CSM adjustment Locking mechanisms

[BobL]

Aux oiler tank

In keeping with the "over the top" theme on this one, here is the Aux Oiler tank.

The tank is made from 3mm thick 100 mm diameter ally pipe capped with 4mm thick ally plate. It looks small but it holds a litre of fluid. The top refill cap and pipe are standard brass plumbing fittings from my plumbing scraps box. The clear PVC tubing is to see the oil level in the tank.

The T-piece and stopcock tap are standard 1/4" air handling fittings while the needle valve I found in the odds'n'sods box at work.

Minimum zero resistance flow rate (tank almost empty) to the blade is 44 mL/min with a 7 cm head. Of course that will be reduced using the needle valve.

Cheers

 

[zopi]

it's gonna suck to get that dirty....it's too pretty.

 

[BobL]

Sprocket/Clutch cover

My plan here was to buy a new cover and butcher the old one to suit the mill. However, the butchering required was so significant I thought I would just make one from scratch out of ally. BIL said he would help but that it would be better to make a cardboard mock up first. Instead of using cardboard I used some 1 mm (0.04") thick galv plate and some 1 mm polycarbonate sheeting and here's what resulted.

Here's a closeup.

The 2 large headed 6mm brassplated allen bolts are all that is needed to attach/remove the cover. These bolts also pass through some 1/2" ally tube to brace the cover internally onto the CS housing The large hole through the polycarbonate is so the bar nuts can be loosened to adjust the chain. I may add one more bolt in the lower RH corner threaded direct onto the mill base to stop that bit flapping around.

It was really easy to make. If it works out OK and does a good job of shedding the sawdust , at some stage I will remove the rivets, unfold it all and lay it out on some 3mm ally plate, mark around it, cut out the bits, weld joints, drill holes, and I'll an even more robust cover. I'm keeping the transparent cover though.

And one more thing I added as to help the mill skid over the logs I added 6mm thick UHMWPE skids to the underneath of the rails.

If they get mangled I can replace them instead of the relatively more expensive ally unistrut.

It's nearly there - just have to finish locktite-ing all the unadjustable nuts, fiddle the faddle, and tuneup the fandangler. Nah . . . . I bet I'll find at least one more doohickey to add yet!

Cheers

 

[woodshop]

OK Bobl, I've decided I need you in my woodshop when I design and build my jigs for various product runs. So... how far away is Australia????? This has been a fascinating thread. Don't stop.

 

[BobL]

OK Bobl, I've decided I need you in my woodshop when I design and build my jigs for various product runs. So... how far away is Australia????? This has been a fascinating thread. Don't stop.

Hey - I'm only an email away! Just PM me anytime - no worries

 

[BobL]

BIL Mill Aux Oiler make-over

After milling 3 logs and tightening and retightening various nuts and bolts the only thing that is not staying tight on the BIL mill is the brass plumbing on the aux oiler.

The joint that seems to shake loose the quickest is the brass tap connection to the underside of the tank. One of the reasons is the tank ally is only 4 mm thick so there's not much thread for the 1/4" BSP fittings to grab and I'm concerned about stripping the thread if I really tighten it. A similar problem exists at the opening at the top of the tank. So, to get around this I got BIL to weld a pipe stub at each opening into which I could tap a longer thread. It's now all reassembled and loctited and ready to go.

While I was at it I wanted an easier way than using standard hose clamps to attach the oil line to to the CS blade since that needs to be regularly removed for maintenance purposes. I wanted something that I could remove easily and quickly with a spanner so I changed the clear PVC tubing for an old chrome plated steel covered shower hose that uses standard 1/2" BSP tap fittings so some adaptation of the plumbing was needed. The hose can now be removed with a couple of turns of the hose end with a spanner.

Here's a picture of how it connects to the blade.

