Yet Another Mill...

[820wards]

Just finished this mini-style-mill today. Only need to work on a remote throttle trigger and I will be finished. Probably do something similar to BobL's version.

I built this mill to side cut logs or to trim milled slabs. I have the rails set with a very snug fit (no excess space between rails and guides) and plan in the future to use needle bearings instead of sliding the mill across the guide rails.

I did set the handle up so that I will be working from the left had side of logs. I'll be taking it to the hills this week to give it a try on some pine trees a friend just had cut down this week.

Here are a few pictures of the mill and guide rail.

jerry-


Front View

Left Side Showing Handle

Bar Pinch Blocks

Guide Rails

More Pictures Next Post

 

[820wards]

More Pictures

MtGun, re-loaded pictures again.

jerry-


Mill with saw attached sitting on guide rails.

Saw bar squared to guide rail.

Husky 365 Special saw that is to be used for this mill.

 

[mtngun]

No pics/attachments in your second post.

Looks like it oughta work. :rockn:

Why two metal rails when one will do, like the single Granberg ^ ?

 

[820wards]

No pics/attachments in your second post.


Why two metal rails when one will do, like the single Granberg ^ ?

Mtgun,

I see them, but I'll submit them again if I need to.


I used two rails so that the mill won't twist out of alignment. I'm hoping the less side-to-side movement I have the straighter the cut.

jerry-

 

[BobL]

Jerry,

Looks good.

BTW: I wish I could weld as well as you do and have as much space in my shed for projects instead of having to build my stuff on the back lawn.

 

[splitpost]

possible shed project

Jerry,

Looks good.
:agree2:
BTW: I wish I could weld as well as you do and have as much space in my shed for projects instead of having to build my stuff on the back lawn.

Hey BobL ,sounds like a perfect excuse to mill up some timber ........a shed extension project

 

[BobL]

Hey BobL ,sounds like a perfect excuse to mill up some timber ........a shed extension project

Yep - shed extension project is in the pipeline but I won't be making it out of timber. Too many termites and I hate using poison. At the back of our place there is a MASSIVE underground termite nest that runs for about 300 yards between all the houses in our street and an adjacent street. I have had many trailer loads of firewood and lumber reduced to powder plus they have attacked our house twice. Shed will be made of steel. A lot of work to do before I can start building. About 12 years ago I took 22 cubic yards of sand out of the back of our place with a wheel barrow - oww my aching back. Now I have to bring back about 5 cubic yards to back fill the place where I want to put the shed.

 

[huskyhank]

Yep - shed extension project is in the pipeline but I won't be making it out of timber. Too many termites and I hate using poison. At the back of our place there is a MASSIVE underground termite nest that runs for about 300 yards between all the houses in our street and an adjacent street. snipped.....

I don't like using poison either but for these guys I'd make an exception!

 

[BobL]

I don't like using poison either but for these guys I'd make an exception!

The back gardens on our city block have had so much poison dumped on them over the last 120 years that the residual means no one can raise chickens or grow vegetables in their back yards. It is impossible to eradicate a 300 yard long termite nest unless everyone treats it at the same time and my guess is there must be more than 200 properties involved and there are always too many property owners that don't want to do it for a whole bunch of reasons that the nest continues to survive.

 

[820wards]

Jerry,

Looks good.

BTW: I wish I could weld as well as you do and have as much space in my shed for projects instead of having to build my stuff on the back lawn.

Thanks
Started gas welding/brazing when I was 10, stick welding at 12. I finally started mig/tig welding when I was building race cars. Once you get a tig welder there is no going back, your spoiled for life. I like tig welding because you don't have that slag flying around that could catch something on fire. Switching from steel to aluminum is just a matter of changing tungsten's, filler rod and a couple of switches on the machine. My welder is an older Airco water cooled. I can weld continuous without the machine cycling to cool off. It's that darn argon gas that's not cheap. Here where I live it's $65 for a 2,500psi bottle. It last a long time for me because I'm not welding ever day.

