debarking options

[jeepman]

Have any of you found a good way to debark on a small manual mill? I've been sawing on a LM2000 and the only fault I have is the lack of a debarker. I have a log wizard, but it is more of a sweat generater than a help. We just peel with a hatchet or a drawknife (depends on the log). Has anyone faced and solved this problem?

[Tom]

The log wizard should work without too much effort.  Perhaps you need to let the blades out a little more.   You only need to debark were the cut will be.   That should usually be a strip for the slab and a strip for one or maybe two boards. Then start turning the cant so that you are entering clean wood as fast as possible.  If your mill dogs on the power side then turning 180^o may get you into clean wood faster and you will only have to debark two strips.  If your mill dogs on the idle side then turning 90^o will get you into clean wood and you will only have to debark one strip.

My mill isn't manual but I seldom debark.  I do clean a dirty log and it increases my blade life.  While debarking may be preferable, you have to compare the length of time spent preparing the log to your expected production.  You may find that you will say, as I have, "that's clean enough". :D

[Fla._Deadheader]

We try to set up within reach of a garden hose. In colder country, ??????????

[Kevin]

I skid everything in the snow and stay clear of dirty saw logs.
If I do get a dirty one it gets hosed.

[DanG]

I find it helps to saw off an inch or so of the end where the saw enters. I saw mostly pine, and if we get a little rain, sand splashes up onto the logs and sticks to the sappy end. A good, fresh cut seems to make a difference. I also use the hose, and/or debark the whole log when feasible. I found that a ditch spade works about as well as anything for debarking. I'm thinking seriously about a pressure washer.

[Stan]

I'm with DanG on the ditch spade. I prefer the D handle.

[Tom]

Pine debarks fairly easily but hardwoods are a different story.  Some of them hang onto their bark fairly tenaciously.  The Log Wizard is a good idea.

[Minnesota_boy]

I'm custom sawing and I get paid for production, not for debarking.  Unless the log is really dirty or has mud frozen on it, I just saw and change blades as needed.  It's cheaper to replace the blade with a resharpened than it is to take time to clean the log (and still miss a spot that dulls the blade anyway).  Worst I've had was some clean oak logs that had been stacked on skids above clean gravel.  Rain spl;ased some of the gravel up into the bark where it was hidden, but really dulled the blades quickly.

Mud that is frozen is just as bad as a rock, but once thawed, doesn't bother at all. ;D

[cluckerplucker]

 Alright I give up!.Is the log wizard the contraption that bolts to the end of a chainsaw? Where do I get one?  cecil

[Stump Jumper]

This is a Stihl 028 with a Log Wizard debarker the directions for the debarker say bolt it to a regular size bar like a 16" - 18" bar whatever you have.  This makes the saw way off balance and difficult to operate for us.  Notice the bar that we made from an old junk bar just long enough to fit the Log Wizard.  This makes the whole machine balance just about perfectly and easier to get around with and operate.  Had to make a short chain to drive it also.  Just thought this might help somebody out. :P

[Stump Jumper]

Sorry the picture is not best and you cannot see the actual log wizard on it but it is there.  This will give you an idea anyway of how it would work.

[Stephen]

I have a Log Wizard but found it wanted to cut deep into the log. I added a metal bar, extending from the end to rest against the log. This helped control the depth, and speeds the progress along the log. I haven't uset it in about 5 years. I debark with an axe, spud'n iron or draw knife.
It helps with dirty logs to charge by the hour. ;)

[Kirk_Allen]

Stump Jumper,
It looks like you have a debarker on your mill.  If so, why do you use the Log Wizard?

Just curious.

[Stump Jumper]

Kirk Allen

That's a good question and you have good eyes to see what is on the mill.  Turned out that the debarker was out of alignment and I had to align the debarker twice before I figured out what the true problem was there is a shaft extension and collar on the end of the motor that attatches to the blade and it had been loose enough to drift downward which made the blade travel downward and made is misalign.  Took me a while to figure this no just use the Log Wizard on other projects once in awhile.

Now that I have the Wood Mizer debarker aligned properly it works just dandy.

P.S.  We got the Log Wizard before we had the LT40Super.  We had the LT30 and did not have a debarker on it.  So we still use it from time to time.

[jeepman]

That's a good idea, Stumpjumper, using the short bar. I put mine on an 18" bar so I could use an old 20" chain. The combination of the long bar and all that anti-vibe stuff makes it too much work. Right now, I get paid with the satisfaction of cutting my own house timbers so speed ain't an issue but hard work is. I've thought about riggin one of those lancelot carving discs to a dc motor an mounting it for a debarker. Just haven't got around to it. I may get back to the forge and make a behemoth drawknife (got a big lathe file in the back of my truck that might do the trick).