# Build a mill like a Logosol M7



## thompson1600

Does anyone have plans or experience building a mill similar to the Logosol M7. I have been looking at the M7 Woodworkers Mill. Here is a link to the Mill

Sells for about $2000 but seems like it should be buildable for a lot less. Wondering about the height adjustment mechanisms and such.

Anyone done something like this or have info or sources?

Thanks


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## sawn_penn

If you have the tools and can make an exact copy, or at least get everything right first go then you may save some money.

If you have to do a lot of rework because you missed some subtle design points, and you also need to buy a lot of tools then It could cost more to build than to buy.

I'm pretty sure I spent more building my AK mill than it would have cost to buy a granberg, but then again, I had fun doing it.


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## woodshop

I looked at the Logosol before I bought my Ripsaw. I know I'm going to get in trouble from some Logosol owners, but hey, I tell it like I see it. These are the things that kept me from one. 1) higher initial cost. 2) 1/4 inch kerf taking more of my log. 3) needing a $1000 chainsaw instead of a $500 one 4) not nearly as portable or as lightweight 5) the thought of trying to roll a 600 lb log up to that platform where the raising mechanism takes over made me wince. Maybe for smaller logs OK. That being said, I never actually used one, saw one in action other than a video, nor even talked to anybody that did. Just going by what I read and saw. As for building one from scratch, taking into consideration the lifting mechanism, and the winch for pulling the saw evenly down the log, my take would be it would be harder than it looks getting the same quality and precision. As for cost... there looks to be a LOT of steel in that thing. Maybe you can get steel tubing and or square stock cheap. IF like sawn_penn says you get everything right the first time (if you're like me, that's a big IF), then you might save some money if your real handy with a welder and have access to a machine shop.


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## aggiewoodbutchr

woodshop said:


> Maybe you can get steel tubing and or square stock cheap.



I don't know if you have priced steel lately but cheap steel doesn't exist. Prices soared a couple of years ago due to a generally farsical supply shortage and never came back down. It kinda reminds me of fuel prices, but I digress...


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## Full Skip

I was looking at the sort of I beam setups over at the Malloff site and have been thinking about doing something along those lines rather than going with something like the Logosol.

http://www.willmalloff.com/

It helps that my wife is an engineer and has all sorts of roller assemblies and urethane wheels that I can experiment with. I'm going to have her come up with a few ideas and see if I can build it.


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## Rail-O-Matic

thompson1600 said:


> Does anyone have plans or experience building a mill similar to the Logosol M7. I have been looking at the M7 Woodworkers Mill. Here is a link to the Mill
> 
> Sells for about $2000 but seems like it should be buildable for a lot less. Wondering about the height adjustment mechanisms and such.
> 
> Anyone done something like this or have info or sources?
> 
> Thanks



My freind has a Logosol M7 and it is very nice indeed, the only downfall it has, is it cannot handle very big logs, so I took the bull by the horns and made this, 

http://www.bagpipeworks.co.uk/rollermatic__railomatic_chain.htm

She can handle 40 inch logs with ease, no need for lifting, just sit her next to the tree and away you go, stand or sit at one end and winch the saw towards yourself, out of the dust and noise, a twist of the handles on top of each post and go again, I have never looked back since I did it.
You can put several logs side by side and cut the lot in one go, it has so many posibilities, you can even tilt her over to one side to do quarter cutting.


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## Full Skip

I really like the roller attachments you have there. They make good sense to me.

I'll have to send an E-mail and inquire about pricing.


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## carvinmark

Rail-O-Matic said:


> My freind has a Logosol M7 and it is very nice indeed, the only downfall it has, is it cannot handle very big logs, so I took the bull by the horns and made this,
> 
> http://www.bagpipeworks.co.uk/rollermatic__railomatic_chain.htm
> 
> She can handle 40 inch logs with ease, no need for lifting, just sit her next to the tree and away you go, stand or sit at one end and winch the saw towards yourself, out of the dust and noise, a twist of the handles on top of each post and go again, I have never looked back since I did it.
> You can put several logs side by side and cut the lot in one go, it has so many posibilities, you can even tilt her over to one side to do quarter cutting.


R O M,
your design is very cool,I saw it on another thread,the roller sounds neet.


