Band Sawmill

[Bamamav]

Are you going to have some kind of guard over the top and sides of the blade in case it breaks or jumps off? That thing will take a leg or arm off faster than a Top Fuel car can run 1000'!

 

[smallfoot]

Are you going to have some kind of guard over the top and sides of the blade in case it breaks or jumps off? That thing will take a leg or arm off faster than a Top Fuel car can run 1000'!

Yessir, I'll have something simple out there. The guard also directs the flow of sawdust. Planned right, the dust won't build up on the wheels or track and can be directed to a distance away from walking area. When this one gets done, my walk area will be to the right as you look from behind the trolley and down the track. My build will throw the dust to the left from that position. Raising and lowering will be push button. Throttle will be deadman's and will operate from a handle on the push bar. It's got a Predator motor. 13 hp. electric start so there's extra weight with the battery. I've been weighing it all as I'm going. With all the metal and parts and pieces, this whole saw head only weights about 300 lbs. including all the carriage still to go. I measured and figured this evening on the motor placement and with a simple shift of motor and battery position, my belt I have will work. I'll pick up some collars for the axle shafts. The bearings themselves lock the axles with set screws but I'll put locking collars on too, then bob the extra axle length off. I'll have the kill switch on the handle too. I'm not using a slide type arrangement for the motor to slide, engaging the belt to drive the wheel. Instead I'm using a Comet clutch. It will automatically engage when it reaches rpm.
Next effort will be blade guides. Building my own a little different. Using the same bearings they use on the big boys so it'll probably work. My adjustment may differ... One on the drive side will be fixed. The driven side will be adjustable.
More tomorrow!

 

[DozerII]

[P[P[P

 

[Torchie]

[P[P[P

^^^^^X's 2 ^^^^^
Torchie

 

[soltz]

Diddo

[cl [P

 

[smallfoot]

Got the motor and battery mounted.

 

[Torchie]

I guess that I'm a little confused, Small. But what else is new....
Is the log going to pass under the engine and the bracket that it is mounted too?
[P [P [P
Torchie

 

[Dr Crankenstein]

Looks to me, like the trolley/motor/bandsaw will run "from stem to stern'' and repeat the cycle...

smallfoot???

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[smallfoot]

I guess that I'm a little confused, Small. But what else is new....
Is the log going to pass under the engine and the bracket that it is mounted too?
[P [P [P
Torchie

Torchie, in the last pix I didn't have the band on but it will cut on bottom pass of the band. What is confusing maybe in the pic is the saw head, which moves up and down, is all the way down right there. That will be the lowest cut I can make and when I set the bunks up, I'll have a clamping system that will allow me to clamp the log and cut within an inch of any obstruction. After making my final pass, the last board will be at least an inch thick. Last thing you want to do is try to cut thru a clamp or a log dog. When I start out on a log, I'll have the saw head up a ways. I've got about 4 feet of height on the posts but probably will only get about 3 feet of lift before straining the pulley set up. That's going to be plenty of height for anything I can handle. The width is up in the air as of yet because I haven't fabbed up the guides. The wheel surfaces are 20" apart and that gives even more width down where the blade cuts. On this type of mill, the log sits still. The saw head and the trolley are a group and the group travels down the rails.
And Doc, yes, I'll have stops at the ends and the whole trolley can travel the full length of what I have set up now. I've got 20 feet of rail on a frame and the trolley is just shy of 3 feet long. This will allow me to run a 17 ft log and have all I need to produce out to 16 ft boards. You start behind the trolley and push to the end of the log, raise it a hair, pull the board, move the trolley back to start, set the depth and go again. Every pass after a square cant gets at least one board.

 

[Dr Crankenstein]

Excellent explanations, small. [cl

Two compliments:

- I read somewhere, "I can explain it, but I can't help you understand it."

- My mother used to say, "You're smarter than the average bear."


.

 

[smallfoot]

Thanks Doc!

I really gotta go to one of those meetings...I notice every time I take a pic of this project, there's at least one other project in the distance...no wonder I never get done!

