iDRY Vacuum Kilns

Sponsors:

LOG_MASTER

Started by ex-Engineer Wannabe, July 27, 2005, 06:17:50 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

ex-Engineer Wannabe

Hello, to the board! :)

As some of you folks already know, I'm researching portable sawmills for my own purposes and then later, perhaps, to start a small milling operation.

I watched a video tape I received from Log-Master today, and I was hoping to read some thoughts on their products.  As always, any advice or comments are most appreciated.

B in NOLA
"Measure twice, cut once" -- Don't know who coined this one, but he was pretty wise.

Rockn H

I've been by there a few times, but I've never had time to stop or it's the weekend and nobody home.  I've been curious about their sawmills for a while, and would like a look at their craftmanship or maybe I should say welding skills myself.  You can tell alot about a company and their machine by how its put together.  I've also wondered about the price of their LM-2 too.  If I were to buy another mill it would have to have power on the feed, height adjust, as well as the blade guide. 

I couldn't find it on their web site, but did the litterature they sent you mention size and thickness of their frame?   And did I understand that their frame comes in 5 and 6 foot sections or is the main beam one piece?

ex-Engineer Wannabe

Thanks for the reply, Rockn H! :)

The LM 2 model has:  :P

- Hydraulic head feed (both directions)
- Hydraulic head lift (up and down)
- Hydraulic log loader
- (2) Hydraulic rolling toe boards
- Hydraulic guide arm (in and out)
- Hydrulic log clamping with hydraulic frt and back dogs
- Hydraulic log turner
- 6 Post. twin rail, head rig
- Hydraulic blade tensioner

I've also learned that you can get a 26HP Kohler gas, or a 26HP CAT option on this model.  This model has 30" bandwheels and has a 24-foot bed.  The weight of this one is 6,300 lbs, so the trailer comes with tandem axles and hydraulic surge brakes.

Unfortunately, I couldn't find a spec on the actual thickness and dimensions of the rails, but the smaller models are specified as having track sections, which leads me to believe that the larger models are probably one piece ???  As I'm doing a LOT of research, I'll get more specific info tomorrow and let you know.  Nevertheless, they're pretty proud to tell you that their various models are heavier than their competition.

In addition, the LM 2 is a 36-incher by 24-foot long.  PM me if you want me to give you the price I have.

Hope this was helpful to you and have a great night,
B in NOLA  
"Measure twice, cut once" -- Don't know who coined this one, but he was pretty wise.

Rockn H

Have any of yall in east texas seen one of these mills in action?

ex-Engineer Wannabe

Rockn H,

I've never seen one in person, but I can tell you the video was impressive -- especially the diesel models.  They cranked through those logs pretty quickly.

They even filmed a double cut model that really cranked 'em out.:)

B in NOLA
"Measure twice, cut once" -- Don't know who coined this one, but he was pretty wise.

Kansas

Last fall, I went to the Logmaster facility in texas and picked up an edger they had custom built for someone and wound up repossessing. I got a chance to look around and see the place. They put a lot of iron in what they build. They brought up one of their portable mills to show off at the kansas forest products assn get together in june, and seemed to impress a lot of people with it. I know they sold a couple of mills with that showing. We started working with them in may to design a custom built mill for us. We should get delivery in mid september, so I'll have more hands on experience then. A few things that impressed me is the use of hydraulic motors for all power except the main power unit. Also, we had specific things we wanted on it and they were willing to accomodate us. They also run large bandwheels, and run at much higher tension on the blades than our woodmizer. Better than half of the logs we cut are cottonwood, and we have a lot of problem with blades diving and waving, and Im hoping that helps.

ex-Engineer Wannabe

Thank you for the reply, Kansas.:)

The edger I saw in their video also looked very interesting.  Your reference to "a lot of iron" is well taken as well.  They do seem to be featuring the amount of steel in their designs. 

I'd love to read about how your Log-Master runs after you receive it...which model did you base your custom design on?

Have a great one,
B in NOLA 
"Measure twice, cut once" -- Don't know who coined this one, but he was pretty wise.

ex-Engineer Wannabe

Good Morning, all! :)

As promised earlier, here is the information, and dimension data, I obtained today:

Log Bed:
- The (2) Main Rails are 32' long (one solid piece for each rail)
- The Mains Rails are also 6" x 3" (rectangular)
- The Main Rails are 1/4" in thickness

Head Rig:
- (4) 3" x 2" beams
- The beams above are also 1/4" in thickness
- (2) chrome rods for head travel

Warranty:
- 2 years on engine
- 1 year on mill (except for normal wear items)

Log Lifts:
- Each lift ram is rated at 7000 lbs per
- The LM 2 and up have (3) arms

Blade:
- Normally 22,000 lbs of strain (riding on 30" bandwheels)
- Roughly 600 to 1000 bd/ft between sharpenings (depends on wood)
- The optional sharpener can do 25 teeth/minute

I'm also being told that many of the wear parts in these mills are "off the shelf" and, therefore, can be obtained locally.  From what I also understand, they started producing mills in 1993.

