Hey Everyone,
I am looking to possibly purchase a Hudson Mill (Oscar 36). Does anyone own one and what do they think about it? Any feedback would be a great help. Thanks Woodman58
I have seen many mills and run alot of them (Hudson included). I am generally unimpressed w/ Hudson. FYI.
Ironwood
You should be able to do a search and find previous threads on Hudson mills. The tone of most of those threads were negative.
But they will still saw straight lumber. Might not be as handy as other mills, but that comes with a price too. :)
I didn't mean to put down on them, as I have zero experience with them. It was just an observation reading posts. I'm sure that every mill has it's place in the market somewhere.
I have had an Oscar 18 from Hudson for several years, and have no complaints about it. Components are readily available from local auto supply or hardware stores, and my blades come from a local blacksmith shop. All in all, I am very satisfied with the mill.
I have the Oscar 28, while it is not the workhorse of more common mills, it does cut straight lumber if it is adjusted correctly. I have seen the 36, but have no experience with it. I like mine.
Quote from: Magicman on March 05, 2010, 08:21:31 AM
You should be able to do a search and find previous threads on Hudson mills. The tone of most of those threads were negative.
I've read this too and it's a bit of a turn off for a guy that's looking for a mill. I'm sure they can't be all that bad or they wouldn't be in business.
I wonder how much of what I read online should be taken with a grain of salt?
I bought an Oscar 36 back around 2002 and sawed quite a bit with it including some custom sawing. I bought it uninformed with no one really to advise me. This was before my finding the Forestry Forum. It had quite a long learning curve with not much of an operator's manual to go by. Biggest problem was blade dive. I called Hud-son and the tech said to adjust the torque bolt on the blade to 60 lbs. instead of the 30 lbs. the manual called for. This was some help but not a total fix. Since I have decided that most was caused by dull blades cause by not having a debarker. I would buy a chainsaw debarker if I use it again. It has been sitting in a shed since 2005 after I bought a Wood-mizer LT-40 Hydraulic, no comparison. I kept it to saw long beams over 20' because it would be cheap to extend the track. I may turn it into a resaw once the shop is finished this summer. It is not a Wood-mizer by any stretch of the imagination but will saw lumber with care. I got it with Carter guides that are tedious to adjust. The biggest thing is patience, it takes time to set up correctly and you have to be on your toes. Set it up on a level area with 4 x 4's or 6 x 6's under the track positioned like ties. Run a string line the length of each rail and also diagonally across the two rails and shim the 4 x's or 6's to even each rail. This is more important than being exactly level. The dogs and squaring pins tend to spring some, so when rotating a cant keep a close visual or use a square to check until you become comfortable with the setup. I had planned to pour concrete piers with all-thread sticking out about 3" or 4" with nuts on each side of the rail to level it. Past experience makes me think these mills are better suited to stationary operating over portable. I guess this is my long-winded way of saying if you buy one, be prepared to take time to adjust and be on your toes. These mills aren't junk but require attention more than some others to work properly.
The price would have to be very enticing before I purchased one over some other mills.
Quote from: D Hagens on March 05, 2010, 03:18:25 PM
Quote from: Magicman on March 05, 2010, 08:21:31 AM
You should be able to do a search and find previous threads on Hudson mills. The tone of most of those threads were negative.
I've read this too and it's a bit of a turn off for a guy that's looking for a mill. I'm sure they can't be all that bad or they wouldn't be in business.
I wonder how much of what I read online should be taken with a grain of salt?
I know I really should leave this one alone, but being the nonconforming knothead that I have always strived to be, I can't.
What is the point of an OPEN forum if you cannot use the information given. Who would want to seek out the generally unbias opinions of people who use products day and day out, if thought they were only getting the positive responses and "no lo contendre" to anything construed as negative.
Anyone in bussiness advertising is going to only accentuate the positive, that is a no brainer. That is why someone would want to go to a forum and try to see beyond what all the positive advertising is saying (or not saying). Ofcourse the forum can be used in an abusive way and that is why it is monitored. If I saw an article about a product that I was interested in and it was negative, I would let the company respond to it before I decided one way or the other.
