Question about cant hooks

[BobL]

Am thinking of making myself a cant hook.

Should the end of the hook extend beyond the end of the straight shaft or not?

If necessary I guess I could make it adjustable

 

[clearance]

no

 

[joesawer]

The hook point should be very close to the toe. My dad has messed with sawmills for years. When I was a kid he tried making some cant hooks. To make a long story short, you can by one cheaper than you can make one.

 

[Matildasmate]

Logrite cant hook

Hi Bob I got a great cant hook from a mob called Logrite in USA a 4 footer mostly made of aluminum http://store.logrite.com/

 

[oldsaw]

Another vote for LogRite. You won't find a better one.

Mark

 

[clearance]

Peaveys are cool as well, pretty hard to misplace, unlike a canthook.

 

[woodshop]

The hook point should be very close to the toe. My dad has messed with sawmills for years. When I was a kid he tried making some cant hooks. To make a long story short, you can by one cheaper than you can make one.

I second this... I know they are pricey, but there is a reason. Something like that can't be made cheap or it becomes dangerous. Maybe you have lots of time as well as access to a forge/blacksmith shop/machine shop... then go for it. Just don't under-engineer it when it comes to materials. A broken handle at the wrong time or a hook slipping out of the log could give you a busted ankle when that big log comes back at ya. I have two... one I got from Baileys (one of our sponsors) and the other I picked up at a flea market for couple bucks. It's an antique but works well. It has a solid stout handle made out of American Chestnut and I like using it better than the new one.

That said, after seeing you build that mill, I have no doubt that if you wanted to take the time, you probably could make a good one.

 

[TNMIKE]

You can make em

Ive made several cant hooks and peaveys. But..Ive got a blacksmith shop and machine shop here at the house. I would say the average joe would be well advised to buy one. If you dont want a new one frequent flea markets and farm shows. Ive bought really nice ones for 30 dollars.

 

[BobL]

Thanks guys.
Your advice is much appreciated but you guys should realize I don't under-engineer anything I make.
Cost (as in hard $$ forked out) depends on what materials I already have and what I can scavenge. If this works out more than the cost of the item I will buy the item.
I do have access to some nice manufacturing facilities as in the machine shop at work and BILs shop. Of course if I take my time into account I usually end up working for $5 an hour but as I really like making tools and gizmos that's just the my cost of my hobby.

Cheers

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Another vote for LogRite. You won't find a better one.

Better in what way??? I have an 48" aluminum LogRite and i don't use it much at all.... Why? because the handle is too fat to be comfortable. I like my 50" wood handled canthook (that i bought used at a farm auction) much better as it's tapered toward the end and MUCH more comfortable to use... It's the one used 99.9% of the time around here...

The LogRite cost me something like $100.00 and i saw wood handled canthooks at a Husky dealer for 60 something.... The Aluminum may be stronger, but i'd take the wood handled one every time! (if i'm the one who has to use it) My wood one has been more than strong enough for me and i use it for prying and everything else around the mill!

Rob

 

[046]

searched up and down locally for a good cant hook with no luck.
no one stocks em in Tulsa. not much logging around here...

didn't want to mail order because you can't use it first. shipping is also a killer.

finally found one at an old antique store for $15. wood need replacing, but metal is solid.
filed hook to sharp point and replaced pivot bolt.

since no one stocks handles the correct size. I'll be making a handle, but that's doable.
she looks good for many more years.

 

[oldsaw]

Better in what way??? I have an 48" aluminum LogRite and i don't use it much at all.... Why? because the handle is too fat to be comfortable. I like my 50" wood handled canthook (that i bought used at a farm auction) much better as it's tapered toward the end and MUCH more comfortable to use... It's the one used 99.9% of the time around here...

The LogRite cost me something like $100.00 and i saw wood handled canthooks at a Husky dealer for 60 something.... The Aluminum may be stronger, but i'd take the wood handled one every time! (if i'm the one who has to use it) My wood one has been more than strong enough for me and i use it for prying and everything else around the mill!

