Sawmill?

[Willyr]

I would like to build a sawmill that I can run off the pto of my Deere.

Anyone know where I can get blue prints of how to make the carriage? I have a good understanding of how to make the ways of which the carriage rides on. What I need is blueprints.

Anyone know of any? I tried to google for a set. All I found so far are youtube vids of people making swing saws or some form of saw that is not PTO drive.

[JD440ICD2006]

Try this:

http://www.dyndnsservices.com/download/sawplans.pdf

Disclaimer: I only found this on the Net after some searching. I do not sell these, do not represent them, nor will be held responsible for any facet of disatisfaction.

All you will need to do is change your power input to a shaft off of your PTO, unless you want to run it from the belt pulley.

[Willyr]

Well that was interesting. Yet I am looking for something along these lines where the motor and saw are stationary and the log slides back and forth on a carriage.

Mostly its a need to know how to adjust the log and drive the carriage.

[hydrogeo]

My folks' neighbor ran one just like you are looking to build for years off the pto of his Farmalls. He had an H and a Super MD. His mill was an older portable mill that originally ran off a flat belt from a tractor pto pulley. He converted it to run it off a pto power shaft. I spent many a Saturday dogging logs on that thing. The newer band mills are way faster, but it worked.

I suspect if you watch craigslist something will pop up.

[Willyr]

The problem I have heard from the neighbor with a bandsaw is that it dives. So he may try to cut some thing 1.5 inches thick, yet at the end of 12 feet it is over 2 inches.

[Lavoy]

Inconsistent width to me would be a factor of a blade with incorrect set, or overfeeding.
Lavoy

[CELSESSER]

correct blade tension is quite important on a band mill. If everything is tracking propery , tension is correct and the blade is new then it shouldn't "dive". If it cuts straight and then starts to dive it usually means that you hit something that took the set out of one side of the blade - then it dives to the sharpest side.
Back when we were having it done the guy would just stop and put on a new blade (and add $35 to the bill each time he had to change it) Said it wasn't worth sharpening them. He had the debarkers that cleared the path for the blade and that helped a lot. He scanned every log for metal but if he found a nail with the saw, caachinggg $35!.
About the only real way to do the circular saw mill is to buy one. The carriage mechanisms are quite a piece of engineering. As are the arbor, hub and blade. Find one that is operational in your area and look it over good.
There must be some youtube vids out there.

[oldtanker]

I think you are looking at this the wrong way. You think you will save money by building your own. Well buying new steel to build a flatbed, plus your time....price a factor built unit. Think you will be the same way here with a saw rig. By the time you pay for steel, machine work for arbors or buying the same you could buy a used rig and mod it and still have some chump change left over.

Rick

[Willyr]

Yes Oldtanker I too am coming to that same conclusion. If anything it may be easier to put a hydraulic motor is where I am trying to get the ratios. Alas these older rigs are quickly disappearing to the metal scrappers.

As to the bandsaw? Yeah I hear you. Only thing I wondered was if his guides were not tight or correctly parallel.

I may end up doing something in a swing blade design. I was trying to make my tractor more functional. Yet it seems as to a sawmill it may be more headache than it is worth.

[logger]

I own and operate a band saw business from my home so have some experience with them, mine is all all hyd and is powered by a diesel 3 cyl.
Wavy lumber or thick and thin are issues on any mill including circle mills. Wavy lumber has several factors , one could be to fast a feed rate, dull bands or pitch set into band blade, for soft wood about 9 degrees works best for me. Thick and thin lumber your mill is out of adjustment, get a good manual and also look for sawing forums. If you are turning out wavy, thick and thin you have at best made square firewood, most of the time its not the mill but the sawyer.
Logger

[digitup2]

I agree with logger a friend of mine has a band saw manufacturing business and he has told me many times working for me even that wave cut or wondering cut lumber is from may different factors .From too little band tightness to catching a nail on one side of the teeth or from too much crowd to frozen knots all are factors He has two circular mills with the B H Payne insert blades for sale at this time but I see by the info Steve sent me there are lots of mills for sale around the continent at this point Just Google ( saw mill exchange )and pick your mill from there hope that helps but Steve told me he has had 5.5 tons of pull on a 3 inch band and it still wandered so at that point he had to change the band now when a good tight 3 inch band wanders you are up $^&t creek so to put it I would find an other band !! .Digitup.

[Paul Buhler]

Willy found these:
http://burlington.craigslist.org/grd/3440918897.html

http://plattsburgh.craigslist.org/grd/3405648614.html

Type in "sawmill" in VT craigslist for others too. Good luck. Paul

[Willyr]

Now I need to win the lottery! Cant find employment, figure I will stand a better chance with the lottery.

[pop pop]

if your doing this for a past time, fine, otherwise i'd sharecrop the trees to a mill. if there is one in your "hood"

[logger]

willyr,
Sorry about your employment situation, if you are at all handy at doing things try picking up odd jobs. I have contractors who come into the mill, when the big jobs dried up those who were willing to do small jobs here and there such as changing out an outlet ect. kept working and making money. Don't mean to stick my nose in but your post on winning the lottery sounded sad.
logger