Used sawmill values

bozzaa69 · March 19, 2015, 02:04:08 PM

Your not going to saw EWP without lube to keep the pitch off the blade. Not unless it's been down 3 or 4 years. If you guys are selling Woodmizers for more than you paid new,all the power to you. If your the buyer paying that premium,OUCH! This is gonna stir the beehive, but needs to be said in the interest of the new guys looking to get into it. I don't care what anybody says,Woodmizer is way overrated. I know this from the fact of using them and other mills. This forum seems dominated by Woodmizer guys. You guys can keep em. All the proprietary parts and electronics,no thanks. I prefer to push and pull hydraulic levers manually. I'll pass on the setworks in the name of simplicity of maintenance and cost.

Chuck White · March 19, 2015, 03:26:15 PM

As the cost of "new" goes up, so does the cost of "used"!

Just sayin'!

Dave Shepard · March 19, 2015, 05:47:08 PM

Quote from: bozzaa69 on March 19, 2015, 02:04:08 PM
Your not going to saw EWP without lube to keep the pitch off the blade. Not unless it's been down 3 or 4 years. If you guys are selling Woodmizers for more than you paid new,all the power to you. If your the buyer paying that premium,OUCH! This is gonna stir the beehive, but needs to be said in the interest of the new guys looking to get into it. I don't care what anybody says,Woodmizer is way overrated. I know this from the fact of using them and other mills. This forum seems dominated by Woodmizer guys. You guys can keep em. All the proprietary parts and electronics,no thanks. I prefer to push and pull hydraulic levers manually. I'll pass on the setworks in the name of simplicity of maintenance and cost.

You are entitled to your opinion, however jaded it might be. ;)

bozzaa69 · March 19, 2015, 06:04:36 PM

So is my opinion jaded because I'm not a huge Woodmizer fan or why else? I'm curious on this one. There's allot of other band saw equipment out there, and Woodmizer is not the best band saw mill ever made by far. I just think it's weird how so many here think so. That's like being the only Chevy guy at a Ford convention I guess.

Ga Mtn Man · March 19, 2015, 06:28:53 PM

We're not really going to go down this road again are we? :

As with the Ford vs Chevy debate, no one's mind is going to be changed here.

FYI, I sold my Timberking for a lot more than I paid for it.

Peter Drouin · March 19, 2015, 06:30:49 PM

Quote from: bozzaa69 on March 19, 2015, 02:04:08 PM
Your not going to saw EWP without lube to keep the pitch off the blade. Not unless it's been down 3 or 4 years. If you guys are selling Woodmizers for more than you paid new,all the power to you. If your the buyer paying that premium,OUCH! This is gonna stir the beehive, but needs to be said in the interest of the new guys looking to get into it. I don't care what anybody says,Woodmizer is way overrated. I know this from the fact of using them and other mills. This forum seems dominated by Woodmizer guys. You guys can keep em. All the proprietary parts and electronics,no thanks. I prefer to push and pull hydraulic levers manually. I'll pass on the setworks in the name of simplicity of maintenance and cost.

I cut EWP all day today with no lube. :D :D :D

beenthere · March 19, 2015, 06:41:50 PM

bozzaa69
You are welcome to your opinion. Stick to it, but leave others to their own opinions.

I don't think anyone is having the wool pulled over their eyes, as you seem to want to imply.

WM are good mills, and other brands do have to compete for their claims to fame, just as WM does... IMO.

And if you are the only Chevy guy at a Ford convention, do you go around making a stink about how bad Ford's are... thinking you will win some friends?? Not if you are smart.... IMO

Peter Drouin · March 19, 2015, 07:30:09 PM

Quote from: battlinbill on March 19, 2015, 07:54:11 AM

And Peter, I see you are in NH. Do you make a living with your mill there? I've wondered at the possibility of going bigger and doing custom sawing, selling some lumber and low impact logging/land management. Of course, the market is quite a bit smaller in northern VT, but I'm not looking to get rich, just support the family a little better than I am now and work more for myself.

