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Upgraded Engine on OS23

Started by Troymx576, January 27, 2021, 02:49:04 PM

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Troymx576

First post and looking to buy a sawmill. Has anyone upgraded the engine on the OS23? I am looking at one and it has the 7hp engine, but my thought would be to want a larger one after reading that everyone says " More Power". 

Am I safe to assume that the shaft is 3/4" or 1" and basically any horizontal engine will work? I am not sure which one it comes with. I would need to make a new engine mount I assume to make the shaft in the correct location.  

Has anyone gone up to the Predator 22HP electric start? Or is that to much for this size mill? They also have a 13hp for $379 that could be a good upgrade. 

Thanks for the help. 

APope

Welcome to the forum. What are you going to be cutting? The Frontier OS23 doesn't come with stainless bunk caps and they don't offer them as an option. I mention this because if you want to cut oak, ferrous metal contact can cause staining of the wood.
You can't get too heavy of a motor. The head lift (on my OS31) is a pair of 3/16 galvanized cables which are redirected through two pulleys each and wrapped around a 1 inch tube.
I wish that I had purchased the Kohler electric start option so that I could charge a battery for a winch to load and turn.
Unafraid to use my chainsaw, JD 2640, Frontier OS31

Jdock

I have an os23 with the 7.5 briggs. It does alright in softer woods, it'll blow right through pine or poplar. A 20" wide hard maple crotch will stall it out. A 10" black locust is more than it wants. I have a gx 390 honda to go on it the issue is the height of the output shaft from the base of the engine is about an inch more on the honda. Nothing a grinder and welder can't fix in an hour but it's a deal breaker without those as the shaft height can't be any higher due to the proximity of the pulley to the blade. I'll try to figure out how to post a picture tomorrow

Troymx576

Quote from: APope on January 27, 2021, 05:17:19 PM
Welcome to the forum. What are you going to be cutting? The Frontier OS23 doesn't come with stainless bunk caps and they don't offer them as an option. I mention this because if you want to cut oak, ferrous metal contact can cause staining of the wood.
You can't get too heavy of a motor. The head lift (on my OS31) is a pair of 3/16 galvanized cables which are redirected through two pulleys each and wrapped around a 1 inch tube.
I wish that I had purchased the Kohler electric start option so that I could charge a battery for a winch to load and turn.
Thanks for the welcome. I am excited to be able to saw my own wood and make the things in my head come to life. It is just for a hobby on my own property. I plan to make a new large chicken coop, pig house and a log cabin style guest place for fun. My first project would be to make a place to house the saw and/or wood that has been cut.  I have a mix of trees, but a good portion are hardwoods, Oaks and such. I plan to clear 3-5 acers over the next few years to make pasture for animals. Almost all my trees are less than 23" in diameter. I found one at 27" and one at 33" so the 23 should work for me, plus the smaller size trees are easier to manage. 

If buying new I was debating on OS23 10hp or OS27 13.5hp. OS23 with options was right around 3K and OS27 13.5 was around 4K. I did not know if the extra 1K for the 13.5hp is worth it though.  I am leaning towards the OS23 for budget reasons. I also pondered getting the 7hp and just upgrading on my own to a predator 22hp if possible. The electric start would be nice, but I am not sure if it will fit. Being able to fabricate with metal has its advantages, but I was not sure if items of location or size of the shaft would be a problem. Maybe I will pay the $200 more to get the 10hp and then upgrade later if I want. 
On the SS bunk caps I was wondering if that was a good option to do. I have a shop here and can make some SS caps if needed as I build race cars on side. That should not be hard to make. Someday I might make a trailer setup and add hydraulics if I really get into the sawmilling, but then I might make everything custom. I want to start out small and simple as I am usually the guy that jumps way in with two feet before understanding it all. My thought would be if I wanted to upgrade at some point I could always sell what I buy now. 

Troymx576

Quote from: Jdock on January 27, 2021, 09:22:04 PM
I have an os23 with the 7.5 briggs. It does alright in softer woods, it'll blow right through pine or poplar. A 20" wide hard maple crotch will stall it out. A 10" black locust is more than it wants. I have a gx 390 honda to go on it the issue is the height of the output shaft from the base of the engine is about an inch more on the honda. Nothing a grinder and welder can't fix in an hour but it's a deal breaker without those as the shaft height can't be any higher due to the proximity of the pulley to the blade. I'll try to figure out how to post a picture tomorrow
Thanks for the insight and that really helps as I will be cutting a lot of hardwood. A picture would be great. I do wonder if the predator 22hp is around the same height or not. I am leaning towards just buying a new OS23 10hp and then looking at upgrading if I feel the need. I did wonder about shaft diameter matching up so I could put the clutch on either engine and if it did not match up if I could buy a clutch with the correct shaft size. 