 

[Torchie]

Torchie, in the last pix I didn't have the band on but it will cut on bottom pass of the band. What is confusing maybe in the pic is the saw head, which moves up and down, is all the way down right there. That will be the lowest cut I can make and when I set the bunks up, I'll have a clamping system that will allow me to clamp the log and cut within an inch of any obstruction. After making my final pass, the last board will be at least an inch thick. Last thing you want to do is try to cut thru a clamp or a log dog. When I start out on a log, I'll have the saw head up a ways. I've got about 4 feet of height on the posts but probably will only get about 3 feet of lift before straining the pulley set up. That's going to be plenty of height for anything I can handle. The width is up in the air as of yet because I haven't fabbed up the guides. The wheel surfaces are 20" apart and that gives even more width down where the blade cuts. On this type of mill, the log sits still. The saw head and the trolley are a group and the group travels down the rails.
And Doc, yes, I'll have stops at the ends and the whole trolley can travel the full length of what I have set up now. I've got 20 feet of rail on a frame and the trolley is just shy of 3 feet long. This will allow me to run a 17 ft log and have all I need to produce out to 16 ft boards. You start behind the trolley and push to the end of the log, raise it a hair, pull the board, move the trolley back to start, set the depth and go again. Every pass after a square cant gets at least one board.

Thanks for the explanation ,smallfoot. Makes sense and that's sort of what I thought was going to happen but sometimes I tend to over think things....[S
[P [P [P
Torchie

 

[smallfoot]

Thanks Torchie! You know if it's something I'm building, it's going to be on the "simple" side. Be hell to build something for days and not know what to do with all the parts...
I'm hoping everything will work as planned and it should. I've been reviewing vids of everything being built as far as mills and trying to glean the best ideas I can find and still call it simple.
I even went as far as planning two different ways of putting the band in motion. Mostly you see 3 ways it's done. Some people put the motor on a sliding plate and use a lever take slack out of the belt. Then there are some using centrifugal clutches. And then there's using an idler wheel on a lever set up to take slack out of the belt. I've got the last 2 covered with wheels of all kinds. I'm not sure the clutch is going to work, although some I saw did have them. The one I have is simply not rated for a motor this size and I'll have to take a wait and see attitude. They say using the pneumatic wheels extends band life. It is also some of how it can work with this style of clutch. I believe the moving parts are heavier than using standard sheaves for wheels. I won't know till I try it. It won't be hard to swap it around if it doesn't perform. The clutch will cut steps every pass and that adds up when you're doing something repetitive like this. With a simple handlebar lever, the motor can throttle up, your clutch engages and you haven't moved from the helm. I've seen some poorly planned ones that every step brought the operators out of position to make simple stuff happen. Mine will allow me to walk along side without stepping over anything. That's something you don't see on most. If I'm thinking safety concerns, making less movement is good.
One of the vids I watched was comical as it took about 1/2 of his vid to crank an electric start motor. Turn key, motor rolls, walk around mill to get to choke lever, walk back around mill, turn key, motor rolls, walk back around, move choke lever, walk back around, turn key, motor rolls, walk back around, turn on gas...you get the picture.
I'm lacking some angle iron to finish my tracks. When I started, I matched my wheels with 1" angle because I figured it would be easy to find. Hardware stores and builder supply places usually have it. Well, not lately around here. I kept passing up getting any at all when places would be out or maybe only a 72" stick or two. Now I wish I had snagged every single piece I could find. I'll have to travel a ways to get it but I can.

 

[kenny c]

A friend has an automated Timber Harvester set up at my place and it is a lot of work. Try to keep it as simple and easy to use as possible. First and foremost make it safe. They cut meat as well as wood and they don't discriminate.

 

[smallfoot]

Thanks Kenny! I told the guys around here that will use the wood that when it comes time to cut I'll need help. We'll see!

 

[kenny c]

I have a lot of people that think because the trees are on my land that they are free and my labor isn't worth much and fuel, oil, chainsaws and chains don't cost much, payloaders are free to own and maintain, bandsaw blades come cheap. Oh, and knowledge and skill and experience are worthless. Sorry for the rant. I'm done now, carry on.

 

[Torchie]

I have a lot of people that think because the trees are on my land that they are free and my labor isn't worth much and fuel, oil, chainsaws and chains don't cost much, payloaders are free to own and maintain, bandsaw blades come cheap. Oh, and knowledge and skill and experience are worthless. Sorry for the rant. I'm done now, carry on.

kenny..
Seems like everybody wants something for nothing. Until you try to give things away then nobody wants them.[ddd
I have quite a bit of fallen timber on my property from windstorms and I told a guy he could have it all for free to heat his house with.He showed up once to look around. Said he would be back and has never showed.

I'm with you on the simpler is usually safer train of thought, small. Less steps. less work as well.
[P [P [P
Torchie

 

[smallfoot]

So far out here we're chipping in with each other like good neighbors. I hope it keeps on being that way. I've lived out here for 28 years without any neighbors. Now I have neighbors on 2 other pieces of land in here. One is my best bud and the other looks to be what will be a good friend..I'm blessed!

 

[joedoh]

ingenuity! love it!

 

[kenny c]

I know I sounded like I was whining, and I was, I am also blessed with a lot of good friends that chip in and help when times are tough and when they are good.