# BIL Mill's maiden voyage



## BobL

Today I managed to get into BIL's yard and use the BIL Mill. There was lots of bolt tightening and retightening and checking and rechecking and even triple checking.

Unfortunately I did not have my own digital camera and had to wait till I was well into it before being able to borrow one for a few shots and very short movie.

The log I tried it out on was a 800mm (32") diameter x 1.2 m (48") long piece of liquid amber. I cut 2 x 50 mm (2") thick slabs and 5 x 82mm (3 1/4") plus a few experimental cuts 

Firstly the rail system.





The rails are made from 6ft lengths of 19mm (3/4") SHS steel I picked up out of the skip at work. I converted half the lengths of SHS into channel and welded a length of converted channel to another length of SHS to form 19 x 38 mm (1 1/2") thick rails. The rails are held together by all 5/16" thread and two bits of adjustable steel angle that have tapped holes in which pointy ended bolts a threaded to grip the long at each end as shown here.






I arrange about a foot of excess rail to hang over the ends of the log so I can place the mill onto the rails and start the engine.






Another view:





Some Observations:
1) the mill is still pretty heavy but glides very smoothly on its HDPE runners. Just like any decent mill with a sharp chain, minimal pushing is needed.
2) The vibrations are significant:
- 3 nuts and assorted wasters and a bolt from the mill disappeared into the sawdust during the slabbing - more locktite needed by teh look of things
- one hex head exhaust cover bolt worked its way loose.
- the Brass auxillary oiler filler cap (is kept loose to allow the tank to breath) worked its way off and hit the moving chain and ricocheted into my Face Mask making a significant dent in the mask.
3) the cams used to lock the height adjustments (see discussion thread regarding this) worked really well. Obviously more testing is needed but not a sign of the cams working their way loose. The all thread height adjustment also worked as expected. 
4) Aux oiler seems to work OK but my need more flow/pressure when working in dry wood.

All in all, not quite as exhasting as I expected and very very satisfying satisfying. More shots and hopefully a movie in the next post.

Cheers


----------



## BobL

*BIL mill maiden voyage (2)*

As I said there was a lot of mucking about stopping and checking, chain tension, oil flow, etc.

After a couple of slabs I decided to try AggieWb slope method.





As this picture shows, it's a bit more awkward to start being higher up like that.






WOW! it works really well! As my video shows, like Aggie the mill slides down the rails on its own. I'm only holding the CS trigger with my left hand I'm not holding back or pushing at all.

As you can hear in the movie, as the mill reached the wider part of the trunk the engine bogs down a bit probably because there were too many cutters in the cut. In the end I needed to hold it back - not very comfortable. Conclusion : Some slope is good but not too much.

Next week, hopefully a sheaok.

With lotsa thanks to BIL and his yard propreitor (Jeff) who gave me the logs.

Cheers


----------



## OZDOG

well done! :biggrinbounce2: you must be stoked to give it a run, bet you found it hard to sleep the night before  it's funny, no matter how hard you try theirs is always something you could have done better or theirs a bug or two to sort out, don't get me wrong not picking on your work at all !!! nice pic hope to see that mill spilling more saw dust . oz


----------



## BobL

OZDOG said:


> well done! :biggrinbounce2: you must be stoked to give it a run, bet you found it hard to sleep the night before  it's funny, no matter how hard you try theirs is always something you could have done better or theirs a bug or two to sort out, don't get me wrong not picking on your work at all !!! nice pic hope to see that mill spilling more saw dust . oz



Thanks OZ. 

Yeah always bugs but I think of those as a rule these days rather than the opposite. I kept waiting for the "BIG disasters" but when I think about it, the biggest mishaps were the aux-oil filler cap coming off and hitting me, and leaving my own digital camera at home. 

Those aside I still need to work out which tools I need to take with me and for increased efficiency workflow etc which spanners I should set up maybe as ratchets etc.

I also reckon adding some detachable wheels to the outboard end of the mill rails would make it much easier to move the mill and saw around on relatively flat surfaces.

