It's spring and the mill is not ready to saw yet.
Have you seen this pile of logs waiting for me. Is the hobby getting out of hand ... or?
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0550.JPG)
... No, I am just kidding, these are not my logs ;D Just saw them on my way home.
Below some pictures of the progress building the track.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0503.JPG)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0544.JPG)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0548.JPG)
Now I have to disassamble the sawhead and transport it from my garage to the property and build it up again.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0353.JPG)
Can't wait to saw some logs (of my own :))
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/b8_089.JPG)
You really had me going with that first photo! Thanks or posting the photos. Looks like some beautiful country up your way. I bet you can't wait to start milling. Be careful and keep up up to date on your progress.
Nice looking setup.
Looking very professional! Great job
Quote from: roghair on April 07, 2013, 05:12:53 PM
It's spring and the mill is not ready to saw yet.
Have you seen this pile of logs waiting for me. Is the hobby getting out of hand ... or?
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0550.JPG)
... No, I am just kidding, these are not my logs ;D Just saw them on my way home.
Thought I was getting better at sawing, but If you can saw those on your way home, I've got some learnin' to do. :D
Quote from: terrifictimbersllc on April 07, 2013, 06:01:37 PM
Quote from: roghair on April 07, 2013, 05:12:53 PM
It's spring and the mill is not ready to saw yet.
Have you seen this pile of logs waiting for me. Is the hobby getting out of hand ... or?
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0550.JPG)
... No, I am just kidding, these are not my logs ;D Just saw them on my way home.
Thought I was getting better at sawing, but If you can saw those on your way home, I've got some learnin' to do. :D
Hmm, yes funny. I can't help 'making sawdust' is the same word in English as the past tense of 'seeing' ;)
roghair,
It will be nice to see photos of your milling when you use the mill you have built. I'm sure it will work well for you.
Jim
Roghair...Looks to like the guys at Pezzolato need to roadtrip over to your place for a few pointers on how to build sawmills. ;)
You had me going when I saw those photos. Looking forward to seeing the whole mill together and milling. It looked like you did a great job building the head and track. When you make that first sawdust fly it will be hard to stop smiling for a long time. Keith
The whole thing is looking great to me so far.
Two toe boards. Looks good. I hope you have a good time sawing.
Looks like your doing pretty good Roghair.
I still have a couple of alignment issues to do on my mill before I get started!
Good luck to you.
I like your plan and your setup. It will be interesting to follow your continued progress.
The first pic got me too! looks like you are on your way to getting it going soon,
Hi guys, thanks for the replies, that's really encouraging. I am not aware of any 'sawdust addict community' here in Holland, so it's nice to share with the FF. It seems you are more confident in the good outcome then I am.. :)
However, I'll keep you posted on the progress. Today I only had an hour or so to put on the roofing on the sawhead shed. Tomorrow we expect rain :(
I gotta say I love what you've done to the place !
As said, I had to move the sawhead and carriage from my garage where I build it to my property where the logs are. In this picture you can see the bits and pieces from the sawhead in my car. Had to be careful to avoid a wobble(?) in the wheels. The carriage was on a trailer.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0559.JPG)
Building up again:
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0564.JPG)
It was easier then I thougt because I marked all the positions of the parts before I took it apart and kept all the nuts and bolts to the parts they belonged to.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0568.JPG)
I even did a test run on a tiny log, but it was a great moment 8) However...
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0570.JPG)
.....I hit some steel ???
After reading your guys experience with sawing logstops I decided to put some kind of hook on the fixed blade guide that will hit the logstop before the saw does. That part works great, but believe it or not a managed to leave the little crank up and hit it just a little. The band still seems to saw well though.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0571.JPG)
All in all a good day. I parked her in the "shed"
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0575.JPG)
Looks great! It won't take you long to learn that clamp handle must always be turned down. (Don't ask how I know that ::))
Thanks for the photos roghair, and the good laugh! It seams like all us new sawyers do that at least once! Great job on the build. Keith
Thanks for the photos on your build and rebuild. Great job on the building to house the saw head and keep it out of the weather and secured!
Pretty slick. It won't be the last time you hit metal, at least now you've got the first one over with :laugh:
YH
Looks really good and seems to be a real beefy setup on your track. That will keep things level and square and help to avoid future problems. The first picture had me going as well. :D
You are a real sawyer now,you have hit metal and had a new blade on too. ;D It all looks good. have fun.
roghair your mill looks great. i can see that you pay more attention to detail than i did when i built my mill. :D
nice work!
