Lucas mill: best log loading strategy

[chainsaw_louie]

I want to ask what others find is the best strategy for getting lolnger ogs into the cutting area on a Lucas mill.

 The support posts on my Lucas 825 mill are usually 12' apart which means for side-loading logs longer than 12'  that I have to partially take apart the mill. 

Or, If I use the tractor and push the log in from the end, I mess up the bunks which are 8x8's laid on the ground. 

If I had some sort of wheeled carriage that I could load logs onto and roll into the end of the mill, that would allow me to efficiently get long and heavy logs into milling position. Or, super solid bunks with heavy rollers might withstand a 800lb log being pushed in from the end but that's a big ask. 

Has anyone seen or built a carriage like I described?

Short of that, I probably have to refine and speed up my mill take-down & set-up, which is 12 steps:
1. Mount rail extensions
2. Mount wheels on sawhead
3. Lower and remove sawhead
4. Remove one horizontal side track/rail
5. Unclip & remove both top connecting pipes
6. Remove two side rail supports
7. Load log from side, onto bunks
8. Reassemble, steps 6-1

[Don P]

Take pictures and comment on how it works. We are usually set up as wide as possible with extensions on and wish it was wider. I'm usually loading and it isn't my mill, keeps one humble  :D

I boomed in some from overhead with my partner snaking them through the frame, it worked but a recipe for buying a new mill. Too humble  :D. We then threw plastic crane mats down to help with mud, chained up and drug them in. Lift with a loader from the side and set the bunks up under it. Neither fast nor fun and still potential of snagging the mill.

We needed to flat top a bunch of long log rafters. I ran roller tables thru the mill, building a railroad track, level the whole works and make some "furniture" to hold the logs. Then you can cut longer than the rails by rolling in further and continuing the cut. I loaded the log out on the roller tables and we manually pushed it in. I think I had about 40' of tables set up on cribbing. Do not swing into the rollers, you won't make it through  :.



 

[WV Sawmiller]

   I'm thinking rollers. With the plank down like on the picture above you could put some pipe rollers on and roll it. I can't tell from the picture but it looks like you could use some larger/longer rollers that would fit across both sides of the mill and still fit between the uprights. 

[Dakota]

For the longer logs, I romove my bunks, and then drag the log through the end with my Honda Forman 4x4 and a log arch.  I cranked the log up within the arch as far up as it would go, slipped the bunks back into position,  and lowered the log into position. Easy peasy, no need to take the Lucas apart. 

[chainsaw_louie]

I get 24-30" diameter logs , heavy and with side stumps.  No way a quad 4x4 will pull it in , tractor is too big.

Now I'm thinking that a simple, low wooden bunk sled on long smooth 14' runners might be a solution. With the sled outside the mill, at one end pointing in, I could use the tractor or peavey to place/roll the log on the sled.  Then with a come-along or tractor , I could pull or push the sled down the center of the mill. 
4" diameter steel Pipes could be sunk into the ground and protruding 7" to act as guides to keep the sled centered.   Sawdust would act as bearings under the runners. 

What do you think, could this work  ? I'd have to shovel the tracks clear each time. 

[Don P]

Always willing to add to your workload :D. If there is a "track" of heavy... like 4x12 slabbish stuff, dug in level and spiked with your pipes thru holes in the edges of the tracks. I think that would be less friction and when you pull the sled in it is levelled.

[GAB]

I get 24-30" diameter logs , heavy and with side stumps.  No way a quad 4x4 will pull it in , tractor is too big.

A small tractor with a forestry winch properly anchored can pull in a fairly large log.
GAB

[scsmith42]

I set just about all of the logs on my Peterson by using a forklift with nylon slings.  Really large logs are also loaded on the Baker this way, so as to avoid slamming the mill around with an 8000 lb log rolling onto the deck.

Can you run your carriage down low and then sling the logs under a tractor bucket to set them onto your bunks?

[chainsaw_louie]

The geometry of a Lucas doesn't allow for the rails to go low enough (top edge @20" off ground ) to easily get a front end loader with forks over the rails and down onto bunks.  Using slings or chains to carry the log over the side rail solves that problem.  Or, better yet, the rails and sawhead can be raised way up and a log loaded under the rails , which is  much safer for the mill.  However none of these loading techniques gets around the fact that the vertical supports are 12' apart .  I could space the support frames at 16' apart but it would be pretty unstable and then I'd get the 18' log and be thinking how to load.  