Cheers


----------



## dustytools

Nice work Bob! Its always a treat to use something that you've built yourself. Congratulations on a job well done.


----------



## aggiewoodbutchr

Well done!

She's a beaut' alright!

How did all the cam locks work out?

BTW-
When the saw bogs down in a wider cut it just means you need a bigger saw! just kidding


----------



## BobL

Thanks DustyT and AggieWB.

BTW if you are having trouble playing the movie it is in Quicktime format.

Aggie, much of the design is attributable to your mills, posts and discussions, so if anyone is the godfather of this mill it is you. In some way or other everyone else on this forum contributed as well, even if it was just your enthusiasm for milling. So a BIG thanks to everyone! 

In terms of the cam locks for the height adjustment, they (and the all thread depth adjusters) worked really well with not a hint of movement. Of course a few more milling sessions will be needed to check out the longer term reliability of these sorts of features.

BTW, if anyone decides to try the sloping log milling method, watch out for the slab sliding down the log when you break thru at the end - it certainly surprised me and trapped the mill between the slab and the ground, luckily BIL was there to help. Before it does this, it is advisable to anchor the slab to the log. There a several ways of doing this, but next time I will do the following:






Thanks to all again.
Cheers


----------



## cantcutter

*ouch*

That old stihl must leave your hands, arms and back numb after a pass or two :O


----------



## BobL

cantcutter said:


> That old stihl must leave your hands, arms and back numb after a pass or two :O



I would have though so too, but I have to say it surprised me at how insignificant the vibrations are on my setup. There are quite a few possible reasons but some of this has to be that by placing the log on a bit of a slope means the mill sort of goes down by itself so I don't really need to push the mill much to begin with. The main handle on the mill (it's an inverted racing bicycle steering stem) has a high-quality soft-rubber mountain bike handle bar grip on it, and I wear gloves with soft rubber pads. 

Today my hands and arms are just fine, much less aches than using a new CS to cut a trailer load of firewood. It's my legs and shoulders that ache and I'd put that down to moving several logs around, lifting/moving the slabs, and lifting the mill on and off the rails.


----------



## aggiewoodbutchr

BobL said:


> Thanks DustyT and AggieWB.
> 
> BTW if you are having trouble playing the movie it is in Quicktime format.
> 
> Aggie, much of the design is attributable to your mills, posts and discussions, so if anyone is the godfather of this mill it is you. In some way or other everyone else on this forum contributed as well, even if it was just your enthusiasm for milling. So a BIG thanks to everyone!
> 
> In terms of the cam locks for the height adjustment, they (and the all thread depth adjusters) worked really well with not a hint of movement. Of course a few more milling sessions will be needed to check out the longer term reliability of these sorts of features.
> 
> BTW, if anyone decides to try the sloping log milling method, watch out for the slab sliding down the log when you break thru at the end - it certainly surprised me and trapped the mill between the slab and the ground, luckily BIL was there to help. Before it does this, it is advisable to anchor the slab to the log. There a several ways of doing this, but next time I will do the following:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Thanks to all again.
> Cheers



I'm excited about the outcome of your mill and I'm happy I was a little help. I guess I should have mentioned the sliding thing.:bang: I had my rails touching the ground so the slab didn't move much.


----------



## woodshop

Congrats BobL... well done. Interesting little video there too... that sucker was moving through that log faster than I thought it would given the width of that thing. Isn't it great when lots of hard work eventually pays off and you have something unique that you designed and built yourself? Greatest feeling in the world.


----------



## BobL

woodshop said:


> Congrats BobL... well done. Interesting little video there too... that sucker was moving through that log faster than I thought it would given the width of that thing.


Yeah I was pleasantly surprised at the cutting speed even though I did have all my planets aligned with a freshly tuned engine and a new bar and chain. 



woodshop said:


> Isn't it great when lots of hard work eventually pays off and you have something unique that you designed and built yourself? Greatest feeling in the world.


Yes - a very good feeling. BIL is also very pleased with himself and has showed the video to all his mates.

Now I gotta get on a do some milling and resist the urge to mod the mill.

