Posted: 11/19/2024 1:03:28 PM EDT
| My FIL is in the market for a lumber mill to help in his clean up after hurricane Helene. Wondering if ya'll have any suggestions. |
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After a bunch of research my buddy and I went with Woodland. It's been great so far, we've had it two years. We don't mill a ton of stuff, but what we have has come out nice. EDIT: I don't have any experience with other mills, so I can't necessarily say whether Woodland is better/worse or otherwise than anything else. Woodland just seemed to have the best value for what we were looking for. |
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If he’s relatively close to NE TN I can put him in touch with some guys who are bringing their portable mills to people who have been affected by the hurricane (In case he just wants some trees cut up and doesn’t actually want to buy a mill for long term use) |
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I've got a Woodland Mills HM126. While I've not got a ton of hours on it, it's been a great mill so far. The only suggestion I have is to make sure log loading and lumber unloading is planned for. My wife and I originally did the loading and unloading by hand, we found it wata lot of heavy work. We now own a tractor. Semper Fi |
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Originally Posted By Buckshot4U: The multiple page Idaho thread in this forum is a long read, but has a bunch of great info on mills. The OP has milled a crapton of wood. Link? I searched lumber and mill and drew a blank. |
17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
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@oldgold He recently bough a new one as well with some posts on it https://www.ar15.com/forums/Outdoors/Better-LATE-than-never--FIVE-Years-in-Idaho-/19-694998/ |
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Originally Posted By M95Mauser: He's in the upstate SC. Pretty certain he's looking to own. Just hoping to get some input as to what's the best bang for the buck. I have a Woodland Mills on the ATV trailer I’ve been very happy with it and it was a good price. They had an upgraded motor that was a few extra HP. I did that and bought the extension. The ATV trailer isn’t as good as doing a fixed area, but you can take the wheels off and mount it just like the other one Mine a couple years old, but haven’t seen anything else come out that I would’ve bought differently |
"Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level, then beat you with experience."
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Originally Posted By everready73: @oldgold He recently bough a new one as well with some posts on it https://www.ar15.com/forums/Outdoors/Better-LATE-than-never--FIVE-Years-in-Idaho-/19-694998/ Thanks! |
17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
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Not a mill owner yet, but have done a lot of dreaming and window shopping. If I were writing a check tomorrow it would be for a MechMaxx 32. |
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Originally Posted By midmo: Not a mill owner yet, but have done a lot of dreaming and window shopping. If I were writing a check tomorrow it would be for a MechMaxx 32. @midmo Is that their regular price or a Black Friday deal? Any advantages of the 32” over the 26” except width of logs? I noticed the 26” comes with free extension. Thanks for the post. Didn’t know HF sold saw mills. The reviews were all good. |
17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
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Originally Posted By Buckshot4U: Sorry, that was lazy of me not to link. Everready did the heavy lifting for me. No problem. Thanks for the info. Going to read the entire thread when I get the time. |
17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
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Originally Posted By Oldgold: @midmo Is that their regular price or a Black Friday deal? Any advantages of the 32” over the 26” except width of logs? I noticed the 26” comes with free extension. Thanks for the post. Didn’t know HF sold saw mills. The reviews were all good. Originally Posted By Oldgold: Originally Posted By midmo: Not a mill owner yet, but have done a lot of dreaming and window shopping. If I were writing a check tomorrow it would be for a MechMaxx 32. @midmo Is that their regular price or a Black Friday deal? Any advantages of the 32” over the 26” except width of logs? I noticed the 26” comes with free extension. Thanks for the post. Didn’t know HF sold saw mills. The reviews were all good. I think that's a sale, but even regular price comes in considerably lower than most of the competitors in the same class. It just seems to me there's not a huge variability in features (though definitely some) at this level of mill, and quality-wise this one seems as well built as any of 'em. Noting none of this is hands on! Have just watched many, many videos over the last few years and lusted over what I want vs. what I can afford.  32" just gives you more cutting width, good if you want to produce slabs for tables and whatnot. The 26" would probably do everything most people would want to do, and the free extension would be nice. I guess it's just a matter of whether you prefer length or girth.  |
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Originally Posted By M95Mauser: My FIL is in the market for a lumber mill to help in his clean up after hurricane Helene. Wondering if ya'll have any suggestions. I own a Woodmizer LT15 with Go (trailer) option. Your FIL being located in SC, I'd recommend Woodmizer in Newnan (GA), they have mills on site for immediate sell and can even show the FIL how to use it (limited and this depends on which mill he buys). Woodmizer is what I picked due to their made in USA construction, their support and parts availability, and the fact I can drive to Newnan to get parts, help, and ask questions when needed. The guys at the Newnan office are great and work a lot of events in the SE US area giving demos and advice. They even offer a mobile service to resolve issues. |
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I'd recommend checking out this forum: https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php It's the arf of foresty discussions around chainsaws, timber framing, firewood, milling, and the like. -P |
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I've used a woodland extensively and been around Woodmizers in use. My experience is Woodland mills will work you like a dog. When you have to manually load the log, manually adjust dogs, clamps, blade height, manually roll the log each time, and manually push it down the track, a day of milling is a big undertaking and is less productivethanyou hoped for. It works, but it's really only a realistic solution for very occasional use or for people on a budget that have tons of extra time and are in good shape. If that's not you, I would pass on a Woodland (or similar manual mill). Woodmizers hold their value. He could buy one, mill all the blowdown timber, and sell for near what he paid. |
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Originally Posted By pikachu: I'd recommend checking out this forum: https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php It's the arf of foresty discussions around chainsaws, timber framing, firewood, milling, and the like. -P Great. As if I don’t already spend too much time on arfcom and aviation forums…… |
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My only experience is helping crew a Wood-Mizer 30 years ago. Sure running one yourself will work your ass off. Going from one side of the machine to the other every cut would get old. You need at least two guys. Three is better. One running the saw and two offloaders/stackers. Having the correct tools to handle logs is a necessity. IIRC a hydraulic lift is available for Wood-Mizers? Get a metal detector. Hitting metal can be both expensive and exciting, so I was told. |
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I have a Woodland Mills HM122 with one set of extensions which will mill to 16 feet. I didn't see the point of going bigger because I don't have the equipment to move a log that I can't cut on a mill that size. |
It’s better to keep your mouth shut and appear stupid than open it and remove all doubt.
