Log deck and green chain

PAmizerman · February 24, 2019, 12:29:34 PM

So I've been pondering the idea of making a log deck and green chain. I want a powered log deck. Has anyone made one? What size chain did you use? Where can I buy the chains and sprockets to make my own? Thanks

Bill_G. · February 24, 2019, 12:56:34 PM

With all the sawmill auctions you should be able to find some . They are much cheaper to buy at auction then the cost of building one.

Ron Wenrich · February 24, 2019, 01:22:08 PM

We had a green chain that was factory built. But, you could quite easily build it yourself. The chain was just regular chain like they use for logging or chaining down loads on a truck. This particular setup was to run it in a piece of angle iron set like a V. On the top, they put a piece of flat steel on each side so the edge of the chain was through to support the wood. I imagine you can get a sprocket for that chain at a farm equipment dealer.

I've also seen guys use a flat chain like they use in dust drags. They won't put up with heavy loads or shock loads (like throwing a timber down on it).

For a log deck, I had a deck made by Jackson Lbr Harvester. It was a 2 strand deck and had 2 hydraulic motors on it. It was a simple build. The chain was an offset chain that had some high rollers. It was set in a piece of channel iron on an I beam. The chain would actually pull cants in faster than the chain traveled due to the high rollers. I filled had the deck filled with 23' switch tie logs, and it pulled them in fine.

Sometimes buying used is more cost effective vs building your own.

redbeard · February 24, 2019, 02:03:34 PM

Glad you posted this thread PA
We're in same boat looking for ideas for handling slabs, flitches and boards.
Studying Utube there's alot of ideas if you search " sawmill contraptions"
If you wanna see home built.
Ran across a few ideas where a powered roller deck had spirals wrapped around rollers so when material was dragged back from mill and onto roller deck when it hit a back stop it would go sideways.
Tried posting a video of a Baker and minor edger set up that had this couldn't share it.

YellowHammer · February 24, 2019, 02:36:19 PM

I'm in the same boat. I need powered conveyors for flitches and slabs.

I bought some used, actually they were overly used, unfortunately I never have time to get them operational.

I visited Baker and among other things. watched their specialty two man operation in person. It's on YouTube. Amazing setup but heart attack expensive. But wow. These two guys get paid for production and they push the wood out.

moodnacreek · February 24, 2019, 03:52:20 PM

In the past 10 years I have done both, most recently a Mellot log deck [stop and load, 3 strand]. This one came from an auction and as suggested you should watch for these. This log deck was a lot of work to install because I put a floor in it and steel skirting on 3 sides plus I matched it to the wood deck around the log turner. Day after of confusion; cutting short 6x8 box beams with a sawsall. Well worth the labor as cleaning up is a breeze and very little gets underneath. My present green chain is a 4 strand log deck, 12x20' converted to lumber use. This was another auction item. The old green chain is now the edger deck. This was my first deck made from a self unloading silage wagon; 67 chain, 3 strands in 4" locust lined channel iron, 60 to 1 gear box, 1 hp electric. Although built lite and cheap this little [11x12'] has done a lot of work. We used to load it so heavy, as much as 3000 bd. ft. we had to start it with a pipe wrench. The main shaft was 2" pipe because that's what the sprockets fit. You can cut your own sprockets for 78 chain with a torch and if you build a heavy deck this is the chain to use.

dustintheblood · February 24, 2019, 04:21:12 PM

Made my own.... love it!

This pic was just before we did all the other installs of support equipment. It feeds a firewood processer (right side of photo). The sawmill log deck is static and removable to allow me to quickly get it out of the way to load the biggun logs with the forklift.

dustintheblood · February 24, 2019, 04:24:33 PM

Here's a better, more recent shot.

PAmizerman · February 24, 2019, 04:25:11 PM

I have been to several auctions so far. I'll the log decks went for over $3k. And I knew I still had to pay to get them out and delivered yet.

@YellowHammer I have watched the baker video probably 100 times already :D
That is the setup I am most interested in trying to duplicate. I saw LOTS of hemlock. Mostly siding. So efficiency is key to making money. I don't get into any of the high dollar stuff :'(

I already have a couple roller tables.
I also figured out the inner workings of the dump tables. I already have the air solenoids, lines and all the fittings.
I bought an air cylinder and played with it last year to make sure it would work.

Now all I need is to save enough money to be able to move to the new property and put up a HUGE building :D

Oh yeah and see what I can do about the log deck and green chains.
Thanks for the input so far. Keep em coming.

PAmizerman · February 24, 2019, 04:28:40 PM

@dustintheblood that's exactly what I was looking for! What size chain did you use?
Is that powered by electric? Did you use a pulley to slow it down or find a motor with a gearbox?

PAmizerman · February 24, 2019, 04:30:01 PM

Got a pic of the log deck?

Ron Wenrich · February 25, 2019, 06:09:25 AM

You'll find that flat belt conveyors work much better for flitches and slabs than a roller deck.

longtime lurker · February 25, 2019, 07:09:00 AM

Personally I think that if you're doing a flat deck the stop and load is more important than the deck that feeds it. I ran a long time with a good hydraulic stop and load and a declined dead deck and never really had any problems with it at all much. The other thing with a well positioned stop and load is that the arms (subject to mill design) will function quite nicely as a cant storage area for stuff that has to come back to resaw.

The best live log decks I've seen all had an incline on them, and ran heavy chain with lugs on it: the uphill run works as a singulator.

