Can any Cooks Hydraulic mill owners give me me their opinions on their mill. I am thinking about upgrading to a fully hydraulic mill. They have a great price. Thanks in advance.
I have the AC 36 Cooks mill. It is a full hydraulic mill, with no electric motors. The mill is built rock solid with 6 x 3 tubing for the main frame. I have never had the lift arms back down from any log I put on them. The drag back system can move some pretty big cants as well. If you are ever gona run a mill by yourself you need the drag back system...main thing that needs to work really well is to cut the far end of the log square. These mills are made with solid steel wheels and come with Cooks drip system for using diesel as a blade lube...only a very small amount of fluid is needed to keep your wheels and blades clean. Most of the ones who fuss about diesel have not used the right system with it. The tank is built into the frame of the mill, so you don't have another tank to worry with. You will also like the spikes that hold down the cant...The spikes coupled with the stout hydraulic log dogs will keep the cant flat on the deck. With the dogs all the way down and the stops down you can cut down to a one inch board for the last cut. The log turner is heavy duty as well, made with # 120 roller chain. The log levelers / rollers could be a little longer and I would like it better, but most of the time they are ok. When I bought this mill I paid extra for the gravity off loader....it now is standard on this mill. This mill will last me a life time. Only down side other than the levers being a little short for my likeing is I have had trouble with the set works, which I paid extra for that is now standard on this mill , and I don't like the Perkins motor that runs it. Hope this helps. Banjo
I have an Ac-36 and have no problem with recommending it to anyone, heavy built, simple to fix for the most part, I also like that if you need any parts most can be found local, not many dealer parts.
x2 on the drag back, and I will also add that the debarker is money well spent in the long.
And I cant say enough good about the people at cooks they go out of there way to help people not just owners of their mills.
Not as many Cooks mills out there but cant remember anyone having trouble with one on here. Steve
That Alabama 9% sales tax is a bummer to me, but I must say that is one stout mill.
When I spoke to the company, they stated that the sales tax was 2%
Welcome to the Forestry Forum, dcrichmond. Adding your location to your profile helps with future questions and interests.
Sorry that I'm late to the party, but I've been out of state for several weeks.
I own a Cook's AC 3651D, a Cook's AE 344-P edger and a Cat's Claw sharpener with a Band Roller. The mill has all the bells and whistles including a mud saw. I also ordered the mill with a few extra feet of frame so I can do 25' logs.
I've owned several different band mills through the years including other red, blue, and Orange ones.
I saved the best for last.
I personally would never go back to belted band wheels. Besides less upkeep, their micro-metered diesel drip works flawlessly even at -20°F. No pitch build up, no rust, no contest. Cook's band wheels on the AC 3651D are also 26" in diameter which is larger that most other comparable mills. This results in less band flexing and considerable longer blade life when compared to 19" wheels used by their competitors.
As has been previously noted, there are few proprietary parts on their machines. They come standard with 2 log dogs controlled by a single lever. They are also unique in the fact that you dog against the Squaring Arms on loader side. When you load a huge log on it is caught by the dogs, not the squaring arms. This eliminates having to adjust them for square constantly because you never hit them.
These are not pretty powder coated hobby machines. They are built locomotive tough. My AC 3651D outweighs a comparable Orange mill by several Thousand pounds.
In the end, you have to decide. If you have never owned or run a top end band mill, any one of the top four mills will serve you well. Most of the major manufacturers are listed as sponsors to the left. Do your homework and if possible go out run some different mills. Don't be taken in by slick ads and powder coated paint jobs. Beauty is only skin deep.
Go make some sawdust!
Quote from: sawdusty1 on January 20, 2016, 08:30:10 AM
That Alabama 9% sales tax is a bummer to me, but I must say that is one stout mill.
Sawdusty,
Can you avoid the Ala sales tax by having it delivered to Fla? Might be cheaper to pay the delivery fee than state sales tax. Might still have to pay property or other tax in Fla but might be cheaper.
You might save some $$$$ by ordering the mill as agricultural equipment.
I'll take a power coated paint job any day, hate things getting rusty after a couple of years but I wouldn't choose buying a mill because of it or salesmen hype either. I'd sure look at all of them (hopefully running with a good operator) if I ever replaced my TK. Steve
A friend of mine has a Cook's MP-32. He added hydraulics to his. I have ran it before and it is a fine piece of machinery.
Most states have a use tax, owed on items brought into the state, with credit given for sales tax paid in another state.
TTLLC you really know your stuff when it comes to accounting :o