Nebraska

Save your money and go for a bigger saw you will not be sorry.  Take good looks at WM lt15 or EZ boardwalk 40, and the like. They will handle a 20 inch plus log. Do you have support equipment to go along with your mill?

Troymx576

Quote from: Nebraska on January 28, 2021, 08:14:48 AM
Save your money and go for a bigger saw you will not be sorry.  Take good looks at WM lt15 or EZ boardwalk 40, and the like. They will handle a 20 inch plus log. Do you have support equipment to go along with your mill?
From what I read that seems to be the answer anytime someone has a budget. "Save up, do not spend 3K, you need to spend 8K or 10K for a decent sawmill". Then I see people post that they do fine with the smaller ones. I would love to have a larger one with a giant monster engine and hydraulics even, but that is not realistic for me now and maybe never with budget and being a hobby guy doing it.  If I had to say 8K for a sawmill that would mean I would not be able to saw logs for another 1-3 years to save up that much money and then it would be really hard to justify spending that kind of money for a hobby to build some fun things for myself. 
I do have a Kabota tractor, so I can cut down and drag them over, I can use the bucket to load them up on it. I was also thinking about having slides on the side so I can roll them up or get a winch from HF and make a pulley system to drag them up.  I have used the tractor for years to gather wood to cut up for firewood.  I also have a power washer to wash them off ahead of time if dirty from dragging. I have tools to be able to sharpen blades as needed also and I have multiple chainsaws. I think I have a good start.  

farmfromkansas

Maybe you could find a good used mill, get a bigger mill and not save for years. A mill is just the start of your journey.  I continue to add more to make this cutting lumber work better, first saw, then dry, and you need a wood shop to build things. That boardwalk 40 has a huge capacity, and comes up for sale used as guys move up to hydraulics. Cooks makes short bed mp32 models with smaller engines that don't cost as much as the packages with large engines and long capacity. And they are built heavy for a life time of use.
Most everything I enjoy doing turns out to be work

Troymx576

Quote from: farmfromkansas on January 28, 2021, 10:12:11 AM
Maybe you could find a good used mill, get a bigger mill and not save for years. A mill is just the start of your journey.  I continue to add more to make this cutting lumber work better, first saw, then dry, and you need a wood shop to build things. That boardwalk 40 has a huge capacity, and comes up for sale used as guys move up to hydraulics. Cooks makes short bed mp32 models with smaller engines that don't cost as much as the packages with large engines and long capacity. And they are built heavy for a life time of use.
I have been looking for used mills in my area for my budget and no luck yet. I do see some used ones, but those I have seen that are decent are the in 8-10K range. 
I do have some items for building things so far, table saw, miter box/saw/ planners, routers, ect, plus a tractor. I also have a log home now and helped build a good portion of it so I am familiar with woodworking on a basic level at least.  I do agree that this might start something much bigger long turn and that would be nice if I enjoy it enough to do that. I think at that time I could justify spending a good amount on a mill. I also read up on some of the people making their own mills and that is appealing as I build race cars on the side so my metal fabrication skills are there, plus I have the vertical metal band saw, welders, ect to do it. 
My other thought is, and correct me if I am thinking crazy here, if I spend 3K on a mill and use it to make a few things and then do not like it I could sell it for like 2K.  Or if I really like it I could build or buy a much bigger one and sell the mill I have gotten.  Even if I do not like it and build the few things I have on my mind right now the savings for the wood cost justifies the purchase. 
Also, being new to sawmilling I am not trying to come across as combative, I just have so many questions and with so many options and opinions on everything it is a giant rabbit hole of knowledge to jump into. 

farmfromkansas

I bought a mill 15 years ago to feed my wood habit.  Also rebuilt a pole shed into a wood shop, and bought a pile of new machines over the last few years.  And a skidsteer about 15 years ago, then decided needed a way to dry lumber, hence a solar powered wood dryer in a 48' insulated container, and a solar kiln.  Also built a 16' addition to my shop for a wood storage room, along with DC, air compressor, and tire machine.  Takes more and more to make this thing work, but anyway in the last 15 years the only boards I have bought have been plywood.  No solid lumber, cut that.  And hardwood is expensive to buy.  Did I say I am having fun?
Most everything I enjoy doing turns out to be work

sawguy21

Adding a 22 hp engine to a 7 hp unit without upgrading the rest of the mill is a waste of time and money, all you are doing is moving the weak link. We learned that in the 60's hot rodding marginal cars with engines the drive trains were never designed for. Of course we drove the heck out of them which didn't help.
old age and treachery will always overcome youth and enthusiasm