The other error in thinking is saying because a bussiness has success, they must be producing a fine product. They may very well be producing a fine product, but in this day and age there is no garuantee to that. I know of many highly marketed products that are not near what they claim to be, I also know of some very good products, made with their consumer in mind, that have gone out of business.
When I think of a Hudson sawmill, I am reminded of the old saying "You get what you pay for". Yes they do cut wood. Yes they are relatively inexpensive. Yes you can get parts for them at a local hardware store. All of those are positive issues. But look beyond that at the total buying and ownership experience. They will not hold their value as well as the name brand mills. They are not built as well as other mills. With only one location, they will only be able to provide minimal support and more than likely never offer coast to coast on site service.
When you read about them on the various forums you find some people that like them and think they are a decent saw for the money and others that strongly dislike them regardless how much they cost. I have run one and did not care for it myself. It felt and looked pretty flimsy. It did cut straight boards, but you had to move slowly with it down the log.
I would strongly suggest you buy an LT-10 or LT-15 woodmizer mill before you drop money down on a hudson. With the recent price breaks they are offering, they are hard to beat on value for the dollar. I myself will be picking up a new LT-10 on the 20th of this month. It is the second woodmizer I have owned and I would not buy any other brand. I buy this knowing that when I mention that I have a woodmizer mill, people know that a have a quality mill, rather than having to defend my choice of purchase time and time again against mixed product reviews.
Sounds interesting, especially with the line of thought "they must be ok, they are still selling mills"
We recently had a mill maker here in Aus who has become very silent if not gone under (I'm not saying the same for Hudson) but when I first saw their mill operate (at our very first sawmill showdown - similar but in no way a rival to your Shootout) I couldn't believe they sold mills, but each show he'd sell... Anyway interesting to hear the amount of setting up the mill needs and then read the website claims of it's portability...
As mentioned a supplier/manufacturer has a duty to 'sell their product' or their jobs are not viable, but a forum is a good place to gather extra info - not make a final judgment on, but gather more info.
I remember back to the first day I saw a Lucas, almost 10 years ago - I didn't even know about portable sawmills, but I came home and said to Wifey "I'm gonna get one of those -they are so cool!" I bought my mill without touching one although I did spend a lot of time here on the Forestry Forum learning all I could about milling before buying a mill.
Hudson has some good products in there line, And like I have always said all mills saw, some are a little less work to get better results from.I have a LT28 but would still love to have an old stationary circle mill ???
Sam
Hi all I am one of the poor people who own a Hudson. Not that I did not have the money to buy what ever I wanted , but that I bought JUST what I needed. My Hudson has never failed to saw the best lumber. It was I that made it to thick or too Thin. No blade dip or dive. Bed as long as needed to cut beams or short enought for a picket fence . No paying customer or give away has ever complained. Look around the right one is out there, not all soot every need Just like a woman. whitman
Hey Whitman,
you are right, more often it isn't the mill that does a bad job; its most likely the things 'forgotten' or not done by the operator which causes the bad job ;)
Last year, I spent a lot of time researching bandsaw sawmills. I looked at everything from kits (Linn) to Thomas (built in town next to where my son lives). I eventually settled on the LT15. At this year's VT Farm Show Woodmizer had several machines and Hudson was there with some of there's. After looking closely at the material used in the construction of both machines, I am glad I bought the WM.
I have an Oscar36 and bought it for several reasons. Yeah, the price was right but also the availability. I had to go less than 100 miles for it. I was buying it for my own use on the ranch. We all know how that goes. Pretty soon there is this buddy or that neighbor that could use some cut...word travels fast. I have a friend with his LT70 here for a while. Nice, fast machine. At the end of the day sure he had more done than I did but the boards were still boards. Most any problems I have are because of me,not the mill. Would I do it again if I could do it over again? Probably so. If it makes me wrong in some people's eyes for settling on a lesser mill, so be it. This Hudson has met my needs and that is what matters the most. IMHO
Rancher
Good read, and well said. You get the job done, and have some coin to spend on something else.
