Building a tracked skidder

[isawlogs]

You are going to have to do better than that ...  Go on now fill us in on the details ...  8) 
Welderbunny is going to be sawerbunny  ;D

[tnlogger]

Jeff looks like getting the name of the mill from sb will be like pulling teath outa a wolverine  :D

[sprucebunny]

OK....OK... ;D

I've ordered a Champion sawmill. I tried hard to buy a sponsors mill but they didn't have the combination of things I wanted for the same price. Baker came the closest.
Here is a link . They have one of the best websites of any mill manufacturer. Lots of pictures and specifications.
Champion sawmill

[Jeff]

Well, give them boys in green a good talking to about the Forestry Forum. We can make em famous. :D

[sprucebunny]

I'll do that , Jeff. ;D

I had to wait 2 months to get it so they might have to expand to get famouser ( an ARKY word ! ) :D

[Jeff]

famouser :D I remember that post. One of my best If I dont say so myself. :D

https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php?topic=9988.msg136381#msg136381

[sprucebunny]

I think so, too, Jeff :D
I think of that post/picture every time I run into that word ;D

[tnlogger]

 :D :D yup i think that was the start of the arky stick   ;D

[Ernie]

Joan all I can say is WOW.  That saying "girls can do anything" sure is a massive understatement in your case.

I'm just surprised that with all your obvious skill and talent you aren't building your own mill.

[Minnesota_boy]

Gee, when she said GREEN I thought she had swindled bought Florida Deadheader's Homemizer.  :D

[Ernie]

Unclebuck

Got any pics of your finished dog houses/castles?

Sounds like a great idea

[leweee]

Congrates Joan 8).. on the purchase of a sawmill ;D
Spruce(sawyer)bunny ...now that has a nice ring to it. Play safe & have fun.

[UNCLEBUCK]

Sprucebunny getting/got a sawmill ! Yahooooooo !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 8)    Ernie thats the one and only pic I got . Thats over 20 years old the day after I came home from log cabin school and I needed to practice and built a dog castle . I dont have a clue where it went too . Wish I had a digital camera and computer back then .  Have fun sawing s.b. . Looks rugged like a big john deere  ;D

[Patty]

Hey Joan,

I checked out your new sawmill at their website. It is WAY COOL.  8)   Which HP did you order? You will really enjoy making lumber; it is great fun. Be sure to take lots of pictures when your new mill arrives. 

[Murf]

Joan, it looks great, well done!!

If I may though, offer a little technical advise, you need to have a pressure relief valve in the circuit that feeds that lift cylinder to protect it, same as a snowplow has.

If not any sudden shock loads, such as a log snagging, or even just accumulated wear & tear will overload the seals on that cylinder at the very least, if not bend it, break a weld, or some of that framework.

You may also want to look into some form of mechanical lock to hold the frame at the desired height, a constant load will be created when you pull that will be hard on the cylinder since it will be on the weak side of the cylinder. Even just a chain to take the weight off the cylinder would be a big help.

[sprucebunny]

Thanks for the encouragement and congrats , guys ;D

Patty, I ordered it with the 20 hp Hondr , also the heavy wall rectangular tubing frame 24' long . I'm planning to build one or more log cabins from spruce trees on my land. Some thing I've always wanted to do ;D

Murf, this machine came with all the hydraulics....it was a trail groomer of some sort. Wouldn't the pressure relief valves already be in it ? I looked at all 4 of my (Fischer) plows and didn't spot the relief valves ???

I moved a 16' long w. pine. The hydraulics reached thier maximum retraction powerwise and squealed. Isn't that a pressure relief valve ???

[Ernie]

squealed. Isn't that a pressure relief valve ???

It was probably a squeal of glee at being part of your wonderful machine

[Murf]

Joan, yes there would be a pressure relief valve on the system, but not on the circuit.

I didn't use the technical term, Cross Over Relief Valve, or Cushion Valve, since I figured it would just be more confusing, it is just a fancy kind of relief valve.

