More Sawmill Questions

"They all look similar to me, aren't all band sawmills pretty much the same?"

 

The answer is, No, not at all.  As with everything, the more familiar you are with something, the more you notice the subtleties.  Novices and the undiscerning, only see the basics.  To some people, all cars look pretty much the same.  Therefore, the differences between most band sawmills could be liken to the differences between most cars.

 
Can I build this sawmill and what will it cost?  If you have read this far, then you probably are a handy, mechanical person who is good with tools.  This is required to build this, or any sawmill.  Your ability should go beyond just working on cars and changing parts.  You should be a good welder with some shop knowledge.  There is a lot of cutting, drilling and welding.  The total cost will depend on how much of the work you can do yourself and what materials you have on hand.  If you have to buy everything, it should still come in under $3,000, depending on your access to cheap parts and keeping in mind that steel prices fluctuate.  To buy a "comparable" mill you would have to pay over $10,000 and that's just to cut a similar log.  It wouldn't have all the "Special Features" and efficiency of Mr. Sawmill.  And some people just enjoy the feeling of satisfaction and accomplishment of building (and knowing) their own machine.  The Wright brothers didn't need flying lessons because they had become so intimate and familiar with their new invention.
What tools and equipment do I need?  A welder (Arc or MIG) capable of welding 1/4" steel.  A good 1/2 hp drill press or better with a very slow speed (~200 rpm) as you will be drilling large holes.  A metal cutting saw.  You can use a "chop saw" with a metal grinding blade but I prefer a metal cutting bandsaw.  They can be set up to cut exactly 90 degrees and they can be left cutting while you're working on something else as they all have an automatic shutoff.  Since the largest piece used is 2" by 4" the cheapest bandsaw (under $300) will work fine.  A metal lathe is needed to turn down two shafts for threading (though they could be welded) and is nice to finish off the pipe and bar cuts.  A cheap metal bender (under $100) works fine and it's also easy to build.  You should have an assortment of clamps, welding magnets, tri-squares, a few taps & dies, bench and hand grinders, compressor, paint gun, etc..

I built this sawmill bed straightener from scrap 'I' beams, 'C' channel and discarded 'Donut' tires.  Sometimes a sawmill bed would develop a small "bow" during welding which was easily straightened with the 20 ton jack shown here, with my left hand on the handle.  But, a "perfectly" straight bed is not as important as one may suspect, to obtain straight boards.

"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex... but it takes a touch of genius and a lot of courage to move in the other direction." 

Albert Einstein

I've heard of building one with car wheels and scrap parts.  Wouldn't that be easier and cheaper?  As before, it would only be cheaper if you have all the parts but it probably wouldn't be any easier, especially if you don't have any plans or drawings.  The problem is that you won't end up with a good, specifically engineered machine.  Car rims, tires and spindles are not designed to be band wheels.  They are too wide and heavy causing excessive inertia and needing a larger powerhead, carriage and motor and then possibly needing a heavier (more expensive) bed.  The hand lifting crank will need to have a greater ratio to lift the extra weight slowing down the movement.  The heavier carriage will have more inertia, slowing it down, especially for starts, stops and reversing.  Car tires must be inflated and no matter how high the pressure, (before the tire explodes) the saw band may not be able to get to its proper design tension, for straight cuts.
 
Most of these problems can be "worked around" but you may end up with a "Rube Goldberg Machine".  Of course it could still function and cut wood, but less easily and efficiently.  But, if you have everything on hand, know what you're doing and only plan on cutting a few logs now and then, this method could work for you.

  "If you are interested in life,

you will be interesting to people."

D. J. Huggett