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## Rodney Sinclair

I'm new to this board but hardly new to milling, so I've got a few questions about post #3 above. #1 reason was about the "higher initial cost" of woodwookers mill over the ripsaw. If the woodworkers mill is 2995 plus shipping and the ripsaw is 2524 with shipping and you still got to buy the saw, how is the ripsaw cheaper?
#2 was about the 1/4" curf. To me this country was built on curfs like this from the circle type blades. No big problem.
#3 was about the $1000 saw over the $500 saw. You mean like the 395XP you use on the Alaskan to get the log down small enough to fit the ripsaw?
#4 was "portable or lightweight". I think it is if you take the Timberjig which is closer to the ripsaw, or take the guide system with the ripsaw to bring it up on par with the woodworkers mill.
#5 was putting the log up on the rack of the Logosol. Do you really think it's safer putting a log that big on those homemade stands you have pic of on the other thread? Also on the tape I've got from Logosol, they show you how to turn the mill over and put it on the log. Free tape by the way and the one from Ripsaw costs $10 if you don't buy the saw.
I too belive in calling it like I see it and don't mind rocking the boat.
Rodney


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## woodshop

Rodney Sinclair said:


> I'm new to this board but hardly new to milling, so I've got a few questions about post #3 above. #1 reason was about the "higher initial cost" of woodwookers mill over the ripsaw. If the woodworkers mill is 2995 plus shipping and the ripsaw is 2524 with shipping and you still got to buy the saw, how is the ripsaw cheaper?
> #2 was about the 1/4" curf. To me this country was built on curfs like this from the circle type blades. No big problem.
> #3 was about the $1000 saw over the $500 saw. You mean like the 395XP you use on the Alaskan to get the log down small enough to fit the ripsaw?
> #4 was "portable or lightweight". I think it is if you take the Timberjig which is closer to the ripsaw, or take the guide system with the ripsaw to bring it up on par with the woodworkers mill.
> #5 was putting the log up on the rack of the Logosol. Do you really think it's safer putting a log that big on those homemade stands you have pic of on the other thread? Also on the tape I've got from Logosol, they show you how to turn the mill over and put it on the log. Free tape by the way and the one from Ripsaw costs $10 if you don't buy the saw.
> I too belive in calling it like I see it and don't mind rocking the boat.
> Rodney



Rodney Sinclair, WELCOME to AS. You will find if you havn't already, that there are lots of ideas and lots of different opinions about milling and saws on this forum. I welcome all of them. Depending on what you are milling and under what conditions, there are really no absolutes, including what setup is best. If you are into milling as you say you are, then you know there are simply too many variables for absolutes. I'd also like to reiterate what I said in that post above. I have never seen (other than a video) nor talked to anybody that ever used a Logosol product, any of them. All I was doing in that post was relating my experience, limited as that may be, of when I looked around for the best system to fit MY specific needs. I chose the Ripsaw over the Logosol M7, which is the product I was refering to in that post, for the reasons I stated. I now realize I never specified the M7 in the post, just referred to “Logosol”. After reading through the Logosol website however, I find that my statements and comments still stand. I'd be glad to expound and respond to each of your questions.

#1… high initial cost… again, I was referring to the M7, not the Woodworkers mill. However, even if you want to compare Woodworker mill cost with a 395XP, about $3k, then its about the same as a Ripsaw with an 65cc range saw, which is all the power you need for the bandsaw. Csm type Logosol products needs a bigger more powerful saw than the Ripsaw which is a bandsaw. 

#2 … larger kerf of csm… yes it is true that this country was “built on curfs like this from the circle type blades. No big problem.” as you say. Keep in mind though that that was couple hundred years ago when they used to burn vast acres of forest just so they could plant crops. I also own and use a csm, and understand that in many cases, the wider kerf is not a big deal.
However, at $7 a bd ft, every extra cherry board I slice from that log is an extra $50 worth of lumber. THAT starts adding up when you mill thousands of ft of lumber as I do. 

#3 … again… the Ripsaw, being a bandsaw mill, requires only a $500 65cc saw. Put that 65cc saw on a csm (I’ve done it) and it will work, but VERY slow for the larger dia stuff, and it was hard on that saw. A csm needs a larger saw like the 395XP I bought for my Alaskan mill. 

#4 … more portable… I was comparing the Ripsaw to the M7, not the woodworkers mill. However, even comparing it to the Woodworkers mill, from what I see on their website, I still stand by my statement that the Ripsaw is more portable, and much easier and faster to setup and use from scratch out of the back of a truck. 

