Useful sawmill mods

Andries · August 06, 2022, 12:47:16 PM

That looks great MM.
The good part about being 'anal' about an install is that you'll have fewer things to troubleshoot down the road. 👍
I'm curious though, you fussed with the linkage length for a bit.
Doesn't that just set the height of the side support when raised or lowered? Would that matter much if it was + or - 1/4" different than the front and back side supports?
Or am I not understanding how the pictured linkage functions?

Magicman · August 06, 2022, 01:10:29 PM

They need to be together when fully raised and when fully lowered. When my blade misses the front side support, it will miss them all.

If there was ¼" difference, they would really be out of whack.

WV Sawmiller · August 06, 2022, 01:26:18 PM

Congratulations but now you are going to be kicking yourself for months to come for not adding them years ago! :D

Also it looks to me like you need a new paint job on the mill so the rest matches the new side supports. ;)

LeeB · August 06, 2022, 02:31:30 PM

Do they replace the manual supports?

Magicman · August 06, 2022, 02:49:20 PM

Yes, the manual side supports and the old linkage are discarded. That is why it's only $200 to get the upgrade on a new LT35 or LT40 Hydraulic sawmill. It now comes standard on the SuperHydraulic.

Andries · August 06, 2022, 02:50:00 PM

Quote from: Magicman on August 06, 2022, 01:10:29 PM. . . When my blade misses the front side support, it will miss them all. . .

Whooo boy, of course!
Thanks for the reply - suffering from a brain cramp this morning.
🤦‍♂️

OlJarhead · August 07, 2022, 01:10:46 PM

I was wondering why you woukd need to remove the manual ones...mine, I'm told just need the articulating arms to connect them to the two hyd ones

Dan_Shade · August 07, 2022, 01:21:59 PM

Almost full circle :D

Useful sawmill mods in Sawmills and Milling

Magicman · August 07, 2022, 01:45:29 PM

Quote from: OlJarhead on August 07, 2022, 01:10:46 PMI'm told just need the articulating arms to connect them to the two hyd ones

And those arms are what is missing on the old ones and added to the replacements as seen in my (in the box) picture above. The back side support is the only one that is hydraulically powered and the other(s) are powered by linkage attached to the back one.

Yes Dan, this is a Bibbyman invention and his initial version is detailed in this topic. I noticed that he referred to them as "back supports" but they are not on the back of the sawmill and are properly labeled by Wood-Mizer as "Side Supports" and are located on one side of the sawmill. The "back" of the sawmill is where the taillights are. ;D

barbender · August 07, 2022, 07:33:24 PM

Magic, I think we need a paint that will match our faded pink/orange mills to camouflage new parts😁

Magicman · August 07, 2022, 08:52:47 PM

Yup, that old "salmon" color sorta goes with the territory. ;D

WV Sawmiller · August 07, 2022, 09:25:45 PM

Yeah but that new coat of bight orange will cut down on wind resistance and help your fuel economy and with the amount of travel you keep doing it will pay for itself lickety split. :D

barbender · August 08, 2022, 12:35:29 AM

It's tough to make a 25 year veteran mill look brand new. I don't think any "Rustoleum rebuild" can match an old soldier's patina😊

Ventryjr · August 10, 2022, 10:41:40 AM

I built/added a saw dust conveyor to my mill. No more shoveling truck loads of saw dust by hand. I took a old hay elevator and made a shoot/paddles for it. I still need to fab up a funnel for the saw end. But it should work pretty good. Here's a video of it in action.

RM.51 DIY Sawdust Conveyor - YouTube

Crusarius · August 16, 2022, 11:30:54 AM

that looks sweet. you should head to tractor supply and get some of their 3/8" bulk rubber strip and make wipers for it and add some angled sides up to the frame rails.

Ventryjr · August 16, 2022, 09:08:32 PM

Quote from: Crusarius on August 16, 2022, 11:30:54 AM
that looks sweet. you should head to tractor supply and get some of their 3/8" bulk rubber strip and make wipers for it and add some angled sides up to the frame rails.

I made some sheet metal shoots and added them last weekend. It worked out pretty good! Still needs some tweaking.

fluidpowerpro · August 17, 2022, 08:33:25 PM

Whenever I'm sawing I often am walking to the other side of the mill to see how high my backstops are. It's a pain and all those steps add up at the end of the day so I decided to figure out a way to add some kind of height indicators for my backstops. I have 2 sets of stops. (4 total) Each set is actuated with a hydraulic cylinder. I have each set color coded , green and yellow, and the lever on the valve is also color coded.
The green set of stops is closest to the valves so I can see the cylinder through the bed so today I added a stroke indicator to it. The marks on the cylinder correspond to the height of my stops above the bed.
This one was easy because I can see the cylinder. The cylinder for the yellow stops is at the other end so I'll need to get more creative on how to do that. I think I'll end up sneaking a small steel cable back through the mill bed. One end will be attached to the cylinder and on the other end I'll use a door closer like on a screen door. The door closer is spring loaded so it will keep the cable tite.

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Crusarius · August 18, 2022, 10:04:18 AM

Thanks fluid, I have been looking for an idea like this. Only problem is my bar is not so visible.

fluidpowerpro · August 18, 2022, 02:18:33 PM

The other set l have to do is at the other end of the mill so won't be as easy. Working on the lathe now turning some small rollers/pulleys for routing a small steel cable to the operator end.
Confidence is high......

Satamax · August 18, 2022, 02:51:35 PM

@fluidpowerpro

You could use a convex mirror ? You know, like the ones to see around street corners, or in shops.

fluidpowerpro · August 19, 2022, 03:00:01 PM

I considered that but I think this will be better because it won't be as subject to viewing angle. I also must admit that I like building things just for the challenge. I enjoyed building much of my saw and the ongoing mods as much as I like milling.

Nebraska · August 19, 2022, 09:57:45 PM

The original Timberking scale was gone so I was using magnetic scales anyway... I really liked the looks of the Vallee magnetic scale so I ordered one. Stopped by the welding shop yesterday picked up a little 16 gauge sheet metal. My friend that runs the place sheared it off at 4 inches. I spray painted it up and got it put on the mounting plate on this evening. I even got to watch a really good sunset.

fluidpowerpro · August 28, 2022, 05:32:26 PM

Finished my backstop height indicator for the other end of the mill. As mentioned in the earlier post, that cylinder is not visible from the operator station so I had to use steel cable and pulleys and route it back thru the mill bed. I used a spring loaded door closer as my indicator which also keeps the cable tight. Once that was done, I added a scale on the saw head to tell me how high the blade is off the bed.
I really think this mod will help me save time because I won't be walking around to the other side to see how high my backstops are. The steps taken

on this mod will, as Yellowhammer says, save steps.

Crusarius · August 28, 2022, 07:42:16 PM

great idea using the door closer.

Wlmedley · October 02, 2022, 07:56:23 PM

I think this has been talked about before but lube adjustment on Woodland Mills isn't the best.I hardly ever use lube unless cutting pine but decided to fix it anyway.Mounted brass ball valve downstream from shut off valve.Now I leave valve on tank wide open and use ball valve to adjust flow.Works good.I think I got idea from someone on here.If so thanks 😊