Norwood LM 29 arrived!

[dlabrie]

Sell it??? Are you serious??? That engine would be perfect to replace that Honda on the mill.

1600cc s would throw a lot of sawdust

 

[Dave Boyt]

Sure would! Then you could put the Honda motor on your bike, so you'd still have a set of wheels.

 

[dlabrie]

I've got her all together and moved to her temporary site.

I cut up my first log .

And started stacking what will become my mill shed

About 2-3"into my second log I hit this

The mill is running great! The only problem I am having is keeping the rails level. I just cut a 6X13 cant and it was 6" on one end and 6 1/2 on the other. I pulled a line along the rails and this is what i got in the middle of the bed.

Any hints on leveling the rails would be appreciated.

 

[hamish]

Support at every joint. That gap in the last picture slowly leads to everything going out of whack. On a new piece of grounds it take a long while for things to settle.
I have mine set up in a 150 year old barn, the frost plays havoc with it yearly, and occasionally I drop a big log on it and it sinks somewhere.
Personally I prefer the ability to allow some movement, versus having everything rigid and something just breaking.

Try running a full support the length of the mill, and full supports across it at every bunk/joint. Then even when it sinks on way everything is still level with the bed, or is so noticeable that you know you have to make an adjustment.

 

[dlabrie]

I'm not sure how I could run full support the length of the mill: 20'. Maybe I could lap together 2 10', 4X6s and run 4X6s across the bunks. I hate to use up the lumber that I am cutting for the shed, but I guess If i want something close to straight and square, I'll have to bite the bullet.

 

[pete_86]

Sir, I'm slightly jealous a new mill, room to mill, and a tractor! Just picking, congrats on the setup. Once you get your mill shed built you'll have no problems with it being on a slab.

I like your idea as well, a 2x10 would prob be plenty strong supported at 4' OC, maybe a 2x6 nailed as a beam would be bit stronger and give you a thicker area to lay your posts. 2x6 you could use smaller logs if needed to save better stuff for the building. Nice pics and sorry to see you ran into some metal. Is that a screw? I wonder how that got into the tree. I've been lucky to not have run into something so far. Maybe now that you've hit something right off the bat you won't have that issue for quite a while.

 

[Dave Boyt]

Before I got the trailer package, I had my mill set up much like yours. I used wedges to fine-tune the track, and that worked fine. My concern is that the dip in the track does not explain the 1/2" variation in your cant. The most obvious is to make sure there was no debris on the crossbunks lifting one end of the cant. Run the string along the crossbunks. They should have the same dip as the track. Which end was high? Did you have your mill set to cut 6" or 6-1/2"? Assuming you wanted 6" thick, did you try making a second leveling cut? Did you watch carefully for any movement in the cant due to stress in the wood? Finally, did you get this variation after hitting the drywall screw? Even if the saw continues to cut, it will mess up the set in the blade, and it will cut every way but straight. Try it with a fresh blade (even if you didn't hit the drywall screw before the problem). Finally, re-check the adjustment on the blade guides.

As you may have guessed, there are a lot of variables involved in milling. The trick is to narrow down the cause of any problems. Checking the track for straight was a good start. Let us know what you find out.

 

[dlabrie]

Sir, I'm slightly jealous a new mill, room to mill, and a tractor! Just picking, congrats on the setup. Once you get your mill shed built you'll have no problems with it being on a slab.

I like your idea as well, a 2x10 would prob be plenty strong supported at 4' OC, maybe a 2x6 nailed as a beam would be bit stronger and give you a thicker area to lay your posts. 2x6 you could use smaller logs if needed to save better stuff for the building. Nice pics and sorry to see you ran into some metal. Is that a screw? I wonder how that got into the tree. I've been lucky to not have run into something so far. Maybe now that you've hit something right off the bat you won't have that issue for quite a while.

The next day, as i was cutting deeper into the cant, I hit another one! I just caught the tip of this on and was able to keep cutting. I will change the blade on jmy next log.

