Band sawmill

[rrman61]

Can you wait ,go to this show in October and they will have all of them in action .

Show Schedule | The Paul Bunyan Show

View this year's show schedule for the Ohio Forestry Association's Paul Bunyan Show.

www.thepaulbunyanshow.com

I would love to go but live a little too far(south Louisiana).

 

[plattman]

I you shoot at Batesville let me know we can hook up and shoot, I shot league there some years back, a lot of the guys I shoit with go back and forth however I always busy so try and keep it to once or twice a week depending on the season.

Have been a Coonhunter member for years. Usually shoot on Thursday mornings with the other old farts.

 

[m16ty]

Having been around a circle saw mill and a little bit around a band mill, a band mill is painfully slow compared to a circle saw. The up side is you have less waste with a band mill (half as much saw kerf).
I just know a lot of people think they will buy a portable band mill and turn their logs into valuable lumber. You can, but it's also a whole lot of work. You can buy different accessories like log turners and such to make the job easier, but it's still a lot of work. I've found out that I can take logs to my local mill and get them sawed pretty reasonable, cheap enough that I don't want to buy a mill myself.

 

[moresmoke]

Not to mention the embedded metal aspect....

I charged the cost of a new blade everytime I hit tramp metal, and didn’t give the log a second chance. A single soft nail, you might save the blade. Multiple or anything hard like drywall screws it was toast.

If you know there is a good probability of tramp metal, they do make bi metal blades that will take the abuse. Usually used to disassemble pallets.

 

[John in MD]

I charged the cost of a new blade everytime I hit tramp metal, and didn’t give the log a second chance. A single soft nail, you might save the blade. Multiple or anything hard like drywall screws it was toast.

If you know there is a good probability of tramp metal, they do make bi metal blades that will take the abuse. Usually used to disassemble pallets.

If I see blue in the end of a log or it was a yard tree, I reject it and will not cut it. There have been a couple of railroad spikes and other surprises found in logs and utility poles that looked clean and showed no outward signs of foreign material.

 

[Wdj]

Lots of machines being sold that are specifically for exercise. Why not buy one that has a useful byproduct?

 

[urbancase]

Have been a Coonhunter member for years. Usually shoot on Thursday mornings with the other old farts.

Well I am still working, I try and get out a Thursday morning sometime soon. Do you ever shoot Friday evening out there? I shoot Thursday evening at Oldenburg and the 2nd Sunday in October we start our Sunday shoots there. Take care if you here your handle yelled out it’s me.

 

[used red MN]

Well I am still working, I try and get out a Thursday morning sometime soon. Do you ever shoot Friday evening out there? I shoot Thursday evening at Oldenburg and the 2nd Sunday in October we start our Sunday shoots there. Take care if you here your handle yelled out it’s me.

You guys do realize that you can “Direct Message” each other and exchange real names and phone numbers! Hover mouse pointer over Plattman’s Avatar/Profile and click “Send Direct Message” on a phone you have to open their profile. He will see he has received a Direct Message by a number appearing by his mail envelope.

 

[dahlin]

I have a LT28 had two LT15's you can get a power feed for both of the LT's it really makes it easy. All of my Wood Mizer's have been good saws keep the band sharp and the saw tuned and it will cut good lumber

 

[Doug Wi]

Toying with the idea of getting one when I retire in 9 months.I want a shop/outdoor kitchen area and don’t want to pay the metal building price.I have past experience with a friend’s traditional mill .just not with a band mill.any of you have opinions on which brands are good or bad?I want something in the 4-8 grand range.I will use it for my sons projects later and can always sell it after.only problem I see is getting logs to cut.any idea’s on that?

Lots of good thoughts. I started with a Keenerbilt then upgraded to a timberking. 1600. If you proceed with this, I would recommend going used, spend abit more money and get all the bells a whistle you can afford

 

[Keith True]

There seems to be no bargains on used bandmills here.A friend bought a used Timberking at a good price because rumor had it they were not that good of a mill.15-20 years later he has yet to find fault with it.I believe it is Kubota powered.A friend that passed a couple of years ago bought a new Woodmiser,intending to cut and sell some of his own timber.(he owned lots of it)At some point he figured he wanted to do one or the other,either harvest or process,but not both.He stuck with milling and selling.His sales records showed that he had put 3.2 million feet through that mill before he died.I thought that he had replaced it years ago,it was pretty worn,but he just replaced the worn parts and kept sawing.The rail that supports the whole overhead carriage was worn down,so he cut it off and replaced it.Some of us here don't know what to do about lumber since he died.

 

[pomester]

I charged the cost of a new blade everytime I hit tramp metal, and didn’t give the log a second chance. A single soft nail, you might save the blade. Multiple or anything hard like drywall screws it was toast.

If you know there is a good probability of tramp metal, they do make bi metal blades that will take the abuse. Usually used to disassemble pallets.

I hit a ceramic fence insulator one time. There was no powering thru that. No visible sign on the trunk that there was anything there. I have been charging $20 for every metal hit, and let the tree owner decide whether to continue with sawing the log. That pretty much covers the cost of a new blade (tho I haven't purchased any this year, I guess I should check, I may need to raise the penalty). Usually a standard nail will allow the blade to be sharpened/salvaged, anything hardened and the blade is toast.

 

[rrman61]

I hit a ceramic fence insulator one time. There was no powering thru that. No visible sign on the trunk that there was anything there. I have been charging $20 for every metal hit, and let the tree owner decide whether to continue with sawing the log. That pretty much covers the cost of a new blade (tho I haven't purchased any this year, I guess I should check, I may need to raise the penalty). Usually a standard nail will allow the blade to be sharpened/salvaged, anything hardened and the blade is toast.

If you have to buy logs is it feasible when figuring on wear and tear and comparing to buying from a lumber yard?lumber prices is what has me thinking about a mill.

 

[pomester]

If you have to buy logs is it feasible when figuring on wear and tear and comparing to buying from a lumber yard?lumber prices is what has me thinking about a mill.

"I want a shop/outdoor kitchen area and don’t want to pay the metal building price." - "I want something in the 4-8 grand range." (sawmill price I think)

I think you are unrealistic with your expectations.

Do you have a source for logs? Somebody with a woodlot? You buying on the stump? Felling a timber tree without messing it up is a skill. Do you have a way to handle and haul logs? How about a way to handle and manage lumber? Sounds like you are considering framing with rough sawn. That's fine, but a wet 2X10X20 oak is heavy, you'll need two robust men to move the plank from the mill to a wagon/loader/whatever. And then again to move it into position and secure it while it's held in position by a machine. And on and on.

I guess what I'm getting at is if you want the shelter, you're better off 'paying the metal price' and finding your comfort in using the facility. If you have a vision and it includes native wood and you will enjoy the challenges and the pride you will have in milling your own lumber that's valid too. Don't expect to save any money. If you have to buy a machine and the logs I think you'll be paying a premium for the experience.

I recently sawed a job, 'Jerry's Garage Mahal', over the course of a year that it took him to build it, 36'X 60' with a 12' porch down one side. Oak 2X10 roof framing, solid 4/4 sheathing. (He is a good enough person that I sawed his utility poles for him, hating every minute) Jerry has a 580K backhoe/loader (w/pallet forks), a 18' farm truck, HD trailers, etc to handle both the logs and the lumber. And 'free' logs (all he has to do is fell, cut, drag, and haul). He's rightfully very proud of his building. It would have been likely cheaper and certainly faster to hire in a pole building...