sawmill drive side

[Delawhere Jack]

Hippie, It's taken the better part of my life to train myself not to overthink things.

The driven wheel on a bandmill needs to pull the band through the cut, that's why every manufacturer does it that way.
You'll want to be behind the sawhead as you mill. Closer to the controls, and you'll have a better view of whats going on.
If you're right handed, you'll probably want to be behind and on the left of the side of the head.
If you're building a twin rail mill, you have the option of putting the idler wheel on the operator side, I'd recomend doing so, since this directs the sawdust away from you.

I'd be very curious to know the logic of those "across the pond" that push their bands. Probably the same folks that gave us British automobile electrical systems.  :D

[Magicman]

Both the band and the chainsaw chain are circles.  The pushing and pulling forces are equal.  The tension provides the missing link with both and causes them to be rigid.

Neither can be compared with a crosscut saw, stick or anything else that has two ends.  They can be either pulled or pushed in the truest terms but only because they are rigid.  You can not push a chain or a rope simply because it is not rigid.

And I will sleep well tonight.   

[PC-Urban-Sawyer]

...

I'd be very curious to know the logic of those "across the pond" that push their bands. Probably the same folks that gave us British automobile electrical systems.  :D

And driving on the left hand side of the road! 

Herb

[stefan]

Re: Deepwoods
Not a good analogy. The chain is still being pulled under tension thru the log no matter if you cut down or up with the bar.

When you are using the top side of the bar on a chainsaw, you are pulling the chain around the idler wheel.
If the chain is a bit loose and you are cutting with the upper side, the chain will be loose from the upper side of the drive sprocket, and on forward to where the teeth are cutting wood, the rest of the chain will be tensioned.

That is also what is happening on a bandsaw if the motor is on the right side of the mill vs. the more common place at the left side, you are pulling the blade around the idler wheel.

On a dozer or an excavator with flat tracks, you can see this when you are reversing.
The track is tensioned on the upper side, and curls on the bottom.
On caterpillars with the elevated drive sprocket the track tensions behind the sprocket when going forward, and in front of the drive sprocket when reversing.

If the tracks were to be tightened enogh so there is no slack, it will not curl.
Not until the torque of the drive sprocket is enough to compress the spring for the idler wheel.
Same thing on a bandsaw blade.
Given that the sawblade is tensioned with often more than thousand pounds of force, and the high speed and low torque of the band wheels, for all practical purposes, i dont think it matters much which side the motor is.