Any thoughts on Hud-Son HFE-36?

[4x4American]

Anyone have any experience with the Hud-Son HFE-36? for what it is i think it's a decent price, and can't beat that its made here in the states. I am looking into getting a sawmill and this one seems to be what i'm looking for. I have a little under 4 years of experience working with a mobile dimension saw and i have learned a bit about sawmilling. I love this kind of work and I have seen how much money my boss makes from selling the wood, and i want in! the only problems I can see is finding the wood and the buyers...my boss has good connections for getting wood he has so much wood at his farm he could build 40 noah's arcs! and for the buyers, he has all types of connections. for me, I love the whole process from felling bucking skidding hauling it back to the mill, milling, kilning, and then building/selling. If i could make a living doing just this, I wouldnt work a day in my life i'd consider it playing. So anyways, anybody have any other thoughts maybe some other mills they think/know are better or anything. any advice would be great!
thanks, doug

 

[Sawyer Rob]

If you want to mill logs to sell the lumber, i'd be looking at a stronger mill than that Hudson. I'm thinking AT LEAST a Norwood MX34 or Mizer LT15 is in order. One big advantage the MX has over the other mills in this class is, you can buy all the hydraulics for it from Norwood in "kits", as you have the money or need and bolt them on yourself.

Of all the mills made, i hear of more problems with Hudson mills than any other...

SR

 

[Dave Boyt]

Hopefully some Hudson owners will throw in their opinion. Main thing is to contact Hudson (or any mfg. you are considering) and see if you can either go to their headquarters or to an owner's location and run it yourself to see what you think. If you will run the mill as portable, you will need a pretty rigid frame. If it sits on a solid foundation, that's less of an issue. A couple of things to look for on any band mill are 1) does it have a solid feel to it? 2) How does the clamping system work? 3) How well does the carriage raise/lower mechanism work? 4) Are the controls easy to use? 5) Does the carriage roll smoothly on the track? When it comes to power, more is better-- the biggest engine with any mill you get is a good investment!

After running the Mobile Dimension, you are going to have to learn sawmilling all over to run a band saw. A local company with production band mills hired several sawyers who were experienced on circle mills. They had to fire them and hire novices so that they could train them to run band mills the right way. You just can't push a band mill like you can a circle mill!

Let us know what you decide. I'd also like to hear more opinions from Hudson owners.

 

[4x4American]

thanks for the thoughts guys! yea i wish that the circular mills were cheaper i love that mobile dimension mill we do push that thing hard. I got hurt on the job at the construction company about a year ago and i guess workermans comp is going to be sending me some money and i want to invest it into something that will make me money, not buy a real nice truck or something. I'm not sure how much i'll get, it isnt going to be a whole lot but enough to get my own little side business going. I'm thinking to get a sawmill, cheap loader tractor, maybe a cheap skidder or a john deere 350 dozer, and a gooseneck trailer for my truck to haul the equipment and the logs. that will get me started. the construction company i work for is always looking for timber and they pay the big bucks to this lumber company so i'm sure i can sell alot of wood to these guys, they go through alot of it and are always looking for the best deal.
will definitely take all your thoughts into consideration whilst searching for the right mill for me. It's most likely going to get used quite a bit if this really kicks off.
Our branch of the construction company (Danella Construction Corp) strictly does pipeline work for steam and gas so the wood is only going to be buried in the hole, so should i still kiln dry it or can i let it dry for awhile under a tarp or something?

 

[WidowMaker1]

Not cheap but there a awesome bit of gear! [ Home ] LUCAS MILL Portable Timber Sawmill ... the local boys around here that i work for from time to time, have made there money back in no time, so they pay for them self in a short period. They sell all dimensions of lumber, slabs, burls and mill logs for people. some charge by the cubic, but the guy around here charges $600 a day, and he's always busy milling for people and milling up his stock for sale.. ..They range from around $7000 to 20K, if you need the price let me know, i have the current price list and dvd pack ...was thinking about getting one myself, but money is tight at the moment.

 

[Dave Boyt]

After your comment about wishing you could afford a Mobile Dimension, swing blade mills came to my mind, too. You might also look up Peterson and Brand X (built in Montana, and my first choice among swing blade mills).

How big are the logs? The swing blade mills work best for logs 24" diameter and up. Advantage is you don't have to turn the log. Band saw mills work well on logs 8" to 24", but are usable up to their stated maximum (34" for my Norwood MX 34). Advantage is narrow kerf and wider cuts.

Air dry the lumber, by all means. Do a search for air drying on this forum, as well on woodweb and forestry forum. You'll get lots of good info.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Hey Dave,

How do you get the highest grade lumber out of a log WITHOUT turning it??

If i'm milling a walnut, or a blk. cherry or a nice oak log, i want the highest grade lumber possible, out of it!

You aren't going to get that with a swing mill! That's why i never looked at a "swinger" for a general purpose sawmill.

