Saturday Sawmilling from He77

[DR Buck]

Just got home from the worst day I've ever had sawmilling.    It started out OK but as soon as I arrived at the customers site it went south.   : I had to sit the mill up on a hill.  I had 6x6 blocks under one end just to get it level.  The hitch end of the mill was a lot higher off the ground than I like and it was hard to read the Accuset.

Cedar and white pine to mill.   The logs were stacked in 3 different piles that were end to end instead of a single stack.   This meant we had to use a pivot block to turn the logs in the right direction to get them to the mill without having to relocate it.  Most of the logs had limb stubs sticking out all over.  Some up to 6 or 7 inches and they kept getting hung up on the turner claw and back stops.   >:(

The cedar had lots of bark inclusions and heart rot so the recovery rate was low.   It was also loaded with metal.   smiley_dizzy I hit barbed wire, a ½"galvanized eye bolt, and countless nails.  The customer ended up buying 4 band blades on 2 low quality cedar logs.  One of them on the 1st pass of a brand new band.  It wasn't even a resharp! 

Then to my own amazement    and not paying attention , I drove another new blade right into my backstop roller!   smiley_cry 1st time I've sawed into the mill in about 5 years.  I hit it so hard the band came off the wheels, cut halfway into the bolt that holds the roller on, sheered most of the teeth off and cupped the blade, which got jammed in the guide block.  I had to cut the blade in pieces to get it off and take the blade guide block off the get the stuck piece out.   :'(

And just in case you agree with my assessment about having a bad day, I haven't even got to the best worst part.   :

When I was getting ready to leave, we noticed that one of my sawmill tires was flat!  Well I wasn't worried, I have a portable 12 compressor under the back seat of the truck.  Then my son noticed that there was a huge gash on the inside sidewall of the tire.  Now I'm upset!        5 o'clock on a Saturday, no spare and I need a tire.  We took the tire off the mill and headed out to find a replacement.   Three tire dealers open and none had the tire I needed.   They all wanted to sell me a new "almost" the right tire since the size matched.   I didn't want to pay $90+  for the "almost" right tire   no_noso I tried to get them to sell me anything used that would fit so I could get the mill home.  The 1st 2 dealers said absolutely not.   I finally convinced the Goodyear dealer to work with me.   He said if I could find one the their dumpster that fit they would put it on the rim.   So, after 15 minutes in the dumpster I found a semi-bald completely worn out tire that fit the Wood-Mizer rim.  It cost me $17 to have it mounted.   Since this particular Goodyear dealer is only 2 miles from my day job office, I had him order the correct replacement tire for me.       I'll take the semi-bald temporary to him on Tuesday and have it replaced.  That particular Goodyear tire the Wood-Mizer uses is going to cost me $195.  :'(

Bottom line – sawed 859 board foot, destroyed 5 bands and one tire.   I should have stayed home   

[redbeard]

I thought i had a bad day, my right front spindle snapped on my 2240 JD tractor first thing in the morning had to drive 60 mile round trip to pick up new part 268.00 lost the whole day. Tomarrow should be better for us

[Chuck White]

Wow.........

Going by what you've written, I guess I've never had a bad day milling!

Ya, we've all had bad ones, but fortunately not quite that bad.

Worse I've ever done is destroy 3 perfectly brand new WM Double Hards, all in the same day.

Better luck tomorrow!

[clww]

I feel sorry for you two. It's not a full moon, either! Next year, maybe we'll learn from our mistakes and go to the FF Pig Roast instead? Tomorrow is another day.....

[Dan_Shade]

Dave, you have to have a few bad days to appreciate the good ones.

[5quarter]

Definitely should have stayed home...definitely.

[terrifictimbersllc]

Sorry to hear about your day, but it's better when it's over, hopefully.   In case anyone doesn't know, WM carries the Marathon radial trailer tire 225 75 r15  on the rim, for $140.  Probably can't get close to this at a tire store.    Also a lot of tire tire chains will match the internet price for tires, as long as they can get them from their suppliers, because they still  make $20-25 each selling you the valve stem, balancing, mounting etc.  Doesn't help get your mill home on a Saturday evening though.  :

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

Dr. Buck.....We are tested on a daily bases. You have got to be one of the strongest people I know! I would have probably taken 4 sticks of dynamite, placed it under my saw and.......BOOM........saw, blades, logs, truck and whatever else, up in smoke!!!!

[SAWMILL BUDDY]

You can buy tires already mounted on the rim ready to go at the tractor supply store for 10.00 more then just a tire.

