Thread: Bandsaw mill for $220 - sort of!

Originally Posted by TTIT

Worth a thought Already has a brush included but I'll have a look and see what can be rigged up

Taking an idea from a metal cutting BS, you could try brass wire brushes if a stiff nylon is not enough. The metal BS's have a round brush (Like you would use in a drill to remove paint) on a roller than the teeth run in to clean the swarf out ie the blade turns the brush if you get my drift.

Originally Posted by pjt

I wasn't quite sure

Pete

Dont worry Pete, TTIT may not have needed the pic but I for one appreciated it.

I just found a suitable replacement blade for my Triton steel cutter and I am off steel shopping for the bits I dont already have next week then the build begins.

Any help anyone can offer is greatly appreciated. I had a plan in mind which would have done a great job but you guys are way ahead of me, particularly TTIT's loading mechanism, so simple, yet so brilliant, and once you see it its a moment when you wonder why you would even consider doing it another way.

thanks for the inspiration guys

Doug

Originally Posted by Ueee

Taking an idea from a metal cutting BS, you could try brass wire brushes if a stiff nylon is not enough. The metal BS's have a round brush (Like you would use in a drill to remove paint) on a roller than the teeth run in to clean the swarf out ie the blade turns the brush if you get my drift.

I used some elcheapo paint brushes (not sure on the bristle) which I originally bought for dust scrapers on the sleds, seems to work OK on the blade in conjunction with the rubber scrapers but brass on there own ought to work quite well and should work best if they could be placed above the bottom set of guides before the crap gets squashed onto the blade.



Pete

Originally Posted by doug3030

Dont worry Pete, TTIT may not have needed the pic but I for one appreciated it. No worries

I just found a suitable replacement blade for my Triton steel cutter and I am off steel shopping for the bits I dont already have next week then the build begins.

Any help anyone can offer is greatly appreciated. I had a plan in mind which would have done a great job but you guys are way ahead of me, particularly TTIT's loading mechanism, so simple, yet so brilliant, and once you see it its a moment when you wonder why you would even consider doing it another way.

thanks for the inspiration guys

Doug

There's 3 methods I use based on how heavy the lump is,..... direct onto the sled/s, or one end onto the small sled with it positioned at the far end of the track and then with a bit of man handling off the wheel barrow and juggling onto both sleds, kinda the same as TTIT's end loading system but nothing like it and if it's too heavy I load it with the lever block.


Pete

Originally Posted by pjt

I used some elcheapo paint brushes (not sure on the bristle) which I originally bought for dust scrapers on the sleds, seems to work OK on the blade in conjunction with the rubber scrapers but brass on there own ought to work quite well and should work best if they could be placed above the bottom set of guides before the crap gets squashed onto the blade.

Pete

The big old BS that i used to operate (maybe 30" wheels) didn't have roller guides or graphite guides. It just had a rear roller at the top and square tube holders with thumb screws that we put hardwood guides in. They worked really well, the saw was used at least 20 hours a week and we probably replaced the timber every couple of years. The good think was though, the lower guide scraped the blade clean and we never had a problem with crap on the wheels.

Originally Posted by doug3030

Hi TTIT,

...Do you mind if I contact you through the forum for advice along the way as I make mine? ...

I love it

Doug

Originally Posted by TTIT

... Would be happy to help!

Hi TTIT,

After a couple of false starts and interruptions I am now well under way in building my bandsaw mill.

While your design is still the major inspiration for what I am building I have had to make a few significant changes to your design mainly to get the most out of the differences in our bandsaws.

Your saw has a 460mm depth of cut and as such can probably handle any log you can physically get off the back of the ute and manouevre onto the trolley. Mine has a depth of 300mm, so I had to do some thinking to maximise the depth of cut. I have a messmate log with a diameter of 380mm in the carport and I set a goal of making the mill to be able to cut slabs off that log.

So how do I get an extra 80mm? Well the first thing I tried was to take the cast iron table off. That got me a whole 10mm! Bolt on a 6mm thick mounting plate to anchor the rails to and you get a net gain of 4mm. Not very impressive so far.