And in the end, boards are boards. :) Right you are.
I have a cousin that has a Hudson mill, not sure what size it is. I know it is a basic no frills mill, and they use the heck out of it and it saws good lumber.
I really can't tell you much about specific mills, but I can tell you what I've learned about machinery in general over the last 30 years. The name brand don't make that much difference with the "Global" market, what matters ALOT is knowing the proper way to operate the machine, keeping it maintained and adjusted. Good luck with whatever you choose.
Kevin
Hello,
i owner the Oscar 228. When i do sawing first times, i think want sold the maschine. But when i resetup the machine - setup good wedge, blade parallel with track, blade tension, after every blade change tension screw change, straight track, change belt to crowned i think, it is good machine. It is farmer, no bussines machine. Performance is low. I have good result with HSS steel (bimetal) blades with 9 angle. Look into my gallery. (Sorry for me poor english).
vadimo
You did just fine with the english. Good to hear about your experience with the Oscar. Hope to hear more about your sawing. 8)
Vasdimo, your English is just fine!
Good to see you posting here. Would be interested to hear about where you are at and how you happened to get an Oscar all the way over there.
Hi boys,
my story about Oscar is short. Previous my bussines has been with old metals, aluminium, cuprum, etc. But i it do with small range. Cca when crisis come in USA i buy more stainless and then price go rapidly down. The price is formed on Stock exange.
Sawmilling has been like "my dream" and from last money i buy Oscar. On internet i watch more videos on Youtube and find Hud Son. Good price but far for me. I emailing with management and i wanted transfer the mill from US to EU bay with any spedition company. And then i find web link for dealers in EU! The mill is sell also in UK. Then i buy it in UK with bank transfer and then any small company from my country deliver it to me. 1 kg = 1 €.
I from EU, from Slovak Republik, previous Czechoslovakia. Easten block, Soviet domination go down in 1989 and in 1993 Czecholovakia split do Czech and Slovak republik. Irony is, in 2004 we both enter in Europen Union and in 2008 to Shengen ( Shengen is contract for no borders, free people move trought EU ).
Links here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slovakia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slovakia)
http://www.slovakia.travel (http://www.slovakia.travel)
Thanks for compliment. I in school dont learn english, but german. And in enough read in english and have 1-2 books howto learn english. Of course, electronic dictonary is my frend :-)
Wecome to FF Vadimo, doing very well with English and nice looking lumber too. 8) 8) Thanks for sharing story and pics. Loren
vadimo you do fine with english. I and I would be willing to bet 99 percent of the forum members could not do that well with your language. Knowing what happens in other parts of the world helps keep this forum interesting.
Marv
I`ve had my hudson 36 mill since 1999, cut over 250,000 ft.
with it. The lumber I cut is as good as any other well ajusted
and cared for mill no matter what the price. Before buying I
looked at a lot of mills, picked hudson because it would do
everything I though i needed to do, it still does. There are mills
with more bell & whistles, heavier built, more expensive, and
will do what you need done better. But in my opinion you can`t
go wrong for the money.
arj
Quote from: Busy Beaver Lumber on March 05, 2010, 08:31:35 PM
I would strongly suggest you buy an LT-10 or LT-15 woodmizer mill before you drop money down on a hudson. With the recent price breaks they are offering, they are hard to beat on value for the dollar. I myself will be picking up a new LT-10 on the 20th of this month. It is the second woodmizer I have owned and I would not buy any other brand. I buy this knowing that when I mention that I have a woodmizer mill, people know that a have a quality mill, rather than having to defend my choice of purchase time and time again against mixed product reviews.
BBL, Just curious why you'd buy a 2nd LT-10? Compared to the LT-10, the LT-15 is a far superior mill and the price difference is no all that great.