Cheers


----------



## olyman

and--though some may not agree--milling is hard on the saw--so--i run the oil mix a bit stronger---so no chance of burndown--


----------



## woodshop

olyman said:


> and--though some may not agree--milling is hard on the saw--so--i run the oil mix a bit stronger---so no chance of burndown--


Unless you're running a very big saw down a very small log, in which case you can often saw almost as fast as you can push it, chain saw milling definitely gives any saw a workout. I don't think anybody disagrees with that one. As for whether to make the mix a little richer... gosh there are threads miles long over in the chainsaw section on both sides of that fence. I and many other csm'ers do run slightly richer mix on the big saws when milling, as well as tune the saws down a bit. 

Don't wanna derail this thread though... I'd like to see some more pics of the BIL Mill in action. I was impressed with how fast it sliced through that wide log.


----------



## BobL

woodshop said:


> Don't wanna derail this thread though... I'd like to see some more pics of the BIL Mill in action. I was impressed with how fast it sliced through that wide log.



Patience my friends. . . . As you can imagine I'm itchin to get stuck into more logs. I'd love to be millin at home but my small house block inner city neighbors wouldn't! The site where the logs are located is about 12 miles from my place and I only really have access on Saturdays. 

I spent a couple of evenings this week stripping parts of the mill down and checking for wear/contact points etc. I found an unwanted contact point where one of the all thread rods appears to occasionally touch the powerhead oil tank and has scratched away the paint - I fixed that by cutting an un-used inch off the end of the all thread rod. 

The mill is attached to the powerhead at the bar bolts but despite proper tightening the bar bolts I can detect a small longitudinal roll of the power head on the mill. Under operation the mill also slightly vibrates in this orientation. To reduce this I've added a 3rd bolt between the powerhead and the mill. This bolt passes through the mill base and screws directly into a 6mm thread used by the chain brake (i've taken the chain brake completely off). The 3rd bolt forms a firm triangle with the two bar bolts and this kills the roll. Unfortunately I will have to remove this bolt to take off the chain otherwise the chain can be removed without completely removing the CS from the mill.

I have made a list of small mods but have to resist the urge to fiddle and get millin' !!!!

Anyway I'm all set for action tomorrow although rain is forecast and I have a few jobs to deal with first. Hopefully I'll remember my camera.


----------



## aggiewoodbutchr

BobL said:


> Anyway I'm all set for action tomorrow although rain is forecast and I have a few jobs to deal with first. Hopefully I'll remember my camera.



opcorn:opcorn:opcorn:


----------



## BobL

*An aux oiler filler cap one way valve*

The most dangerous thing that happened on BIL mill's maiden voyage was the brass aux oiler filler cap falling off and hitting the chain and getting flung into my face guard. Tightening the cap on hard was no good because otherwise no oil would flow.

I thought of just drilling a little breather hole in the cap but didn't like the idea of oil dribbling out of the hole every time I lay the mill over on its side so I decided to make a one way breather valve.

The valve is made from a short (1") piece of 5/16" threaded brass rod that is threaded into the aux oil cap and held firm with a brass nut.






An 5/64" hole is drilled longitudinally all the way through the brass rod and a 9/64 hole drilled half way along the same hole. A 3/32" ballbearing is inserted is inserted into the 9/64" hole and its exit partically bocked by a small brass chain link. The chain is also attached to the inside of the tank so the cap won't get dirty or lost.






Here is a cross section of what the cap looks like.





The ball bearing allows air to pass one way but if oil tries to run out if the Aux oiler is tipped over the bearing runs down the tube and blocks the oil from escaping.

So far it seems to work.


----------



## woodshop

Neat... well illustrated and well defined post. You should go to work for a magazine. Of course the proof is in the pudding... will it work as designed. Wish I had a dime for every jig I designed and built that had to have MAJOR tweaks once I put it in action. This one looks pretty strait forward though, as long as the ball drops and does indeed stop the flow.


----------



## BobL

Not much time for milling today, chores to attend to and spent about an hour hours rebuilding the rails to suit a a longer log.