Having one shop just to do my wood working and one for metal fabrication is really nice. Once you have a shop you always want it bigger.

jerry-

 

[820wards]

The back gardens on our city block have had so much poison dumped on them over the last 120 years that the residual means no one can raise chickens or grow vegetables in their back yards. It is impossible to eradicate a 300 yard long termite nest unless everyone treats it at the same time and my guess is there must be more than 200 properties involved and there are always too many property owners that don't want to do it for a whole bunch of reasons that the nest continues to survive.

Bob,

You could build some raised planting beds off the ground to grow vegetables. That would kill me if I couldn't grow my own vegetables in my yard. My Dad made redwood tubs on wheels that he grows his vegetables in and it has worked for him for years.

jerry-

 

[losttheplot]

Is the handle on the mill for pushing or pulling.
Cutting with the top of the bar can be exciting.

 

[BobL]

Bob,

You could build some raised planting beds off the ground to grow vegetables. That would kill me if I couldn't grow my own vegetables in my yard.

That's exactly what we do. I's only a small plot and it will have to go with the new shed extension so we'll probably be going with the tubs when that happens.

 

[820wards]

Is the handle on the mill for pushing or pulling.
Cutting with the top of the bar can be exciting.

I designed the mill to be pushed from the left side of the log using the top of the bar but, I could pull it if I wanted. When your chains get dull is when things can get exciting.

jerry-

 

[splitpost]

Yep - shed extension project is in the pipeline but I won't be making it out of timber. Too many termites and I hate using poison. At the back of our place there is a MASSIVE underground termite nest that runs for about 300 yards between all the houses in our street and an adjacent street. I have had many trailer loads of firewood and lumber reduced to powder plus they have attacked our house twice. Shed will be made of steel. A lot of work to do before I can start building. About 12 years ago I took 22 cubic yards of sand out of the back of our place with a wheel barrow - oww my aching back. Now I have to bring back about 5 cubic yards to back fill the place where I want to put the shed.

Thats to bad about the termites{hungry buggers}5 cubic yards ...looks like a good job for that dingo your mate has,handy bits of gear them

 

[mtngun]

I designed the mill to be pushed from the left side of the log using the top of the bar but, I could pull it if I wanted.

jerry-

You want to cut with the bottom of the bar, not the top. If you cut with the top, you'll work harder keeping the saw pushed against the guide board.

 

[mtngun]

How much clearance you got between the chain and the clamping all-thread ?

One problem with the Granberg mini-mill is that the chain clearance is minimal, especially if the saw is tilted, which is normally the case. I've accidentally whittled away half the clamping bolt. It's not hard to do, the chain can whip around more than you might think.

 

[BlueRider]

I know you are out milling with that puppy this weekend and will give us a nice update with pics. How does the saw work and does it get too hot from the exhaust bouncing off the board and back into the saw?

BobL- I read an interesting monogtraph about controling termites in Hawaii and it sugested that using the proper size sand or gravel to fill under a structure can be the most effective way of kepping subteranian termites at bay. The key is selecting the sand or gravel based on the termites in your area. The individual sand particles need to be large enough that the termites can't move them yet not so large that the spaces between the sand or gravel particles are big enough for the termites to squeeze through.

 

[BobL]

I know you are out milling with that puppy this weekend and will give us a nice update with pics. How does the saw work and does it get too hot from the exhaust bouncing off the board and back into the saw?

BobL- I read an interesting monogtraph about controling termites in Hawaii and it sugested that using the proper size sand or gravel to fill under a structure can be the most effective way of kepping subteranian termites at bay. The key is selecting the sand or gravel based on the termites in your area. The individual sand particles need to be large enough that the termites can't move them yet not so large that the spaces between the sand or gravel particles are big enough for the termites to squeeze through.

Yep - I know about this method - they use it here too. Most of our buildings here are on concrete pads but the termites still seem to find their way up into wooden structure thru cracks and joins. Over here we also use a very fine stainless steel mesh (termi-mesh) as a barrier that seems to be very effective. one problem with any barrier type method is that it relies on having nothing outside the barrier touching stuff inside the barrier - no shrubs or trees or timber leaning on it etc. I'd like to say this won't happen but it does.