jimdad07
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Very good BobL...,er Jerry. Sure you haven't spent a little time in the Australian bush wrestling crocs and dingos trying to get to that hard to reach perfect dead tree to auto-mill?
Thanks, I think it took me longer to make the throttle piece than the actual mill/parts. I do hope the pictures help anyone considering building a mini-type-mill. I know seeing pictures on this list helped me with ideas to build my big Alaskan style mill.
jerry-
GPS - Dang - now why didn't I think of that! I guess it's one way to measure linear feet cut?![]()
Is the deflector clamp touching the bottom of the saw? If so the saw vibe will make it rattle against the clamp and it could mangle the base of the saw.
WHOA! awesome job on the mill- really nice looking fab skills. I'm going to try to get a mini together over the next few months but i'm not even going to kid myself by hoping it looks as clean as yours.
One thing i do want to think about is having the saw mount pivot, or maybe clamp the bar instead of bolting to it as a means of regulating depth of cut.
Okay enough about the mills, lets see some more pics of that sweet GT350!!!Is that original????
Is the deflector clamp touching the bottom of the saw?[quote
Bob, this pictures shows how far away the bracket is from the saw bottom. I should have noted that it does not touch the saw at all. Good call.
jerry-
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Is the deflector clamp touching the bottom of the saw?[quote
Bob, this pictures shows how far away the bracket is from the saw bottom. I should have noted that it does not touch the saw at all. Good call.
Looks good, it will be interesting to see how much if any sawdust gets through that gap.
Looks good, it will be interesting to see how much if any sawdust gets through that gap.
Bob, was thinking about your comment. I think I could use a piece of light foam of some sort and attach to the top of the bar so it just touches the bottom of the saw if I find sawdust is spouting over the top of the bracket. I'll know when I mill.
jerry-
Bob, was thinking about your comment. I think I could use a piece of light foam of some sort and attach to the top of the bar so it just touches the bottom of the saw if I find sawdust is spouting over the top of the bracket. I'll know when I mill.
Looking at your guard has I've started thinking about a chip deflector for my 440 when I use it in my minimill and the am thinking it might be more effective attaching it to the saw itself.
This would be relatively easily done by replacing the screws at the ends of the wrap handle with longer screws and adding short standoffs that would permit a custom made deflector bracket to be mounted onto saw. The guard would then be firm up against and not abrade the saw body.
The bracket would look something like this;
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Here's another view looking direct at the underneath of a saw.
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On the first version of the BIL mill I made a nose guard from polycarbonate that looked like this.
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It vibrated itself to bits after only about 10 logs so I remade it with more attachment points and ally support brackets but the PC still cracked and so I got rid of it.
So instead of a flexible deflector which might also rattle up against anything it touches and eventually vibe itself to bits anyway I'm thinking a solid cowl from ally or plastic that deflects the chips sideways would be better. Also it would reduced the amount of sawdust that falls onto the log and has to be swept off so the guide board can lay flat.
Looking at your guard has I've started thinking about a chip deflector for my 440 when I use it in my minimill and the am thinking it might be more effective attaching it to the saw itself.
This would be relatively easily done by replacing the screws at the ends of the wrap handle with longer screws and adding short standoffs that would permit a custom made deflector bracket to be mounted onto saw. The guard would then be firm up against and not abrade the saw body.
The bracket would look something like this;
Bob, sounds good, but I would think if you were going to make it wrap around the saw, it had better be one continuous piece of aluminum tubing that you like to use. I would think you are going to get more vibrations mounted directly to the saw vs on the frame.
I wanted my setup to take as little time to setup and take apart. I have two thumb screws on the throttle mechanism and the two bolts holding the saw to the frame. I don't have dedicated saw for my mini-mill and if you do then time switching out is not an issue.
On the first version of the BIL mill I made a nose guard from polycarbonate that looked like this.
![]()
It vibrated itself to bits after only about 10 logs so I remade it with more attachment points and ally support brackets but the PC still cracked and so I got rid of it.
