Powered Functions the Cheap Way

[melezefarmer]

Inspired by Vautaur's mill build, I decided I needed powered mill functions. However, I do not have local access to cheap wheel chair motors so I came with with this:

Powered Sawmill Functions - YouTube

12v ATV winches are cheap, powerful, and they come somewhat weather proof. All I had to do was machine down the drums to 1 1/8" enabling me to use cheap hubs and sprockets. I thought of having a machine shop make the "drums" out of steel with a keyed slot but the cost made it a no go.  






Hopefully this will help someone.

[welderskelter]

Nice job. I will have to check this out. I did inherit 2 wheel chair motors. Am planning on using one of them to run the feed on mine. I can still push it alright but thought it might be a little smoother operation.

[welderskelter]

I always like seeing unpainted mills. You get new ideas. Anybody can buy a mill but not many can actually build one. I like your log turner but I will need to build different stops first. Something with rollers on top.

[Vautour]

Now this is probably the simplest and fastest homemade log turner i've ever seen,... way Way to go melezefarmer..  using ATV winches is an excellent idea, easier to use than wheelchair motor for sure  ,.. and seeing that log turn was pure icing on the cake....       8)  

[melezefarmer]

Now this is probably the simplest and fastest homemade log turner i've ever seen,... way Way to go melezefarmer..  using ATV winches is an excellent idea, easier to use than wheelchair motor for sure  ,.. and seeing that log turn was pure icing on the cake....       8)  

Thank you. I really just built on your method of using sprockets and chain for the various movement.

Kinda makes you wonder why no sawmill manufacturer uses this method. Way cheaper than hydraulics and for the smaller mills where you won't be milling a 32" log, more than adequate. And like I said, the functions have plenty of power. I even threw a good size log over the log stops with the clamp when I accidentally hit the wrong button.
 

[mike_belben]

Beautiful work, very slick.


expect to need atleast a 50A alternator to maintain all day milling and turning with winch motors.  A stator charging system probably wont keep up and standard lead acid batteries will be injured.  A deep cycle marine batt will come back to life when drawn down but low volts will burn up the brushes and contactor surfaces.  If youre using remote control, low volts will make them click click click and burn up pretty quick. 

[Durf700]

exellent job!!!  I like it all!  

I did a bunch to my LT 15 last year to give it a winch powered log turner and winch powered log clamp.  these improvements will make milling much easier for you! 

[melezefarmer]

My quick calculations with a cheapo clamp meter indicate that your are bang on the current draw. I get around 40A/h of draw down.

I thought about getting an alternator from the scrapyard and mating it to a small engine to make a 12v generator. But until then, I run a generator close by with an extension cord and a battery charger. Not ideal but it works for now.

The next step in the build is to make a winch powered log loading table.

[moodnacreek]

That's a great start but if you saw a lot you will want to do the same thing with heavier chain and hydraulic motors. The big difference is that you need a hyd. power unit rather than a battery. Other than that it is not expensive for what you are getting.

[mike_belben]

The charger is better than nothing.  

If youve got shore power the easiest thing to salvage is probably a AC/DC convertor from a junk camper.  Put it inside a tote or something. So it stays dry outside.  Minimize the 12v cables.  Let the 120v extension cord side be long.  Basically im saying put the convertor right next to the battery if you can.  



Delco 10si and 12si are about the cheapest alternator you can come by.  I like the folks at DB electrical, they ship.  A ford external regulator will probably outlast an internal reg unit since reg inside the case isnt an ideal environment. But not everyone wants to wire it.  

I am opposed to GM 1 wire setups.  They have some electron handicaps built in so to speak.   Its worth running a conventional with a sensing wire at the junction that sees huge amp demand rather than waiting for the battery to drop voltage before kicking the field on high. Better for the batterys self esteem.

[melezefarmer]

Thanks for the input. I'll definitely keep a lookout for the appropriate alternator next time I'm at the junkyard.

[Vautour]

I am opposed to GM 1 wire setups.  

Ah come on Mike,.. i was gonna put a new 24 volt GM 1 wire alternator@ $100 on my mill,... now i gotta see if i can wire a regular regulator!!!...back to the drawing board. :D  

[Gere Flewelling]

Those are very clever devices you have built.  I do understand the value of hydraulics on saw mills, but also enjoy seeing those functions performed without fluid power.  I have built a few 12v. electric modifications to my mill, but nothing to the extent you have come up with. 
As far as battery power on your mill and a large charging system on your engine, I wonder how you are going to get the engine mounted alternator to charge frame mounted batteries without long wiring cables that will travel back and forth on the carriage.  I am not sure how Wood-mizer does it, as I do not have one of their mills.  I have two winch's on my mill powered individually by 12v batteries that are not charged by the engine on the mill.  I have been able to saw with my mill for two days at a time with no issues.  I just use a 15 amp charger at night to charge them on the mill or when I am away from home, I pull the batteries out and bring them home and charge them.  I plan to combine both winch's into one group 31 battery eventually and then if needed add a second group 31 in parallel if needed.  This is a common hookup on fire trucks and most any other trucks that have a large amperage draw.  If more power is needed, just add another battery to the pack.  Group 31 batteries usually have 800-900 CCA's and will hold up a long time with the intermittent use you winch's will draw on them.  You can continue using battery chargers to charge them as a group or separate them and charge individually.  One issue I have found on trucks is that if one battery starts to fail, it will draw the whole pack down.  You have to separate them to determine where the bad apple is.  I prefer to use the Group 31 batteries that have the 3/8" threaded stud on the top, as it just makes them easier to connect/disconnect.  I use a 4 gauge or larger cable between them to connect them in parallel with good success.  This might be an option for your set up.  Good luck!

[Joe Hillmann]

One concern I have (at least for the power foward and back);  the wheelchair motor is designed to run under moderate loads for as long as the battery charge lasts.  A winch is desinged to ron for the length of the cable once or twice then cool down before bei g used again.  I would keep an eye on how hot the winch is getting under heavy milling.

[melezefarmer]

Thankfully the winches are never on for very long. Based on my stop watch, I have less that 5 minutes of total use per hour. And I'm trying to get that further down by improving my sawing technique (rotate the log a minimum amount of times, know what I want out of the log before the blade is moving, etc).

I began accumulating parts to make a combination edger/12v charger based on this guy's design:

Homemade Edger Saw for the sawmill - YouTube

[DMcCoy]

Clever use of winches!  Good job!