 

[dlabrie]

Before I got the trailer package, I had my mill set up much like yours. I used wedges to fine-tune the track, and that worked fine. My concern is that the dip in the track does not explain the 1/2" variation in your cant. The most obvious is to make sure there was no debris on the crossbunks lifting one end of the cant. Run the string along the crossbunks. They should have the same dip as the track. Which end was high? Did you have your mill set to cut 6" or 6-1/2"? Assuming you wanted 6" thick, did you try making a second leveling cut? Did you watch carefully for any movement in the cant due to stress in the wood? Finally, did you get this variation after hitting the drywall screw? Even if the saw continues to cut, it will mess up the set in the blade, and it will cut every way but straight. Try it with a fresh blade (even if you didn't hit the drywall screw before the problem). Finally, re-check the adjustment on the blade guides.

As you may have guessed, there are a lot of variables involved in milling. The trick is to narrow down the cause of any problems. Checking the track for straight was a good start. Let us know what you find out.

The 1/2 " dip was in the middle of the track. I loosened the bolts at the rail joints and lifted them to get it level/ That took care of it.

 

[pete_86]

Good deal, and was wondering when you get around to doing more milling and building will there be pics to follow? Not sure how time consuming it is for you to get your pics uploaded or if being so busy you'll even have time with the building, but if you're up for it many guys would like to see the progress of your milling and building. It's always nice to see more posts/build threads on here. Don't have to go too detailed, just a pic here and there. Might give others some ideas on how to setup a milling area and so forth. Also, if you ever have any carpentry questions lots of knowledgeable guys on here. I'm a carpenter myself and just love talking about building. Take care and enjoy the mill.

Also, was wondering if you'd be putting the shed up green? I see you have your piers in place, one step closer. How deep is frost line in NH? Here we're going 42" give or take. I use a skidsteer with a 12" bit and usually do 8" x 48" and bell the bottom out to 15" on any good size deck or structure if soil is silty or poor drainage.

 

[dlabrie]

Good deal, and was wondering when you get around to doing more milling and building will there be pics to follow? Not sure how time consuming it is for you to get your pics uploaded or if being so busy you'll even have time with the building, but if you're up for it many guys would like to see the progress of your milling and building. It's always nice to see more posts/build threads on here. Don't have to go too detailed, just a pic here and there. Might give others some ideas on how to setup a milling area and so forth. Also, if you ever have any carpentry questions lots of knowledgeable guys on here. I'm a carpenter myself and just love talking about building. Take care and enjoy the mill.

Also, was wondering if you'd be putting the shed up green? I see you have your piers in place, one step closer. How deep is frost line in NH? Here we're going 42" give or take. I use a skidsteer with a 12" bit and usually do 8" x 48" and bell the bottom out to 15" on any good size deck or structure if soil is silty or poor drainage.

I will be using green lumber. "They"say the frost line is around 48", some maps have it a 60" but, I have never gone that deep on anything I have built. The ground is hard clay and stone. I had all I could do to get down to 36" even with a powered post hole digger! I am not a carpenter, but I have built a 36X24 barn and added a 12 X 120' deck onto my house and they haven't moved in 30 years. I generally ask a lot of questions and use what I think makes sense. I am always open to suggestions. I will post pictures as I go along. It will take a while as I just started working again, I am a teacher, and I will only be able to get to it in the weekends.

This building will be 22' wide X 24' deep. I am planning to use a truss system so as not to have any poles down the middle of the structure. I did put footings down the middle to hold up the floor and for if I ever want to put up posts in the back half to have storage up above.

 

[dlabrie]

Here are a couple of picts on my shed progress. It is such a pleasure to cut what I need when I need it with the mill.

 

[Dave Boyt]

Looks like it is coming along. Nice, level site. I like the idea of using cement piers. Will you be using them to support the mill, as well? Projects like this seem to go so sloooowly, but when you're done, it will all be worth it!

 

[dlabrie]

The mill will sit on a deck of 2X8 joists with 1" boards across. The joists will go from the wall you see to the center piers and then from the center piers to the other wall. Once I have the deck built, I'll have a platform to build my trusses on. You are looking at the front of the shed where the logs will be loaded on to the mill. I may beef-up the first 8-12' to better support the mill.

 

[pete_86]

Looking good sir! good pics, thanks for update!