I made my nose guard from 3031 aluminum and it hasn't cracked yet. Some plastics just don't like a lot of vibration.
So instead of a flexible deflector which might also rattle up against anything it touches and eventually vibe itself to bits anyway I'm thinking a solid cowl from ally or plastic that deflects the chips sideways would be better. Also it would reduced the amount of sawdust that falls onto the log and has to be swept off so the guide board can lay flat.
My vote is for aluminum, you can also isolate the mounting points with rubber washes and use a ny-lock nut.
If you use a solid deflector and my system has the flexible polycarbon we could be testers for anyone else wanting to make a dust deflector for any mill.
I won't be doing any milling to soon with all the rain we will be getting forecast through next Thursday.
jerry-
Bob, sounds good, but I would think if you were going to make it wrap around the saw, it had better be one continuous piece of aluminum tubing that you like to use. I would think you are going to get more vibrations mounted directly to the saw vs on the frame.
Yep I agree - if it's your only saw then a cowling bolted direct on the saw wmayill take longer to take apart - but it maybe no slower than removing your remote trigger - anyway I will have a fiddle.I wanted my setup to take as little time to setup and take apart. I have two thumb screws on the throttle mechanism and the two bolts holding the saw to the frame. I don't have dedicated saw for my mini-mill and if you do then time switching out is not an issue.
My nose guard is only supported at one point which is when stuff vibrates itself more easily to bitsI made my nose guard from 3031 aluminum and it hasn't cracked yet. Some plastics just don't like a lot of vibration.
Good ideaMy vote is for aluminum, you can also isolate the mounting points with rubber washes and use a ny-lock nut.
Another Good ideaIf you use a solid deflector and my system has the flexible polycarbon we could be testers for anyone else wanting to make a dust deflector for any mill.
Dryest year on record here and it's been raining all day (mid summer) but we have over 100F forecast for Xmas Day.I won't be doing any milling to soon with all the rain we will be getting forecast through next Thursday.
Great work and thanks for the great step by step. I have only used the Alaskan style so far but I'm looking into building a mini soon to compliment it. I have a couple questions. What is the longest bar you can get away with?
Second, is there any thoughts about setting it up so it could cut at 45 deg instead of 90 deg to make it cut easier? Many of the logs I mill are located where it is hard/imposible to roll them and some are to big for my current 36" cut so the mini would only be used to narrow the sides for me.
Jerry,
You have done an excellent fab job on your mini mill.![]()
I noticed that your last post was a bit ago so I'm wondering if you've had time (and weather that has cooperated) to operate your mill. Let's see how it's working out for you!
I was talking to Eric at Granberg, about mills and specifically with reference to minis, about bar length. I was thinking about a 28" bar on an 80cc Mac w/404 ripping chain (dedicated to the mill) and he said that woud be fine, and for smaller logs I could adjust the saw upwards for clearance at the bottom of the log. I'm assuming that the Granberg Mini uses the bar-pinch mounting method so it makes it real easy to adjust saw height, although with the method you've selected additional bar holes takes care of that quite easily as well. In fact I think I like direct mounting through the bar as you've done better, as it is a more secure and safer way of doing it IMHO.
I'm really curious as to the saw wanting to lift the mill off the log. That's my only hesitation in using the top of the bar to cut with. Does it exhibit any tendency at all to want to lift?:msp_confused:
Everyone here comes up with some great ideas and I have used many of them on my mills and other pieces like log lifters, etc.Thanks again for sharing. This is great stuff. Keep it coming.:hmm3grin2orange:
BTW, did you post similar info on your full-size mill build? If so where can I find it?
First off I want to say impressive work as always. In the back and forth discusion between you and BobL on the deflector, another idea popped into my head so I'll throw it out here for thoughts. If you live in farm country, belting that goes into round bailers looks like it would also work for a strong yet flexable deflector guard and I know vibration won't hurt that stuff for a long time. It is sold locally by the foot at Tractor Supply or other farm supply stores.
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