Yes, I'm full time sawmill here. Just have to make the $ in the warm time of the year. :D :D :D Jan & Feb are slow and too cold. But, I do cut some . I have a bunch of crazy cousins in the Champlain Valley. :D :D

Dave Shepard · March 19, 2015, 07:53:55 PM

Quote from: bozzaa69 on March 19, 2015, 02:04:08 PM
Your not going to saw EWP without lube to keep the pitch off the blade. Not unless it's been down 3 or 4 years.

DS: Not relevant to my rebuttal, but I often saw white pine without lube without any issues. I think it has to do with the time of year and the temp of the log. Winter cut pine sawn when it's frozen saws great.

If you guys are selling Woodmizers for more than you paid new,all the power to you. If your the buyer paying that premium,OUCH!

DS: If they aren't worth it, then why are people paying it? If you buy a mill for $20k and ten years later, that same mill is now $30k, then buying a used one at $20k probably looks pretty good. I don't think anyone is buying a new mill and selling it 6 months later for the same money.

This is gonna stir the beehive, but needs to be said in the interest of the new guys looking to get into it. I don't care what anybody says,Woodmizer is way overrated. I know this from the fact of using them and other mills. This forum seems dominated by Woodmizer guys.

DS: This is purely opinion, and you are entitled to yours, as I am entitled to mine. I also feel that not agreeing with you is also acceptable. I'm not sure where you are getting the justification for saying they are overrated. WM is a great company to deal with, the mills are very well built and do what they are supposed to do. If they are not your cup of tea, I don't see how that makes them overrated.

You guys can keep em. All the proprietary parts and electronics,no thanks. I prefer to push and pull hydraulic levers manually. I'll pass on the setworks in the name of simplicity of maintenance and cost.

DS: All manufacturers use some proprietary parts. WM does have a lot of development in their setworks, just as Ford/Dodge/Chevy all have a lot of development in their vehicles. Can you go to parts store and buy every part of a vehicle? No. There are few machines that are off the shelf entirely. If you want the bells and whistles, and the added productivity, then the added complexity comes with the possibility that something might fail. A rock is pretty fail proof, but not terribly useful. Sharpen the edges and lash it to a stick, now you have an axe. Handy, but you never know when the handle of lashings might break, but it's worth the risk, because chopping a log is so much better with an axe than with a blunt rock.

Peter Drouin · March 19, 2015, 08:03:51 PM

Quote from: Dave Shepard on March 19, 2015, 07:53:55 PM

, because chopping a log is so much better with an axe than with a blunt rock.

:D :D :D :D :D

47sawdust · March 19, 2015, 08:22:40 PM

battlinbill,
You are welcome to come to my place and check out my 1997 Lt30.It is non-hydraulic and a pleasure to use.It is set up in a saw shed with my edger.Right now it is still surrounded by 3' of snow .As others have said there are a lot of good sawmills out there,but for me the WM has features that make it fun to go to the mill.

Magicman · March 19, 2015, 09:00:50 PM

Quote from: bozzaa69 on March 19, 2015, 02:04:08 PMI prefer to push and pull hydraulic levers manually. I'll pass on the setworks in the name of simplicity of maintenance and cost.

And you are not turning out the productivity that I am either. 13,652 bf of 1" ERC and Cypress sawed in my last 6 days of sawing. That is not a record or bragging, just a fact.

Check out the "Whatcha Sawing" thread.

4x4American · March 19, 2015, 09:17:02 PM

@bozzaa69 What do you run for a mill?

Peter Drouin · March 19, 2015, 09:23:41 PM

No brag, just fact. :D

bozzaa69 · March 20, 2015, 04:45:59 AM

How do you not get pitch build up on your blade,running the pine with no lube? The only pine I ever cut with out the build up was 3 or 4 years cut and seasoned. I don't see how it's possible to cut fresh pine especially, with out pitch build up. Never seen it happen. I'm not downing Woodmizer, just saying, it isn't the best thing going. The new guys looking to buy a first mill deserve answers not so swayed towards 1 brand. I've used Baker,Timberking,Woodmizer,Linn and homemade. My uncle,then my cousin had a circle mill I worked at as a teenager till 20 years old. I'm 50 now. If you wanna see a real portable band mill,look up Select Saw,Baker too. I'd like to try a Cook's, they look nice. Although those saws aren't geared for first time,casual use buyers. I built my most recent homemade more or less from a little bit of what I thought the best aspects of the mills I've used in the past,based on how well it worked vs. economy vs. material I had and ease to build. I'd put it up to an LT-40 hydraulic any time, for a fraction of the price. I build every part of the mills I've made with parts and materials accumulated from scrap steel and used parts as much as possible,then I use them and sell them. My newest build will have Cooks 26'' steel wheels,guide rollers,tensioner and bearings (already purchased and 1/3 built). I know a little bit about how all these things work..And to Magic Man,If you really work like that at age 71,my hats off to ya. You must have helpers with that production?

