# Tried out the Haddon Lumber maker today..



## Quietfly (Apr 23, 2016)

Tried out the Haddon Lumber today. 
I was impressed with it. 
Here are the results


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## Quietfly (Apr 23, 2016)

It squares out logs better than I expected.


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## BobL (Apr 23, 2016)

Can't complain about the price and the fact they are very quick and easy to setup for breaking up thinnish stock and small logs.
However, the less than optimal finish you're getting exposes a weakness of these types of mills when milling logs and that they are just too sloppy in the cut, and the older they get the worse they get.
With some care, and a close tight fitting guide beam, the finish can be improved. substantially
Another thing to do is not continually rotate the saw in the cut.
This is similar to not seesawing alaskan mills down logs as this can tip the mill sideways making a mess of the finish.
The problem with some of these mills is that the saw/bar can't be locked into a single position - this would really help improve finish.

The other thing I don't like about these mills is the way they shoot sawdust up into the air. This is why I designed my monorail mill so that the mill is held to the rail irrespective of cutting direction so the back of the bar can used for cutting.
This shoots the saw dust down to the ground. Its not perfect though and some sawdust still get rejected up into the air. This can be addressed by using a chip deflector and that's another thing the Haddon could benefit from.


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## BigOakAdot (Apr 23, 2016)

I remember when I first was in the market for a mill I found "the beam machine". It mounted to the bar in one location close to the power head. Ran on a 2X4 is this essentially what you used in these pics?


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## rarefish383 (Apr 24, 2016)

I got my Haddon Lumber maker back when it cost $19.95. It has it's purpose, smooth, square cuts are not one of them. I took the piece out of the middle so I can use a 2X6 instead of a 2X4, that stiffens it up a little. If you make sure you get started on your second cut REAL square it will do OK. These beams I milled for a foundation on an 8X12 addition on the back of my hunting trailer. Cut on 3 sides, to a 6X6, they were out of square by almost a 1/4 inch. But, they worked fine for what I wanted, Joe.


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## rarefish383 (Apr 24, 2016)

I think with some work you can get better cuts. I just set up the guide on the big but end of my Dawn Redwood. I know my 36" bar is not going to make it through the middle of the log. I'll pull my Haddon out and try to trim the log down a little and do my best to get it square, Joe.


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## 295 tramp (Apr 24, 2016)

That safety chain on the Makita isn't helping your efforts, the slabs tell you what went wrong.
But the good thing about this is the experience you get every time you mill.
I remember thinking this CS milling looks simple and easy.
It looks like your finding out that it isn't.
keep on with it Chris it gets better.


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## Quietfly (Apr 24, 2016)

Don't get me wrong, i love my grandberg mkIII. My 084 is still being repaired and i needed a a way to cut larger slabs with the rental saw (makita) the lumber maker is rougher, however it let me take those nice18 inch sections which will one day make a nice table. It's a tool and like everyone, it has a purpose. I might also have a tool addiction.......


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## Quietfly (Apr 24, 2016)

BigOakAdot said:


> I remember when I first was in the market for a mill I found "the beam machine". It mounted to the bar in one location close to the power head. Ran on a 2X4 is this essentially what you used in these pics?


Yup thats essentially what it does... it's a guide for the blade


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## rarefish383 (Apr 24, 2016)

Turned out my saw did make the full cuts so I didn't get the Haddon out. Check out my Dawn Redwood in new thread, Joe.


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## IyaMan (Apr 24, 2016)

Hey Quietfly, I see the truck there says Mahwah Tree Corp. That's where I grew up as a kid. Nice town.


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## Quietfly (Apr 24, 2016)

Yup that's where i live. Love it here


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## Enrico Carini (Apr 24, 2016)

What does a rental saw cost? If you don't mind me asking. Just curious, nothing like beating on some rental equipment. Why not clamp that Makita into your MKIII?


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## Pauls_Workshop (Apr 27, 2016)

Quietfly said:


> Don't get me wrong, i love my grandberg mkIII. My 084 is still being repaired and i needed a a way to cut larger slabs with the rental saw (makita) the lumber maker is rougher, however it let me take those nice18 inch sections which will one day make a nice table. It's a tool and like everyone, it has a purpose. I might also have a tool addiction.......



I'm glad you tried out one of the top down style mini mills. I think for those new to milling, best to start out with one of these and get the hang of it before using an Alaskan, which is quite a different experience and also needs a much more powerful saw to mill with. The mini mills don't need much of a saw to work as the sawdust gets out readily (but can go right to your face as Bob says, lol. I use a full polycarbonate face shield when milling and consider this part of the fun.) I'm able to get much more accurate cuts with mine after using it a while. I can easily get +/- 1/8" over about 6' with it. Setup is key. Over time, if yours has the little hex screws to clamp it to the bar, those can try to work loose and tightening them can deflect the U shaped piece making it even harder to set right. I ended up having mine welded to be about twice as thick as original all around that U so it wouldn't deflect much. Much much better now that way. The one thing I noticed in your photo is your guide bar may benefit from at least one "L" end piece on it. Using that, you can screw one end into the end of the log and also provide a guide to cut the very end of that side. It also allows mounting the guide bar to an odd shaped log using one end to hold one side of it vs just the top. I use some square drive screws in mine and a cordless impact driver and drill (Ryboi 18v) to quickly move the guide bar to a new position for next cut. I cut the whole log into boards with these sometimes, not just to make a big beam off the ends of it. Else use a guide longer than the log you are cutting by 6" at least if just straight without any L to it.