The metal covered plastic hose is a bit less of a tangle than the pvc one and it looks a hell of a lot better. One disadvantage is you can't see if there's oil flowing in the pipe but that is not such a big problem as the oil can flow fairly readily at the blade when the needle valve is full open. Another disadvantage is one doesn't really want the metal hose to come into contact with the chain so some judicious curling up is needed.

Cheers

 

[aggiewoodbutchr]

As usual, very nice work!



That deserves rep! Somebody get him for me. "They" wont let me.

 

[beelsr]

As usual, very nice work!



That deserves rep! Somebody get him for me. "They" wont let me.

got 'em.

 

[BobL]

Cheers Guys!

A guy at work asked me why bother to make the mill out of ally and then load it up with heavy bits of brass plumbing?

I said one alternative would to make it out of steel and plastic, or ally and plastic, but would I get the same :jawdrop: when people see it in the flesh

 

[BlueRider]

polished the knob too?

very nice mill. Thought I would toss out the notion of using a quick adjust knob on the vetical push handle. I find I like to move mine some depending on the width of the slab. I sometimes move mine after the first couple of slabs on a large log and again for the last couple. That is a nice looking push grip by they way, much more comfy looking than the turned wood knob I use.

 

[martrix]

awesome, awesome, awesome! I am going to rip so many of your neat ideas when I get on to building my mill.

So you get plenty of good oil flowing to the bar with just the pressure provided by gravity?

I love the metal oil line! :rockn: Might have to one-up ya by using braided line and anodised fittings, ha ha.

 

[BobL]

very nice mill. Thought I would toss out the notion of using a quick adjust knob on the vetical push handle. I find I like to move mine some depending on the width of the slab. I sometimes move mine after the first couple of slabs on a large log and again for the last couple. That is a nice looking push grip by they way, much more comfy looking than the turned wood knob I use.

Thanks BlueRider. I have thought of quick adjust on the vertical push hand and I even made one using a very curvaceaous looking small diameter brass cam with a through pin made from a 3/16" bolt but the through pin sheared off at the head while testing so this is on hold until I turn a pin up from tensile steel.

The push grip is from a mountain bike handlebar - it really has a good feel to it.

Martrix, aux oiler works really well. I was worried about the lack of height above the bar not providing a sufficient pressure head but this does not seem to be a problem. Even today when the River gum saw dust was clogging every thing else the aux oiler was still delivering. Having a on-off tap and needle valve does make adjustments easier. I'm using about 1/3 to 1/2 a litre per big slab and about the same on the powerhead.

I cut 4 x 85 mm slabs on a 880mm diameter x 2.6 m long WA River gum today. Even though it was green it really gave the BILL mill (and me) a good work out. I started with the chain that I had milled the Sheoak with last week and while the first cut was OK it was clearly dulling the chain.

This stuff is really really hard. According to the arborist who provided the tree it's getting up there towards wandoo and tuart which are both the the SOB hardness range. The other issue is this tree has a thick fibrous bark and it was rolled around in the sand during set up and even though I carefully hosed it down i'm sure there was still some sand trapped in the bark. Also a lot of resin gumming up he chain probably didn't help. To give you an idea of the work effort required with the dulling chain, in the thickest part of the log it took 2 tanks of fuel to get through the slab. I then put on a freshly sharpened chain and I got through the next slab with less than one tankful. Interesting tawny yellow sawdust coming out at the rooster tails but it reddened up noticeably as the day wore on.

Sorry no pics - I remembered my camera but not the memory card :bang: !

Cheers

 

[woodshop]

This stuff is really really hard. According to the arborist who provided the tree it's getting up there towards wandoo and tuart which are both the the SOB hardness range. The other issue is this tree has a thick fibrous bark and it was rolled around in the sand during set up and even though I carefully hosed it down i'm sure there was still some sand trapped in the bark. Also a lot of resin gumming up he chain probably didn't help. To give you an idea of the work effort required with the dulling chain, in the thickest part of the log it took 2 tanks of fuel to get through the slab. I then put on a freshly sharpened chain and I got through the next slab with less than one tankful. Interesting tawny yellow sawdust coming out at the rooster tails but it reddened up noticeably as the day wore on.