[fishpharmer]

Dr. Buck, you should have gone to the Pig Roast! :D

Sawmill Buddy, do they have a tire/wheel combo that fits an LT40 at your TS store?   I have looked at several TS stores for a tire/wheel combo of the same size that fits an LT40, without success.  Every wheel they had was five lug.  Think WM wheels are six lug.  Not that all TS stores are exactly the same.

[Magicman]

fishpharmer, they should be the 6Klb. (heavy duty) axle wheels.

By the way, do you have something new to tells us about ???

[sandhills]

I was wondering the same thing fish.
Dr Buck, doesn't have anything to do with milling but just so you don't feel alone let me tell you about my day (the same day as yours).  I started out checking irrigation early, everything was fine there so went on to checking cattle, one bull went lame last summer and took a few months off so our first calf heifers are now starting back up.  Got that done and ran a few errands in 2 different towns, one of which was new brake pads for my pickup.  Get back to the farm and tear the brakes down just to realize I need more parts than I thought, getting close to 5 so I run back to town for more parts before they close, get back out to the farm and see I got the wrong parts.  OK I'll just drive my spare pickup until tommorrow, go back out at 10:30 pm to shut one well off and check another, realize about then the alternator isn't working on the spare pickup so limp it back to the yard after shutting the well off.  Stepson picks me up a little later and gives me a ride home so I can take my wifes car out at 4:00 am to shut the other well off, at 4:00 am the car dies a half mile from where I need to be but I can't hear the well running so I was hoping dad beat me to it.  Wrong.  Motor burned out on one tour and the pivot safetied out.  Grand Total:  3 busted vehicles, 1 down pivot, and about 3 hours sleep that night.  Yesterday went a little better, back up to 2 working vehicles anyway.  :D

[clww]

That was an expensive, time-consuming day for you, sandhills!

[Bro. Noble]

By the way, do you have something new to tells us about ???

Oh No!  did they let Pigman remove the duct tape from his mouth? ;)

[DR Buck]

My mill tires are 215/R75 14 and are 5 lug.    It is possible Woodmizer uses different sizes on different mills.   I just went ot the web page and ordered the complete assembly (tire & wheel) for  $125.    In fact I ordered 2 so I'll have a spare from now and will be calling Goodyear and cancelling the $195 tire.

[terrifictimbersllc]

Good feeling to get a good deal from WM on exactly what you need!!!

[jdonovan]

wow that sounds like a really rotten day.

makes me re-think the whole sawing for others thing.

[terrifictimbersllc]

The blades you can charge the customer.  The other stuff is the learning curve.  I remember twice early on having about a $300 day ended by tearing a $220 mirror off of my truck. : :

Dr. B. did you figure out how your tire got slashed on the inside?  

[SAWMILL BUDDY]

The Leesburg store keeps them in stock. I picked up two for my lt40. Now I have a spare nomatter what happens ;D

[caveman]

Some of our hobbies/occupations are like tearing up hundred dollar bills while standing in the ________(shower-offshore fishing, oven-summer time work outside, volcano-over head welding on a ladder, etc.).  There is something inside many of us that compels us to perservere when it would be economically advantagous to purchase a huge flat screen t.v. and a great recliner and retire to the living room.  Tomorrow will bring new opportunities and challenges.  Good luck Dr. Buck.

[WDH]

A man has to do what a man has to do  .

[5quarter]

I would add..." A man has to do what a man has to do, unless the woman wants him doing something else".

[WDH]

 :D :D :D

[fishpharmer]

By the way, do you have something new to tells us about ???

Oh No!  did they let Pigman remove the duct tape from his mouth? ;)

If you insist, I had a blowout on my camper in VA a few weeks ago.  The little town North of Bristol had a TS store but not a six lug wheel to fit my camper.  A little bird told me the LT40 Super Hydraulics have the same size tire/ wheel combo.   Maybe not a bird, maybe a pigman told me that. ;)

Hang in there Sandhills, its gotta get better.

[thecfarm]

Hard to know what to expect when sawing for others. I can get into enough of a mess at my own place without having help from others.   ;)  It's all behind you now and nothing but blue skies ahead.

[pigman]

Dr. Buck, I have had days similar to yours, but I will not have any more. At least not with a sawmill.

[Magicman]

By the way, do you have something new to tells us about ???

Oh No!  did they let Pigman remove the duct tape from his mouth? ;)

.....

fishpharmer is just sitting back and laughing his grits off.