I've used a Peterson ASM which isn't 'portable' and it has a low 1' rail and a high 7' rail that never move. This makes side loading from the low side easy .  But this is a much different machine from a Lucas 825.

[Don P]

What is unstable? We set up max distance apart and with a little wiggling I can usually get in up to 18' logs. When we have the extensions on it has to come in the ends.

[longtime lurker]

Y'all overcomplicate things. This is easy.

Set your mill up with the posts at the end of the rail. The rails are 20' long and you can now get an 18' log under the rail with the mill wound up with no worries. The other bonus of having the posts wide is stability... Set up 12' apart when the power head is at the end of the rails it's actually leveraging the far posts up and then it can perhaps move. The penalty is you might have to walk an extra 8' to make height adjustments... It's a whole 4 extra steps albeit 100 times a day.

The other option if the log is too big to go under the rail at full height (or out to about 22' long with the standard extensions) is to insert the carriage wheels, drop the mill down and lift one rail out. Remove the top cross bar, and remove one post. Then insert log and reassemble... And the mill disassembly and reassembly part of that is like a whole 5 minutes by yourself, I know because I did it plenty of times.



 

And sometimes they get big enough you get to dig a hole and roll the log into it then assemble the mill around it... and that takes a whole 20 minutes. Then you get to walk along the top as you're cutting it, cuz it's a Lucas and they can handle an 8 footer when you get keen.

[Ianab]

Yup, at some point in the equation it becomes faster / easier / safer to just move the mill, especially if you are in the middle of nowhere with limited equipment. 

[customsawyer]

I just cheat and use my telescopic loader. With the side tilt on this machine it allows me to do a lot of cheating.

[blackhawk]

I am with longtime lurker.  I always set my posts about 18' apart and have never had any stability issues.  I just raise up the rails and roll the logs into place on my bunks.  

[chainsaw_louie]

Telescopic loader, Now we're talking! 

Moving the posts makes a lot of sense but...
When making the horizontal cut in hardwoods (red oak) , I notice that the sawhead will 'bounce' in the cut unless I slow down and/or take a less deep cut. This bounce I attribute to too wide a space between support posts and not enough sideways support so I've moved the posts closer.  I do have 5th support post but I don't use it, probably that extra post on one rail would help solve my horizontal bounce issue. I guess I've also not used that 5th post because it blocks up the side I like to offload. 

Taking the mill apart but only removing one frame not both  would also be a time saver and less realigning to check.

Thanks for all the suggestions.  

[blackhawk]

On a horizontal cut you should take no more than half your cut capacity in a single pass.  In your case with an 8" capacity, only take 4" deep horizontal cuts.  Lucas talks about this in one of their videos.  Goto 6:49 in this video:  https://vimeo.com/135964224?embedded=false&source=vimeo_logo&owner=21650711

[esteadle]

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[M.R.]

A different approach, instead of tracking the log how about tracking the mill?
less weight in motion, lighter weight compared to the log, less chance of loading
damage to the mill, able to mill longer lengths [beams, lumber] 

The bottom ground tube could be replaced with lets say ie: a length of removable 1.5" square tube that will slide & pin into 2" sq. 3/16" wall 3" long><with the seam filed or ground out welded to a pipe sleeve to slide up & lock with a set screw if it'll clear the log
or remove to move the mill.

[Ben07]

I get 24-30" diameter logs , heavy and with side stumps.  No way a quad 4x4 will pull it in , tractor is too big.

A small tractor with a forestry winch properly anchored can pull in a fairly large log.
GAB

I am absolutely new in this bussiness, just bought a lucas mill, I have only small logs, around 12 inch or smaller in diameter but all lengths need to be 6m. I have an minitractor 1.6t  ,45HP with a winch I pull logs uphill without problem. I plan to load them like that, with a winch from one end. Of course I will fix to the ground some wood beams to protect the  sawmill conection rods which are on the ground this will be used to fix the logs as well
Did you figured out what works the best??
As I said zero experience from my side,I am sure I will run in problems but this is how you learn.
I saw few videos about sawmilling and it seems to me extremly important how you organise loading and placing the boards.