Jdock

The predator 22hp is a twin cylinder, not enough room to mount on the sawhead. Not to mention it'd be obscene overkill. The 13 hp Honda is plenty for the size log the os23 is capable of handling. The 10 hp briggs is probably sufficient for most stuff. Even the 7.5 cuts 16" wide red oak no problem as long as it's fairly clear. My os23 is capable of handling almost anything I'm capable of putting on it given my limited support equipment. The logs I've had trouble with were dry, knotty and extremely hard. I'm extremely happy with my purchase overall I'd be losing a lot of time sawing waiting to afford a bigger saw I don't have the support capacity to fully utilize.

farmfromkansas

You have to search out all the different ways mills are sold in your area.  One time I discovered a mill on Nextech classifieds, another was looking at Big Iron auctions, and a neighbor bought his from an ad in Grass & Grain, a farm paper.
Most everything I enjoy doing turns out to be work

Jdock

I forgot to mention the clutch is for a 1" shaft and the base has multiple mounting patterns. Any horizontal engine with the correct shaft height would be an extremely easy retrofit, 5 bolts and a cable. Only reason I'm dead set on the Honda is I already have a couple of them. Keep an eye out at the dump, it's amazing what people throw away. 

RichTired

Troy,
Maybe take a look at this Wood-Mizer model to see if it meets your needs. 

LX25
Wood-Mizer LT15GO, Kubota L2800, Husqvarna 268 & Stihl 241 C-M chainsaws, Logrite cant hook, Ford F-150 Fx4

Richard

Troymx576

WOW.  Thank you all for the information as it really helps. 

After more research and feedback messages from people on the forum here, which is a giant help and also some feedback I saw on a TB group I am strongly considering the WoodMizer LX25 with 9.5hp engine. I like how it is made in the USA and seems to have a good following. That can do up to 26" logs and seems like a good small mill so far. 

Does anyone have an LX25 and can give feedback? 

What a rollercoaster trying to figure out what is the best saw for myself and be in budget. 

Troymx576

Quote from: RichTired on January 28, 2021, 04:00:17 PM
Troy,
Maybe take a look at this Wood-Mizer model to see if it meets your needs.

LX25
I did take a look at the LX25, I liked how it was constructed and liked how it is actually made in the USA. It seems like the perfect fit for me with my wants and needs. 
I ordered it today, LX25 with 9.5hp engine, added the 5' extension and got a box of 5 blades. 
The only bad thing is that I need to wait 12 weeks to get it as expected arrival is May. 
It does give me time to read up on the forum more, read up on best sawmill practices and get some trees ready for sawing. I already have 6 projects in mind, a sawmill shed, wood shed, smaller garage/shed for my tractor and other items, greenhouse, chicken coop mansion and pig house. It should be a fun summer and fall. 
Thanks for all the help everyone. My sawmill adventure will begin soon.  

Nebraska

Congratulations on your purchase  while you wait, figure out your spot, build a slab rack for waste,  another rack you  can off bear to while you are sawing. Mine has ribs on it that allow my pallet  forks to slide under the stacked wood to move it. I built another rack to set stuff on for temporary storage in case I don't have a chance to stack and sticker the day I cut it, (which I should do but don't sometimes).  Have fun and enjoy your journey  down the rabbit hole. Post pictures of your new toy.

farmfromkansas

Nebraska, could you post a pic of the racks you mentioned?  I usually just set a pallet on the ground to stack lumber on, and an old trailer to throw the slabs, maybe you have a better idea?
Most everything I enjoy doing turns out to be work

Troymx576

Quote from: Nebraska on January 29, 2021, 10:48:34 AM
Congratulations on your purchase  while you wait, figure out your spot, build a slab rack for waste,  another rack you  can off bear to while you are sawing. Mine has ribs on it that allow my pallet  forks to slide under the stacked wood to move it. I built another rack to set stuff on for temporary storage in case I don't have a chance to stack and sticker the day I cut it, (which I should do but don't sometimes).  Have fun and enjoy your journey  down the rabbit hole. Post pictures of your new toy.
Thanks, and after watching videos of people sawing I want to make sure my setup is done right to save time and energy. I also have a log splitter and save wood for burning. I was thinking I could set it up with the back towards the current wood shed and use the chainsaw to cut pieces to burnable sizes as I go. Maybe this year I will not be cutting and chopping wood in Oct or Nov, though with a log splitter is a bit of cheating now. 
On the sawmill shed/shop I have a lot of different ideas on that and have to consider how and where I will load new logs, where the wasted pieces go, where to I stack and store the new boards, how much room I will need, where to dry them if needed, where to work them when dried. The least amount of time I am moving the wood from place A to B to .... the better. 

Nebraska

 

 

 

This will give you the jist, I looked through my gallery quick and this was what I had there. I will take a picture of them specifically after work. First shows table I can off put to, and my slab rack. Second  picture shows both and my temporary  storage rack in the background.  I use my pallet forks as an extra  table as well.  Yes I wish my mill was bigger and hydraulic, but it does work well.

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