I'd love to read how some of this information compares to some of the other band mills in use out there.  Any other views, opinions or comments are much appreciated as well. ;D

B in NOLA 
"Measure twice, cut once" -- Don't know who coined this one, but he was pretty wise.

ronwood

B in Nola,

How large of pickup truck to you have to pull the mill? One of the factors that I had to consider is would I be able to pull it with my 1/2 ton  4x4 pickup. That is one of the reasons that I bought a Woodmizer. I still can cut a log as big as many of the other mills.

Ron
Sawing part time mostly urban logs -St. Louis/Warrenton, Mo.
LT40HG25 Woodmizer Sawmill
LX885 New Holland Skidsteer

ex-Engineer Wannabe

Excellent point, Ron.

The LM 2 weighs 6300 lis, the LM 3 weighs 6500 lbs and the LM 4 weighs 7000 lbs.  As those are the models I'd probably be most interested in personally, those are the ones I'd have to tow as well.

I aksed the fella at the factory about towing.  He told me that a 1/2 ton can do the job fine, but, that 3/4 tons can do it "in earnest."  I guess you'd have to check into the spec's and so forth for your hitch to really tell.

Good post and keep 'em comin... :)
"Measure twice, cut once" -- Don't know who coined this one, but he was pretty wise.

Fla._Deadheader


Ain't knockin this thread one bit, BUT< the hitch is not the determing factor in whether a vehicle can do the towing. 

  6500 pounds requires a GOOD clutch or STOUT auto tranny. BRAKES are a necessity along with vehicle weight, to keep from being thrown all over the road by that dead weight. Off road, all ya get is stuck. On the hwy, you or someone else gets killed.  ;) :) :)
All truth passes through three stages:
   First, it is ridiculed;
   Second, it is violently opposed; and
   Third, it is accepted as self-evident.

-- Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860)

Tom

You're right, Harold.  "Goin' ain't where it's all at.  It's stoppin' that keeps you comin' back to the table." :D

Fla._Deadheader


Yeah, Tom. I youster pull our mill with a ½ ton Chevy Silverado. You knew it was behind you, when a Semi went by, in the opposite direction. Now, we have the Dodge Diesel Dually. Makes a BIG difference, especially when some fool cuts you off.  ::) >:( ;)
All truth passes through three stages:
   First, it is ridiculed;
   Second, it is violently opposed; and
   Third, it is accepted as self-evident.

-- Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860)

ex-Engineer Wannabe

Fla,

As promised, I'm just conveyin' the message I received.  If I were an expert on these things, I wouldn't be asking for advice or posting "Getting Started" threads. :)

Your points are really good ones, but, as I posted earlier, the trailer does come with "surge brakes."  Your thoughts also make me wonder why I had to spend so much to get that 10,000 lb logo on my hitch? :D

I hope you read my words about diver/sawyers.  I really admire you guys.:)

Have a great day and happy posting,
B in NOLA

 
"Measure twice, cut once" -- Don't know who coined this one, but he was pretty wise.

Fla._Deadheader


We thought about mountin the mill on the Pontoon Boat. EPA wouldn't like us throwin the slabs back in the water.  :o :o
All truth passes through three stages:
   First, it is ridiculed;
   Second, it is violently opposed; and
   Third, it is accepted as self-evident.

-- Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860)

Dan_Shade

towing is all about good brakes

that is definately a heavy mill.  i really wonder the virtues and benefits of that much steel.  things add up, though.

there's no way I'd tow that kind of weight with a 1/2 ton pickup, i'd be afraid of it pushing me all over the road.
Woodmizer LT40HDG25 / Stihl 066 alaskan
lots of dull bands and chains

There's a fine line between turning firewood into beautiful things and beautiful things into firewood.

AtLast

Hiya NOLA.....well I run the BAKER 3638 (3642 upgrade)...and it too is totally hydrolic....In totally believe in this because its simple ...fluid in...fluid out...no seperate motors ....no independant functions for each activity...in my opinion I totally believe in this method beyond any other...there are MANY very good mills out there...once again..its up tp you to deciede which works best for you...BUT....I will say that you may wanna talk to Tom Stout at BAKER and perhaps arrange a tour and see....in my opinon they make a VERY VERY good mill...after all...look at the numbers in the shootout....OMG Im gunna regret saying that...but hey...thats me...anyway....give Tom a call...I think youll be most impressed with BAKERS hydrolic mills...have fun

ex-Engineer Wannabe

Thanks, AtLast.  That's a very open and honest post! :)

I was impressed with the Baker mills as well -- they flat cut up some wood!  Nevertheless, Nacogdoches, TX, is relatively close to me once you consider where some of these mills are made.  Not that I know which mill I'll buy yet, but location of the "factory" can be important when you need mod's or repairs made.


