# Finally milled with my Norwood Mark IV



## headleyj (Dec 13, 2010)

Drove 5 hours 1 way to get a Norwood Mark IV about 3 months ago and it's been sitting ever since. 13HP Honda, will take 12' lengths and throat is about 18-20 inches wide. I FINALLY got time and an opportunity to try it out!

Neighbor fella is an older guy ...~ 80 or so, retired and just a great guy. Always jackin around in his barn making stuff, cutting wood, tinkering-that sorta thing. My little boy loves to go up there and visit him too. We chat every now and then around his woodstove in his barn, he always has great stories. 

He stopped by about a week after I got the mill to ask about it and see it...come to find out he's had 2 sawmills in his lifetime.... he was pretty excited I could tell.

Then about a month later he started taking out a few trees to thin some areas and bucked them into 12' lengths which just happens to be the max length my mill can take  So I called him one Saturday and asked if he wanted help dragging all those logs up to his barn since I've got forks, a boompole and 2 sets of tongs....he said "sure we can drag one up and see how your mill cuts if ya want to".....I had to smile....I agreed and the next day at 9 he was ready for me.

Long story short mill cut real good....leveling it up wasn't bad, but keeping it that way was kinda hard. It wanted to shift/ fall off the jackstands a few times. 

What I learned:
- Sawdust exits directly on the lefthand track which then builds up on the LF roller and slowly changes the angle of the carraige (rollers have grooves in them that match the track width/ thickness). We'll fab up a brush of some kind to keep the track/ roller clean.
- Blade was semi-sharp, but it cut the entire log pretty good.
- It was tougher to push than what I anticipated - maybe cause of the blade and newbie here 
- Locking my elbows helped to keep a consistent speed, although I underestimated how hard it would be to keep a consistent speed too.
- Numerical scale on the side of carriage was placed incorrectly. It was velcro'd on so we fixed that to cut spot on.
- Axle with wheels is a pain to walk over when pushing.

All in all it was a great day, I learned alot about the mill just from running it AND from him. He never ceases to amaze me about all he's done, what he knows and just how great of a guy he truly is.

He's got about 8-10 more logs back there, maybe we can swing a deal if I cut them up he can make my boy a toybox or something 

Anyways- thought I'd share.


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## TraditionalTool (Dec 13, 2010)

Welcome to the world of milling!


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## cre73 (Dec 13, 2010)

Where are the Pics?


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## headleyj (Dec 13, 2010)

cre73 said:


> Where are the Pics?



I'm sad to say I didn't get any, it was the last thing on my mind to be honest.


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## splitpost (Dec 13, 2010)

cre73 said:


> Where are the Pics?



:agree2ics would be great


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## splitpost (Dec 13, 2010)

headleyj said:


> I'm sad to say I didn't get any, it was the last thing on my mind to be honest.



bummer


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## qbilder (Dec 13, 2010)

I have always cherished the old timers. Nice post!!! 

Eric---->thinks the world would be a better place if we all spent more time with the elders


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## Sawyer Rob (Dec 13, 2010)

headleyj said:


> Drove 5 hours 1 way to get a Norwood Mark IV about 3 months ago and it's been sitting ever since. 13HP Honda, will take 12' lengths and throat is about 18-20 inches wide. I FINALLY got time and an opportunity to try it out!
> 
> Neighbor fella is an older guy ...~ 80 or so, retired and just a great guy. Always jackin around in his barn making stuff, cutting wood, tinkering-that sorta thing. My little boy loves to go up there and visit him too. We chat every now and then around his woodstove in his barn, he always has great stories.
> 
> ...



Glad you got it going...

A few notes: Does the head push easy when your NOT sawing? If the answer is "yes", it means you are milling with a dull band, and it should be replaced earlier rather than later when it's REALLY dull.

The mill was designed for the wheels to come off easily, that is, with the optional wheels that were for the mill. Once the wheels/axle are off, and the mill is on some blocks, it's easy to keep level, and much easier to mill with.

The sawdust shouldn't be landing on the track, and even if some did, there should have been felt wipes to keep the track oiled and clean. What is blocking the sawdust from blowing out past the track?

Anyway, all of this is in the owners manual, you did get an owners manual didn't you? 

Rob


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## jimdad07 (Dec 13, 2010)

Congrats on your first milling, won't be able to stop now.


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## headleyj (Dec 14, 2010)

Sawyer Rob said:


> Glad you got it going...
> 
> A few notes: Does the head push easy when your NOT sawing? If the answer is "yes", it means you are milling with a dull band, and it should be replaced earlier rather than later when it's REALLY dull.
> 
> ...



Yes it pushes easily when you're not sawing. You can tell it's heavy, but pushes easily. We thought the same thing in regards to blocking it up. There are no felt wipes. I'm betting they broke off or something. There's no chute for the sawdust to blow out past the track and maybe there should be??? I'll try and get some pics in the next few days.

No, I didn't get an owners manual.....I know, I know, I really need to, but with Christmas and the wife getting a new car, I didn't want to spend any more $.


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## Sawyer Rob (Dec 14, 2010)

Until you get that manual, you will be nearly in the dark, as it tells you everything you want/need to know about your mill. Does it make sense to spend thousands on the mill, then not want to pay 50 or 100 on the very thing that will tell you how to use it properly, and KEEP it adjusted?? Go without beer, go without pizza, go with out se......aaah, get the manual! lol

Aren't there little pockets just in front of the wheels on the head, down next to the track? Those pockets had felt wipes in them. They kept the track clean and oiled.

Rob


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## headleyj (Dec 14, 2010)

Sawyer Rob said:


> Until you get that manual, you will be nearly in the dark, as it tells you everything you want/need to know about your mill. Does it make sense to spend thousands on the mill, then not want to pay 50 or 100 on the very thing that will tell you how to use it properly, and KEEP it adjusted?? Go without beer, go without pizza, go with out se......aaah, get the manual! lol
> 
> Aren't there little pockets just in front of the wheels on the head, down next to the track? Those pockets had felt wipes in them. They kept the track clean and oiled.
> 
> Rob



I will get it, I jsut haven't yet ....with all the $ flying out the door I was just nervous about spending even more on something that I hadn't even used yet.

So no it doesn't make sense to not get it.

I don't think there's any of these pockets. I won't be home til real late tonight, but I'll try and get pics the next day.


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## TraditionalTool (Dec 14, 2010)

Sawyer Rob said:


> Until you get that manual, you will be nearly in the dark, as it tells you everything you want/need to know about your mill. Does it make sense to spend thousands on the mill, then not want to pay 50 or 100 on the very thing that will tell you how to use it properly, and KEEP it adjusted?? Go without beer, go without pizza, go with out se......aaah, get the manual! lol


I have to agree with Rob. The manual basically explains how to assemble the sawmill, if it's like my Lumbermate 2000 manual. However, much of the machine is pretty clear if you are mechanical. Sawmills are really for DIY type people...IMO.


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## headleyj (Dec 14, 2010)

I'm pretty good with mechanical things.....only thing I can't determine is how tight to tension the blade. Don't want to over do-it and ruin the bandwheel bearings (or break a blade) and don't want it too loose (blade will want to drift I'd think) There's no scale or indicator of any kind for tension. I'll get the manual and go from there 

Thanks for the advice and help fellas, I greatly appreciate it!!!!


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## Sawyer Rob (Dec 14, 2010)

I'm betting there ARE pockets for the felt wipes on your mill, and YES THERE IS a tension scale, all the info about both are in the manual! lol

Rob


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## headleyj (Dec 15, 2010)

I'll try and get some pics tonight, shoot maybe it's a Mark III ? helifino.


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