Thread: "Upgrades" people, "upgrades"

Problem Largish pile of logs (3 high, min 300mm dia), no machinery (wallaby jack??), limited level ground and you want the log in the middle because of its length or species or just because its in the middle.
Have made a rail system where you roll the log onto some carriages and then push it into the mill from one end. Worked okay, but could only source the next log in line (when you really needed the one 4 deep).
Have been trying to think up a crane/ gantry and wondering if anyone else has any experience loading logs into a semi-permanant site (too lazy to keep shifting the mill) without machinery?
Have a nice size iron bark at base of pile and beside track/ level ground/ mill site. Have a 4mx 300mm deep I beam, a 3t block and tackle and plenty of steel cable. Need to work out how to attach beam to tree 4m or so up so that it will rotate 180 deg (horizontally), using the cable as the brace higher up the tree. Imagine I'll have to make up a pivot that bolts through the tree as a collar would ringbark and kill it. Any suggestions?

ill see if i can get a pic of teh old one down teh back. it might be grown over by now. used to be used for loading machinery into the truck. buckets/cement mixer/anything else.

Originally Posted by weisyboy

ill see if i can get a pic of teh old one down teh back. it might be grown over by now. used to be used for loading machinery into the truck. buckets/cement mixer/anything else.

Thanks Carl, would appreciate that.

Seriously just get a cant hook or move the mill???

have you found a cant hook that can move logs from the back of a pile?

don't need a hook for that........ that's just called work...

Originally Posted by Sigidi

Seriously just get a cant hook or move the mill???

Wheres the fun in that? Want to build and invent stuff, even if it is re-inventing the wheel.

Originally Posted by Sigidi

don't need a hook for that........ that's just called work...

spose you would need to have logs first wouldnt you allan?

This what you mean Allan? Gets a bit too exciting at my ripe old age trying to get them to pull up before taking out the nieghbours fence or the Lucas or the kids. I'm getting boring in my old age.

Stumpkicker, is that another pile of logs up the track a bit, kinda like follow the Ho chi Minh trail

No they're actually firewood blocks, there's two piles of millable logs, about 1/2 the quantity, beside the photographer. And more at my Dad's. White ants are starting to process more than the lucas but theres always more logs trickling in.

Keep up the good work stump kicker and keep an eye out or for old truck cranes you ll find em real chep is the scrapies dont beat you to them that will make it a little easier

Originally Posted by itsposs

Keep up the good work stump kicker and keep an eye out or for old truck cranes you ll find em real chep is the scrapies dont beat you to them that will make it a little easier

Your right, very good idea. Probably get written off yet with plenty of life in them.OHS ect. Will keep an ear to the ground. Thanks.
Meanwhile, apart from Inter putting some 3" nails in his wedges and Carl making some light wieght bolsters, haven't any of you done mods to your mills that are worth shareing? Has anyone come up with a system to level your rails, from side to side, other than balancing a 2x1 ontop of three 4x2 ? (I have)
Those little wheels are fine if your not going far and on fairly smooth ground but in PNG we'll dag the mill up to1km along some interesting tracks, so we adapted 21" motorbike wheels and it was well worth the reasonable effort.
Surely someones fitted a winch to assist the slabber attachment? (on the To do list after the gantry)
Come on, your Australian, you must of modified/ improved your mill.

Nah only thing I am doing is trying to import a couple of these
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRzhdnDqTNQ&NR=1]YouTube - ecosågen[/ame] Diesel over Electric direct drive would like em a bit bigger but dont need em that much bigger