"you'd have to check into the spec's and so forth for your hitch to really tell."

Dan,

My rig weighs 9000 lbs and is Cummins TD powered.  With surge brakes installed on the trailer, I should be relatively safe.  I never intended on towing ANY mill with a half ton pick 'em up.:)  I don't know what my fellow members of the board are using, but, as the quote above infers, one MUST check ALL THEIR SPEC'S prior to towing! :P

Have a great one,
B in NOLA

 
"Measure twice, cut once" -- Don't know who coined this one, but he was pretty wise.

Dan_Shade

:)  it's good to know what you need to know
Woodmizer LT40HDG25 / Stihl 066 alaskan
lots of dull bands and chains

There's a fine line between turning firewood into beautiful things and beautiful things into firewood.

DanG

There's just a couple of minor truisms at play here.  1.  The truck is part of the package.  If ya can't afford enough truck to pull, and stop the mill, you can't afford the mill.  A one ton truck will handle most any portable mill out there, and a 3/4 will handle most of them.  Neither of those is all that hard to come by.  2. When you get down to seriously considering individual brands, you gotta talk to every owner you can find.  Has anybody had one fall apart in a customer's yard?  Has anybody had to tow their mill halfway across the country to get warranty work done?  Has anybody had warranty work they couldn't get done?  We all know that sawmills will break.  Just make sure that the company you buy from will help you fix it when it does.

I've visited LogMaster's website, and the mill is impressive on there.  But I have yet to lay eyes on one, and haven't heard a peep out of any of their customers.  They've never showed up at Moultrie, and they weren't at Sawlex.  Has anybody here ever seen one working out in the field? ???
"I don't feel like an old man.  I feel like a young man who has something wrong with him."  Dick Cavett
"Beat not thy sword into a plowshare, rather beat the sword of thine enemy into a plowshare."

Tom

There was one in Atlanta at the show in 1999.  I'm working on memory but it sure seems familiar.  If it was, there was a problem with feed speed.  i dont know if it was the operator or the RPM's at the bandwheel, but it took a couple of minutes or better to make a cut on the log they had  mounted.  I figured it had to have been a correctable problem but it didn't look good at the show.

DanG

I remember seeing another brand that always seems to have trouble at shows.  I won't say who it is here in public, but it's a bandmill and not a forum sponsor and that's all I'll say about dat.  Anyway, I've seen them have all sorts of problems every time I've seen them at shows.  It always seems to be operator error, but the inexperienced observer(potential customer) would probably see it as a fault of the machine.   Why don't they just train their DanG people? ::) ???
"I don't feel like an old man.  I feel like a young man who has something wrong with him."  Dick Cavett
"Beat not thy sword into a plowshare, rather beat the sword of thine enemy into a plowshare."

Kansas

Nola
In answer to your question, the mill is most closely patterened after the LM 6. This will be a stationary mill, and most of the changes wouldnt be applicable to a portable mill. We are having the capacity increased to a 48" log, hydraulic couplers added to add a live deck, and having a stand alone console for the controls, among a few other minor changes. It will be powerd by a 100 hp electric motor, which I think is overkill, but they insist on it, and I guess it wont hurt.
As far as them cutting slow at shows, I noticed that too. I suspect (I hope) its the operator. He doesnt just cut slow, he brings the carriage back slow too. Its variable speed as far as the carriage travel goes in both directions. I asked what the speed range was, and he was going way under what it should be capable of in both directions.
Just in case, we are having a different spot in the building wired up for the woodmizer, at least until the bugs are worked out, and we are used to the machine. We may keep it permenantly as a backup, and for small jobs, straight edging, customer logs we suspect that have metal in them, etc.

ex-Engineer Wannabe

"...it's a bandmill and not a forum sponsor..."  :D

Howdy, Dan.

I'm a little confoozed...Did the mystery brand that made its way onto this thread -- a thread WITH a brand name -- show up at any of the shows you've attended or not?  :D

Perhaps you're referring to two different brands?  I guess I'm wondering how you saw [no pun intended] some logs being cut up too slowly if the company never attends a show?  Git my meanin'? :)

As always, a pleasure to see your words on the board...have a great day in F-L-A...

B in NOLA

"Measure twice, cut once" -- Don't know who coined this one, but he was pretty wise.

DanG

Yup, you be confoozed.  That was Tom that saw the LogMaster at a show I didn't attend.
"I don't feel like an old man.  I feel like a young man who has something wrong with him."  Dick Cavett
"Beat not thy sword into a plowshare, rather beat the sword of thine enemy into a plowshare."

Thank You Sponsors!