Nevertheless managed to get to BILs work and here is what was on today's menu 
A 7ft long, ~18" diameter Western Australian Sheoak (Casuarina Fraserana)





Here was what removing the first 2" showed





Unfortunately the top third has a fungal dry rot - bummer! The rest is OK.

You can get an idea of the coarseness of the cutting by this shot.





Second cut - in this shot you can also see the extended rails (~10ft long)





More pics in the next post.


----------



## BobL

Here are a few shots of the slabs with water squirted on top.











Close up of grain.





The full set:





Next weeks menu.





So how did BIL mill perform.
No bolts or nuts fell off
The Aux oiler she'sa working good - one way breather valve has a wee leak.
Setting aside the "knife through hot butter" cutting of the dry rot section, the freshly sharpened chain when through the sound part of this relatively hard hardwood veryeasily because it was only 18" in diameter. 

Are we having fun yet - YOU BETTCHA!

Sorry no video's, BIL was not around - my camera doesn't do movies and no one to take em anyway.


----------



## martrix

Bob that is awesome! Beautiful timber, I have major FOMO.

How are you finding the weight issue of the mill? Is it hard work lifting and maneuvering the mill around etc? After a good half day of milling, does it take a toll on your body>


----------



## BobL

martrix said:


> Bob that is awesome! Beautiful timber, I have major FOMO.
> 
> How are you finding the weight issue of the mill? Is it hard work lifting and maneuvering the mill around etc? After a good half day of milling, does it take a toll on your body



Short answer is yes,

I am still some way from what I would consider as "production" or "regular mode", where I don't stop after every slab and check x, y, & z on the mill. This has its +/-, it means I am working slower, but I am also lifting the mill off the log/rails and onto a set of saw horses and then back onto the log ie moving it around a lot more than I think I need to. This should not be necessary as I get more experienced. Yes teh CS/Mill is heavy and it seems to get heavier as the day wears on. I figure as long as I can get the mill into my van at the end of the day it's OK. 

The bit I thought might be hard and require more energy/force is controlling the mill as it moves along the rails but that is by far the easiest bit especially with the log on a slope trick - you also don't need much slope, just a few degrees helps enormously. 

Overall I think that lifting and stacking the slabs is by far the hardest on the body. As from next week I get to use a small 4WD tractor/Bobcat thingo to help do that so hopefully my aches and pains will be less than usual.

Cheers
Bob


----------



## woodshop

Another interesting post, thanks. I see in your profile that you are a photographer. It shows in your posts. I'd like to see that Casuarina Fraserana after it's gone through the planer and sanded or scraped. It does look a lot like some oaks here in the eastern US, although apparently not an oak at all. Found that it's pricey stuff if you want to buy some. (I'm a woodworker also). It looks heavy and dense, is it?

Milling... I too find that it doesn't take much of a slope to make going down the log MUCH easier. Milling even a slight uphill grade seems to double the effort needed to push the mills down the log with both my csm or my Ripsaw. Don't know the physics of it, but apparently it's not a linear deal.


----------



## aggiewoodbutchr

Nice looking stuff.

Sometimes when I know I'll use a log in slab form, I'll intentionally let it set for a while to get the dry rot on the edges. As long as it stays solid it adds to the character of the slab IMO.

Looks like you're well on your way to having sawdust in your veins.


----------



## BobL

woodshop said:


> Another interesting post.


Thanks

RE: I see in your profile that you are a photographer. It shows in your posts. 
I don't know much about the artistic aspects but have taught the technical side of photography (film and digital) at highschool and college levels for many years, and I take about 5000 photos a year of all sorts of stuff but mainly panoramas.

RE: I'd like to see that Casuarina Fraserana after it's gone through the planer and sanded or scraped.
I make a lot of things out of sheoak and here are a few pics that highlight the grain.
A mallet I made from a piece last year. This is a really nice tool to use - and I do use it.





