# Woodmizer LT15 or Lumbermate 2000



## swanny

Narrowed it down to these two mills. In the same price range...under 9k for the options I want...WM with 25 Kohler and LM with 24 Vanguard.

Any opinions on which way to go? Will be loading with skid steer.

Don't mind putting the LM together...my son can do that...good learing experience for him.


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## carhartt

I have an LT 15 with a 15 hp on it and really enjoy it. I was talking to the woodmizer rep in my area and I asked what the need for the 25hp was. His answer was guys have an ego and big belt buckles and want the biggest. Mine is an 02 model. I was looking at the new LT 15. There are many changes to the new ones. But still nothing wrong with the older ones either.


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## Wolfking42084

I had the lt40 w/o hydraulics. Definitely go with woodmizer, they are awesome. I've never heard anyone have anything bad to say about them. That was the worse mistake of my life is getting rid of it. Bought it for $6500 used and sold it for $10,000. Now you can hardly find a pos one for that.


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## Backwood

carhartt said:


> I have an LT 15 with a 15 hp on it and really enjoy it. I was talking to the woodmizer rep in my area and I asked what the need for the 25hp was. His answer was guys have an ego and big belt buckles and want the biggest. .



Thats funny. The way I look at it is a bigger motor will cut faster. If time is money it wouldnt take long to start seeing a profit with a bigger motor. At the end of the day you will saw 8 logs and he will saw 10. Which sounds better ?


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## Sawyer Rob

I agree that the LT15 is a great mill, but after sawing on both the Mizer 15 and the Lumbermate 2000 i chose the Lumbermate.

I really like the way you can bolt options on the LM as you need them. They have a great log turner package that will easily turn the biggest logs and is a real back saver!







The LM will do everything it's advertised to do, and cost less than a LT15.






I've sawn with both the 13hp and the 15hp, and i couldn't see any difference in how fast they sawed... The Honda is a simpler design, that doesn't need electric start or all that goes with it. The Honda rolls over and starts VERY easy, and is a proven design...

The only advantage to having a bigger motor is how fast it will saw in bigger logs. The higher hp motors do saw faster, but if your not useing your mill for your primary income source, the 13 is just fine...

Both Norwood and Woodmizer are great companys that stand behind there product... I believe the LM will have LESS spl. parts in it, should you need a bearing or ? in it years later...

I hope this helped you some,

Rob


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## olivier51

*lm2000*

bonjour
je vient d'acheter une lm2000 elle est moins chère que woodmizer en france et me semble plus simple à utiliser, mes premiers contact avec la société sont exellent !
salutation 
olivier


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## masiman

olivier51 said:


> bonjour
> je vient d'acheter une lm2000 elle est moins chère que woodmizer en france et me semble plus simple à utiliser, mes premiers contact avec la société sont exellent !
> salutation
> olivier



From Google Translate:
hello
I just buy a lm2000 it is cheaper than WOODMIZER in France seems easier to use, my first contact with the company was excellent


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## EPA

Hi : I have had the Norwood LM2000 for about 4 years and have had a good time with it. Its a great mill and will handle some big stuff//
Check out the Norwood webbsite at Norwoodindustries and see some good info and people.





EPA


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## swanny

thanks for the input...we bought the Lt15 with the big Kohler at the farm show in PA. Price was discounted...no shipping...box of bands with it. Ego wasn't a factor in motor size. 

Sonny boy (age 14) has his first customer in sights...I think he's going to really enjoy the experience of milling logs and dealing with the local folks. He's planning on building and selling 'green'/enviromentally friendly sheds (no treated lumber).


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## Sawyer Rob

swanny said:


> thanks for the input...we bought the Lt15 with the big Kohler at the farm show in PA. Price was discounted...no shipping...box of bands with it. Ego wasn't a factor in motor size.
> 
> Sonny boy (age 14) has his first customer in sights...I think he's going to really enjoy the experience of milling logs and dealing with the local folks. He's planning on building and selling 'green'/enviromentally friendly sheds (no treated lumber).



You should like your new mill, and have fun learning all about milling logs!

Are you going to be sawing hardwoods for "grade", or saw softwoods intro construction lumber?

