Interesting log lifting arrangement
- Thread starter BobL
- Start date
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dallasm1
ArboristSite Operative
I double up the unistrut, but it is heavy.. Especially at 20' lengths. I have tried several methods also, but I find that the biggest challenge is the middle support to maintain level. I have scoured the scrap metal yards and have not been able to find anything that I can lift by myself that did NOT sag over a longer distance. Currently I am trying to come up with an adjustable center sag support that is easy to work with. By the way, if I had ally unitstrut, I would double it back to back and then weld it. It would easily span up to 12' that way.
betterbuilt
I build stuff from milled slabs
I just checked the strut that I have and its not galvanized. It has some sort of paint or a zinc coating thats kinda a drab green. Welding two together isn't a bad idea. The weight doesn't seem to be to Bad at least with just the two. I'm thinking about that center support now. It seems like every log would pose its own problem. Thanks for the pictures everyone. I've been Cleaning my shop and all my garbage is looking like mill modifications parts.
Kicker_92
ArboristSite Operative
For stiff rails, looks for taller profiles rather than thicker. The 2"x4" tubing that we use are only 1/8" wall, so 4.7 lbs per foot. Your doubled unistrut is already 3.6 lbs per foot.
Find some 1"x4" or even 2"x6" in a thin wall section (1/16"?) and you'd be set...
dallasm1
ArboristSite Operative
I did try some taller section square tube like that, but when I pick it up by one end and look down, it has the familiar sag in it (15' plus). After about 8" the sag disappears but that puts the riggin too tall. One thing I might try do next week is to "preload" the unistrut. As my strut is bolted back to back, I could loosen the bolts, apply a little opposite bend and then tighten up.. One thing to watch out for is the potential of the saw pulling unevenly (up and down). With a stiff rail you might not notice it, but with a floppy rail the saw would pull down noticably and cut a nice bow shaped plank. I wonder if there is a way to measure the downward load?
I use two 3 x 1 x 1/16" welded together in a T-shape for my mini-mill. Still very heavy though.
I have heaps of that stuff around, never though of using it for log rails.
oldsaw
"Been There, Milled That"
Beautiful pics, Bob. Looks similar to Glacier National Park on the Montana/Canada border.
Ready to take up residence in Western Canada yet ? Admittedly, you'd have to give up your exotic Aussie hardwoods, and learn to love douglas fir.
It's been 25 years since I did some camping and hiking in Glacier park, right along the border. Some of the glaciers that I saw then, no longer exist, even though global warming isn't real.
Enjoy those glaciers while you can, because they may not be around much longer.
Only took 15,000 years to get rid of them
jrmywstr
ArboristSite Lurker
I use 3/8" all thread rod to join it together - like this.
Under this arrangement Unistrut will still sag, and it will twist more than most ladders - the advantage is it is a lot more adjustable for width and length than a ladder.
I also use the unistrut for just about all of my cuts and usually write off the first cut for twist and bow accuracy so that most of the unistrut can sit on a flatish piece of fresh cut log. Then I measure monitor twist and bow in the cut using a digital angle finder and adjust the unistrut with small wedges.
An decent size ally guide board would be one way to go. About 2 years ago I was looking at a 20 ft length of 8 x 2" x 1/8" piece of ally but they wanted AUS$200 for it.
For a few $ less an ally scaffold board of about the same size was available. It has a very strong cross section that looks like this and looks like it would not buckle as
One disadvantage is those little ridges all along the length but these could be belt sanded off.
The T-slots in the corners could be useful for adding end cross pieces that grip onto the ends of logs.
My interest in chasing these is the possibility of getting hold of used boards but the only used ones I have seen were a touch too bent and beat up to warrant purchasing.
They also weigh about the same per unit length as unistrut.
I'd like to use two of these and make a more rigid connection between the two than all thread rod but it will too expensive to do with new material.
Anyway you can repost these old photos? They don't load for me, I'm looking into Unistrut options for guide rails and am hoping for some inspiration..
Look in the milling 101 thread for the unistrut setups.