An oilstone box (sorry the photos are not sharp)








Letter opener handle





RE: It does look a lot like some oaks here in the eastern US, although apparently not an oak at all.
Correct.
RE: Found that it's pricey stuff if you want to buy some. (I'm a woodworker also). 
It's very pricey here too, Millable size logs are rare outside national parks

RE: It looks heavy and dense, is it?
Its about 45 lb/ft^3 (12% humidity) which makes it on the mid to low side for Aussie hardwoods. Its reasonably hard and is difficult to dry without checking so one tends to go through a fair bit of filler resin working with this stuff. Nevertheless highly satisfying to work with.

RE: Milling even a slight uphill grade seems to double the effort needed to push the mills down the log with both my csm or my Ripsaw. Don't know the physics of it, but apparently it's not a linear deal.
It's not linear because of frictional effects. If I get a big enough slope I can get away with effectively zero effort downhill, so technically, compared to working on the flat or up hill is actually "infinitely" more effort. (just in case you don't know, that's because something divided by nothing mathematically = infinity)


----------



## Matildasmate

*Bil mill*

Hi Bob I was just checking out your signature Bil mill pic's , look's great , I bet that was fun , even with any hiccup's , I am about to try and download your vid , this should be interesting . Cheer's MM


----------



## BobL

Matildasmate said:


> Hi Bob I was just checking out your signature Bil mill pic's , look's great , I bet that was fun , even with any hiccup's , I am about to try and download your vid , this should be interesting . Cheer's MM



Yeah it's a real fun project alright. Seeing as I can only mill outside it's just been too hot to mill here and I've been getting serious milling withdrawal! It would be good if I could use this spare time to devote to other woodworking projects but it's also been too hot to work in my shop at home so I have used the metal shop at work to make some hand plane blades using the water cooled surface grinder.

Here's the latest products. The blades are D2 tool steel and are 5/16" thick x 2" wide, bevels range from 26.5º on the LHS to 23º on the right.


----------



## Matildasmate

*Movie playback*



BobL said:


> As I said there was a lot of mucking about stopping and checking, chain tension, oil flow, etc.
> 
> After a couple of slabs I decided to try AggieWb slope method.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> As this picture shows, it's a bit more awkward to start being higher up like that.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> WOW! it works really well! As my video shows, like Aggie the mill slides down the rails on its own. I'm only holding the CS trigger with my left hand I'm not holding back or pushing at all.
> 
> As you can hear in the movie, as the mill reached the wider part of the trunk the engine bogs down a bit probably because there were too many cutters in the cut. In the end I needed to hold it back - not very comfortable. Conclusion : Some slope is good but not too much.
> 
> Next week, hopefully a sheaok.
> 
> With lotsa thanks to BIL and his yard propreitor (Jeff) who gave me the logs.
> 
> Cheers


 Hi Bob can you tell me what player I need to use to play the movie on , I tried window's media player . Thank's Cheer's MM


----------



## Matildasmate

BobL said:


> Yeah it's a real fun project alright. Seeing as I can only mill outside it's just been too hot to mill here and I've been getting serious milling withdrawal! It would be good if I could use this spare time to devote to other woodworking projects but it's also been too hot to work in my shop at home so I have used the metal shop at work to make some hand plane blades using the water cooled surface grinder.
> 
> Here's the latest products. The blades are D2 tool steel and are 5/16" thick x 2" wide, bevels range from 26.5º on the LHS to 23º on the right.


 Wonderful stuff Bob , they look almost to good to use , I bet you could make some nice axe head's out of that type of steel . I use tomahawk fairly often . Cheer's MM


----------



## BobL

Matildasmate said:


> Wonderful stuff Bob , they look almost to good to use , I bet you could make some nice axe head's out of that type of steel . I use tomahawk fairly often . Cheer's MM



I agree they look good, but they are a bit exxy and a bit hard/brittle for axe heads MM. An tomahawk head size piece would cost about US$50 and small bits would chip off if it was to hit one of our decent hardwoods. Axes work better with softer steel that does not shatter.