#5 … safety… you asked me “Do you really think it's safer putting a log that big on those homemade stands you have pic of on the other thread?” As a matter of fact, yes I do. I’m a woodworker, and I tend to over engineer things. Those “home made stands” you refer too were designed and built to withstand far more than the weight of an 8ft log. I stand (no pun intended) by my work . Actually, for logs over 24 inches dia I usually use the csm to trim them down to 14”cants while the log is on the ground, then use my jack to lift that cant up onto the horses for the Ripsaw. So I rarely have more than a 20 inch log up on those horses anyway. Bottom line though is, if I did, they would be safe. I have an indexed aluminum bar along the top of the horse where custom chocks fit, to keep that log from rolling. 

If I havn't expounded enough Rodney, ask some more, I'd be glad to respond. I don't work for Ripsaw, nor have any affilitation with them. I did however give them some pics with permission to post on thier website which they did. I'm just a woodworker looking for the best bang for my buck as far as procuring lumber. The Ripsaw/csm mill system I use fits the bill for me. It certainly won't for everybody. If I had the space and more money, I'd own a larger bandmill, like an LT-15. I don't and I don't, so I use what I have for now.


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## Rail-O-Matic

*mills, Logosol, Ripsaw, Roller-Matic*

As woodshop said he chose the Ripsaw instead of the Logosol, a wise choice I think, as the Ripsaw can handle just as much width wise, as the Logosol can, but blows the Logosol away when it comes to its portability, not to mention the added cutting speed of the band, in clean timber.

I have used my friends Logosol and it works fine for what it was intended, log sizes to be handled are average, but it falls down when it comes to larger logs and being able to accomodate them, when working on soft ground, to the bigger end of its capacity, sees the mill sinking into the ground. 

I chose my design of chainsaw mill after using other similar products out there but wanted that bit more in comfort and ease of use, with far less operator fatigue, which it full fills all categories.

My system can stand up to a lot more abuse than a band mill and admittedly its a lot slower than a band, but can handle some very big trees in very out of the way places, that a band would shake with fear when it saw the soiled or frozen timbers we have cut with her, a chain will just plough through without many problems, leaving the band mill operator with a pile of blunt bands and wavy boards to boot.

Both systems have their merits, if I could buy a Ripsaw here in the UK, I would get one tomorrow, and so would many others I have spoken to.

http://www.bagpipeworks.co.uk/rollermatic__railomatic_chain.htm


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## Rodney Sinclair

Into milling as I say I am? Hoss, I don't know a single person on this board and have no reason to lie. I just don't like half-truths. The fact here is, the Logosol Big Mill is closer to what we are talking about.
As far as the M7 sinking in soft dirt, hell anything will sink if you put enough weight on it.
Rodney


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## woodshop

Rail-O-Matic said:


> My system can stand up to a lot more abuse than a band mill and admittedly its a lot slower than a band, but can handle some very big trees in very out of the way places, that a band would shake with fear when it saw the soiled or frozen timbers we have cut with her, a chain will just plough through without many problems, leaving the band mill operator with a pile of blunt bands and wavy boards to boot.



Rail reiterates a very important point, that both csm and band mills have thier pros and cons. This is why I use my alaskan csm mill WITH my Ripsaw, as each has its place. If I have a 36" dia tree way back in the woods, I can hike in with the csm (or Rail-o-matic or Roller-matic if I had one ) and take care of it. The M-7, even if you hauled it into the woods, can't handle a log that size. I'm not trying to get into a spitting match with any Logosol owners. I am sure they are very good products. They have thier niche, like all mills. Portability and being able to take care of very large logs however, in my humble opinion, is better done with a portable csm type mill. In my case, finished off by slicing up the cants into boards with a Ripsaw bandmill. The Ripsaw bandmill is faster than my csm, and turns less of my valuable log into sawdust. Point being, they compliment each other, as each does things the other can't do. Together, you can tackle almost any tree size, almost anywhere it happens to drop, as long as you can walk to it. 

So rail, when are you going to take that trip across the pond and show your wares at a logging show over here? I'd like to see these machines of yours in action.


