Saw Mill

[jakeanderton920]

I know, I know "take the class" before making any decisions as it will change the way you look at your build.

However, I am looking to do a log exterior and a more post and beam interior with squared off wood (kinda timber frame-esque). For this and for my flooring and interior framing I am looking to mill my own lumber.

Right now I am looking at 3 different saw mills:
- Timber King 1220
- Woodland
- Wood-Mizer LT15

Does anyone have any opinions or reviews or recommendations for others they have experience with?

Thanks.

[Mosseyme]

Norwood Lumbermate 2000 is what we have. Better take the class before you make to many plans even on the interior.

[JSmith]

Heard alot of good about the woodmizer. Gonna kick a dead horse here and say take the class first.

[rreidnauer]

I wouldn't rule out Hud-son if it's in the group to be considered. I was pretty impressed with their product for the money. (about $1500 less than a comparably sized Woodmizer) Good call going up a size from the base models, like the LT-10. When I saw the smallest models of several brands being demonstrated, I was not so impressed. Yes, they work, but for a little more money, the next size up makes a huge difference in performance and capacity.

[eagle]

I have seen quite a few Hud-son on craig's list/ebay and they "look" like a decent mid priced unit. FYI- if you go to http://www.searchtempest.com/ it will search all cities on craig's list for the given distance you want all at once.

[Mosseyme]

When we were looking for sawmills we looked at Timber King and a few others but some had 6 month waiting list to buy new and we just weren't sure about buying used and what we saw out there. There was a Norwood that we could go look at close by so we took a look at that and settled on the Norwood. We drove to Buffalo NY and picked it up in the back of our pickup. We brought the mill home and started setting it up. It took about 3 days to go from a bunch of boxes to a fully functioning mill that will handle logs up to 30" and with a track that will take 23'. We bought a few bells and whistles that we will probably not need since we are building log instead of sawmill lumber cabin as we had intended. We have the bevel siding and shake attachment and the ramps that we don't use but we would use if we took it on the road. We also have the legs that we haven't used since we have had it placed stationary since we got it out at our place. We have the towing pkg and may use it someday. It was not difficult to put together and has great instructions with the product. I would not hesitate to recommend this machine. Since you put together everything except the engine when something needs worked on, you are the expert.

[edkemper]

I'm planning on a Woodmizer. Any model would be nice to have.

[Mosseyme]

http://sawmillexchange.com/
pretty good choice of used mills at this site usually.

[jakeanderton920]

Thanks for the advice. It seems like no one has a Woodland on here?

Where the costs rises a lot for me would be track extensions, adding another couple thousand to the cost to get to the 25'-30' range that I need. Are these tracks easy enough to fabricate that I could hire out a welder to make them?

[rreidnauer]

For certain brands, yes. One more reason to research different brands.

[loghousenut]

Also realize that the throat size of some bandsaws can limit how long a log you can mill. If you cam get some of those perfectly straight Doug Firs with no taper it might be easy to mill 25' logs. In my case I get free logs that have a lot of taper and they would have to be bigger at the butt than my mill could handle if I were to get anything 25' long.

[Mosseyme]

you are right lhn, we can put a 30" log on the mill and the carriage will pass, but the throat will only take 24" cant when squared. Even with the small end jacked up to level the cut sometimes we have to take off a 6" slab then turn it up on it's side and take 6" or 8" slabs off to get it to fit in the throat. I hate to throw away good wood so I usually "waste" the time to put the fat slabs back on the mill and get what I can out of them. with 25' we would probably be down to a 12" -14" clean cant even with a 28" butt. This is one reason we are planning log rafters instead of 4x12s

[jrdavis]

I just found 20 ft angle iron 4" X 4" X 1/4" locally for $76 each.
Thats a steel. :)
so now I don't have to weld on anything for mine.

Once the deep freeze gives up, I'll be able to level and switch my HF mill over to the new track and be back in business.
21inches is about the MAX cant I can cut.
I have chainsawed some bigger logs with curves to get a 3 sided beast I can cut slabs on.
everythign I've cut has been waste wood or windfalls, so i don't care AS MUCH about the waste, but I hvae recut a few of the waste ends.

JD

[gepper]

I just bought a woodmizer 28. Haven't taken delivery yet so I can't provide anything useful. Sorry.

