# Buddy got a mill



## gman2431 (Aug 1, 2016)

Well long story short my buddy has been wanting a mill.

He got paid some good money to have the white pines taken off his property and was left with tons of usable material and also the remaining 20 acres of planted red pines he owns.

Sounds like a good time to mill your own lumber and build a house!!!

So I had him talked into a brand new bandmill when he calls me the other day and says he bought a mill but it's a little different then what I would expect.... Knowing him this could be a big surprise so in had to go check it out. Plus when he told me he gave 300 bucks for the whole outfit, minus the tractor which he had, I was intrigued.

Well yesterday we hooked it up and by dang we got some lumber rolling!!


Here is the tractor being hooked up to power the mill. Long legged dog double checking our methods... dam them things are big!


 


Next we man handled a log up on and started out making something that looks like lumber. 





Getting closer!! 






Theres some modifications and also some stuff that is in need of repair but nothing that cant be handled with a little time and a welder. Really looks like this is gonna get him enough lumber to eventually build a house he wants and also make him a couple bucks on the side. For what he has invested into it im a little jealous to say the least.

Reactions: Like 2 | Way Cool 7


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## Schroedc (Aug 1, 2016)

A cheap investment to get rolling! Those things always scared the heck out of me but they ran them for a zillon years so we know they get the job done.

Reactions: Agree 3


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## ripjack13 (Aug 1, 2016)

Looks like something from the medieval times!!


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## gman2431 (Aug 1, 2016)

Schroedc said:


> A cheap investment to get rolling! Those things always scared the heck out of me but they ran them for a zillon years so we know they get the job done.



It's not for the light hearted!!! 

Once adjustments are made and some footings are poured it will stabilize the machine itself nicely. 

We were envisioning ramps and so forth to load lumber onto it and I think after awhile he will have something good.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Schroedc (Aug 1, 2016)

gman2431 said:


> It's not for the light hearted!!!
> 
> Once adjustments are made and some footings are poured it will stabilize the machine itself nicely.
> 
> We were envisioning ramps and so forth to load lumber onto it and I think after awhile he will have something good.



If it's not going to get moved around might want to think about setting it down in a pit so the bed is closer to ground level.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## gman2431 (Aug 1, 2016)

Schroedc said:


> If it's not going to get moved around might want to think about setting it down in a pit so the bed is closer to ground level.



We thought about that but chip removal is gonna be the kicker. Really don't wanna crawl into the pit to shovel them all out since it drops them right below the blade.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Schroedc (Aug 1, 2016)

gman2431 said:


> We thought about that but chip removal is gonna be the kicker. Really don't wanna crawl into the pit to shovel them all out since it drops them right below the blade.



Most of them I've seen that way have a conveyor made from an old wide flat rubber belt with scoops or angle iron to pull the chips up and out into a pile.

Reactions: Agree 1 | Useful 2


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## gman2431 (Aug 1, 2016)

Schroedc said:


> Most of them I've seen that way have a conveyor made from an old wide flat rubber belt with scoops or angle iron to pull the chips up and out into a pile.



Now that's an idea!


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## ironman123 (Aug 1, 2016)

Nice find.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Kevin (Aug 1, 2016)

WEAR NO LOOSE CLOTHING AROUND THAT WIDOW MAKER! 

And doing that kind of work in flip flops is going to mean a broken toe/s eventually. Just a matter of time. But that's not the end of the world I have a broken finger and or toe half a year every year it seems. That mill will cut a lot of timber but a band mill would have a much better choice as he will see.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## gman2431 (Aug 1, 2016)

Kevin said:


> WEAR NO LOOSE CLOTHING AROUND THAT WIDOW MAKER!
> 
> And doing that kind of work in flip flops is going to mean a broken toe/s eventually. Just a matter of time. But that's not the end of the world I have a broken finger and or toe half a year every year it seems. That mill will cut a lot of timber but a band mill would have a much better choice as he will see.



Yea we were just trying it out so safety gear wasn't around much... These are very dangerous machines for sure and you better keep you eyes open and aware of your surrounding. 

For the price point and the time he has to cut his lumber I personally feel this will be right for him. An entry level band mill is 10x the price of this.


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## JohnF (Aug 1, 2016)

I often think about buying a mill. Band mills are a RPINTA as far as I have seen. If you use one, best be debarking every log or you will get wavy crap that ends up half as thick as you imagined when alls said and done. I like your friends circular mill, just get it set up nice and level and it'll do just fine. I used to buy several hundred thousand bf a year, and I hardly ever was satisfied with band sawn lumber.

Reactions: Like 1


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## gvwp (Aug 14, 2016)

Just about all commercial sawmills use bandmill anymore. At least with some part of the process. You do have to watch the sharpness of the blade. Interestingly enough pine is one of the most difficult woods to keep the blade from drifting. Especially if you hit a knot which pine is normally notorious for.

Reactions: Agree 3


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