# Mini Mill



## Mr.Suckelfass (Jan 21, 2008)

I bought it from ebay.

It's am simple contruction, but it's going well. I testet it on a short pice of norway spruce.

(Please excuse my english)


















i hope you enjoy the pictures


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## Haywire Haywood (Jan 21, 2008)

Looks like a Hadden Lumber Maker. I borrowed one of those from a friend to try last year. It seemed to work, but watch for it slipping on the bar. The chain will get into the bottom of the clamp if you're not careful.

Ian


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## user 19670 (Jan 21, 2008)

*Nice little mill*

That sure looks like a lot of fun. Sometimes simple can be better. How were the results? Did the lumber look OK?

I saw one of those being demonstrated at a Rural Fall Fair at least 20 years ago or more. The demonstration made it look easy and the lumber was better than the local sawmill down the road from me (straighter, less taper).

More pics please


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## zopi (Jan 21, 2008)

you might want to put your logs up on a couple of blocks..it will keep the bar tip out of the dirt...

Looks like fun.


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## woodshop (Jan 21, 2008)

Mr.Suckelfass said:


> ...(Please excuse my english)


Peter your English is a lot better than my German... no problem. 

Sometimes the simple solution is the best one for the situation. Nice little mill, probably the most bang for the buck among all the options. Thanks for the pics, you look like your having fun, which is one of the requirements for milling since it is hard dirty work for the most part. I agree with zopi, get the logs up on some small horses. Not only will it help keep your saw out of the dirt, but much easier on your back. 

Bavaria... are you located near Ansbach Germany by any chance?


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## Mr.Suckelfass (Jan 24, 2008)

Thanks for the answers, here somme more pictures:
















one of the times i had contact with the clamps






Now i will drilling the bar. Thats saverfor the chain....


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## Haywire Haywood (Jan 24, 2008)

How long did it take you to mill that pile of short boards in the background?  

Ian


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## Adkpk (Jan 24, 2008)

If you never drilled a bar before, apparently it's not an easy thing to do. I never did it myself but if you have a hard time do a search on here for some help. Thanks for the pics. Looks refreshing there.


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## duffontap (Jan 24, 2008)

Adrpk said:


> If you never drilled a bar before, apparently it's not an easy thing to do. I never did it myself but if you have a hard time do a search on here for some help. Thanks for the pics. Looks refreshing there.



I've done it. It's not hard but you have to take your time. 50-80 rpms and a sharp bit will get you through the bar without hardening the steel anymore than it already is. 

I have the same mill. You can buy it on Harbor Freight for $20. Here's a pic of mine in action. I'm milling Sitka Spruce:






Have fun!

J. D.


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## Nikko (Jan 24, 2008)

cobalt bit, slow feed and a drop of oil or two makes the drilling easy


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## BobL (Jan 25, 2008)

Adrpk said:


> If you never drilled a bar before, apparently it's not an easy thing to do. I never did it myself but if you have a hard time do a search on here for some help.



I've drilled a couple of dozen (up to 1/2") holes in bars. Cobalt bits are great but there's no need to buy them if you already have access to standard HSS drill bit and use a drill press. 

Start with a freshly sharpened (3/16) drill bit a pilot hole thru the bar using
- 3 to 4 hundred RPM 
- a cutting/cooling fluid (even water will help)
- a constant very firm pressure to maintain cutting. 
- try not to let the bit spin in the hole as it will work harden the steel. 

Once the pilot hole is drilled through repeat the above with the right size drill bit but drop the RPM to suit the final bit size. I've used 150 RPM for 5/16" and 100 RPM for 1/2" with no problems.


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## Mr.Suckelfass (Jan 25, 2008)

Haywire Haywood said:


> How long did it take you to mill that pile of short boards in the background?
> 
> Ian




a half day


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## gremlin (Jan 25, 2008)

thats a pretty nifty looking little deevice


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## duffontap (Jan 25, 2008)

gremlin said:


> thats a pretty nifty looking little deevice



If I were to do it again, I would have paid about twice as much and gotten the Granberg Mini-Mill. The price is right for these ebay mills, but the Granberg mill is a deal by comparison if you're going to use it much. As it is, I plan to get the Granberg mill anyway to work with my MKIII.

J. D.


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## irishcountry (Jan 25, 2008)

Nice pics I think I too will get a granberg vertical too GB makes one but to me it looks well just not as well built and the handle location looks dangerous on the GB not to mention you can't find much info on the period. I can see how either (lumbermaker or granberg) would come in real handy!!


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