Ok so the table is off, next I tilted the trunion through 45 degrees. Now we are getting somewhere. I made a bracket to bolt to the trunion to attach the rails to and compensate for the tilt of the trunion. Now, with the trunion at 45 degrees and the stop screw removed from the the upper blade guide support so that it can be screwed a bit further into the top of the bandsaw I can actually get the log far enough into the blade to take about 30 - 35 mm off the side of a 380mm log.

Obviously the next stage would be to turn the log 90 degrees to sit on the now flat surface and move it as close in to the saw as possible and take as big a flitch as possible off the next side, turn it again and hopefully be able to continue cutting slabs with the log in the same orientation.

Now the downside of tilting the trunion to increase depth of cut is that with the outboard side of the trunion at its lowest, the inboard side is at its highest and if you are cutting the full width of the log your width of slab is restricted to about 55 - 60mm or it will hit the high side of the trunion. I find this acceptable as if I need to mill thicker timber there are a number of ways to do so with features I am planning but I will leave until I have built more of the mill and can post photos.

While writing this I have also thought of another "Mod" that I think will allow me to take on even bigger logs but that is subject to further testing.

I have cut the rails 4600mm long which when centrally placed around the blade will allow me to make the carriage big enough to take a 2200mm log. this means I will be able to mill logs big enough to trim the ends and still have enough length for a 2100mm (7') table top, a common length for a large dining table (8 seater).

What I really need help with at the moment, fellow forumites who have done something similar to this, is:

What is really needed to hold a log on the carriage? It starts out approximately round. How hard is it to hold it still while the first flitch is taken off the side so you have a flat surface to sit it on next time? Will a log that big just sit there pressed against the plate at the back of the carriage? Does it have a tendency to push the log over as you are milling? has anyone who has a similar sled had any problems with logs not "staying put", and what was securing them? please post successes as well as failures here.

I am thinking about a fixed plate at the back of the carriage with holes to sink in a coachbolt and probably something similar in front of or coming in from the side of the log.

Anyone got any thoughts?

Doug

Originally Posted by doug3030

What I really need help with at the moment, fellow forumites who have done something similar to this, is:

What is really needed to hold a log on the carriage? It starts out approximately round. How hard is it to hold it still while the first flitch is taken off the side so you have a flat surface to sit it on next time? Will a log that big just sit there pressed against the plate at the back of the carriage? Does it have a tendency to push the log over as you are milling? has anyone who has a similar sled had any problems with logs not "staying put", and what was securing them? please post successes as well as failures here.

I am thinking about a fixed plate at the back of the carriage with holes to sink in a coachbolt and probably something similar in front of or coming in from the side of the log.

Anyone got any thoughts?

Doug

Stability is a major concern the bigger your log is - in my book. The logs I have cut have often been far from uniform ... my great idea to split a big sheoak trunk section produced a nice big third ... that twisted through at least twenty degrees over two metres.

Sometimes it is not the ends or not both ends that are making contact with the platform.

A chainsaw and/or an electric planar (maybe even winding sticks ) can help give you an initial approximately flat surface.

You could nail on a board/carriage ... but that could lose you some cutting depth ... maybe not in your design.

You could go as simply as sacrificial rectangular plates nailed on at each end.

You want to ensure that across the front and back of the log, assuming it all remains on a flat surface, that both the cut and original sections each have support. You don't want one or the other wanting to lean into or away from the blade partway through the cut.
I think the picture below is a cut I was lazy with recently ... getting the bandsaw back 'online' ... and I was regretting it halfway through.

You might also sometimes want to jam a spacer into the cut behind the blade - or nail across the top or end - sometimes for a particular log.

***
Just thinking about if the part of the log you are cutting off isn't resting on the table/platform ...

If your log were Marlilyn Monroe shaped, then you could get through a section that separates and drops down before you have cut the length of the log ... which could jam things up a bit or be a pain to retrieve ... might help to have a catcher there.

If the flitch was the length of the log but not supported on the platform, by the end of the cut there could be some weight there hanging by the uncut section ... again a catcher could help.

Last thing I'd say is ... in the back of your mind ... consider if you hit a nail or a guide came loose - the cut might start going off-track in the middle of a log - and it might need backing out or amputation or just going with the cut direction to get the log free of the bandaw.

