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electric bandmills

Started by sandsawmill14, March 11, 2015, 12:42:20 AM

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sandsawmill14

Any of you guys running electric bandmills?  what are the pros and cons? ???
hudson 228, lucky knuckleboom,stihl 038 064 441 magnum

Ianab

Don't run one myself, but if your mill isn't portable and you have a suitable mains supply, then the electric wins in every way.

Quieter, cheaper running, less maintenance and the torque curve of an electric motor is better for running a sawmill.

Cons?. You aren't portable any more, or at least only as far as the cord reaches....
Weekend warrior, Peterson JP test pilot, Dolmar 7900 and Stihl MS310 saws and  the usual collection of power tools :)

Brad_bb

I'm now regretting not going electric on my LT15.  I now realize that I will mostly be milling here at home inside.  Con: exhaust inside during winter when you want to keep the doors closed.  Con: You've already got the mill planer hooked up to dust collection hose and connecting an exhaust hose to the opposite side(where the exhaust outlet is) would make for a Pain in the butt to manage another unwieldy hose at the same time.  Con:Noise level of gas motor inside, so you have to wear good earmuffs.  Con: Starting and stopping the motor more often (because you're inside) on a gas motor is harder on the motor than stopping and starting an electric motor.
Anything someone can design, I can sure figure out how to fix!
If I say it\\\\\\\'s going to take so long, multiply that by at least 3!

thecfarm

I only saw for myself. Mine will sit most times through the winter months. I may use it steady for a month,than it sits there the other 11 months. No carburetor problems with electric.
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

ozarkgem

quiet, powerful, no oil change, no running to town for gas, cheaper to run , if you are not portable its the way to go.
Mighty Mite Band Mill, Case Backhoe, 763 Bobcat, Ford 3400 w/FEL , 1962 Ford 4000, Int dump truck, Clark forklift, lots of trailers. Stihl 046 Magnum, 029 Stihl. complete machine shop to keep everything going.

red

I have wondered why Woodmizer does not sell a Genset large enough for an electric LT40 and a monster Genset for an LT70
Honor the Fallen Thank the Living

Cedarman

We have over 15,000 hours on our 25HP electric LT30HDE.  It starts every  time. Even at 10 below.  Quiet.  Great power.  Our multihead motors have well over 22,000 hours.  Been running since 1992.
Plus, all the things the others have said.
I am in the pink when sawing cedar.

warren46

I run a Timber Harvester with a 40 HP electric.  Frankly I think 40 HP is a little overkill but I love it.

When making the decision consider the cost of motor disconnects, conductors and starters.  The cost can add considerably even if you have a three phase panel near your mill.

Also, electric motors of a size to run a sawmill do not usually like frequent starts.  The inrush current when starting may overheat the motor.  Follow the manufactures recommendation regarding frequent starts.

All of that said, I sure like the sound of the blade in the wood without the noise of an engine, the lower operating cost (I pay about $60.00 per month for electric), and never running out of diesel.
Warren E. Johnson
Timber Harvester 36HTE25, John Deere 300b backhoe/loader.

bandmiller2

My homebuilt can go ether way I have a Wisconsin two cyl. or a 15 hp baldor three phase. I have it setup in a building with good lighting and no way am I going back to engine power. Quiet, no fumes, massive torque, cheaper to run, easy to start and much more pleasant to work around you can talk to your help. Frank C.
A man armed with common sense is packing a big piece

sandsawmill14

I have to stay portable so it would be on a smaller (to me) 100kw genset .i dont think it would it would burn much more fuel than i will when we get edger going as i will be running 2-25hp and 1-6hp gas engines if i leave it as it is. when i say portable it not like most portable jobs.  i have been where im at since november but in but around the first of the month im gonna have to move to another mill to saw 70-80000 ft of 16' red oak logs the back to where i am now. i will already have to make 2 trips even without the genset so it wont make it any harder to move just put it on trailer with edger and green chain.  are yall happy with the the performance of electric?  thanks for the help
hudson 228, lucky knuckleboom,stihl 038 064 441 magnum

Dave Shepard

I've run a Wood-Mizer off of a generator. It is the way to go for me, but with the genset at about 5,500 pounds, not very portable.