Good job, Roghair!
It's good to see you saw. But what you didn't see, you also sawed. :D
English has too many puns. Is it no surprise that there is "pun" in "punishment?"
Today I made a simple ramp and tested the winch; this (small) log was no problem.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0576.JPG)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0579.JPG)
Try some bigger ones tomorrow (hopefully)
This has been fun watching your progress. Thanks for the pictures
I have enjoyed watching your progress and success, too. ;)
That is the most un-homemade looking homemade mill I have ever seen. You should be very proud of the work you've done. smiley_thumbsup
Nice job, Roghair! Did you do any more today?
Here are some more pictures of my first steps into this exciting experience, both good and bad ....
After the first log, I loaded a bigger one without too many problems:
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0589.JPG)
Here you can see it was not a straight log, btw the toeboards are also very handy to move the log on the bed to position both ends near a bunk:
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0591.JPG)
I decided to saw some 2x4 (5x10 cm) from this log, but clearly this curved log had some stress in it:
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0592.JPG)
Then I decided to put on this stump of acacia to get some experience with hardwood as well:
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0603.JPG)
The saw went through smoothly and I was surprised with the nice yellow look of this first slab:
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0605.JPG)
Turned it 90 deg. and then hit my first NAIL >:(
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0606.JPG)
I tried to saw trough to the end but it got stuck just before the end. The blade wanted to go up (after hitting the nail) but couldn't on the edges because of the blade guides resulting in a curved suface. Had a hard time to get the saw out:
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0607.JPG)
So I learned something... had a lot of fun and I'm building up a small stack ;D
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0609.JPG)
The stress in the 2X4 is mostly caused due to the way that you split the pith. Try centering the pith in your 2X lumber and you will see less stress. Once you get the cant to your target size and you are ready to saw the rest of the cant one of the best ways is to turn the cant 180° after each board. If you don't want to turn the cant after each board leave as many as you can on top of the cant so there weight will help to keep the rest of the cant from bowing up.
The nail you hit looks a bit like wire in the pic so might be difficult to dig out if you try to saw the rest of the log.
Good advice customsawyer, I tried to do that but with a curved log the pit will be curved too. If you center the pith (more or less :) ) on the ends of the log. in the middle the pith will be out of centre...
On the nail, yes maybe you are right, I didn't try to dig it out but just sawed a 10 cm (4") slab (with the damaged blade) assuming the nail would not be longer than that, and it wasn't. I had no new blades with me so I have to continue next week.
Nice job your doing, have fun
Great looking mill and site, thanks for sharing photos. So you built this mill as opposed to assembling some kind of kit?
I don't have a mill yet, I am in the fact finding process as to which one would be best for me.
and I am getting spring fever.....
No, this is not a kit although I looked at all the mills that I could find on the internet and used what I thought worked best in my situation as a hobby miller.
What kind of mill are you looking for? (manual / hydraulic). What kind of logs do you plan to saw?
Roghair, I love that acacia, our is pseudacacia, known as black locust, and looks very similar. It is surprisingly easy to mill-- when there are no nails in it. By the way, in my batch I sold a month ago, I found a nail sticking out of one log. I tried to pull it out, and was having a hard time. Finally, with a crowbar, I managed to pull it out, and it was about 8 inches long! (20 cm). :o I am glad I didn't just try to saw around it, or I would have been in a lot more trouble than I knew. :-\
Roghair...I think your log is Robina Pseudoacacia or black Locust. Most true Acacias grow in OZ and other places south of the equator. Black Locust grows in Northern europe and the british Isles as well as here in the States. Just a Pseudo-educated guess based on the wood and bark. It is a most excellent wood with 1001 uses.
Keep posting pictures of your operation...I cannot get over what a great job you've done with the mill and your support equipment. 8) 8)
This may be a stupid question,and I'm not trying to be critical, but why wouldn't you build the mill to be portable? Seems to me, bolted to sonna tubes is way too permanent? I see huge disadvantage here. If it were on wheels,you could still leave it in the same place if that's your desire. I saw in my yard in the same place also. I don't travel with it. But I move it 4 or 5 times a summer just to clean up the debris and sawdust under and around it. Makes the clean up easier. I built mine with no wheels at first also. I added them after the first year. Allot better.
bozza
We each do what we want to do at the time. Always can change it if'n the mood changes. Called freedom of choice. ;D 8)
5quarter, you are right, it is robinia pseudoacacia but many people here call it acacia for some reason.
Today I had some time to saw the rest of the stump with a new blade.
