Great tips! Thanks, Thomas. I cut Honey Locust and Black Walnut and they are unforgiving if your mill isn't set up correctly. Blade tension and going too fast seem to be the biggest factors for my mill (if everything else is right).
I've been milling with TK 1220 12yrs. Level bed end to end doesn't matter much. More importantly, the blade has to be the same height off the bed end to end. The most likely spot for error is in the middle, where on mine the front half of the bed bolts to the back half. TK allows adjustment there, and it has to be checked after a big log if, as you caution, the leveling feet are on a compressible base. Also, on blade wander, standard blades aren't made for frozed wood. They get hot, steam, and wander. TK can advise on blades for ice. BTW, wood thaws about as fast as the ground. So if you want to make a cut 4" inside the sunny side of a log, see if a spade will go 4" into sunny ground near the log. If you cut 4" up on the side of the log sitting on the ground, move the log and test the ground where it was setting.
Where did you get your complete knowledge of every single part on the sawmill. You are describing in detail about everything. Where did you get your knowledge of the TimberKing sawmill.
My 1620 was delivered last week. The awswome Delivery man used a 4 ft level ,then I tweaked it with a 6 ft level but it didn't look right so inset up 2 different Topcon laser levels and it was 1 1/4" out of level using a 6 ft level, front to back
I bought a mill cause my granddad built all the barns and structures out of timber harvested off the farm and now I need to fix some buildings,buld more, so I bought a mill
Levels an string lines are not sufficient for leveling definitely need solid base as you say get a nice optical level or barrow one from buddy can’t go wrong it’s very precise for setting up mill
Good job. A few of my tips, More set uses more horse power and makes more sawdust, When turning large cants don't drop them, Some cants have a lot of stress and bend when cut, if your lumber is thick and thin turn the cant over more often. If you have enough Horse power the blade will be happy and sing when the cut speed is much faster than what your cutting now. Blow off the mill every day, saw dust will hold moisture and cause rust. ATF is the best lube for everything except ball bearings, sawdust wont stick to ATF like the motor oil. Don't coil sharp blades.
All great points. Well covered. Iv'e owned a Wood-Mizer LT 40 years ago and now an LT 50 and I'm still learning! There is no better teacher than experience and listening to other folks.
i have a range road it’s bang on level on concrete and i can never cut the same board twice it’s all over the place ready to take a sledge hammer to it tried it all
I don’t know why I never thought about the issue with starting the log on the smaller end and the direction of the branch growth affecting the deflection of the blade. I’ve managed to work out a lot of kinks on our Norwood HD 36 and we run a good wood, Mizer blade, and cut for Damily hardwoods, but cutting some of those pine with all those branches usually made our boards look like a roller coaster. Going to give your technique a try. Thanks.
Great video i have been sawing for 6 years now and have experienced everything you mentioned. I learned some stuff here and think this will help many mill owners. Curious where you bought the clamp on dial indicator.
@kristopherfrootloops6714 it holds up great. I'm in clay. I used 2' soni tubes (10" dia). Stayed 6" above the soil. Actually, i dug down so that i could roll the logs onto the track. I also used some vertically adjustable levelers set into pvc pipe set into the concrete. I'd be happy to send some pics. It's really simple. It's been holding up for over 3 years. I will set up another set of tracks near my cabin in Idaho in the next 3 weeks.
Thanks Thomas for a great approach to ensuring the best sawing experience. Nothing is more frustrating to me than sawing WAVY lumber! My nemesis is white oak. And, for those sappy woods, maybe a future video on diesel drip would be helpful. Thanks again!
Many band sawmill operators in real winter climates use windshield washer fluid in their lube tanks. Diesel is rather pricey to be using as a lubricant despite it being great a preventing build up on your blades.
Out here on the Left Coast 95682 Diesel is $6 bucks per gallon. If it's cold enough to freeze I stay inside. My lube has a pump and sprays both sides of the blade, 5 gal a day on pine.
Because I take the whole stack off at once with my tractor. I work alone most of the time, so any time I can reduce touch time, I do. If I had my sawmill set up in a different location, I could use the drag back, but that involves more handling of the boards later. Also, if I'm cutting a customer's log, I don't sticker and stack their wood unless they pay me to do it. By keeping the cut boards as a full stack, it helps to easily load their trailer when the job is done.
good video. most of the good sawmiller use diesel as wipe or dip it is better for the blade and little cheaper because you can saw saw 6 times as much as you can with washer fluid at $2.99 a gal. your video will help a lot of new people. take care, be safe and well happy thanksgiving how is mr. Roberts doing?
Excellent video buddy, everything looks great 👍, design build a are the best! Debarker owner's, pung system after milling in cold , yes change bands more often than not!🌲🪵💪💪💪👍🧡🧡🧡
Not necessarily, but as a blade loses set, it's more likely to travel in the log. If more set is added then more power is required. If you're cutting softwood, more set means you can run the blade longer before it loses the set. I would not suggest adding additional set to cut hardwood. The added stress on the blade may be counterproductive. For the best cut quality, I like to set to 0.022" .