Rob

Wow, I love mine. I have a 60" with a standard 48" wood one. The LogRite bites better, and the extra foot of leverage comes in handy more often than not. I wouldn't trust a wood handle with what I've done with the LogRite. I don't find the handle to be too fat at all. My old one has been relegated to "back-up" status.

Mark

 

[aggiewoodbutchr]

I bought a Logrite after I broke a wood handled cant hook and nearly had a log come off a mill on top of me. Call me gunshy but I don't like wood ones much anymore.


These look the same as the Logrites but are a bit cheaper.

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/...=mode+matchallpartial&Dx=mode+matchallpartial

 

[046]

what about one of these felling levers with cant hook?

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_200342830_200342830

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Wow, I love mine. I have a 60" with a standard 48" wood one. The LogRite bites better, and the extra foot of leverage comes in handy more often than not. I wouldn't trust a wood handle with what I've done with the LogRite. I don't find the handle to be too fat at all. My old one has been relegated to "back-up" status.

There's no doubt that the LogRite does have a great hook, and it is a great canthook, but for me the handle is too fat and uncomfortable. I've never broken a handle on any canthook, but then again i save my back and use my tractor for severe duty on logs.

I kept reading how the LogRite was so much better than all the rest, and i wanted one really bad. When my buddy and i went to the 2007 sawmill expo a several months ago, i bought one. I asked my buddy (JP from the Norwood forum) if he was going to buy one too, and he said "they are too uncomfortable to use".... Dang, i didn't realize he was right untill i got home and used it some, i now wish i had not bought it...

I have used all of my weight on my wood handle one (i'm well over 200 pounds) more than a few times and it's still tight and like new so i'm thinking for the average guy around the mill it would last just fine..... (and at least 30 bucks cheaper)

I'm not saying LogRite's aren't good, i'm saying NOT everyone is in love with them!

Rob

 

[Rodney Sinclair]

I kept reading how the LogRite was so much better than all the rest, and i wanted one really bad.

This is called "being sold a bill of goods". The bad part is you bought it. Just like I have on a few things in my life. No way of knowin' how much money it has cost me through the years.
I agree with you on the part about saving my back too. Thats why I keep a backhoe, a 3600 Ford tractor and a Jeep with an 8000 Warn winch around. I also don't see why it should cost so much to build a cant hook. A scrap piece of metal and pipe and a cutting tourch should get the job done. Thats what I did years ago. Course it doesn't look like it was bought at Wall-Mart and it's a little heavy but it works.

Rodney

 

[Judge]

Cheap Canthook

I found the hook and shackle on Ebay for $ 8.00 [no handle], the shackle fit an aluminum softball bat perfectly when cinched down. Since the bat handle is tapered, it works fine; plently stout enough for any log I'm going to put on my bandmill, and the price was right!

 

[MJR]

I wouldn’t go through the work of making it adjustable. I use three cant hooks - a small one for when working on the mill (instead of a pulp hook), a 48” for most of the work, and a 60” when I do get a bigger log. If you are moving around a log that requires a 60” cant hook you real should have some heavy equipment near by. I think you should try to build it. Who knows, you may build a better mouse trap.

 

[Austin1]

what about one of these felling levers with cant hook?

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_200342830_200342830

I would like to try one of those, as the trees I am dealing with are not large. I was going to make one out of a pry bar but that will save me the effort .

 

[Sawyer Rob]

I have 3 canthooks left to right they are, Norwood, bought used at a farm auction, and the LogRite...

Here's what the tops look like,

here's the bottoms,

I do NOT feel like i was cheated by LogRite, they have a good product it's just not to my likeing with such a fat handle... I think "if" you want the strongest canthook money can buy, it's the one to get! But, for me, the wood handled hooks are plenty strong, and will easily last me the rest of my life and feel much better in my hands... I just wish i had bought another wood handled canthook like i already have...

BTW, the hook on my long wood one works just as good as the high priced spread by LogRite.

Rob