Okrafarmer, I think your customer built a boat with it if I remember correctly, you made it a kind of quizz ;)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0610.JPG)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0612.JPG)
bozzaa, please be critical, we Dutchies can be a bit blunt every now and then, so no worries :)
I considered to build it on a trailer, but decided to do that in the next phase. In Europe you can not just build a trailer and use it on the road; you either have to use an existing type trailer or submit your own for approval by the authorities. I downloaded the 200 page document with requirements ::) and decided to leave that for next winter. If I put it on wheels, I also want to be allowed to take it on the road.
Next winter I can build a trailer in my garage, get the license plates, bring it to the property and lift it from the fixed setup to the trailer and back if I want.
That makes sense. 200 pages huh? WOW. The way it's going here in the US, we'll have all those regulations before long too. Our wonderful politicians are writing new laws everyday trying to restrict us as much as possible too. New World Order you know. Everyone must conform. Problem is, I'm a non-conformist to all that kind of stuff. I live old school and no one will make me live otherwise. I still don't and never have had, or ever plan on having a cell phone. I must admit that I was like that when computers first came out too. But I did come to realize by 1999 what a useful tool computers are. Cell phone, not happening.
That is some beautiful black locust, pseudoacacia, Roghair! Amazing that the same species grows on both continents with very little difference. It is a very useful wood, as well as beautiful. I hope you enjoy your locust.
Yes, my customers came and picked up the locust I milled for them, and they were almost flipping somersaults, they were so excited about it. ;D
I didn't know Dutch people were blunt. Do you think they are more blunt than Australians? Australians are the bluntest people I know, although Chinese people and people from Maine "have their moments."
Sawing in the rain is less comfortable but still fun! The sawdust sticks everywhere and the raincoat is all covered with sawdust.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0619.JPG)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0618.JPG)
But at the end of the day the sun is back, I produced some sawdust...
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0620.JPG)
and rose the lumber pile
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/31167/DSC_0621.JPG)
had a great day ;D
That is a nice whack of well stickered lumber. ;D
Looks good, Roghair! You seem to be one of those people who manages to "get it right the first time." I envy you for that! :)
Good job 8)
Thanks Okrafarmer, reading the FF helps a lot! Sometimes the cuts are a bit wavy these days; I can't pinpoint the problem and tried everything I found on the forum. I decided today the problem is the LOGS not the sawmill ;D too many knots maybe...
Funny how an 'old' thread can come to life again.
Currently I think about making a shingle attachment (use the wood between the many knots)
Roghair,
What I have learned I "think" about knots is if I push too fast, engine speed too low, blade not sharp and I think most importantly the set in the blade are all factors. I sharpen and set my blades by hand and have found they cut much better than sharpened with an automatic machine. I resharpen just a touch while the blade is still relatively sharp and cutting well which has cut the grief level considerably when sawing.
Happycamper, The blades are sharp and set, but you have a point; I might push too fast with with too little engine speed through the knots. I will change that next time. Also I want to try 1½" blades, I have 3 of them from WM (Germany).
Roghair,
It will be interesting to learn what you find especially running the 1 1/2" blade. I have found that if I go very slow through the large knots that the band doesn't raise. I'm also curious about your mill wheels if they tend to pick up the sawdust.
Jim
Pines and other conifers are the ones that usually give me the wavy cuts. I have found the waviest cuts are closest to the surface. That is, they occur most when I am cutting the outer slabs off the outside.
Several things that need to be done, or that can help sometimes in cases like that:
1. Sharp blade
2. Proper set in the teeth
3. Proper tension on the blade
4. Proper alignment and deflection of the blade
5. Proper speed (go slower on the outer cuts of the log, than when you have it down to a square cant)
6. put the log on the sawmill such that you cut into the small end of the log first
7. Debarking the log can really help
8. Slow down for big knots
9. Keep your adjustable blade guide(s) as close to the log as possible
10. If you get your outer slab off and see humps sticking up on the cut surface of the log (cant), go back over it a second time after checking to see that your tension is correct. Go slowly where the humps are to allow the blade time to cut properly through the hump.
These are things I have found that help.
That's a good (check-)list, thx!
If I try to recall, you might be right indeed the problems are more in the outer slabs.
Also I sawed the big end first.
Next time I will put more attention to points 5, 6 and 8.
Jim, the wheels pick up some sawdust but not very much. At the end of the day I scrape them with the back of a knife. At least I can not have the problem with dust buildup under the (wheel-)belds ;D