----------



## Matildasmate

BobL said:


> I agree they look good, but they are a bit exxy and a bit hard/brittle for axe heads MM. An tomahawk head size piece would cost about US$50 and small bits would chip off if it was to hit one of our decent hardwoods. Axes work better with softer steel that does not shatter.


 Very interesting Bob , I bought a couple of though's cheap fibreglass handled tomahawks some time ago , they must have used rubber steel in them bloody hopeless and they dont hold there edge , $50.00 sound's good considering I bought a couple of good tomahawk's about 20 year's ago for $58.00Au each , these one's really hold there edge , anyway that's very interesting Bob . Cheer's MM


----------



## big daddio

hey bob, what's the year model on that big saw. i've got an 051 that looks to be the same as it out in the shed.


----------



## BobL

big daddio said:


> hey bob, what's the year model on that big saw. i've got an 051 that looks to be the same as it out in the shed.



It's an 076 (111 ccs), early-mid 90's model from the serial number. It's spent a lot of its life bouncing around in the back of a pickup but has not had much use so it still got plenty of grunt.


----------



## BlueRidgeMark

Matildasmate said:


> Hi Bob can you tell me what player I need to use to play the movie on , I tried window's media player . Thank's Cheer's MM



Quicktime. It's free here.


Also, no need to re-post the entire post to ask a question. You can edit the quoted part down to just what you want to ask about. Like this:




BobL said:


> As my video shows...
> 
> As you can hear in the movie....




That way you don't clutter up the thread with the same pics over and over and over....

If you don't need to quote something, just use the "Reply" button instead of the "Quote" button.


----------



## chrislemiller

*076 & 051 similarities*

I`ve heard the Stihl 051 & 076 are very similar.Both have M10 chain/bar securing bolts which is good.Logosol make a Timberjig for the 051.I`m just trying to find out if it will fit my 076.
Thanks BobL for referring me to this particular thread.Very interesting! Presumably BIL is the name of someone else. Took me a while to work out what CSM meant.I`m a bit slow,coming from Herefordshire probably has something to do with that.


----------



## harrygrey382

chrislemiller said:


> I`ve heard the Stihl 051 & 076 are very similar.Both have M10 chain/bar securing bolts which is good.Logosol make a Timberjig for the 051.I`m just trying to find out if it will fit my 076.
> Thanks BobL for referring me to this particular thread.Very interesting! Presumably BIL is the name of someone else. Took me a while to work out what CSM meant.I`m a bit slow,coming from Herefordshire probably has something to do with that.


051 and 076 are identical (but 051 has less cc and no manual back-up oiler) - if it fits an 051 it'll fit the 076.
Also, I've heard negative things about the timberjig - I know this is being discussed in another thread though. Apparently it's hard to cut a striaght cut/two parallel cuts, and is flimsy. The 076 calls for an alaskan really, or a granberg minimill would be nice too I reckon. But still a bit small for the 076.
Nice to have another uk member btw!
EDIT: Big fat mistake - I'm getting the timberjig mixed up with the beam machine... The minimill still looks better IMO though


----------



## BobL

chrislemiller said:


> I`ve heard the Stihl 051 & 076 are very similar.Both have M10 chain/bar securing bolts which is good.Logosol make a Timberjig for the 051.I`m just trying to find out if it will fit my 076.
> Thanks BobL for referring me to this particular thread.Very interesting! Presumably BIL is the name of someone else. Took me a while to work out what CSM meant.I`m a bit slow,coming from Herefordshire probably has something to do with that.



BIL is brother-in-law (Joe) who is the gun ally welder who did the ally welding on the mill.

As you said the 076 is heavy and you carry it around in a wheelbarrow. When it's in an alaskan mill form you can do this, or before that, this.

And in case you haven't seen it, here is the BIL mill upgrade thread.


----------



## petersenj20

I use the slopped log milling as well. I stood a 2 foot section on end, cut a v notch out of it and rest the log into the V. Stable enough so far. My back can't handle bending over forcing my little saw through a slice.


----------



## chrislemiller

*Abbreviations*

Thanks for clarifying BIL. BobL. Thanks also for the links.To prove I`ve read every word 73 lbs lifted in and out of a van and 5 foot blade on the 076 and welding aluminium-all a side of milling I`m now familiar with but not ready for yet !

