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One man milling SLABS

Started by highpockets, April 14, 2006, 07:42:11 AM

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highpockets

I am looking for pictures and ideas of easing the sawing process.  I have a tractor with a frontend loader but have a desire of being able to build some kind of attachment that will allow me to loads slabs and finished lumber on the same attachment. 

My idea is to sit some kind of rack device next to the mill.  A set of fingers would angle from the bottom of the rack toward the mill.  Slabs could be off loaded onto them where they would slid down to ground level, BUT ON A PART OF THE FRAME.  The finished boards could be off loaded to a set of fingers that would be horizontal and almost lever with the bunks.  The whole contrapsion could be picked up by the frontend loader and hauled off at once.  Somewhere the boards could be offloaded first.  Then the ???  attachment could be tilted and the slabs fall out on a pile.

It seems that I have seen something like this before.     
Louisiana Country boy
homemade mill, 20 h.p. Honda & 4 h.p. for hydraulics.  8 hydraulic circuits, loads, clamps, rotates, etc.

highpockets

Well I may just build one anyway.

Louisiana Country boy
homemade mill, 20 h.p. Honda & 4 h.p. for hydraulics.  8 hydraulic circuits, loads, clamps, rotates, etc.

woodsteach

Draw it up I'd love to see the design = I don't do well with words.

Paul
Brand X Swing Mill, JD 317 Skidloader, MS460 & 290, the best family a guy could ever dream of...all provided by God up above.  (with help from our banker ; ) )

DanG

That doesn't sound all that hard to do, HP.  Does it have to be a single unit, or would separate units work for ya?  My mill is a lot different from yours, but the same issues tend to come up.   I use different methods in different situations.  I have a board dragback, so everything comes off the end of the mill.  Sometimes I offbear directly onto a customer's trailer, which saves me a whole heap of work.  If I don't have that option, I just stack it on dunnage on the ground and move it with the forklift, later.  If I'm cutting big heavy boards, I park the forklift where the dragback will slide them straight onto it.  My slabs come off more like edging strips, and are tossed over to the other side of the mill to be dealt with later.  The only real slab I have is the bottom one that is left when I finish the log.  It has to come off on the same side I load the logs on, which makes it hard to use a log deck.  Unless the logs are real small, I remove that slab with the forklift before fetching the next log.  I'd like to change that setup someday, but am stuck with it for the time being.
"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."

Frank_Pender

Dan, our mills are the same and I often turn the slab on edge and make a couple more boards or three.   The remaining is then much easier to handle.   I will them put the slabs or smaller remains into the jig  ( see photo gallary)  for firewood.

Frank Pender

DanG

I sometimes process the slab, too, but often find that it isn't worth the trouble.  I try to offset this by placing the defective side of the log on the bottom.  Only about one in ten of my logs will leave a slab that is worth fussing over.
"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."

Gipper

highpockets,

One of the sponsors on the left of your screen, Baker Products, makes a thing similar to what you are describing I think.  It is called a rollcase, and has pedestal mounted kickers for the slabs one direction and the boards to edged the other direction.  You can get a decent look at it from their website, but a better idea for the way they use if from their info pack.  Might give you some ideas as to what you are trying to make.  Hope it helps!

Gipper

highpockets

Thanks guys, what I am trying to do is haul my disposal slabs and finished boards off at the same time.  Many times I am milling by myself.  I usually throw the slabs off on the ground, and load the finished boards on the forks of my front end loader.  For the stuff I am going to edge with the mill, I put back on the mill logloader.  What I was thinking was having two sets of fingers on this movable rack. One set would slope toward the ground where they would be attached to some rails at ground level which is part of the whole unit.  When I slab is drug off the bunk it would slide down these fingers.  There would be a set of fingers at bunk level and horizontal where the finished boards could be loaded. 

When the log is sawed, I could pick up the whole thing with the front end loader .  I'd go stack the finished boards first. Then I could go by the slab pile, tilt the forks and the slabs that are on the lower fingers or rails would slid off.  Back to the sawing.   
Louisiana Country boy
homemade mill, 20 h.p. Honda & 4 h.p. for hydraulics.  8 hydraulic circuits, loads, clamps, rotates, etc.

jpgreen

Can't you even get a little help out of that old dog Dick? Spead some bacon grease on one end of the pile?..  :D
-95 Wood-Mizer LT40HD 27 Hp Kawasaki water cooled engine-

highpockets

JP, that old dog is supposed to be behind and electric fence.  Recently he has decided he wants to get out and hang around with me.  Only problem is he is kind unpredictable when someone comes.  I told Jacque I was going to hang some bacon on the fence and remind him what it is.  As for help, I have a friend named Billy that likes to help. Only problem is he is 72 and is about as stove up as I am.  Oh well, we saw for fun anyway.   
Louisiana Country boy
homemade mill, 20 h.p. Honda & 4 h.p. for hydraulics.  8 hydraulic circuits, loads, clamps, rotates, etc.

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