Rob


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## swanny

Sawyer Rob said:


> You should like your new mill, and have fun learning all about milling logs!
> 
> Are you going to be sawing hardwoods for "grade", or saw softwoods intro construction lumber?
> 
> Rob



We'll probably do a bit of both...I run a construction/remodeling company...build everything from pole barns, additions to furniture to match Ethan Allen's stuff a customer bought. My son has a firewood business...bought his first chainsaw (Stihl ms250) a couple weeks ago...been borrowing mine up till now.

We don't know a whole lot right now about the milling, but are learning from reading a bunch and messing with logs laying around here. 

Do logs (red and white oak) that are a couple years old tend to make the blade (brand new, that is) wander up or down more so than the same in green? We noticed if he slowed down the speed of the cut the blade wandered less even though the motor could easily handle the higher travel time.


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## swanny

not a very crisp pic....cell phone, but you can tell he's thoroughly enjoying himself.


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## oldsaw

For the money, I would buy the Norwood. If you bought bigger, the WM or a TK would start being a real consideration. On the budget side, Norwood has got it down.

Mark


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## MJR

I am at work and your pictures are blocked. I noticed you bought the mill in PA. Half frozen logs will make your blade wonder. Frozen logs have dulled my blades faster as well. Also, do not trust new blades out of a box to run perfect. After you take the first two cants off check the 90 with a square, this will show if something is out of line with the mill. There are so many little things that are learned over time. Milling is an art form. Good luck.


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## swanny

I checked Norwood's option for the bigger motor...best price I found was on ebay...$9 grand shipped, then you had to put it together on top of that.

We paid $1,300 less can cut same length log, have a box of 15 bands, but are limited to a 28" dia. log. I can ("will"-if I keep it) make this unit trailer-able, and will equip it with all the hydraulic stuff ...log turner/dogs/etc...for cheap.

What am I missing? I've got thirty days to try this unit out, can simply run it back to WM at my expense (hour and a half away). I also liked the fact that WM heavily discounts their units to people in need and to people like missionaries.

The only thing I see that I don't like so far is that the head/carriage will torque and twist as you make your cut. Norwoods doesn't as I see it has the same rigid roller setup on both sides.


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## MJR

WM LT15 is a great mill and it sounds like you got a great deal. You should call WM if you are seeing anything moving like that. I just talked to a gentlemen I work with. He ran a LT15 for years and never saw what you described. Did your mill move and get unlevel? The best mill debate is like the best chain saw debate, it will never end. I don’t think the wood gets impressed by either…


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## swanny

Ok...wood was frozen and dried for a couple of years....now we understand a little more how it makes the blade travel. 

Today we put a completely frozen 32" red oak on the Mizer. Really am glad we bought the 25 horsies...it bogged the travel speed down somewhat, but surprisingly not all that much. I can now see how the single post carriage on the bigger mills is an advantage for the big stuff. Had to take the big stihl and slice some stuff off before we could get the carriage all the way to the end. 

The entire bed assembly is easy to knock around with that big of a log, so we are looking forward to beefing it up via making it a trailer with better jacks and stuff. Skid steer with forks isn't the best tool for a big log turner (can't see what we're doing)...got to make that as well. 

Sure can't beat Woodmizer's tech help either - our unit was running very rich...found out it was due to the 20 degree temps causing icing in the motor (aluminum block). They sent out the $175 de-icing kit free of charge and I didn't even ask them to.

This is super fun....my son absolutely enjoys it so far.


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## MJR

32” oak is about 300lbs a foot. I would have to quarter the log free hand before I could do any thing. It will make some nice quarter sawn boards…


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## Sawyer Rob

swanny said:


> Ok...wood was frozen and dried for a couple of years....now we understand a little more how it makes the blade travel.
> 
> Today we put a completely frozen 32" red oak on the Mizer. Really am glad we bought the 25 horsies...it bogged the travel speed down somewhat, but surprisingly not all that much. I can now see how the single post carriage on the bigger mills is an advantage for the big stuff. Had to take the big stihl and slice some stuff off before we could get the carriage all the way to the end.
> 
> The entire bed assembly is easy to knock around with that big of a log, so we are looking forward to beefing it up via making it a trailer with better jacks and stuff. Skid steer with forks isn't the best tool for a big log turner (can't see what we're doing)...got to make that as well.
> 
> Sure can't beat Woodmizer's tech help either - our unit was running very rich...found out it was due to the 20 degree temps causing icing in the motor (aluminum block). They sent out the $175 de-icing kit free of charge and I didn't even ask them to.
> 
> This is super fun....my son absolutely enjoys it so far.



