Timber buddy mill.

[BargeMonkey]

Anyone seen one ? It's Amish made and built in NY. About the same price as a new comparable Cooks. Nothing really wrong but at 7khrs its getting time for the timberharvester to go down the road. 


 


 

[Stephen1]

Looks nice but hard to see. Looks fully hydraulic witha chain turner. Are thry close to you?

[Bruno of NH]

I have seen a YouTube video of that mill running a big John deer power plant.
It was fast and had some very nice options on it.

[moodnacreek]

They advertise in Equipment showcase that also advertises hand set wide band mills, line shaft ready.

[BargeMonkey]

Built in western NY, couple hours from me. Yeah looking at the 120hp 4.5 deere power tech model with all the options but haven't physically seen one yet, why I'm wondering. 🤷‍♂️ 

[Walnut Beast]

Did you get it yet ?

[BargeMonkey]

2nd week of May. 

[Walnut Beast]

What hp did you get on it and how do you like it? How wide does it cut? Looks like the guide roller system is built fairly well.

[BargeMonkey]

 120hp 4.5 Powertech. Big cook wheels, guides, baker scale, All I got was pictures of it being delivered and then getting it in the building, I will see it in July when I get home. Jeff said it's HEAVY, got it pointed in and on the dolleys, kept rolling it in with the 644. 


 


 I need some tamerack for a porch and may do this 2 family in board and batten so I will find out 🤷‍♂️ 

[Walnut Beast]

The price I seen on one last year that was on Proxibid was really good. It definitely looks impressive. That one had the setworks on it. I don't know if yours has it also. But with the full hydraulics it looks impressive! 

[Walnut Beast]

 
Here was the setworks 
 

[Southside]

Nice mill.  What size bands will it run? 

[BargeMonkey]

No fancy set works, we never used them on the last mill. Ordered extra plumbing to run a Baker 3 strand live deck that's got to be lowered and put in. Biggest selling point was the wheels, how the bearings are set up, 2" bands. Have to find a slab saw here at somepoint. 

[Riwaka]

Is the Timber Buddy for cornering the high-end kindling firewood market?

The Buddy feeding two Pezzolato TB 600s kindling stompers with 6 inch thick slabs.

TB 600 Pezzolato firewood processor to produce kindling logs - YouTube

[tacks Y]

Barge, Are the wheels steel or run a belt? How big are they? You will love the high wheel, I love mine 1" = 3 or more inches on the wheel.

[BargeMonkey]

Here it is, 🤷‍♂️. Didn't order the set works, ordered everything else. Powered rollers, the big engine, wanted the fuel tank remote, no power feed back belt. I think you could work a man to death tailing behind it. 
 

 


 

 


 


 


 


 
 2" bands. The big wheels. Everything is hydraulic. 

[Walnut Beast]

Very nice! All hydraulics are very nice! How wide does it cut through the throat 

[Walnut Beast]

I don't think you will have any complaints on power 😂

[barbender]

Dang!

[BargeMonkey]

Very nice! All hydraulics are very nice! How wide does it cut through the throat

I want to say it's capable of 38" x 20' but the door is only 17'8". That's the 3rd sawmill to sit there, originally there was a left hand Frick / 471 with a sawdust pit, had a small "300-6" circle mill inside and a "quality" brand band mill inside as a resaw, then the Timberharvester came, went to 1 mill, now this one. That mill will saw 2 triaxle load a day and not grunt, debating a new edger and slab saw, why we didn't mind cutting the hole, set the slab saw up with a trailer. We don't have the help and honestly I would rather invest money in iron and not help. No diff than with the hay, gravel pits or the logging, better iron and less wages / insurance. 

[OntarioAl]

Barg
Do you have to feed it DEF fluid
c\Cheers
Al

[BargeMonkey]

No def... 🤫 call it an Amish loophole, it's a "re-man" 4045 with the same warranty as new, in a new mill. Looked at a new Cook, Baker, went with this because they would build it exactly with whatever we wanted. It's not a small light mill, pictures are a little deceiving, I think it was 36-48 ? anchors to hold it down to the concrete. 

[barbender]

It looks like a tank, it actually looks a lot like a Baker.

 If I ever bought a new mill from one of the big manufacturers, I think I would try to talk them into a glider😁 No engine, rebuild a Kubota or something and bolt it on.

[Bruno of NH]

I have always wondered about specifying the engine you want. 
I want a Kubota liquid cooled gas engine

[Southside]

Mini nuke, one of those University reactors, power the rest of the operation with the excess power.  :D

[mudfarmer]

Let us know how the sawyer likes it. I am guessing the tailgunner won't  :D

[Brad_S.]