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## oldsaw

Woodshop has it right. Each method of milling has it's drawbacks and it's strengths. It is up the the individual to figure out which is better for your situation. I went with the Alaskan because the logs I initially bought it for had to be milled and hiked out from where the logs lay. I could hike in with the saw, mill, tools, gas, oil, and guide board in two trips from the car. I paid like $750 for the saw, mill, chains, and aux oiler. Whole system paid for itself the first two days I used it. While I like the engineering behind a product like the Logosol, it doesn't work for my situation. Ditto the ripsaw, since I get a lot of very big logs that I have to go to. I don't have a pickup, so my station wagon or mini-van has to be the "truck". I don't have a place to store anything as big as a Logosol, or a bandmill. My Alaskan hangs from two bicycle hooks in my garage for when it is needed, the power heads on a shelf, bars hanging from a nail on the wall. For me, it's perfect. For you? I don't know.

Mark


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## Rail-O-Matic

*mills, Logosol, Ripsaw, Roller-Matic*

While we are on the subject of milling attachments, I was just off the phone with the boss man at Ripsaw, making enquiries about purchasing one, and he mentions they have soon to release a bigger two man Ripsaw made entirely from aluminum, he mentioned a price tag of around 3200.00 USD, now this will really put the cat amongst the pidgeon's, fully portable, no need for moving the bigger trees and twice the cutting width.


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## Rail-O-Matic

*mills, Logosol, Ripsaw, Roller-Matic*



Full Skip said:


> I was looking at the sort of I beam setups over at the Malloff site and have been thinking about doing something along those lines rather than going with something like the Logosol.
> 
> http://www.willmalloff.com/
> 
> I have tried and tested both of these types of attaching the Rail-O-Matic mill to the log several years back, it does work very well on the bigger stumps, but on smaller logs not as well, Logosol are today also working down these lines, I have seen something very much similar on a thread from Sweden, but still I prefer the Roller/Ripsaw systems, because there is little no setting up time needed, and their high portablity, Chainsaws Rule  " Only Kidding ", this is a great forum.


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## aggiewoodbutchr

Rail-O-Matic said:


> While we are on the subject of milling attachments, I was just off the phone with the boss man at Ripsaw, making enquiries about purchasing one, and he mentions they have soon to release a bigger two man Ripsaw made entirely from aluminum, he mentioned a price tag of around 3200.00 USD, now this will really put the cat amongst the pidgeon's, fully portable, no need for moving the bigger trees and twice the cutting width.



RATS... they stole my idea...Grrr.

I've been wondering why something like this wasn't on the market already.


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## Rail-O-Matic

*ideas*



 aggiewoodbutchr said:


> RATS... they stole my idea...Grrr.
> 
> Its funny that you should mention the words my idea, I think its entirely probable for two or even several seperate parties to come up with an idea or product/s that all give the same end product, in this case we are talking about chainsaw milling attachments.
> If you take most of all the current products on the market today, you will find one or two items on them, that work in a similar way, they may not be made absolutely the same, but the still give the same end results.
> 
> Then you might ask yourself who did it first, if you look back into history, one can find items from the Roman and even earlier periods which have the same mechanisms, some more sofisticated than others, all acting as a plain and simple guide.
> 
> I got part of my idea from a friend who made a wooden affair over fourty years ago, and he got a similar idea from a local farmer, who made his mechanism for skimming off grass turf, ten years before that, so the idea is not at all new, in the modern world.
> 
> One thing everyone must remember is, that what is made today, might not always be as good as something that is made tomorrow or the next day, this process is ever on going, its called progress.
> 
> As long as nobody copies something down to every nut and bolt, then its not the same, and would find it pretty hard to proove otherwise.
> 
> Take for instance the many trailer towed chainsaw or band mills on the market today, they all work in basically the same way, and taking out any patents/copyrite on the whole thing is nigh on impossible, beause they are all so much alike, at the end of the day, we will buy and make what we want to do the job regardless, so live and let mill I say.


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## woodshop

oldsaw said:


> I don't have a pickup, so my station wagon or mini-van has to be the "truck". I don't have a place to store anything as big as a Logosol, or a bandmill.
> 
> Mark


Mark I don't have a truck either, just a Chevy Astro minivan. Keep in mind the little Ripsaw is only 51lbs, and takes up less space in the back of my minivan than my 36inch alaskan mill does. Point being I can stick both my my alaskan and Ripsaw, along with couple other saws, horses and toolboxes, in the back of that van, and still fit the 300 bd ft of rough lumber I just milled. 

