iDRY Vacuum Kilns

Sponsors:

manually rotating logs 12 foot peavys?

Started by opticsguy, February 25, 2012, 11:07:48 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

opticsguy

I am a one man saw mill guy and struggling with some logs when loaded on the mill. Is there an alternative to rotating a log by peavy?  Or do they make 12 foot long peavys?  At this rate I am gonna be in the hospital with a bad back.



TK 1220 band mill,  1952 Ford F-2, 1925 Dodge touring, too many telescopes.

shelbycharger400

sometime i will take a picture of the one my stepdad made years ago its not here its at my parents house.  its 6 ft long,  he made it out of a 4x4 (oak) turned it down to a 2 1/2 handle.  he boxed the end, put a 4 inch long  2 inch thick blade on it out of 1/4 or 1/2 stock,  and the hook is 12 inches long.  I have never had a problem moving anything.   and i have used it on 3 ft diameter logs with crotches on the ends.      if you try to bite too much with the wrong angle you are going to struggle.        nice thing about the one he made, hook is curved just so,  you can put a short log on the handle,  and it keeps the log up in the air.  his design will bite in the log.   most peavys i have seen  dont bite ,  or are rather short.

coastlogger

a chain and a jackall jack works well. Choke log, attach chain to spur on jack. best is to weld a chain grabber to jack so you can just slip a link onto it. SEarch roll log jack on this forum there are a few posts abt it I believe.A peavey that is 12 feet long might only be useful to a 12 foot person I think.
clgr
clgr

thecfarm

opticsguy,welcome to the forum. Must have some big logs you are rolling? What kind of mill you got? I have a manual mill and I can put a special jack in one of the posts to roll the logs over for me. But I use a peavey.
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

beenthere

Welcome opticsguy.
Lots of previous posts about ways to get past the "manual" part of trying to move the logs. And you are right, not finding an alternative will be hard on the 'ol back. :)

Finding a way to use some leverage aid, winch help, hydraulic assist, or tractor loader help will be the next phase of your creative mind before loading another log too big to move on the saw bunks. ;)
Rolling a log brings to mind the manual railcar mover I'd use to spot rail tank cars with anhydrous ammonia so they could be pumped off into our storage tank (that gets 'em rolling and have to jump on and turn the brake wheel to get them stopped).
manual rail car mover

Pull up a stump and tell us more.

We like pics too :)
south central Wisconsin
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

PC-Urban-Sawyer

Opticsguy,

Get yourself a Logright Megahook http://store.logrite.com/mh078.html.

Youi won't be sorry.

Herb

Brucer

There is a downside to very long cant hooks/peaveys. As soon as the handle gets above head level you end up with a very limited range of motion. With my gimpy shoulder I figure with anything longer than five feet, I can only move the end of the handle through about 3' of motion. That means ...

- with a 78" megahook I would get about 27 degrees of rotation.
- with an 8 foot cant hook I would get about 22 degrees of rotation.
- with a 12 foot cant hook I would get about 14 degrees of rotation.

So there's a tradeoff.

There are lots of other ways to turn a big log manually.
Bruce    LT40HDG28 bandsaw
"Complex problems have simple, easy to understand wrong answers."

Dan_Shade

you can use a handy-man/high-lift jact to roll logs too.
excercize extreme caution, and make sure you are out of any areas the log could roll into.  Also be aware that a handy-man jack can start to self oscillate, leaving a handle swinging wildly, which could hit you and break bones....


  • Place the base of the jack on the ground against the log, adding bolts to the base plate may help it stay in place on the ground
  • lift the head of the jack so that it is against the log
  • as you pump the jack, the log will begin to roll over
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.

Dave VH

I have a manual mill, and my 60" logrite does me well. (ofcourse my allis chalmers forklift is a great backup when it's running)
I cut it twice and it's still too short

Dan_Shade

 

  

 

this is two ways that I also used to handle logs on my old manual mill
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.

MHineman

  PC-Urban-Sawyer is right about Log-Rite Cant hooks.  They bite in better than any other cant hook I've used.  I got my 60 inch cant hook from Wood-Mizer.  It is the same cant hook, but a few dollars cheaper and painted orange so it's easier to see in the grass.
  I used to do almost all the turning with the cant hook, but I use the winch and log claw to turn larger logs now.  I don't get as worn out and get more done by the end of the day.
  In that same thought, I'm swapping out the manual winch for a 12 volt winch soon.  I finally got confirmation from a service tech at Wood-Mizer during the class they had yesterday that the manual winch is a 3,000 pound winch, so I have a better feel for the right size electric winch to get.
1999 WM LT40, 40 hp 4WD tractor, homemade forks, grapple, Walenstein FX90 skidding winch, Stihl 460 039 saws,  homebuilt kiln, ......

stumpy

I had the same setup as Dan Shade on my old mill.  Works great. Amazing how big a log you can turn with it.
Woodmizer LT30, NHL785 skidsteer, IH 444 tractor

opticsguy

Thanks for all the responses.  I purchased a 1220 Timberking and have about 7 hours on the machine.  I use a tractor with a homemade forklift attachment on the three point for handling logs.  The "only" difficult part is rotating the log with peavy on the rails.  Any attempt to use the tractor to move the log would move the mill rails and set up.