BTW.......I did my 1st saw milling on a Hudson OSCAR 36. It was a lot of work pushing that thing through the logs. A friend has it set up at his farm and let me use it to saw up a few logs slightly more than a few years back. I was hooked. ;D
Did not buy a second LT-10. This is the first LT-10 I am buying. I had a LT-25 that I just sold because I do not need to be portable and mostly saw just for my own use to make rustic furniture. The LT-10 is just the right size for what I need to cut and takes up about half as much space in the building. :)
QuoteBBL, Just curious why you'd buy a 2nd LT-10? Compared to the LT-10, the LT-15 is a far superior mill and the price difference is no all that great.
My first thought was the LT15. It was just too expensive for me. I wanted to pay all cash and not have any payments. I ended up buying the LT10 because I could pay cash and have it done. Also, for the Woodmizer name and reputation.
I feel I never would have gotten the LT15 because I would have to save for it so long that something would come along and gobble up all the savings. Car trouble, a medical emergency (which we have had more than our fair share of over the past few years), needing something for the farm, fixing the tractor, etc. The money would not have been there.
The way I figure it, I now have a mill that is paid for cash. If I want the LT15 or mabe an LT28 or even LT40, I have the means of production to make the cash needed to buy one later on. I'm sure my little LT10 can make it long enough to pay for another mill.
Another reason I got the LT10 is because bed sections are inexpensive. I need to be able to make 20 foot beams for my timber frame home. The bed sections for the LT15 are about $600 while LT10 bed sections are only about $300.
I am with you 100% Forestman and had exactly the same thoughts you have. I got an excellent deal on an LT-25 a while back and used it for about 1.5 years. I seldom took it on the road and generally found it more hastle and more time consuming to travel with it instead of having the logs brought to me. I quickly came to the realization that there was enough local work to keep me busy without having to take the show on the road. Then I was offered about $3000 more than I paid for it and sold it in a heart beat. The profit I made on it was enough to just about put my original investment back in the bank and have enough left over to buy a brand new LT-10 with 10 hp upgrade. All told I think the new LT-10 and the box of blades cost me about $600. With so little invested in the mill, it should be a piece of cake to get it to make money for me. One or two good days of cutting should recover my entire investment. It will definately allow me to cut for my own personal use and to continue servicing the needs of my existing customers that I supply with bowl and spindle turning blanks. Plus it is nice to have the 2 year warranty on the new mill.
All I can say is buy what you need. If the Hudson suits your wants and needs it is the mill for you. If an LT10 is what you want and need then it will suit you better than an LT15. I don't know sqat about the hudson mills. I started with an entry level Timberking (actually I started with a self designed chin saw mill, didn't know then that someone had already figured this thing out way better than I could :D) and was quite happy with it for many years. Still have it even though I have gone on to an LT40 super. Garner what info you can from here and other sources and make your choice based on your needs, wants and abilities.
I think, what you have to do is decide, short and long term, what you need the mill for. Then decide what "category" of mill you should be looking at. Next you decide which models from the different manufacturers fall into that category.
For example:
Category 1 home use, part-time use, hobby sawing
Category 2 home use, cutting for friends and relatives, doing some cutting for cash or trade
Category 3 business use, small one-man operation
Category 4 full scale business, high production
These are just examples of categories, but you get the idea. Next step is figure out what category you fit with what you want the saw to do. Next you look at the many manufacturers and pick the mills that fit your category based on their description. Next solicit opinions of those mills as they will be apples to apples in terms of style and capability. For example, Category 1 would probably have the Oscar 18 and the Woodmizer LT10 and the Norwood Lumberlite.
Thanks Guys,
I have decided against the Hudson Mill. The only reason I was concidering it was they were going to give me 20% off to become a distributor. They suplied everything. It will still be awhile before I get my mill. Thanks again
Hud-Son 228 is in Category 2.
Vadimo,
I noticed you're from Slovak Republic. My wife was born there. She came to the USA in 1992. Her parents have home in Hype. We're going to visit them this summer. Small world!