Awesome machine! I've been wondering about them since I first saw the name. The logo is a complete rip off of timber harvester; are they in any kind of connection between them and the old timber harvester company? I'm still a diehard timber harvester supporter even 15 years after they disappeared.

[BargeMonkey]

No relation. Amish built, the best of everyone's design. No def 😆. The mill we sold was the 2nd to last Timberharvester made ? when the guy dropped it off in 2001 ? This new mill will eat a Timberharvester or a Cooks alive, no comparison.

[Walnut Beast]

With it being stationary, heavy duty and big horsepower I'm surprised there are not more guys using them. It looked like the marketing is pretty Amish old school. And not being able to crank very many units out probably has a little to do with it. The new one I seen sell on proxi bid with setworks was really nice and incredible value.

[moodnacreek]

I see there is another small band made in N.Y. called Echo.

[woodduckhunter]

They are Amish, so there s not a lot out there about them.  Am strongly considering one after all the problems I'm having out of a brand new mill.  How is this mill and how are they holding up in general?

[woodduckhunter]

There are periodically some new ones that pop up in the auctions as well.  Mills appear to be very simple.

[BargeMonkey]

 All and all it is a good mill. The thing that was the selling point was how the wheels where supported, thru shaft and bearings either side. 120 hp, 2.5" bands, it will walk thru softwood. Mud saw is overkill, turner is very aggressive. 
 Your going to have minor issues, stuff not quite set right, more bugs than anything else. They require supplied air, and the mills aren't built with a fuel tank, you supply that. As far as build quality it's a nice machine. 

[Southside]

What runs on air Barge? 

[BargeMonkey]

Debarker cylinder, throttle and a couple other things, I would have to be standing looking at it to tell you. 

[customsawyer]

Nice looking mill.

[nativewolf]

That's a lot of HP but then the 125 HP unit is also running hydraulics, right?    I think a full industrial production Clearman is only 125HP (electric-so up that to get the diesel comp) but that's a full 6 " band.  

That's a neat option.   Seems you could do hurdle mill type production.  

[woodduckhunter]

What kind of production numbers have been had?  I know it varies, lets say 7x9 hwd ties in 12-15 inch logs? Thinking about going circular at this point though.

[BargeMonkey]

 Haven't run it enough to give an honest #.  Looking at a BIG edger, have to move some stuff around inside to actually be productive with it, 2x people hustling I bet you could saw 12-15kft a day easy. 

[nativewolf]

Haven't run it enough to give an honest #.  Looking at a BIG edger, have to move some stuff around inside to actually be productive with it, 2x people hustling I bet you could saw 12-15kft a day easy.

You'd be right there with a couple of people on a hurdle mill and I guess much less cost.  Seems you picked a winner winner chicken dinner mill.

[mudfarmer]

It is real nice having air at the mill 👍😎 At the circle mill it had been setup by the original guy with a compressor on the Detroit and a couple decent shop size tanks, with drops plumbed all over. The "throttle" was actuated with ain air brake can, normal dash valve at the sawyer's station. 

At the end of the day you have high volume high pressure air to clean off the mill and live deck, by the edger, conveyors (long wand nozzles on drops++) and you have air available for cylinders, air tools etc

Glad to hear it is cranking along!  Maybe there is a guy with tt loads of low grade red oak that needs turned into fence boards?? Long shot I know 

[woodduckhunter]

Hi all, any new reports on these mills?  I thought I had all of the bugs worked out of my new mill, but it doesn't seem as if that is ever going to happen.  So, it has to go down the road before the 2000 hr warranty.  Currently at about 500 and need to make a decision with lead times, etc.  Have got it narrowed down to the timber buddy or meadows/hurdle.  But, if I can get the production numbers up there would rather run the band setup.  Thoughts?

[BargeMonkey]

 I can let you know in a few months, been so busy I don't think there's 300hrs on this one now. It puts wood out, not horrible on fuel, the 2.5" bands are nicer, overbuilt bearings. It's Amish made, your going to find some things that make you scratch your head a little. 

[moodnacreek]

Unless you have a vertical edger on the mill a big edger is the way to go. I passed on several combo edgers back in the 90's cheap and i kick myself these days for not buying one. Didn't have the experiance back then. To get by with my board edger I have a 4 speed trans in the feed drive and in first gear I can edge 3" locust and single cut 4". Putting stuff back on the carriage with the mill I have now is too much trouble. Get a big edger.