[rreidnauer]

Wow, that's gonna be nice! The only holdback being, you really can't fabricate bed extensions. Wonder what they charge for the 24' extension?

[gepper]

$4,795...ouch. Too rich for my blood.

[edkemper]

That 28 will be a dream. That's what I'd like to have. Let us know once you get it up and operating. Pictures, a lot of pictures.

[lynncherl]

I was able to slab 20' logs for my rafters on my Woodmizer 15 with an 11' bed. I use my tractor loader to lift & set logs, so it takes patience and lots of shimming to extend your cuts in a plane, but my labor is cheaper than buying bed extensions. BTW, I love the look of log rafters and exposed floor joists rather than milled beams inside the cabin. I have a wee cabin (12.5x16')

Lynn

[Mosseyme]

Lynn,
You forgot the pictures of you wee cabin.

[jakeanderton920]

Yes, pictures of the cabin and said rafters please!

[thoner7]

Ive seen log rafters but not joists in an LHBA house.

Still waiting on pics!! :-)

[BigD]

I am getting close to getting a bandsaw mill. I have looked into chainsaw mills and from what I have heard (LHN) bandsaw mills would be perfect for me. I plan on doing more than just a log here and there. I want to make a sufficient amount of lumber. At the same time.....I am not as rich as some on this forum, so I will opt for the "Less than $4000 model". I think that leaves me with two good choices.
A) Harbor Freight
B)Woodland Mills

I had a good "conversation" (IM) with LHN about the HF mill he has and the modifications he has made to it to turn it into a sawing beast.
I would like to know if anyone has purchased or used first hand a Woodland Mills?

Also, I REALLY like the idea of putting in log rafters vs 4X12's. I haven't found a 4X12 for less than $150 (local lumber yard price). The money I save on even the most expensive logs for log rafters will pay for a low end sawmill.

Any thoughts would be appreciated!!!

[edkemper]

If you buy a quality bandsaw mill used at a reasonable price, the chances are, you could cut all of the lumber you need to build and the sell the mill off to someone else when you're finished for about what you paid for it. They are amazing and a lot of fun, even if it's work.

[edkemper]

I just bought a woodmizer 28. Haven't taken delivery yet so I can't provide anything useful. Sorry.

Great choice. Nice mill.

[YogaMike]

After a couple decades of much planning, studying, and dreaming, I am also looking at ways to make the best use of my
trees. Between an aging body, limited funds and time, I've gone from looking for deals and info on chainsaw mills to looking at options with bandsaw mills. For the money Woodland Mills looks good, certainly a step up from the HF mill, but for a little more money I'm leaning to a Wa. built mill that is on a trailer frame-all welds. Sequoia Mills are just out of Spokane. I'm planning on starting my build this Spring. Good luck out there.

[edkemper]

YogaMike,

Fill in your personal info to let us know where you are. Makes it easier for us.

Nothing like a bandsaw to bring in some fun to a work project.

[YogaMike]

Well Ed, I figured you're right, it's high time I do finish my bio stuff but it won't allow me to input. One of these days I'll most likely figure it out. For now though, I'm in the Bothell area east of Seattle. I have a little more than 5 acres full of doug fir, cedar, spruce and hemlock, with about 600' of nice mountain creek frontage. This is at the base of Mt. Rainier just outside the paradise entrance. Like LHN, I first took the class from Skip in the 80's (86'), and then to resurrect the dream, took it again from Ellsworth and Steve in 09'. Actually my property is just a couple of miles from 2 Cents (Angela and Dave). A quick shout out to you and all the many forum regulars who are so giving of time, advice, and experience. Thank you all.

[Mlkmn1]

Can't go wrong with a wood-mizer, been running an lt40 for 25 yrs, thousands of board feet with very little problems. Lots of mill options depending on budget and they hold their value well. Also have some nice options-have the lap siding attachment for cutting beveled siding works great. Also recently picked up a used 12' extension and can now cut up to 28' lengths. You also can't beat the service and support from wood mizer.

[outdoorcountryboy]

I purchased a wood-mizer LT35Hy. absolutley satisfied. the woodmizers also hold their resale value better than any other sawmills Ive seen.