It is basically a spring loaded safety valve, and it goes downstream of the control valve, between the valve and cylinder that is, that way when the valve that operates the circuit is closed, there is still a little "give" inside of the now sealed circuit.

On your Fisher, or any other snowplow, it is built right in to the main pump/solenoid package. On the plow it works like a big hydraulic fuse, if the outside edge of the blade were to hit something, the load on the angle cylinder would be tremendous becuase of the leverage and weight & momentum of the truck.

The same is true of your skidder frame, once the logs are in the air, as they are in the above picture, and you release the control valve for the lift cylinder, the hydraulic fluid in that circuit is trapped there. If a log were to sneg, or the load changed suddenly, there would be a sudden pressure increase that could far surpass the burst strength of a line, the cylinder seals, or a weld.

A Cross Over Relief Valve would act like a spring in such case, allowing the load to be asbsorbed by some motion in the fuild, rather than allowing it to build beyond the ability of the system to contain it.

A valve is only about $50 brand new, compared to the possible consequences of a failure, it's cheap insurance. The circuit you're using may already have one in it, but be sure there's one in there before you do any serious hauling with it.

[maple flats]

Sprucebunny, good job there. Looks to me like the log in the above pic is tight against the blade, if this is so when towing tremendous force is placed on the components when you turn and there is no give, something breaks. If this is not tight when towing you are good to go.
Put up some pics of the new mill when you get it.
Really sounds to me like you are one fantastic woman, too bad I'm very happily married. 8)

[Brad_S.]

Congrats on the mill purchase, SB! 8) 8)

The red team missed a chance at a good field rep. Looks like it's the green team's win. :D

[sprucebunny]

Thanks, maple flats and Ernie and Brad-S  smiley_blush

I'm looking into the pressure relief cushion valves , Murf.

Maple flats... ya the log tight on the plate isn't so good. I have a couple of ideas to improve that. Changing the angle of the plate would help or maybe a bar that stuck out behind and across the face of the plate that the chains ran over. With smaller diameter logs there would be less leverage .
There are way too many bugs ( deer flies-I hate them ) and the ground is soft from all the rain so I can't take it out to play...I mean experiment. Another few weeks and I'll be out finding fodder for the mill ;D ;D

[Murf]

Joan, most that I've seen the blade has a return at the bottom, a flange or shelf sort of affair that angles out and down.

The log sort of rests on top of that flange but is pulled by the chain. This allows a small contact area at the bottom that works like a trailer hitch and allows the load and the skidder to swivel to turn a corner or steer.

The other way you could do it, and maybe easier, is to have a boom pole sticking out over the plate, kind of like a small wrecker. Then the plate is just there in case you stop faster than a log, or to anchor you when winching. In fact some teeth on the bottom of that plate would help with that too.

[maple flats]

Just try leaving about 6-8" slack, you can lift the log but can still turn. I used to sell Fransgard Log winches (3 pt hitch, tractor) and the only one that ever needed repair was one that the owner winched too tight with a rather heavy log or logs and drove around turns in the woods on his route out. The logs actually made a slight indent in the blade where they hit and as the logs tried to swing around because they could not pivot at that point they bent the winch drum shaft, which the mfgr had never been able to do in product testing (bend the shaft that is). The mfgr actually fixed it anyways but the customer was given a refund and we sold the unit as rebuilt to another man. The first owner refused to believe that there was too much force applied while turning with the log tight to the blade.

[sprucebunny]

That must have been some heavy logs he had 

I could skid the logs from the winch cable which is visible in the photo, also.

[Fla._Deadheader]

  WOW, Don't know how I missed all the updates on this thread ??????

  Joan, great job on that skidder. Especially like the paint job.

  Good news on the mill purchase.  Where do ya think all the time will come from, to operate the chainsaw, skidder, Sawmill, stack and sticker the lumber, drag off the slabs, cook the meals, do the laundry, check in with the FF ???  Youse gonna be one very busy young lady  ;) ;D ;D ;D