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Originally Posted By SigOwner_P229: I've used a woodland extensively and been around Woodmizers in use. My experience is Woodland mills will work you like a dog. When you have to manually load the log, manually adjust dogs, clamps, blade height, manually roll the log each time, and manually push it down the track, a day of milling is a big undertaking and is less productivethanyou hoped for. It works, but it's really only a realistic solution for very occasional use or for people on a budget that have tons of extra time and are in good shape. If that's not you, I would pass on a Woodland (or similar manual mill). Woodmizers hold their value. He could buy one, mill all the blowdown timber, and sell for near what he paid. i have been looking into a woodmizer mill. the amount of labor has been one of my concerns. |
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Originally Posted By brahm: i have been looking into a woodmizer mill. the amount of labor has been one of my concerns. Same here. But I can’t afford all the hydraulics. Probably will get the Woodmizer LT15. |
17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
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On a Woodmizer LT15, or any of the smaller mills, the amount of labor won't be a big deal because there's no way to get enough production from it to make it a big deal for any hobbyist. That said, my next mill will be a hydraulic (LT40) because the biggest problem I have is loading logs. The hydraulics also have log turners and auto-clamps which takes about 90% of the manual work. It's not a big deal now but getting older does have its sucky parts. Do you have any specific questions about the WM or milling? |
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Originally Posted By midmo: Not a mill owner yet, but have done a lot of dreaming and window shopping. If I were writing a check tomorrow it would be for a MechMaxx 32. |
01010111 | 57 | 127 | LXXXVII
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As was stated in the link to my thread I had the Woodlands HM 130 max for four years and put a lot of trees through it. Although I have no real experience with Woodmizer or other compatible mills, the folks at Woodland Mills are top notch and are probably one of the best customer service organization that I have ever had the pleasure to deal with. Whatever route you go if you have the logs you will have a blast milling. |
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Originally Posted By MongooseKY: Why does their webpage give me a serious Harbor Freight vibe? Originally Posted By MongooseKY: Originally Posted By midmo: Not a mill owner yet, but have done a lot of dreaming and window shopping. If I were writing a check tomorrow it would be for a MechMaxx 32. It's probably because they use red so much. And, they're stuff isn't top quality. Decent, but not great. I've had their 26" mill for about 15 months now. It works, and was worth the price. I have had small issues though. The wiring is located a little too close to the head clamp levers, resulting in me ripping out a wire. The muffler is a bad design, it exits right against the head frame, and the outer shroud isn't waterproof. A storm bad enough to rip the cover off will be bad enough to let in water. I learned that pretty quick. Once I get mine moved to it's permanent location (with a proper roof) I'll weld up a new muffler pipe. I've also bought other Mechmaxx equipment. Expect issues for the lower prices. If you dont mind tinkering, they're stuff is a great way to get shit done on a budget. Customer service is slow and not really helpful. |
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Originally Posted By VaultTec: It's probably because they use red so much. And, they're stuff isn't top quality. Decent, but not great. I've had their 26" mill for about 15 months now. It works, and was worth the price. I have had small issues though. The wiring is located a little too close to the head clamp levers, resulting in me ripping out a wire. The muffler is a bad design, it exits right against the head frame, and the outer shroud isn't waterproof. A storm bad enough to rip the cover off will be bad enough to let in water. I learned that pretty quick. Once I get mine moved to it's permanent location (with a proper roof) I'll weld up a new muffler pipe. I've also bought other Mechmaxx equipment. Expect issues for the lower prices. If you dont mind tinkering, they're stuff is a great way to get shit done on a budget. Customer service is slow and not really helpful. |
01010111 | 57 | 127 | LXXXVII
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Originally Posted By MongooseKY: I have an even more generic version of the MechMaxx - AGT. Everything seems to be made exactly the same, just a different chinese company slapping a name on it. I have the same problem with the wiring - I caught it before it actually broke and ziptied it up out of the way. I also HATE the terrible scale that came on it - I purchased a magnetic scale from Blackfly Timber that is much more usable and 3d printed a custom pointer to make it easier to read. Yeah, the scale sucks. I mark my logs after the first slab cut. I'll fix the scale eventually, but something always comes up and it gets pushed down the list. I'll have to check out Blackfly Timber. The wire I broke was for the ignition  The key would still be able to turn it on, I just couldn't it off with the key.I also have the Mechmaxx mini hay roller. It's a renamed Ibex 31 for half the price. When I bought it Mechmaxx didnt sell any spares for it, so I bought extra sheer bolts from Ibex. Its a finicky little bastard. If the windrows aren't perfect, it'll roll too tight on one side and the full roll alarm wont go off, then the roll will get too big and break a sheer bolt. Also, it mounts directly to the 3pt, so eventually I'll order the Ibex drawbar kit. |