SR

 

[4x4American]

thanks yawl for the info, will read more into it tomorrow, i gotta hit the hay now, long day today was pulling a clutch outta the mach ch600 and starting to pull the rear end on a cat 446b backhoe loader..looks like some good info here cant wait to read up on it

 

[Dave Boyt]

Hey Dave,

How do you get the highest grade lumber out of a log WITHOUT turning it??

If i'm milling a walnut, or a blk. cherry or a nice oak log, i want the highest grade lumber possible, out of it!

You aren't going to get that with a swing mill! That's why i never looked at a "swinger" for a general purpose sawmill.

SR

Start with the best face on top. You can pull boards off the top and sides. Actually, you can turn logs with a swing blade mill. Most people don't because they don't have to. For 95% of what I cut (Ozark hardwoods), the band mill is the best solution. If you're cutting dimension lumber out of big logs, swing blade mills make good sense, though there is some overlap where either mill would work well. Can't blame me for wanting one of each (I also want a Skidsteer with grapple, forwarder, another log arch, logging truck with grapple, kiln, planer/moulder, a bigger chain saw, sawmill shed, '53 Studebaker pickup, and a dog that will come when I call it)!

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Starting with the "best" face to the top (you don't know if it's the best face until you open it) is only a start, when the grade lowers, you have to turn the cant to get the best face to the top, again and you've sawn enough to know this keeps changing.

Bottom line is, a swinger is a GREAT mill for some things, but it's not the best all around sawmill as a first time mill. UNLESS you are cutting construction lumber all the time, then you just make boards.

Sure you can turn logs under a swinger, but folks buy them because they "think" they don't need to.

SR

 

[4x4American]

with a bandsaw can you cut out 6x6s and 10x10s and 2x4s and 4x4s etc? i'm tryna figure it out in my head how you can do that...with the dimension saw its real simple

 

[Dave Boyt]

Absolutely! I can mill any combination of dimensions up to 28" by 28". Best way is to visit a sawyer and watch the mills in action. Here are a couple of youtube videos that give a pretty good description of how it works. This one is a promotional video, but it does show the basic process:

Norwood LumberMate Pro MX34

This one shows cutting a 20' beam. The actual cutting starts about 6 minutes into the video.
Colins LumberMate 2000

 

[porta mill]

I have the Oscar 28 I is Ok for a entry level band mill It takes time to get set up correctly . they need fine tuning to get them to run properly .The is by mo means a hi end high production saw .The mill is good for a home owner / weekend warrior. good luck with with the mill you purchase.

 

[hamish]

Any mill is better than no mill at all..........apart from the Phillips electric hair trimmer I bought in 1993 for $17 and has cut more hair (lots more than my head when I was serving), my mill has been the second best dollar for value investment in my entire life thus far. Return on investment is greater than even my property.

 

[4x4American]

Absolutely! I can mill any combination of dimensions up to 28" by 28". Best way is to visit a sawyer and watch the mills in action. Here are a couple of youtube videos that give a pretty good description of how it works. This one is a promotional video, but it does show the basic process:

Norwood LumberMate Pro MX34

This one shows cutting a 20' beam. The actual cutting starts about 6 minutes into the video.
Colins LumberMate 2000

Thanks for the videos! just watched both of them through, now i have a better understanding of how it's done. definitely more work involved in a bandsaw but its the most cost effective way to go and these things are very portable which is a huge plus for me. Are they not as good if i got one on that is a trailer too? I like that log caddy deal that other guy had, i wonder how much they go for? proberly will just end up using a loader tractor though

 

[Dave Boyt]

Loading and turning the logs with a manual mill is work. A band mill with hydraulics makes it a whole lot easier, and can produce as much as a swing blade mill. Some people have built mills on trailers for portability. It is OK, as long as the bed is stiff and straight. Most manufacturers offer portable mills or towing packages that are quick to set up for milling. The log caddy you refer to is a log arch. Lots of home-made ones out there, but they are available from Norwood, Hudson, and Logrite. I use mine a lot. Takes a lot less power to pull the log, does less damage to the ground, and the log is cleaner when you go to saw it. By the way, you'll also need a good cant hook and a reliable chain saw.

 

[4x4American]

Loading and turning the logs with a manual mill is work. A band mill with hydraulics makes it a whole lot easier, and can produce as much as a swing blade mill. Some people have built mills on trailers for portability. It is OK, as long as the bed is stiff and straight. Most manufacturers offer portable mills or towing packages that are quick to set up for milling. The log caddy you refer to is a log arch. Lots of home-made ones out there, but they are available from Norwood, Hudson, and Logrite. I use mine a lot. Takes a lot less power to pull the log, does less damage to the ground, and the log is cleaner when you go to saw it. By the way, you'll also need a good cant hook and a reliable chain saw.

yup, got two good cant hooks and a few good chainsaws, I'm in the market for a new 70cc chainsaw, i'm having a tough time deciding between a 441 r c-m, a 461r vw, and a 460r vw...my old 045 just isnt cutting the mustard anymore i need to do some work to it and its so dang heavy i tell ya!