sawmill

[rockriver]

anybody familiar with small home/farm portable sawmills?

any advice or recommendation or comment would be appreciated..

i'm taking down some trees... looks like a lot of lumber and hate to just burn it...


i see one brand wood mizer https://woodmizer.com/

seems to start at 3500 and go up from there...

[Patriotic Sheepdog]

make sure to see what they have in stock and the shipping dates before you put $$ down. I have looked myself at some and they were not in stock or wait time was several months....I am not ready to buy one yet, but trying to eval some myself.

[rockriver]

Expo is in moultrie georgia this week!

guys if you want to see a bunch of tractors/implements/sheds/sawmills and all kinds of farm and homesteading stuff i suggest a road trip.

https://sunbeltexpo.com/

if you are going somehow, give me a shout.

[prc-104]

I'd say contact Corley Sawmills in Chattanooga.
Talk with a service rep, establish a rapour and ask for advice.
Dealt with them for a long time and they are the best folks around.

[rockriver]

at expo this week there was only one sawmill company... one of the best... and one of the top sellers in the world.
i talked with a lot of their reps and guys there that already had that brand...

as patriot said... long wait times..
over a year...

my visit was yesterday. second day of the show...
i asked about the equipment they had there... did they have one they could sell? NOPE... already sold out of everything at Expo...

a related item... fellow there was looking for a heavy duty 3 pt hitch post hole digger...
at the bush hog tent. which i think is a good brand..
salesman advised. "sir, i checked inventory yesterday.. the company had 3 but one was sold ...
if you want one , you should order it quickly. lots of delays these days."

[rockriver]

i've checked with other sawmill companies...again "we are building with late 2022 delivery dates and depending on model, maybe 2023" is a common response.

a company that sells units primarily built in china can deliver within a month.

[rockriver]

an associate bought a sawmill..
ordered it in october. showed up in january. after 2 postponements of a month each.
--
his thoughts.
yep. built in china. but u.s. made would be 2023 before delivery. a bird in the hand is better than no bird.
yep. crates of parts. not assembled. going to be a headache and a back ache.
get the gas or diesel engine. not the electric powered. grid may go down.
as lumber prices increase. homemade product looks better and better.
if lowe's and the depot close. he can still make lumber. one tree trunk can provide a big pile of boards!
with his own lumber he can better insulate and secure his sheds and barns. can build new sheds and shelters.
if his employer closes up, and fires everyone, he has added a service that he can provide to neighbors. whether shtf or not.
yes. prices have increased. but there is a better chance of continued increasing prices than odds of prices returning to pre covid.
what is better choice ? having a sawmill or some greenbacks?

and he asks...
what other equipment should he be looking at "now" before things get worse.

[Lowdown3]

Woodmizer parts evidently have been hard to get and used sets are commanding damn near new prices so I hear.

[rockriver]

ld3, you hear correctly!....

they are telling folks 2023 delivery ....
your comment about "parts" got my attention... woodmizer is probably the top of the pile of manufacturers...
and they are famous for making their whole machine in the u.s.a....
looks like they would have a pretty good and well stocked parts department...
hmm. maybe they are made here but use 1 or 2 imported parts. i don't know...

[rockriver]

helping the fellow who bought the sawmill.
has a kohler engine ... probably made in china. amazing... it cranked on first try! ran smooth and quiet.
--
it cut great... first log had lots of rot.. just practicing.
then fellow, on first log, hit a metal "log stop" vertical metal post that helps hold the log in position.
didn't really hurt the metal, but badly damaged the blade...
2 lessons...
1. Be More Careful
2. Better have extra blades on hand. if the shtf, extra blades probably impossible to get... fellow nor i know anyone local who sells blades.. they are 13 + feet long!

while replacing the blade... something ain't right... blade not running straight and true.. not sure of the cause, but one problem found. there are 2 small ceramic? blade guides. they help guide the blade to run straight. held in place by small metric set screws. 5 are missing. there should be 12.. 6 on each guide. a short description no.8 x 1.25 folks, how many of you have a supply of small metric set screws.. about 3/8" long. or less. ?coarse thread. takes a 4mm hex key. metric
home depot nor lowe's carries this item. longer version found at a local "nuts and bolts" store. fellow bought 5 extra and should have bought more... they were only 30cents each.

next lesson.
if these are lost. sawmill ain't going to function right...
what else is there that becomes worthless that i/you are suddenly without repair parts. i aint gonna never throw another screw/bolt/nut away.