The next step after using one of these is Noodling! Noodling is fun! You don't actually have to use a mill at all! If you use a long bar, you can cut a side off just slightly less accurate than the mini-mill! I can do about +/- 3/16" over about 6 feet. It is more dangerous to do this though as you don't have the guide bar, but not much really. Noodling is better with a longer bar. I can do it with a 20" bar, but more accurate with a 28", which I use now mainly with full skip chain. I did just get a new 32" bar and will try that out pretty soon once I get a chain for it. - Paul


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## BobL (Apr 28, 2016)

Pauls_Workshop said:


> I use a full polypropylene face shield when milling


I think you might mean Polycarbonate (Lexan) as Polypropylene is quite soft (not much harder than polyethylene)


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## Pauls_Workshop (Apr 28, 2016)

BobL said:


> I think you might mean Polycarbonate (Lexan) as Polypropylene is quite soft (not much harder than polyethylene)



Ah yes, likely polycarbonate. Hard safety shield. Mne from Harbor Freight in the US for less than $20. Works great. I use separate ear covers with it. I did just a bit more noodling yesterday. Now I got my old but new to me CS-8000 running much better. Noodles nicely in hard maple and black locust! I'll get it on my Alaskan mill next for a while for more english walnut work. - Paul


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## rarefish383 (Apr 28, 2016)

You bring up a good point with the "U" clamp. When I tighten mine down you can see the "U" start to open and spread. I was thinking of cutting the "U" off and welding on a plate with screws and drilling the bar for it. But, then you wind up with only one bar for the mill. Although, I only use my MS290 on the Haddon, Joe.


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## Pauls_Workshop (Apr 28, 2016)

rarefish383 said:


> You bring up a good point with the "U" clamp. When I tighten mine down you can see the "U" start to open and spread. I was thinking of cutting the "U" off and welding on a plate with screws and drilling the bar for it. But, then you wind up with only one bar for the mill. Although, I only use my MS290 on the Haddon, Joe.



Yes, you could drill a hole through the bar and go right though the U. This would be much better connection. Get a COBALT solid drill bit to go through the bar and it is like drilling through wood with your drill bit then. What I actually had happen to me was the set screws loosened while running once and my chain hit the bottom of the U and cut into it a bit. After you loosen/tighten those hex screws about 30 times, the U will deflect so much that it won't really hold anymore. I don't weld but found a fellow local who welded on new material to the U all around with a few straight pieces of bar stock to each side welded all together. Now it is much much stiffer and won't deflect when tightening the screws. I also added two more set screw points on the other side of the U with drilling and tapping, so mine has 5 screws now instead of 3. This all keeps it nice and tight. Even better though would be to just drill through the bar and the U and use a bolt there and nut. Or you got guys like Bob that took the concept but made their own much much better than the cheap Chinese ones you can buy. But he can likely weld. If you can't weld, then easier to just modify one like I did a bit. Really, I don't use mine that much anymore as I just noodle without anything! I only use my Alaskan mill for wider board cutting or premium wood like Walnut or precision cutting. I often don't yet know what I'll end up doing with the wood, so like to just cut right through the middle of the pith once, then trim off either side of the log from there to make it more rectangular and leave it at 3-5" thick per board so it starts to dry. It will warp a little around the pith but I plane and joint later anyhow so don't care much. Else I can cut out the center 1-2" board containing the pith first if I care and take either slab around it. In a few years I'll either cut them again thinner (yes I know already dry then but still doable) or leave as is depending on needs/wants for the wood. I can do that just noodling!  Most of the trees around here I can get are not more than 20" diameter as most big growth is long long gone in Indiana, so 2-3 cuts per log to make slabs is about it mostly, which I can just noodle. My uses are just personal woodworking for the wood and hobby milling only, though I may sell some of it later on to fund my saws costs. A little English Walnut goes a long way as it is one of the most premium priced woods in the US now.

I did use my top down mini-mill for first two years though before gaining enough skill/confidence to safely noodle. Don't anyone do this your first year of trying to mill. Be safe always. You are not a Lumberjack or Professional Tree Cutter unless you do this stuff for a living. (There is MUCH interest in milling now in the US by non-pros as there are lots of Alaska Homesteader shows on TV now on Cable and people like the self-sufficient methods they use. This is great but develop the chainsaw skills and milling skills slowly and safely and start with a smaller saw and top down mini mill.) Now I'm like that guy in the old video from the Phillipines who noodled out 12' long cuts wearing his sandals! I'd like to be in a "Noodle-Off" competition with him! I bet I could match at least 50% of his time to cut through a log noodling it now !  - Paul


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