Get your reduction using a chain drive and cog sizes... loaded log decks get heavy and belts will slip and gearboxes are added complexity. KISS and all that.

Speaking of uphill runs and singulators I've recently looked at a setup that had steep skids down off the headsaw outfeed then an uphill greenchain to the resaw. The valley formed served as a surge deck..... realistically it put the capacity of a 20' greenchain into a 8' lateral space. So simple, why didn't I think of that?

Just a couple of thoughts.

dustintheblood · February 25, 2019, 07:21:41 AM

Quote from: PAmizerman on February 24, 2019, 04:28:40 PM
@dustintheblood that's exactly what I was looking for! What size chain did you use?
Is that powered by electric? Did you use a pulley to slow it down or find a motor with a gearbox?

I'll get you specs and more pics later today.
It's driven by hydraulic motor (pump's on the firewood processor). Belt from pump to gear reduction, roller chain from gear reduction to main sprockets.
Best thing I did was to use the nylon channel for the chain. I can over load it and it just slides so easy.

PAmizerman · February 25, 2019, 11:10:38 AM

This is the system I saw that I think will work good for what I do. With a few minor changes.
Baker Dominator Band Sawmill & reverse edger in action - YouTube

It incorporates everything you guys mentioned. Flat belts, inclines, stop and load. I already have the flat belt conveyors
(Auction find) and a dust blower.
I would love to have a stop and load but don't know if I can afford one.

I work alone all the time.
Here is my most recent brainstorm

I found a green chain and log deck for sale that's not too far from me. The log deck doesn't have the stop and load though.

PAmizerman · February 25, 2019, 11:12:48 AM

YellowHammer · February 25, 2019, 07:22:49 PM

That's the system we looked at. Two guys, all day, and every day, cranking out pallet after pallet of wood.

longtime lurker · February 25, 2019, 07:50:55 PM

Rather than the incline sorting here we use what we call a wiper bar: its a horizontal bar that travels left/right across the top of the rollcase and basicly wipes it clean pushing everything ahead of it sideways. Kind of like a linebar but used as a sort mechanism.
Upside is they are quick and easy to fabricate, and as fast as your air/hydraulic piston driving it can go. Downside is you need to think about whats going where so its positioned on the correct side before the material gets to it.

I dont have one myself but I'll see if I can find some pics of one working.

Try this for a simple and easy to build singulator if you had a hyd mill and wanted to still use the loader arms as opposed to building a full stop and load. Ignore the mill - decent enough mill but the guy dont know how to use it - but you get a good look at the singulator right at the start and around the 3.30 mark. That would be so easy to build at the end of a log deck, and with a bit of thought you could probably integrate it with the entire drive shaft for the feed chains so it all went around together off one motor.

Laimet 120 DEMO - YouTube

PAmizerman · February 25, 2019, 08:59:10 PM

Now we're getting the creative thinking going. Thanks @longtime lurker

PAmizerman · February 25, 2019, 09:01:21 PM

Is this what you are thinking @longtime lurker
Sawmill Contraptions - YouTube
Pretty sure this is @Percy

longtime lurker · February 25, 2019, 11:05:54 PM

Yup... Pretty much just like that.... Left right or straight ahead.

redbeard · February 25, 2019, 11:09:18 PM

This is the spiral or screw rollers that I am thinking of doing too this old Shurman transfer deck I picked up.
It looks like they are using rope for the spiral not sure how long that would last. My rollers are 6" diameter and heavy walled so it would be easy too tack small diameter rebar coiled on a lay out, My thinking is too spiral too opposite sides so I could have a left and right side discharge and automated stop on end too raise n lower too let boards keep on going. I wished the chain transfer could be brought back too life but 60 years outside has rusted them beyond restoration. I plan on removing all of those and just use the power rollers with the spirals. The stops at end will probably have to be another roller that is spiraled like the bed rollers so it will transfer the end of board evenly.
Here's the Baker video with idea of spiral transfer.Baker Blue Streak with Miner Edger and 80ft of Green chain - YouTube
And a pic of my 1956 Shurman transfer deck it's 5' wide rollers and 20' long just picture spirals going too left and right sides with a divider in middle. Hopefully I can make this work too separate the three cuts firewood slabs
Flitches
Boards

moodnacreek · February 26, 2019, 12:59:55 PM

It,s not that hard to 'wind' your own spiral rollers. We used 3/8" steel hex rods. Two people and a welder, 6"+- steel roller, mounted with a 'wrench' to crank it around as you tack the thread on about 4" pitch. Sprial rolls don't work well with strips or even 2x4 if the table is open sided.

YellowHammer · February 26, 2019, 01:09:04 PM

What does the wiper bar mechanism look like? I think I can visualize it but why reinvent the wheel?

moodnacreek · February 26, 2019, 07:49:48 PM

A wiper bar? Are you guys trying to trick me? It's called a sweep bar up here but it is a wiper. I built one on my edger out feed, works off a automatic log splitter valve rigged up to a foot pedal. Sweeps the board over on a table. When the last press roll drops you step on the pedal. 2 slotted vert. arms mounted on a long shaft on the floor protrude up thru slots in the outfeed table. A long [as the table] beam lays on the edge of the table with pins on both ends that fit in the arm slots. A small cylinder drives the slotted arms across and bottoms out the auto valve that shifts the other spool to return the beam to the edge and said valve pops in neutral waiting for another board and your foot.