches it. I am very happy with WoodMizer, a well design machine with excellent service

MartyParsons · January 15, 2020, 07:40:33 PM

Hello,
My son and I were at the Baltimore show. I am very sorry we did not answer your questions. The top and bottom rail are hardened steel the surface rust happens but is never an issue. There is a line solenoid that stops the blade lube when the power feed drum switch is centered or a change of direction. The cuts are accurate and we do measure the lumber if we feel we have an issue. We did find some hardware in the logs that were provided at the show. We do many shows and get complacent about accuracy. You would be in my service area. We are in Virginia at a show this week. I would be glad to discuss options if you feel the need .
Thanks for letting us know that we did not meet your expectations.
Marty

dgdrls · January 15, 2020, 08:31:14 PM

Welcome to the FF Greysonvalleyrr,

Any of those mills will perform exceptionally,
I suggest you get hands-on with all of them before deciding.

If you have not already considered one, an automated swing mill,
would be a great option to as well.

The vendors are listed here on the site

D

Gere Flewelling · January 15, 2020, 08:40:42 PM

The Speaking from experience, you can't go wrong purchasing a Cook's mill. With their steel wheels you won't have to worry about blade lube. You can run a mixture of diesel fuel and automatic transmission fluid year round. Plus it doesn't take much lube to do the job. You can saw straight and true all day long whether you are sawing hardwood or softwood. If you buy a hydraulic mill, it will be 100% hydraulic. No 12volt hydraulic systems. No big hp robbing alternator to slow you engine down. And manufacturer's support that is equal to the best of them. The only drawback I can think of is that it will take 3 months to wait for a new one to be built. It will be worth the wait.

TKehl · January 16, 2020, 07:48:33 AM

How much lumber are you looking for? Would it be more cost effective to hire someone with a portable mill to cut your lumber?

Would you rather be milling logs or building bridges?

What size logs will you be cutting? If they have reached their biological age (you mention already dead or declining timber on your farm), they may well be too big for a typical sized band mill without quartering them.

Otherwise, I don't think you can go wrong with any of the brands you mentioned. They are all long time builders that make good product and stand behind it. ;)

John S · January 16, 2020, 09:55:41 AM

I am located in NW New Jersey, about 10 miles from Milford and would be willing to demonstrate my 2018 LT 40 Wide to you. I have purchased two mills from Marty Parsons and have always received great support and advice from him and his employees. They are having an Open House on Saturday, March 28, if you are interested in seeing a number of different models being demonstrated. They mill accurate lumber.

KenMac · January 16, 2020, 07:12:20 PM

I am happy with my Cook's AC36. If you want more info on them call and ask for Robert, He is knowledgeable about their products and they do have DVD's of most of their stuff. I know the computer setworks are described fairly well on a DVD. They are just good ole country boys.

Greysonvalleyrr · January 16, 2020, 08:16:37 PM

Again Thanks guys for the information. I did speak to Parsons today in Shady Gap , PA. Spoke to Marci there and asked what is the big difference between the LT40 and the super besides the price. She did not know everyone was out at a show in VA. the other question I had was plate for the trailer in Pa. She did not know that either she did say she was not a sales person and I was probably asking the wrong person.
I will give them a call next week when they get back. Looking now for a LT 40 I dont think I would need a diesel the mill would not get a lot of use just nice to have when I need it. Bought a new New Holland Skid loader 5 years ago and it has 181 hrs on it. I have a 1988 Case backhoe bought new and it just broke 1000 hrs last week.

Does the debarker cutter save blades? Would the 38HP gas cut wood easy which is on the LT40.

She said they have a LT 40 Super wide. Find nothing in there web site that says anything about it.
Thanks again.

SawyerTed · January 16, 2020, 09:12:53 PM

Others will have to respond on the difference between the LT 40 and the LT 40 Super but I think it has to do with hydraulics speed because the Super has two pumps.

The debarker absolutely does extend blade life. Bark on trees seems to collect grit, especially pine. Skidding and rolling logs on the ground collects dirt and gravel. The debarker clears all that abrasive and blade dulling stuff.

I have an LT 35 Hydraulic with 25 horse gas engine. It cuts most species relatively easy just not as fast as an LT 40. The 38 hp would do all you need to do for a mill to support your train ~~habit~~ hobby. The difference is speed of cut. The 38 hp will increase production significantly. Life will be much easier with more horsepower. The 25 hp is plenty, 38 is great if you can swing it. If I were picking, the LT 40 Super Hydraulic with a diesel would be ideal. An LT 35 Hydraulic actually will do all you need just not as fast.

jeepcj779 · January 16, 2020, 09:19:26 PM

The LT40 Super is advertised $3000 off right now on the Wood-Mizer web site.

https://woodmizer.com/us/LT40-Super-Hydraulic-Portable-Sawmill

John S · January 20, 2020, 04:19:30 PM

I believe the Super has faster hydraulics, probably a larger alternator, larger drive motor. The sawing capacities are the same, I am not a fan of Tier 4 diesel engines. As I mentioned in a previous response, PA Woodmizer has scheduled their Spring Open House on March 28 (Owners Day is March 27). I sawed all day in the snow on Saturday including an approximately 4000lb. oak. Happy customer!