So far my largest logs are about 26" x 12' alder and maple and they are not dry!!!  I am well over 60 and my body is simply not as strong as a 20 YO.  Any tree not perfectly round can be quite a challenge to rotate that first 90 degree turn against the dogs.

The only other problem is what to do with all this wood!!!!   :-)
TK 1220 band mill,  1952 Ford F-2, 1925 Dodge touring, too many telescopes.

MotorSeven

Are you going to be milling logs that big all the time? If so the best way to turn them is with another mill that has hydraulics :D

My mill is all manual, but I rarely get a log on there that is over 20", so I can handle them ok. Do get the MegaHook, it is a pleasure to use and does help on the bigguns.
WoodMizer LT15 27' bed

hunterbuild

If you can get enough lift with your fork you can use a strap to turn them.

Magicman

I have no experience with a manual sawmill but Welcome to the Forestry Forum, opticsguy. 
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

KyTreeFarmer

opticsguy
I use a winch similar to Dan_Shade's,  except its mounted to the barn post behind my mill. Helps to put a short piece of pvc pipe over the log stops so that it sticks up above the log, cuts down on friction and makes turning some easier, or add some bearings to the top end of your log stops.
KTF
Woodmizer LT15G
Belsaw from Sears & Roebucks
8N Ford
87 Kubota 2550 W/FEL

opticsguy

Thanks for all the advice, will certainly look at the recommendations and come up with one or more of the solutions here.  I can see this is going to be a really bad hobby.  Already thinking of an upgrade  for a non-manual saw.  I have 12 acres of mixed maple, alder, cottonwood, fir, cherry, birch and other.  How long will it take for me to cut it all into lumber?  :-) 

Should I get a new hobby?  All i can think about is the next log . . . .
TK 1220 band mill,  1952 Ford F-2, 1925 Dodge touring, too many telescopes.

kelLOGg

optics.. Rotating 90 deg by hand after the first cut is a bear for me, too. I can't hold a big open faced log against the squaring arms with one hand and lock it in place with the other - no way. But with the winch I can nudge it in position with one finger.  So I added a winch on a swinging boom ...



 

This is an 18" cant from a 34" wo log. The squaring arms were not long enough to easily turn the cant so it had to be "encouraged" with a long pry bar. The winch is slow because you have to wrap cable around the log but for a manual mill its slow anyway.

Bob

Bob
Cook's MP-32, 20HP, 20' (modified w/ power feed, up/down, loader/turner)
DH kiln, CatClaw setter and sharpener, tandem trailer, log arch, tractor, thumb tacks

Magicman

And do I see a "Magic hook" on the end of the cable  ??? ???
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

opticsguy

Thanks Kellog.  Perfect photo and looks like an excellent set up.

THANKS!!
TK 1220 band mill,  1952 Ford F-2, 1925 Dodge touring, too many telescopes.

pineywoods

Sounds like another canidate for pineywoods hydraulics  ;D
1995 Wood Mizer LT 40, Liquid cooled kawasaki,homebuilt hydraulics. Homebuilt solar dry kiln.  Woodmaster 718 planner, Kubota M4700 with homemade forks and winch, stihl  028, 029, Ms390
100k bd ft club.Charter member of The Grumpy old Men

beenthere

Combine kelLOGg pic along with the "Magic hook" and the fence stretcher (if that is what it is) in this thread
https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,56625.msg820817.html#msg820817

and make a log turner (rotater) on the cheap.
south central Wisconsin
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

kelLOGg

Quote from: Magicman on February 27, 2012, 07:06:49 AM
And do I see a "Magic hook" on the end of the cable  ??? ???

I know it as a "Cook Hook"  ;D because it came with the mill.
Bob
Cook's MP-32, 20HP, 20' (modified w/ power feed, up/down, loader/turner)
DH kiln, CatClaw setter and sharpener, tandem trailer, log arch, tractor, thumb tacks

opticsguy

I like the mix of ideas presented here. That first 90 degree turn gets stuck on the dogs, not sure why the manufacturer put in a 45 degree cut with a "sharp" edge at the top of the dog.  Will try the PVC pipe over dog trick next time.  I do have a large wooden wedge, about 14" long which I can push forward with my foot while lifting with the peavy.  This allows short lifts with recovery and stability and a little more safety.  This worked really well with the 24" x 16' spalting maple.   Should I say spalting or rotting?   :-)

I see a cable winch in my future.
TK 1220 band mill,  1952 Ford F-2, 1925 Dodge touring, too many telescopes.

Thank You Sponsors!