 

The LT40 and 70 use the same 25hp motor, although the LT70AC does use more AC motors for up/down, feed and debarker. WM wants a 50kva genset to run an AC mill. If I was to buy a new mill with the intention of doing portable sawing, I would get an AC mill and use the savings to buy a genset. I would buy a small IH truck with a service body on it and put the genset in the back along with an air compressor. Then I would have all of the tools and supplies I would need right on the truck.
Wood-Mizer LT40HDD51-WR Wireless, Kubota L48, Honda Rincon 650, TJ208 G-S, and a 60"LogRite!

sandsawmill14

loading the genset would not be a problem as we always have a 8000# lift around but if i go with electric i will probably set genset on trailer and leave it the just load and unload the green chain and edger. dave are you happy with the 25 hp?
hudson 228, lucky knuckleboom,stihl 038 064 441 magnum

Dave Shepard

My sawmill is the 51 HP CAT/Perkapiller. The 25 HP electric is supposed to be comparable to the 51 HP diesel. In fact, I was once told that WM was pulling up to 50 hp from the 25 HP electric for brief periods. The mill in the picture is a '92 LT40E15 manual. 15HP electric. I would say the 15 electric was comparable to the identical '93 LT40G24 Onan gas that I used to run. It is so much nicer to not have to deal with a gasoline engine on anything, especially with today's fuel. Running on a genset is not going to be your most fuel efficient option. It is really only viable if you have no grid power, or grid power is too cost prohibitive.
Wood-Mizer LT40HDD51-WR Wireless, Kubota L48, Honda Rincon 650, TJ208 G-S, and a 60"LogRite!

sandsawmill14

I agree with you about the genset. I will probably put a elctric service where i am now and use the genset when  i have to move. I dont know I might be better of just buying an electric mill and leave this on on gas. I have a lot more sawing than than i ever imagined and had a man walk up today wanting me to saw walnut  and cherry he said it would be around 10-15000 bdft a mont combined. so I really dont know what to do.  thanks for the info though everyone smiley_thumbsup
hudson 228, lucky knuckleboom,stihl 038 064 441 magnum

Dave Shepard

I would think if you are really going to gear up to saw higher volumes, and you have a friendly utility company, then grid would be the way to go. Keep the B20 for portable work and setup stationary with a high production mill with live deck and outfeed rolls. You've got to have the support equipment to utilize a bigger mill, obviously, but it sounds like you could be looking at cutting a lot of logs.
Wood-Mizer LT40HDD51-WR Wireless, Kubota L48, Honda Rincon 650, TJ208 G-S, and a 60"LogRite!

dean herring

Sandsawmill 14, you must have read my mind . I was going to ask that exact question.
I think electric is the way to go. Are you going electric?  From the posts seems electric motor has plenty of power, which is what I was wondering  about? More info welcome.
Failure is not an option  3D Lumber

dean herring

Forget to ask which mills offer a really good electric mill?
Failure is not an option  3D Lumber

sandsawmill14

 dean i have got to do something. I was thinking about changing to electric and try some 1 1/2 .055 bands to see if i could get a little more out off my mill. I would like to find a higher production mill that is already electric but i dont really know what to look at as all the company # are very misleading every mill will cut per hour what they say but you have to pick your log, get it on the mill and start timing when you start sawing so thats nowhere close to what you will saw per hour over a weeks time. Ive thought pretty hard about a select double cut but thats alot of money and i dont like the idea of the 4 or 6 inch band. I have talked to 2 different mills that run the wm 3500 one of them had 2 of them with a resaw and said they were only sawing 10-12000 bdft per day and the other 1 is only about 30 miles from my house and with 3 men and edger he only averages about 3500 per day. So I assume those numbers are close because they seem to agree. Dont get me wrong I like the wood mizer mills but price is why i have timberking b 20. I got it right before thanksgiving and have already cut over 100000 bdft with thats not near enough for the amount of time but with the weather we've had i guess thats not to bad. The last 2 weeks we've averaged about 220 bdft an hour but that includes everything from trimming/splitting logs to shoveling sawdust. the best day we.ve had so far is 3098 bdft but their is no way the mill can average that I had cherry picked logs and saved them to try to get an absolute max on the mill (at least with what im sawing) so i could see where I stood far as my production. I am real close to max at 220 i dont think it could ever average over 250 per hour long term in my situation. whatever i do has to be thin kerf or i will lose most of my customers. sorry i got so long winded.  :-[   ;D You have any ideas?
hudson 228, lucky knuckleboom,stihl 038 064 441 magnum

Ianab

I somehow don't think that going electric will magically change your production.  Slight improvement? Yes.