I'd like to see that larger 2 man Ripsaw Rail said he spoke to those folks about. Wonder how they power the thing, and how heavy it is.


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## aggiewoodbutchr

Rail-O-Matic said:


> aggiewoodbutchr said:
> 
> 
> 
> RATS... they stole my idea...Grrr.
> 
> Its funny that you should mention the words my idea, I think its entirely probable for two or even several seperate parties to come up with an idea or product/s that all give the same end product, in this case we are talking about chainsaw milling attachments.
> If you take most of all the current products on the market today, you will find one or two items on them, that work in a similar way, they may not be made absolutely the same, but the still give the same end results.
> 
> Then you might ask yourself who did it first, if you look back into history, one can find items from the Roman and even earlier periods which have the same mechanisms, some more sofisticated than others, all acting as a plain and simple guide.
> 
> I got part of my idea from a friend who made a wooden affair over fourty years ago, and he got a similar idea from a local farmer, who made his mechanism for skimming off grass turf, ten years before that, so the idea is not at all new, in the modern world.
> 
> One thing everyone must remember is, that what is made today, might not always be as good as something that is made tomorrow or the next day, this process is ever on going, its called progress.
> 
> As long as nobody copies something down to every nut and bolt, then its not the same, and would find it pretty hard to proove otherwise.
> 
> Take for instance the many trailer towed chainsaw or band mills on the market today, they all work in basically the same way, and taking out any patents/copyrite on the whole thing is nigh on impossible, beause they are all so much alike, at the end of the day, we will buy and make what we want to do the job regardless, so live and let mill I say.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I totally agree. The "my idea" remark was a joke. I believe there has been less than a handful of "new" ideas since humans began recording history. Whether we are conscious of it or not, our brains would rather imitate than create. It takes much less effort.
Click to expand...


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## Rodney Sinclair

Well shoot, now we gone and done it! My woman was reading over my shoulder and found out the M7 wouldn't handle a 36" log. And she is gonna make me quit doing that. Damn
Rodney


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## gogreen

*railroad tie cabin*

I will be trying to build a small cabin after the snow melts using railroad ties, some of them creosote treated. My question is, if I were to make rabbet joints on them using something like the logosol loghouse moulder would the airborne creosote be much of a threat? I read that creosote logs are fairly safe after sitting for ten or more years, but I'm afraid that cutting through some two hundred ties would be dangerous for my lungs since creosote is carcinogenic. I also want to cut away one entire side of the tie to hopefully reveal a better surface for the inside of the cabin. Obviously this isn't the best wood to be working with, but it would be great to make something worthwhile out of these free materials.


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## Fudomyo

Rail-O-Matic said:


> My freind has a Logosol M7 and it is very nice indeed, the only downfall it has, is it cannot handle very big logs, so I took the bull by the horns and made this,
> 
> http://www.bagpipeworks.co.uk/rollermatic__railomatic_chain.htm
> 
> She can handle 40 inch logs with ease, no need for lifting, just sit her next to the tree and away you go, stand or sit at one end and winch the saw towards yourself, out of the dust and noise, a twist of the handles on top of each post and go again, I have never looked back since I did it.
> You can put several logs side by side and cut the lot in one go, it has so many posibilities, you can even tilt her over to one side to do quarter cutting.



I like the rail system, looks relatively sturdy. It seems like it would be pretty hard to beat the rigity of a Alaskan style mill, like your roller matic. Then again your mistakes could just get magnified. Perhaps I'll just use the ladder as a straight edge everytime.

Not moving the log sure seems like a win. Do you like the railo matic or the rollo matic better?


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## gogreen

I definetly like the rollermatic mechanism because it is the smallest and most compact solution for cutting timber I have seen, but I'm sure there are certain drawbacks compared to a rail system or band saw system wth the smaller kerf. Has anyone seen this product yet? http://jober.qc.ca/ I think it's by Jonsered, not sure but the Beaver proffessional barker looks pretty snazzy too.


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## iacornfed

*m7 owner*

To answer your question. I do own a logosol, it is designed to mill up to 16 ft logs weighing 1000lbs or less. The mill weighs 100 lbs. It is alumnium. For large diameter logs you can turn the mill on its side over the log and quarter the log then load up a quarter and mill it. I saw one mill on ebay a while back that was based on the logosol. It was made of steel. If you have access to "free" steel then you should have no ploblem building one. The lifting mechanism is not to complicated.


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