Cheers,
Paul

Originally Posted by doug3030

.......What I really need help with at the moment, fellow forumites who have done something similar to this, is:

What is really needed to hold a log on the carriage? It starts out approximately round. How hard is it to hold it still while the first flitch is taken off the side so you have a flat surface to sit it on next time? Will a log that big just sit there pressed against the plate at the back of the carriage? Does it have a tendency to push the log over as you are milling? has anyone who has a similar sled had any problems with logs not "staying put", and what was securing them? please post successes as well as failures here.

I am thinking about a fixed plate at the back of the carriage with holes to sink in a coachbolt and probably something similar in front of or coming in from the side of the log.

Anyone got any thoughts?

Doug

Impeccable timing Doug! I just finished my clamps last night and was going to take some pics tonight of them in use - kept with the KISS principle so they ended up easy enough to make and will hopefully work well. I'll post some pics tonight if I get that far.
I also came up with a (possible) solution to my gunk on the blade problem which will be tried out this avo - it was cheap and easy and I just hope it works

Originally Posted by TTIT

Pic 11. Billet that has been 'walked' on to the trolley.
Pic 12. Loaded up - actually tipped this one on with my camera in the other hand! - too easy
Pic 13. A view of the zero clearance strip that keeps the crud off the tracks and bearings and gives me something to line up on for cut position.
Pic 14. In action...
Pic 15. ... and the 'Catch all' worked fine too!

One of the main reasons for building this is the 4 BIG brothers to the Rose Mahogany billet pictured - they are all 2m long and about 250mm x 300mm and I don't want to waste any with the kerfs of the big mills - even if I don't mill any more than those billets, it will have been worth the trouble.
Now for a coat of paint - I hate rust

That is very impresseive you should make a vidio on how good it works

Originally Posted by besttools4u.com

That is very impresseive you should make a vidio on how good it works

Fully intend to! Will try making one of the setup process this avo now that it's all painted up. I'm going to demo it to the local club once I test it out (and if it all works OK of course!!) so I can get one of the guys to do the camera work while I'm showing off . I'll post an update here once the videos are on my website.

So much getting the video done tonight If it wasn't bad enough that I broke the prototype 'Blade Brush', I hit the wrong button on the camera and filmed a total of zilch ...... so all you get tonight is a few photos

Pics 1 & 2. The 'Blade Brush' that I apparently didn't put enough thought into.
Pic 3. What happens when you don't put enough thought into something - mind you it took 3 good pushes with the rails to break it
Pics 4 & 5. MkII Blade Brush - actually holds the brushes more securely as well as keeping it all below the table - time will tell.
01 Prototype.JPG02 Prototype.JPG03 Prototype.JPG04MarkII.JPG05MarkII.JPG

Pics 6 & 7. The clamps. Very happy with the result on these - quick, easy and versatile and should hold securely enough. Very simple to make too!
Pics 8 & 9. All painted up - seems a shame to get it dirty now
Pic 10. The little pile of logs that has accumulated while waiting to get this finished.
06Clamps.JPG07Clamps.JPG08Finished.JPG09Finished.JPG10-Logs.JPG

Nice paint job.

One of the hassels I have found with logs moving is if the log is sitting/balancing somewhere other than close to the ends, if the log has some support in the center it will tend to pivot and move easily and then if clamped at the ends it will then tend to pull the sled up off the guide rails, (more specificaly my sled setup) so I make sure it is supported as close to the ends as possible. Even with flat pieces, if it has support in the center it is more likely to move.

I don't always use the clamps, suitable wedges placed under the ends on either side of log will give support and stop it rolling especially if there is plenty of wieght on the wedges rather than just butted upto the log, with the wedges I can lift the end of a log to get it away from any support happening in the center, can be a bit of a jiggle sometimes to get it in the right pos tho.
A couple of shots of my clamps, mine are a little different to TTIT's, also note the support gadget under the square of timber



need to clamp for wider cuts can over balance.jpgcutting SO to show flek.jpgclamping.jpg


I gained 110mm additional cut hieght over the original 300mm by relocating the raise/lower guide assembly further up into the top housing by drilling another set of holes, I had to do some surgery to allow the guide wheels to travel up into the top housing and mod the guard, there's a thread here somewhere with some pics of what I did



Pete