Yeah :D Yes World is small. If you think Hybe, then this is 20km distance.
Otherwise, Hud-Son has new models, eg. 328 is old 228 with 10hp engine (before 8hp).
I have a Hudson "dealer" down the road, never saw a mill in his hayfield, not even once. Whats that say about the mill? They must hand out dealerships when they need to make a sale. ::). Never even a sign, only reason I knew as they told me once years ago when I stopped to visit in Barneveld. I would buy grapples and such from them, but not a mill.
Ironwood
I have two Oscar 30 saws. One I use outside my mill and have extended the trailer to cut up to 25' because I can only cut 18' inside the mill shed. The other saw is set up inside and is used as a resaw cutting cants down after they come off a headsaw. I have had little problem with either saw and the one inside runs 5 to 6 hrs each day, That is, the blade is in the wood that much of the day. All manual feed, a winch has been added for raising and lowering head. Parts are common at parts store other than guides. Pay attention and take care of them and they will last a long time and cut alot of wood.
Quote from: Ironwood on March 14, 2010, 09:07:47 PM
I have a Hudson "dealer" down the road, never saw a mill in his hayfield, not even once. Whats that say about the mill? They must hand out dealerships when they need to make a sale. ::). Never even a sign, only reason I knew as they told me once years ago when I stopped to visit in Barneveld. I would buy grapples and such from them, but not a mill.
Ironwood
Ironwood, it may be that the 'dealer' wasn't the best at business, I know I don't have a sign out front and my mill is only ever setup if I have to cut something for our house, otherwise she is on the truck going to a job, or under the house out of weather and harms way, ya never know....?
This place looks more like a demo site than a dealership. All sorts of junk laying around, I'll try to get a pic next time I am down that way.
Ironwood
I have an '05 oscar 36" w/ 21 hp Briggs Vanguard engine, auto up/down, 23ft trailer, mudsaw debarker, auto feed. It's a cheap manual mill for my own use and it saws wonderfully. The barn it's making will be worth every penny I spent on it.
Hey, Jaybolicious Welcome to the Forestry Forum, from a fellow Vermonter just down the road from you (Monkton). I'm guessing from the email address in your profile that we may have even met a while back. You may have checked out my roof.
John Mc
Yeah it's great how many people are on this forum, what a resourse. Not many places like it where you can get instant information from guys who have been doing it for a while. Good to see another VT'er on here.
You guys can just meet at Cabot Creamery food6 or Ben & Jerry's and talk "Sawmilling"...... cone_1
I am the owner of a hudson farm boss 36...i will repeat what i have said in the past..if you have $45,000 dollars to spend....have at it.....yes you get what you pay for....but i will this....it still cuts wood.....and i have no complaints as to the product it puts out.... i will also say that when i had some minor problems....my dealer and hudson took care of them with no ?'s asked.....in 2 days i had parts on my doorstep....i will be glad to answer more ?'s if you have them
Good onya Cilley and thanks for chiming in to let folks know how your experiences with your Hudson have been... ;)
Hi all, new member to the board here. I own an Oscar 36 and absolutely love it. We made our own trailer for it and can cut up to 16'. I have run over 300 logs, 12' or better, hard and soft wood, through it and have never had a problem other then occational metal in the logs. This mill may be basic but the boards and beams that come out of it are just like the ones that come out of mills costing way more $$$. Would I do it again? Absolutely. My mill has more than paid for itself by cutting lumber out of the trees we thin at our campground. Customers love the rustic look to fresh milled wood we use to make things like lean-to's or weather shelters around the campground. Hudson mills may not be expensive, but they are very valuable.
Welcome to the Forestry Forum, 1pfieffer1 :)
Really the whole secret in bandmilling is a sharp band set right tensioned properly running level in the log if you can do that you'll cut good lumber.Long mill life ,ease of use,and profitable production are what you get when you spend the extra money for say a mizer or baker. Frank C.