Do an estimate of how much time the band actually spends cutting over the course of the day? Actually in the wood. If that's only 50%, and a new mill is 20% faster in the cut, your can only gain 10% at most. Logs still have to be fetched, loaded, turned etc. Sawdust and slabs removed. All those little time consuming tasks that need to be done, and the mill isn't cutting while you do them.

So do you need a good helper? A log deck? A sawdust extraction system? An edger? Better setworks?  Things that can actually increase your "band in the wood" time, with your existing mill. You have already identified the sawdust shovelling, log trimming etc.  This is where having a "Man Friday" could really help?

Just for example, Peterson posted a video today of one of their mills sawing a log, a bit over 600 bd /ft in 20 mins. Now that's not a realistic all day production scenario, and they advertise more like 500 an hour (on a good day).  BUT, if you had a good crew, setup and logs, the mill could cut a LOT of wood. But working alone? Probably down at the 200 / hr level, because of the amount of time the blade isn't actually in the cut.
Weekend warrior, Peterson JP test pilot, Dolmar 7900 and Stihl MS310 saws and  the usual collection of power tools :)

Bibbyman

Quote from: sandsawmill14 on March 11, 2015, 11:35:35 PM
dean i have got to do something. I was thinking about changing to electric and try some 1 1/2 .055 bands to see if i could get a little more out off my mill. I would like to find a higher production mill that is already electric but i dont really know what to look at as all the company # are very misleading every mill will cut per hour what they say but you have to pick your log, get it on the mill and start timing when you start sawing so thats nowhere close to what you will saw per hour over a weeks time. Ive thought pretty hard about a select double cut but thats alot of money and i dont like the idea of the 4 or 6 inch band. I have talked to 2 different mills that run the wm 3500 one of them had 2 of them with a resaw and said they were only sawing 10-12000 bdft per day and the other 1 is only about 30 miles from my house and with 3 men and edger he only averages about 3500 per day. So I assume those numbers are close because they seem to agree. Dont get me wrong I like the wood mizer mills but price is why i have timberking b 20. I got it right before thanksgiving and have already cut over 100000 bdft with thats not near enough for the amount of time but with the weather we've had i guess thats not to bad. The last 2 weeks we've averaged about 220 bdft an hour but that includes everything from trimming/splitting logs to shoveling sawdust. the best day we.ve had so far is 3098 bdft but their is no way the mill can average that I had cherry picked logs and saved them to try to get an absolute max on the mill (at least with what im sawing) so i could see where I stood far as my production. I am real close to max at 220 i dont think it could ever average over 250 per hour long term in my situation. whatever i do has to be thin kerf or i will lose most of my customers. sorry i got so long winded.  :-[   ;D You have any ideas?

Rase your prices.

One person hits a limit to how much they can get onto and off of the mill.  A bigger,  faster mill is not going to improve production.  Automating some of the material handling with live decks and an edger will help but you'll hit another production peek.    Adding people will make a big jump in production but then it doesn't look nearly as good when you divide production by two or three.

We have an LT40HDE25-RA with live log deck,  rollers for cants out one end, use the dragback to best advantage and have edger.  It takes three people to start to use the production potential of the mill. 
Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

sandsawmill14

bibbyman right now I have 1 offbearer. I have a live green chain on the back side of mill, all lumber and cant go to it to be stacked. All the lumber is edged by the big mill crew that im sawing for so we dont have to touch it after its off the mill, same with the cants the come get them with the wheel loader and take them to be stacked with theirs.  I dont have a log deck yet but loader keeps logs ready so im only waiting for log loader on mill which is a few seconds but not to long, i will time it today though so i know. right now i am sawing 6-7 hrs out of the 9hr days we work on average. I just built the green chain but since i put it in we have averaged about 400 bdft per day more. I may just be asking to much of the mill.  As I have said before I like the b20 but i have got to do something, I may wind up having to get a 2nd mill.
Thanks for everyones help.  :)
hudson 228, lucky knuckleboom,stihl 038 064 441 magnum

4x4American

With an electric mill you can turn the drive wheel around easily...which is nice for a few different reasons.  That alone should sell you on it.
Boy, back in my day..

Magicman

 say_what  Say what?  Explain.
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

dean herring

Failure is not an option  3D Lumber

Bibbyman

Maybe so you can drive it down the roads in England?
Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

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