bozzaa69 · March 20, 2015, 04:52:31 AM

Oh ya. PS to Magic. You don't know what I produce.

Peter Drouin · March 20, 2015, 06:41:41 AM

Most times when you have pine pitch on the blade your cutting to slow. For me, it's older logs is when I get a build-up, then one cut with water only [fully on] and the blade is clean.

4x4American · March 20, 2015, 07:22:23 AM

Pretty cool do you have any pictures or videos of your home made mills? Would love to see em.

Magicman · March 20, 2015, 07:28:46 AM

The only Pine that I have ever sawn is SYP, and lube is a necessity to keep the blades clean. Absolutely. My well know lube is a glug per gallon of liquid Cascade.

@bozzaa69, the only help that I have is what the customer provides, and yes, this helper is my all time best ever. He and I work together very well, but the blade has to stay in the log to make production.

I offered production numbers to emphasize the productivity of bells and whistles, and not to question yours. Now I gotta go because the logs and sawmill are waiting. ;D

downsouth · March 20, 2015, 10:11:47 AM

When someone asks a question, most of us respond with our own experience. I don't think that is misleading to them at all.
As I said I made money on my first mill after 2 years of use, but I did not buy it new.
I'm not sure I understand why you got all "bunged up" with our responses.

Dave Shepard · March 20, 2015, 10:23:54 AM

Of course a home built mill is cheaper than a factory built mill. And do you think Baker or Cooks give their mills away for free?

There is a common theme that if someone is really happy with their brand of mill, that they must be against all others. I am really enthusiastic about my Wood-Mizer, but I don't run down other mills. When someone is looking for a mill of course I'm going to praise them, but I don't insult the other makes.

Southside · March 20, 2015, 05:52:14 PM

Every line has its own market advantage. I think the Wood Mizers LT series excel at their portability while doing very well in a non portable setting. I looked at the Bakers and have seen a Cooks A/C 36 run. The Baker excels in a permanent installation, where the logs are consistent, and really is an industrial, mill - comparable to oh say the Wood Mizers 1000 and 4000 head rigs. So for the guys who are looking for something that function very well in a number of situations the Wood Mizers do serve them well.

ncsawyer · March 20, 2015, 08:46:01 PM

Quote from: Southside logger on March 20, 2015, 05:52:14 PM
Every line has its own market advantage. I think the Wood Mizers LT series excel at their portability while doing very well in a non portable setting. I looked at the Bakers and have seen a Cooks A/C 36 run. The Baker excels in a permanent installation, where the logs are consistent, and really is an industrial, mill - comparable to oh say the Wood Mizers 1000 and 4000 head rigs. So for the guys who are looking for something that function very well in a number of situations the Wood Mizers do serve them well.

I will second that. The Cooks and Baker mills are 7,000 plus pounds. There is no way you would be able to get those heavy mills in a lot of the places I work. My LT40 is balanced well enough you can unhook it from the truck and move it around by hand to get it where it needs to be. I would hate to think I had to move a 7,000 pound machine by hand.

4x4American · March 21, 2015, 08:26:16 AM

When I need to move my mill by hand, I jack up a leveling jack near the front trailer jack with the wheel on it, get it off the ground, put a board under it, lower it onto it, push hard as I can, repeat. often times I will put a firewood block under the board, under the wheel, so that its going downhill. Even still it is a little hard to push.

Leverage makes the world go round...(old saying)

Magicman · March 21, 2015, 09:22:50 AM

I have hand turned mine many times at saw sites. At one location just to get to and from the site, I had to jackknife the mill, unhook, hand turn it, hook back up, and proceed. The towing tongue weight on my sawmill is about 75 lbs.