Hello,
i own Oscar 228 with 8hp B&S engine. I want change this engine to 13hp. What do you think about? Hud-son produce now new version this mill 328 with 10hp engine. Is original clutch and belt then sufficient?
Know anyone, what is blade speed for this mill?
My manual mill has a 13hp Honda and just a single v-belt, it handles it fine. I have a manual clutch though- you better check what yours is rated for.
Just my opinion (sure I am gonna' stir up a hornets nest, BUT) dollar for dollar your mony is better spent on a LT15, OR a new MX34 (Norwood). I know this because I have used many mills. ALL mills will cut wood, and well, but talk about quality, resale, and your better off w/ another brand. I have a Hudson 52 here (not mine, but been here for 4+years) and comparetively it is junk. I use only when I have to. Not all "other" mills are $45,000.
Ironwood
i looked at those mills close. the price of a mill was a big factor to me and i found that on other equipment if there are a lot of options on mechanical things, it gives the impression that it needs more than just stock stuff to operate well. those add on roller guides and extra this and extra that look like trouble and extra $ later to me. the other reason i would encourage someone to look elsewhere is bed support. i know it is easy to add more length on those mills but logs are big and heavy and onery and trust me when you get one too big for the saw, and that will happen , you will want to saw it. i just wouldnt wnt to recomend something that would bend easily under the weight of a big log. they look too light to me. no doubt they would saw a log but in the long run my money is better spent on something heavy enough to not break. pc
I'll "bump" this old thread with a question. There's a 2014 LT 40HGD29 with 1700 hrs near me for almost the money of hud sons H360 saw new. I know of 2 wood mizers that are operated by friends and one of those is an LT 40 that seemed to be consistently giving my friend trouble with the electric "stuff" and that's everything except powering the blade. Now in fairness this was about 20 years ago and I'm not willing to vouch for the guys maintenance habits either.
The other guy has a first rate logging and chipping outfit. 2nd generation and there's no junk in their fleet, in the woods or on the road. He has a (new) LT 70 and has not been trouble free, in fact requiring the W/M mechanic several times to sort out electrical problems and I believe that most of the log handling is hyd and the only electric is probably the diesel engine and the repeated cut brains and controls.
I'm more comfortable with simple hydraulic valves, pumps & hoses particularly on something that lives outside in the weather. That said I also for the life of me do not understand the cantilever design. Why bother overcoming a strange loading condition (cantilever) when 4 "legs" result in simple vertical
loads.
If I could justify a Cooks or other 4 legged big brand, with as little reliance on electric as possible I'd go that route.
BUT I DON'T REALLY KNOW, NEVER OWNED A MILL (had to get that out of the way) ;D
I guess all my blabbering boils down to;
Is 1700hrs anything to be worried about on the used LT40 with a 29hp Kohler. He claims to have done 100hr oil changes with annual Woodmizer Mechanic do an "alignment".
I do understand the value of the woodmizer brand for resale and they do seem to just about own the market and there's a reason for that.
You are borrowing trouble. Wood-Mizer mills make more quality lumber with the electrical over hydraulic and cantilever design than any other brand of small band mill. That doesn't mean the other mills don't make fine lumber. It means WM has been in the game a long time and will be for a long time. The supposed electrical issues and cantilever issues are hyped up by competitors. All brands have strengths and weaknesses, cantilever design and electric over hydraulic design isn't the weakness competitors make of it.
Ted I failed to express that I'm leaning heavily towards the used woodmizer and am just wondering about what to look for/at with a mill with 1700 hrs.
Look at the For Sale section, there are a couple other LT 40's that have been for sale recently. Can you tell if the frame is bent or some other problem? The WM following is huge here. I personally have a Cooks MP32, very sturdy mill, 05 model. Hobby use, although I could probably fill a couple semi trailers. Had a neighbor with a LT 30, did custom sawing, NO maintenance, mill really needed going over, but still sawed pretty good lumber. Guy was so tight he had a tractor and loaded the mill with a 3 point bale mover. No loader. Barely kept the tractor running as well.