175.00??? Holey moley that tin must be gold plated. 20hp Honda's needed a cold weather package too, and Norwood gave them away, further more, the Honda kit was something like 50 something bucks... That's one thing i don't like about Mizer, they charge so dang much for there stuff...

Anyway, big logs are a lot more work, but i've sawn a LOT of over 30" logs on my LM...






The mill handles them fine, and the turner turns them easily... But they are extra work over those "ideal" 20" logs that i'd rather mill...

Rob


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## MJR

Hello Rob, I have seen that picture a few times. How much chainsaw trimming did you have to do? The log looks like if is hanging off the track under your arm pit. I know camera's can lie.


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## Sawyer Rob

None, as it's the camera angle makes it look like that...

The LM2000 will saw bigger logs than that, as long as you knock the knobs off clean, and the log it straight... I've done it more than a few times, and yes it is extra work that i don't like!

Rob


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## swanny

I agree the de-icing kit is expensive, especially when you figure you could easily make it yourself for super cheap, but I'm not arguing since it didn't cost. I couldn't figure out if this problem is common on this motor why WM doesn't install this feature from the factory on units that will routinely see below freezing temps.

We were half-tempted to swing down to NC to pickup an older WM LT40 on Craig's list: http://eastnc.craigslist.org/tls/988418580.html ...price is right ($5500), hours extremely low (300+), but decided to stick with the LT15 for now.


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## cmlands

These were the two mills that I was considering as well, I ordered the LM 2000 with the 13 HP Honda, coming tomorrow, Friday. I am on holidays for the next two weeks, which is apparently how long it's going to take me to set it up. This will be my first milling experience of any variety, and I am looking forward to trying my hand at it. I will start a new thread with the assembly experience and I'm sure a bunch of questions. Sawyer Rob, I hope you're going to be near your computer for the next couple of weekshttp://www.arboristsite.com/images/smilies/cheers.gif. Congrats on your purchase and I hope all goes well for you.


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## Sawyer Rob

cmlands said:


> These were the two mills that I was considering as well, I ordered the LM 2000 with the 13 HP Honda, coming tomorrow, Friday. I am on holidays for the next two weeks, which is apparently how long it's going to take me to set it up. This will be my first milling experience of any variety, and I am looking forward to trying my hand at it. I will start a new thread with the assembly experience and I'm sure a bunch of questions. Sawyer Rob, I hope you're going to be near your computer for the next couple of weekshttp://www.arboristsite.com/images/smilies/cheers.gif. Congrats on your purchase and I hope all goes well for you.



If you post over on Norwoods chat room, there is all kinds of help over there. I sometimnes don't get here, but i do check the Norwood form nearly every day...

SR


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## sawyerDave

*Lt if advice*

Swanny- I have an older LT15, free advice is to set your mill up on 6X6 cants, across the mill bed, like railroad ties are under the track. That way if you bump the mill a little with the loader, it doesn't fall off the blocks. You will gradually learn the art, some things that have helped are Bruce Hoadly's book, title escapes me now, but it has a lot of info. Also the site Woodweb is one of the best for general woodworking questions, and they have a free sawyer locating feature, which you can advertise on for free. Another great buy is the harbor freight hand held metal detector, for around $25, trust me, you will find metal. Another time saving discovery is that the cheap plug cutting drill bits that HF sells are the easiest way of removing the nails that the blade occasionally finds, you just take your rechargeable drill, drill around the nail or bullet, take a screwdriver and pop it right out . Oh, another discovery is that blue stained wood has metal in it somewhere, and if you smell something stinky when cutting a log, it, too has metal in it! In time you will learn other tricks of the trade, too, including black powder log splitting, and how to cut one board while edging another simultaneously! Keep learning, and don't saw your dogs off!


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