LT40 Manual to Hydraulic Upgrades

[pineywoods]

Stuff you would love to add to an older bandmill

1 Log turner/clamp
2 Powered Toe roller
3 powered backstops
4 simple cheap setworks
5 sawdust blower
6 simple cheap remote console.
7 bed extension

On the older woodmizers, almost none of the factory parts will fit without extensive welding/cutting. Not a good idea
The killer on the first 3 items is a source of power. Not much way to use the main engine. If you are fixed, electric motor driving a hydraulic pump is probably the most feaseable. For portable use, there is 12volt dc power or a small gas engine. 12v dc has a whole bunch of drawbacks, I favor a small gas engine mounted in a separate unit with quick disconnect hoses.  ie, use your log splitter ?
I'm still looking for a way to add a simple setworks to my old mill. The new simple setworks looks like just the ticket, alas it won't adapt without a bunch of re-work.
I hate shoveling sawdust in a fixed location. I do have a sawdust blower, but has some inherent problems. It uses a long flex hose which is constantly tearing somewhere. Lots of duct tape. There has to be a way to use rigid thin wall pipe.
Remote console - do-able for a few hundred bucks, I have one, but found it to be almost useless without setworks.
Bed extension--The factory 6 footer will fit after a fashion, but it's a continuous hassle to keep it aligned. One FF member has come up with a jig to install alignment pins that solves the problem...There's pics and descriptions in the sawmill forum. 

Notice there is no mention of a log loader. Money better spent on a tractor or something with forks.

Mary Parsons makes some valid points. Support for an up-graded mill could get to be a real problem, especially during installation. Up-grading at a service center might make more sense.

Then there is the cost factor. At what point is it better to take bibby's approach just swap for a later model..

[MotorSeven]

MM, no, I just use a 60 & 78" Logrite. If they are really big I wrap a chain on them and turn them very carefully with the tractor forks. It works and is a little time consuming, but it sure beats standing around waiting for a few neighbors to come and help ;)

In all honesty I would much rather upgrade. But, I built my own extension so I can cut out to 26-ish feet, so if I want a LT35HD to do that it's gonna cost a lot of $ on top of the mill price.

[Meadows Miller]

Keep the 15 for the long stuff thats what I was going to do if we got a 15  ;) ;D ;D 8) 8)

[Brucer]

WM has discussed this some, a customer who purchases a new mill usually does not do any up grades to his mill during ownership.

I guess I'm one of the exceptions, Marty. But I wonder if one reason people don't do upgrades is that the upgrades they want aren't available.

I started with the intention of running a part-time, money making business. I didn't have the budget for anything more than an LT40 manual and I was not sure how much market there would be in any case. As it turned out, there wasn't much of a market at first. However, I began to create a new market after about 6 months, and after another 6 months I was at the point where I could use some additions.

• My first priority was a hydraulic clamp, to save walking around the mill. Not available, because the frame would have to be modified.
• My second priority was a debarker. That was available.
• Third priority was a hydraulic loader. That had just become available as a bolt-on kit.

However, without the hydraulic clamp, or at least a clamp that could be operated from the "driver's side", I didn't want to invest in any other upgrades. Note: I would have been able to do the first upgrade if the LT40 manual had the same frame as an LT40 hydraulic.

The upshot was that I upgraded the whole mill by buying a hydraulic LT40 with a debarker.

• Within 6 months I had added an autoclutch.
• The following year I added a remote dragback (salvaged off a Super-Hydraulic).
• Shortly after that I added the front and rear Fine Adjust Outriggers (new style). If I was still doing a lot of mobile work I would have added the other four FAO's later.
• Three years ago I added a 6' extension. Two years ago I added a second 6' extension.
• Last year I added a solenoid to the gravity feed lube system (poor man's LubeMizer).

Over the years I have been constantly improving my material handling capabilities. I'm at the point where there is not point in doing more sawmill upgrades until I speed up material handling even more. But when that point comes, here's what I would likely do ...

• Home-built "booster" loader for the first extension. I have a bolt-on design that could incorporated a lot of WM parts. This could be offered as a kit.
• Home-built tie-rod to link the side stop on the first extension to the main side-stop system. This could be offered as a kit as well.
• Home-made bolt-on roller system for offloading long timbers from the back end of the mill (using a lot of WM parts).

And then ...

• Upgrade head and power feed motors, along with the battery and alternator.
• Add a second hydraulic pump.
• Add Accuset 2.
• Convert to remote operator station.
• When I finally wear out the 28 HP gas engine, upgrade to a diesel.

In effect I would be building a super-hydraulic mill. Why not simply trade up to a Super? Because I can do the change in affordable increments, interrupting the upgrade if I get hit with another economic downturn.

There is no particular reason to do the upgrades in that order -- it happens to be the one to suit my operation.

You mentioned that a lot of people advise to buy "the most mill you can afford". So what if a first-time sawyer invests a lot of money and finds out the interest isn't there, or the work isn't there? Now he/she has a big (and possibly embarrassing) investment that  isn't earning its keep. By offering a completely upgradable mill (based on the LT40) you may pick up quite a few customers -- for new mills and for upgrades. I wouldn't be surprised if such a mill would have a pretty good resale value as well.

[stumpy]

I have a manual LT30 with the hand crank log turner.  I simply replaced the manual crank with a 2500# electric winch.  It works great and was relatively cheap.

[Bump]

The buss rail and a RF control module are my current add on got the simple set love it and with the power from the head and full remote RF control using a control logics plc and remote I/O for bed/material handling. I'm big on using barcodes from the butts to side of milled lumber. For the clamp Thompson linear bearings and a single flip up clamp just as on the sawers side.

[Ohio_Bill]

Wow Bump , You have been busy on your LT40 . I would love to see some pictures of modifications. Sounds great.