Just ordered a Logosol Timberjig. Should come next week.


----------



## BobL

chrislemiller said:


> Thanks for clarifying BIL. BobL. Thanks also for the links.To prove I`ve read every word 73 lbs lifted in and out of a van and 5 foot blade on the 076 and welding aluminium-all a side of milling I`m now familiar with but not ready for yet !
> 
> Just ordered a Logosol Timberjig. Should come next week.



Chris - you get an "A+" for comprehension - or at least a good memory. 

Cheers


----------



## chrislemiller

*Comprehension*

Just finding someone who can weld aluminium is a major achievement.I`ve employed various metal workers & blacksmiths to make sculptures for me out of iron,steel & stainless steel but anything alluminium has to be riveted.(I have a riveted alluminium 11 foot boat)

My 076 with its 25 inch blade makes me ask myself "Am I a man or a mouse". If the blade was 5 foot I would not have bought it. In an earlier auction there was a Lucas Mill with what looked like a five foot chain horizontal a foot or so above the ground.It sold for thousands of pounds not hundreds like I hoped but I also thought if the chain ever broke the operator was going to lose his legs.


----------



## BobL

chrislemiller said:


> Just finding someone who can weld aluminium is a major achievement.I`ve employed various metal workers & blacksmiths to make sculptures for me out of iron,steel & stainless steel but anything alluminium has to be riveted.(I have a riveted alluminium 11 foot boat)
> 
> My 076 with its 25 inch blade makes me ask myself "Am I a man or a mouse". If the blade was 5 foot I would not have bought it. In an earlier auction there was a Lucas Mill with what looked like a five foot chain horizontal a foot or so above the ground.It sold for thousands of pounds not hundreds like I hoped but I also thought if the chain ever broke the operator was going to lose his legs.



Aluminium welding is pretty common these days. My brother in law (BIL) makes ally boats and he works with about 20 blokes who all weld ally. BIL also uses wood working routers and circular saws to shape ally. He also shrinks and stretches ally sheet using heat and it's amazing to see the curves he can generate.


----------



## demographic

BobL said:


> Yeah it's a real fun project alright. Seeing as I can only mill outside it's just been too hot to mill here and I've been getting serious milling withdrawal! It would be good if I could use this spare time to devote to other woodworking projects but it's also been too hot to work in my shop at home so I have used the metal shop at work to make some hand plane blades using the water cooled surface grinder.
> 
> Here's the latest products. The blades are D2 tool steel and are 5/16" thick x 2" wide, bevels range from 26.5º on the LHS to 23º on the right.




Hi BobL, I found this thread from the link about sawmilling in your sig.

Are those plane blades intended for use in a bevel up (like a block plane or some of the Veritas bench planes) , or bevel down plane (like most standard Stanley bench planes)?

Only reason I ask is because if they are intended for a bevel up plane its nice to have a few different included angles,
My (Veritas low angle) block plane has the iron or blade bedded at about 12 degrees and the standard iron comes honed at 25 degrees which is very nice for planing with the grain in softwoods and produce a type one chip but you can also buy blades for them honed at 38 and 50 degrees which are good for planing wild grained woods and produce a type two chip.
Theres some information regarding it HERE

I may well be telling you how to suck eggs here and if so stop me and tell me, I currently only have one plane iron for my low angle block plane but have changed the honing angle on a couple of occassions to suit the wood being planed, having another iron would be better though as I could have one set up for each angle.

If your plane is bevel down there isn't much you can do about it other than maybe put a small back bevel onto it, which I must comfess I am not keen on doing with my number 5 stanley jackplane.


Regards Scott.


----------



## BobL

demographic said:


> Hi BobL, I found this thread from the link about sawmilling in your sig.
> 
> Are those plane blades intended for use in a bevel up (like a block plane or some of the Veritas bench planes) , or bevel down plane (like most standard Stanley bench planes)?



I haven't decided yet, but probably Bevel UP. I haven't made the plane yet. 