Interesting wood... and you confirm rule #1 re: milling, a sharp chain is absolutely essential or you will need much more patience than I currently have. I was slabbing a 14 inch wide cherry yesterday, and ran into some dirt embedded in the bark I missed when setting up. In a heartbeat the mill slowed to a crawl. I pulled the mill backwards a few feet (plastic wedges) and finished the last foot freehand with my 036. The chain was toast THAT quickly.

Yeah... can somebody here with a chemical background tell me why many of my rooster tails come out of the saw creamy white, but then turn orange in a few minutes laying on the ground in the Sun? Is it oxidizing? What in the wood turns brown like that?

 

[BobL]

Interesting wood... and you confirm rule #1 re: milling, a sharp chain is absolutely essential or you will need much more patience than I currently have. I was slabbing a 14 inch wide cherry yesterday, and ran into some dirt embedded in the bark I missed when setting up. In a heartbeat the mill slowed to a crawl. I pulled the mill backwards a few feet (plastic wedges) and finished the last foot freehand with my 036. The chain was toast THAT quickly.

Yeah... can somebody here with a chemical background tell me why many of my rooster tails come out of the saw creamy white, but then turn orange in a few minutes laying on the ground in the Sun? Is it oxidizing? What in the wood turns brown like that?

According to the arborist who owns the yard I've been milling in, it's the natural resins in the wood oxidising. With some woods it's a combined reaction between the wood and the bar oil and the air.

I was thinking about the milling of those slabs on that River Gum (880 mm diameter by 2.6 m) long. If my 3/8" chain has a 6.8 mm (measured) kerf (actual kerf will be greater) and I mill 9 slabs (@85mm thick = 8 cuts) from this log I worked out that I'm generating at least 120 kg of sawdust! I can see now where all those tankfulls of gas are going!

 

[diesel&coffee]

Mr Wizard

Guess I don't really understand the cam unit its self! Can't see what it looks like inside the cam slot - how the cam unit is attached to the bolt/nut? - How the ??? in the cam unit does ???...

So yes the cam unit is clear as mud :bang:

Charles

 

[BobL]

Here you go.

The cam lobe has a slot milled 85% of the way through the cam.
The tension bolt has a hole in the end and a short bolt passes through the cam and the hole in the tension bolt.

 

[diesel&coffee]

thanks

The mud is clearing up :msp_lol: What was the size of the bolt and did have the hole to begin with! If not what kind of bolt was it??

ps: doesn't look like an reg eye bolt

Man your mill should be in the Smithsonian in D.C :msp_blink:

 

[BobL]

thanks

The mud is clearing up :msp_lol: What was the size of the bolt and did have the hole to begin with! If not what kind of bolt was it??

ps: doesn't look like an reg eye bolt

It's not a regular bolt. It starts as a 5/16 UNF bolt. I cut the head off and rotated it 90º and welded it back onto the shaft. Then I drilled a hole in it. and rounded all the hex corners off on a grinder.

I also ground some of the bolt shaft so it would fit more easily through the cam slot.

Man your mill should be in the Smithsonian in D.C :msp_blink:

Thanks - it sure was fun making it and even more fun using it!

 

[Stihlman441]

What a magnifecent peace of engineery there Bobl,you will have to where sunnys when using it from all the bling........

 

[BobL]

What a magnifecent peace of engineery there Bobl,you will have to where sunnys when using it from all the bling........

Ah, that was back in winter 2007 - it was raining solid one weekend and I was bored so I took the BIL mill apart and ran all the ally pieces over the buff so it came up all nice and shiny - actually it did help to keep it clean. Now is just that dull gray ally color covered in bar oil and sawdust.