[edkemper]

I have an LT40, no hydraulics. Can't tell you how much fun is in your future. Nothing like the smell of mill lumber. BTW, they hold their value very well and the support from WoodMizer is top notch.

But as you'll likely hear a lot here, if there are no pictures, it didn't happen.

[eagle]

There seems to be a good gap on price when you go to Woodmizer. I plan on getting a sawmill but not sure I will be able to afford one.

[edkemper]

Eagle,

I was going to buy a new smaller Mill. Then a ~12 year old LT40 with 350 hours on it came up for 10K. According to WoodMizer, it was worth thousands more than I was going to pay for the smaller new unit.

If I decide to sell it when I'm finished building, I will have saved more than I paid for it on lumber I milled and will likely be able to sell it for close to what I paid for it.

However, that last part isn't likely. I just can't see selling the thing I have that all the property owners in the area will need fencing and rough cut lumber for other projects. My neighbor wants to build a patio and a small cabin.

By the way, a great source on Sawmills is on http://www.forestryforum.com/board/index.php . This sight will help understanding what you need, have, want, and how-to on milling. There is even help with pricing.

[thoner7]

Anyone have experience with this mill? Looks nice a mobile and also it runs on a track made of 2x4 so it would seem easy to make a longer track for longer joists etc

[gepper]

I've got an LT50. Bought a LT28 a couple years ago but not having hydraulics was a killer. Decided to bite the bullet & trade it in for the 50. I love it. Rips though the big oaks I've been cutting. Reasonably easy to trailer. Hydraulics are worth it to me. Cutting is the easy part; it's the log handling that's tough & a little dangerous. I bought the 6' extension so I can mill 27' beams. I wanted to use it for rafter on my build. Ironically, I found out that getting the beams graded is more difficult/expensive than I expected. Oh well. I don't think you can go wrong with a Woodmizer if you can justify the price.

[allen84]

Anyone have experience with this mill? Looks nice a mobile and also it runs on a track made of 2x4 so it would seem easy to make a longer track for longer joists etc


Cheap little band mill? There was one of those for sale around here a while back. I think I researched that a brand new one was about $1700 (I think, give or take a little). I can't remember what the brand name was, it might come to me later.

[Mosseyme]

Our mill has ad on 4' sections for the track and we extended up to 21' cut and a 2' detachable extension so if we ever go mobile to do jobs we can tow it with 4 sections that will give about 14'cut and have the extension to do 16'. If it were to be a big job we could take along the extra extensions and do up to 23'.
When we did our rafters that were 25' we set up to cut from the bottom of the rafter and jacked up the small end so we were almost out of the wood at 23' then just ran the chainsaw across the bump of round log that was left. worked out fine.

[Mosseyme]

You are right about working the logs being the killer. We do have a bells and whistles attachment that is like a pipe attache off the side of the mill with a winch on it. You hook it to the log and crank the winch and turn it. I guess it is the poor mans hydraulics.
Another great very useful attachment is the roller jacks on the mill. We use them often to even out the cut on logs with a lot of flare. If you jack it up and take part of the flare from one side then take the other half from the other side it is easier to get better wood.

[edkemper]

I've got an LT50. Bought a LT28 a couple years ago but not having hydraulics was a killer. Decided to bite the bullet & trade it in for the 50. I love it. Rips though the big oaks I've been cutting. Reasonably easy to trailer. Hydraulics are worth it to me. Cutting is the easy part; it's the log handling that's tough & a little dangerous. I bought the 6' extension so I can mill 27' beams. I wanted to use it for rafter on my build. Ironically, I found out that getting the beams graded is more difficult/expensive than I expected. Oh well. I don't think you can go wrong with a Woodmizer if you can justify the price.

Do you have the Washington state article on using rough sawn lumber?

[edkemper]

You are right about working the logs being the killer. We do have a bells and whistles attachment that is like a pipe attache off the side of the mill with a winch on it. You hook it to the log and crank the winch and turn it. I guess it is the poor mans hydraulics.

We have a similar manual winch set-up. But the set-up is amazing. My wife (5'100#) winches the 16.6' logs of 24" diameter up the ramp and onto the table. She never let's me help.

Once I get my mill to my property, either my FEL or my 4wheeler with winch will simplify the heavy lifting in loading logs.