opening day 2010 (around here anyways)

[mikeb1079]

southern wi, end of february and winter is finally starting to break. i've been jonesin to mill lately and it's finally time. so i got myself a nice old tandem axle trailer, and i picked up a load of black cherry logs last weekend. i thought i'd try to mill em up right on the trailer instead of off loading and then re loading later on. problem is, i live in the heart of the city with neighbors 15' on either side, so i drove the rig out to the country and had at it. started with three black cherry logs 16-20" in diameter and 8' long and one 4' by 20" piece of ash that i picked off the curb.

started with the black cherry

one had some rot, but that's just character

this was the slab of the day, but it contained the pith, and we all know how that goes....

anyways, here's what it looked like all slabbed out...(note there's another half dozen slabs in the van, beside my new 18" rikon bandsaw)

not a bad day at all. 35 degrees and sunny, good opening day.
the old 075 ran terrific. just chuggin along. i figure i did around 300 bf in about 4 hrs. now i just gotta stack em and paint em...

 

[gr8scott72]

southern wi, end of february and winter is finally starting to break. i've been jonesin to mill lately and it's finally time. so i got myself a nice old tandem axle trailer, and i picked up a load of black cherry logs last weekend. i thought i'd try to mill em up right on the trailer instead of off loading and then re loading later on. problem is, i live in the heart of the city with neighbors 15' on either side, so i drove the rig out to the country and had at it. started with three black cherry logs 16-20" in diameter and 8' long and one 4' by 20" piece of ash that i picked off the curb.
.

I say screw the neighbors. It's not like it's the middle of the night.

(That's why I could never live in the city.)

Nice pictures.

Nice pile of sawdust you made there too.

 

[mikeb1079]

I say screw the neighbors. It's not like it's the middle of the night.

this is why i'm working on the electric chainsaw mill (carriage style). with an industrial electric motor it should be no louder than a table saw. then i can mill without worrying about noise. i won't even have to care about the neighbors.

Nice pile of sawdust you made there too.

yep it was huge. one nice thing today was a stiff breeze from the north. since i was facing west it blew the dust away nicely. no lumber lung for me today.

did a bunch of slabs at 10/4 and some at 4/4. i'd like to make a dining room table out of some of these slabs. i figured on slabbin em thick and re-sawing as needed on the new bandsaw.

ps the pics do no justice to the beauty of freshly sawn american black cherry.

 

[gr8scott72]

this is why i'm working on the electric chainsaw mill (carriage style). with an industrial electric motor it should be no louder than a table saw. then i can mill without worrying about noise. i won't even have to care about the neighbors.

Sounds interesting. Tell me more about your idea. What motor? How to mount to bar? etc

 

[htpd43]

Sounds interesting. Tell me more about your idea. What motor? How to mount to bar? etc

Yeah, do tell! I have an almost 30 year old milwaukee electric saw with a 20" bar on it. It is a beast - the way milwaukee used to make tools - heavy duty. It's so quiet that most of the noise comes from the chain scraping along the wood. It is a manual oiler but a nice aux. tank will take care of that problem. I have been wondering if it would do on a set up like the logosol electric job. I am tempted to try it but I don't want to ruin the saw - I "inherited" it from my dad. he bought it in 1980 or 81 so that he could cut firewood at night when his masonry business was slow in the winter time. We lived in a suburban community after moving back to NJ from WVa. I have never seen another like it and I know they don't make them like that anymore.

 

[wendell]

Nice job, neighbor. Thanks for sharing!

 

[mikeb1079]

i'm trying to find the plans i drew out for the electric carriage mill. i'll be using a single phase 5hp 3500 to start, but ultimately i'll be looking for a 10hp 3 phase with a 15hp idler motor.

I have never seen another like it and I know they don't make them like that anymore.

they don't, but i know for fact that there's no way you could ever use that to mill (i have one too). not enough grunt, and the chain speed is horribly slow. even with a 5hp spinning at 3500 rpm i'm underpowered and under speed. i'll scan my plans when i can find em.

Nice job, neighbor. Thanks for sharing!

thanks wendell. perhaps you recognize the intersection of t and sprecher on the east side? i got some funny looks out there as i was milling away.

 

[trax]

You have 3ph coming into your house ?

 

[mikeb1079]

You have 3ph coming into your house ?

nope. i have single phase 240v. all you need to make a 3 phase converter however, is an idler motor, a pull cord, and the right amount of capacitance. i'm running a 1 1/2hp 3 phase motor right now using a 5 hp 3ph motor as an idler. i pull start the idler motor, then throw the switch to keep it running on its own, then the windings of the idler motor basically work like a transformer and provide 3 ph power for your working motor. it works so well that i want to use this idea to make an electric sawmill. see this thread.

http://www.arboristsite.com/showthread.php?t=124002&highlight=simple+electric+mill

as it is now, the idler motor draws about 12 amps and the working motor draws about 12 as well. i can post pics/give you more details if you'd like.

 

[trax]

Here's a couple Nice motors for a saw mill. 30 HP now thats an electric motor the local pick up on these is about 5 miles from me work.

http://tinyurl.com/yc5gvxs

 

[stipes]

Nice haul!!!!

Make you some nice projects from that!!