Cheers


----------



## demographic

BobL said:


> I haven't decided yet, but probably Bevel UP. I haven't made the plane yet.
> 
> Cheers



Ahh, (Gulp) if you're making the plane as well as the irons I will quietly back out of this while my pride is intact, I figure you know what your doing and wont make any more comments that try to teach you how to suck eggs.

Scott


----------



## BobL

demographic said:


> Ahh, (Gulp) if you're making the plane as well as the irons I will quietly back out of this while my pride is intact, I figure you know what your doing and wont make any more comments that try to teach you how to suck eggs.



No worries, here's the sorts of things I made in 2008, and here's the 2007 products.

Milling, while I'm physically able, has kind of taken over.

Cheers


----------



## demographic

BobL said:


> No worries, here's the sorts of things I made in 2008, and here's the 2007 products.
> 
> Milling, while I'm physically able, has kind of taken over.
> 
> Cheers



I did have a few links about plane making on our old computer but it died and I no longer have the links, Hotleyclassic handplanes was one and there was a few others that I can't remember now, looking back at the Hotley page I seem to remember there being more details regarding the construction on the site, pretty sure he's on one of the woodwork forums somewhere and theres project details on the forums that I assume you will have already found.
Another one I remember having saved in my favorites was Ian Dalziel but I can't find much about his planes now.

Are you making a wooden or metal plane? Or both as an infill plane?

I'm interested but as I don't have access to machining facilities thats where my interest will stay and I doubt it would ever get to the making phase.


----------



## BobL

demographic said:


> Are you making a wooden or metal plane? Or both as an infill plane?



Those blades are for all wooden planes. I managed to pick up 2 pieces of Japanese white oak when I was in Brisbane a couple of years ago and am thinking about making a japanese style plane. The japanese oak came from the Brisbane Botanical Gardens and were removed by an Eco-Miller I know from an Australian Woodworkers forum. Members of the forum often trade small specialized pieces of wood for turning or small objects. I fly all over Australia and am often carrying strange pieces of wood or metal in my suitcase. Last month I returned from Melbourne carrying 26lb of brass I picked up in a bulk group purchase by a subgroup from the same forum. The blades were also part of a bulk purchase of tool steel by forum members. This really helps with shipping to Australia as it can cost an arm and a leg for something like tool steel


----------



## diesel&coffee

whats the diff in the 076 Super??


----------



## BobL

diesel&coffee said:


> whats the diff in the 076 Super??



Compared to?


----------



## demographic

BobL said:


> Those blades are for all wooden planes. I managed to pick up 2 pieces of Japanese white oak when I was in Brisbane a couple of years ago and am thinking about making a japanese style plane. The japanese oak came from the Brisbane Botanical Gardens and were removed by an Eco-Miller I know from an Australian Woodworkers forum. Members of the forum often trade small specialized pieces of wood for turning or small objects. I fly all over Australia and am often carrying strange pieces of wood or metal in my suitcase. Last month I returned from Melbourne carrying 26lb of brass I picked up in a bulk group purchase by a subgroup from the same forum. The blades were also part of a bulk purchase of tool steel by forum members. This really helps with shipping to Australia as it can cost an arm and a leg for something like tool steel



Sounds like a good project to get your teeth into, I hope you will post up pictures when you have made them.
One of my sisters lives just outside Brisbane, she emigrated a few years ago and is married to an australian bloke and has two children over there so I don't see her as much as I would like.

Regards Scott.


----------



## diesel&coffee

a 076.... As far as I can see it's the carb, intake block, few bolts and a diff filter / saw top part.. Is the cylinder timing and ports and diff??


----------



## BobL

diesel&coffee said:


> a 076.... As far as I can see it's the carb, intake block, few bolts and a diff filter / saw top part..


yep they are slightly different, maybe slightly different muffler casing as well.



> Is the cylinder timing and ports and diff??


I don't think so. 

Mine also has a chain brake although I took mine off. The 076AV's I've seen don't have one. I think mine is a 1995? model


----------

