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Getting my Lt-15 wide delivered tomorrow

Started by Woodslabs, May 15, 2015, 10:36:14 PM

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Woodslabs

I am very excited :) 

any tips or things to look out for when assembling the saw?  Also is it possible to set loading on the left or right?  As in if facing south is it possible to have the stoppers on the right side and load from the left?  If that makes sense.
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Percy

Cant help you with your quesation but Id be very interested in how well this thing works. I run an LT70 24 foot but have a need for cutting 40-50 foot beams for good coin on a semi regular basis. These  LT15 mills can have a track from coast to coast with realatively low expense....Id buy one just for the real long stuff. Let us know just how easy a 34 inch at the butt cuts  and wether Im on the right track in my thinking..
GOLDEN RULE : The guy with the gold, makes the rules.

Verticaltrx

I don't have a lot of tips to offer as I only have 13hrs on my new LT15, but here's a few things I recall while setting it up.

-make sure your ground is level and firm, concrete would be best, anything else you need to put down some fairly heavy blocking to distribute the weight. Mine is sitting on 4x6 timbers and I still have to check the bed for level every so often as the ground has settled under the mill from heavy logs. I might put 2x12s under the timbers for better weight distribution.

-make sure the joints are 100% flat between the bed sections, the saw head should roll effortlessly over the joints, if it thumps at all when going over recheck the alignment

-I set mine up just with a high quality 2' level. First I leveled one end side to side, then the far end (also leveled along the length of the bed at this time), then I went back and set all the middle feet to the proper height/level, checking each cross member to make sure it was level, then I just eyeballed it down the length of the bed to make sure there wasn't any dip or crown in the middle. This is fast and plenty accurate for what I'm doing, you could use a string line to check for flatness if you need something really precise. I've moved the mill a time or two since I first set it up and I can have it leveled in 15-20min.

-I added an hour meter to mine to keep track of things, they don't come with one, but one of the little 'Tiny tach' sytle digital hours meters is very easy to hook up, great to keep up with maintenance.

-I changed my oil/filter after the first 10hrs as a proper break-in measure. Kohler doesn't say anything about it in the manual, but it used to be proper procedure to change the oil between 10-25hrs on a new motor of this size. I guess the EPA doesn't want you changing your oil anymore.

-I keep an oil can with ATF in it to oil the lift chains and mechanism, track wipers, head rollers, etc


As far as I know, you can only load it from the right side of the mill, at least it is far easier that way. I setup some 8' long timbers even with the bed height and set my logs on that with the forks or grapple, then roll them onto the bed with a cant hook.

Hope some of this helps, we'd love to see pics when you get it up and running, I haven't seen to many LT15 Wides.




Wood-Mizer LT15G19

Verticaltrx

Quote from: Percy on May 15, 2015, 10:45:50 PM
Cant help you with your quesation but Id be very interested in how well this thing works. I run an LT70 24 foot but have a need for cutting 40-50 foot beams for good coin on a semi regular basis. These  LT15 mills can have a track from coast to coast with realatively low expense....Id buy one just for the real long stuff. Let us know just how easy a 34 inch at the butt cuts  and wether Im on the right track in my thinking..

I don't have the Wide version, but I've cut up to the max 28" on my LT15 a few times and it handled it fine. The one thing you have to take into consideration is that with it being a two post mill you don't have as much wiggle room for sweep, knots, etc vs a true cantilever mill when working at full capacity. The longer the logs the more this becomes an issue. That said, if you keep the log dia. to about 75-80% of max capacity I don't see any issue milling really long stock. The only other thing to consider is that you do want a nice firm level base for these mills, with numerous bed sections I think it'd be even more important.
Wood-Mizer LT15G19

thecfarm

Congrats on the new mill. I set mine up to face the house. When I am sawing,I can see the house and driveway.
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

zopi

It is not possible to reverse the loading.  If you are facing the controls you must load from the right side of the mill.
Got Wood?
LT-15G GO chassis added.
WM sharpener and setter
And lots of junk.

Woodslabs

Hi all,

I ran into a small snag.  When wiring up the power feed the red wire does not fit over the + terminal on the battery.  It looks to me like whoever put the battery together put the fat terminal on the + and the skinny on the -.  I plan to swap them tomorrow but thought i would post to see if anyone had an issue like me.  Also on the red wire of the power feed there is a little cluster.  Where does that bolt to?

Any help would be great.
check out www.woodslabs.ca

dean herring

How do you turn a 36" log? I would like to be able to cut that wide  but turning would be a problem.
Failure is not an option  3D Lumber

pineywoods

Quote from: dean herring on May 16, 2015, 10:15:25 PM
How do you turn a 36" log? I would like to be able to cut that wide  but turning would be a problem.
Hydraulics, big hydraulics, either on the mill or external equipment. In some cases both  ;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

Verticaltrx

Quote from: dean herring on May 16, 2015, 10:15:25 PM
How do you turn a 36" log? I would like to be able to cut that wide  but turning would be a problem.

A grapple on a skid steer works well. Grab it, rotate it, set it back on the mill.
Wood-Mizer LT15G19

Chuck White

~Chuck~  Cooks Cat Claw sharpener and single tooth setter.  2018 Chevy Silverado and 2021 Subaru Ascent.
With basic mechanical skills and the ability to read you can maintain a Woodmizer  LT40!

dean herring

Happy Birthday Mr. Pineywoods. Got any ideas on external hydraulics?
Failure is not an option  3D Lumber

Percy

Quote from: thecfarm on May 16, 2015, 06:41:46 PM
Congrats on the new mill. I set mine up to face the house. When I am sawing,I can see the house and driveway.
:D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D
GOLDEN RULE : The guy with the gold, makes the rules.

zopi

It beats me why anybody would WANT to cut a 36" log on am LT-15. 29" log is a pain in the butt.

I can saw 5 16 inch logs in the same amount of time amd get better lumber in most cases.

unless you are making live edge bar tops. But that is what resorcinol is for.
Got Wood?
LT-15G GO chassis added.
WM sharpener and setter
And lots of junk.

pineywoods

Quote from: dean herring on May 17, 2015, 11:39:34 AM
Happy Birthday Mr. Pineywoods. Got any ideas on external hydraulics?
A chain with a good hook on the end and a forklift works ok, just slow.
Or you might look here
https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,73311.msg1109377.html#msg1109377

This guy is located close enough to go look.



My homemade hydraulics met it's match yesterday, a 30 inch X 20 ft post oak. Had to use the forks on a tractor to help..
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

Woodslabs

Thought i would give you guys an update.  Milling going well.

Milled up some 30 inch wide oak but had some issues with a deadwood ash.


Quick question.  Sometimes my power feed slips (like i will turn it on and it will spin but there is no traction on rope *rope is tight*).  I sometimes have to nudge it a little for it to get going.   Not sure if i installed it correctly.  Do i run the rope in and out over the power feeder or do i go in, once around and out like on the manual option.  Woodmizer had a great instructional video but didn't include a section on installing the power feed.  They really should take 5 min and shoot a video on it.
check out www.woodslabs.ca

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