resurecting an old circular sawmill

[redneckhillbilly]

since I aint that good at fixin chainsaws I thought I'd start a build thread on getting an old circular sawmill put back together and cuttin logs.

so heres the start of it, I spent the morning today retrieving various parts from a few piles scattered thoughout an old farm.

heres the 1st pile that contained the blade and the log carriage.

 

[redneckhillbilly]

got this stuff loaded up and next week I will go fish more parts out of other piles

 

[redneckhillbilly]

heres the old Fairbanks-Morse diesel motor that powers it, I still havent drug it home yet.

 

[redneckhillbilly]

I did find some roller tables and other parts I didnt picture earlier, so heres the pile so far. various sprockets and gear boxes for sawdust conveyor, and other misc stuff I found that I may be able to use.

 

[redneckhillbilly]

end of next week I will be hauling another pile of belts, chains, and cables to drive the carriage, and hopefully the motor home, I have always wanted a sawmill, and getting some old crap running is my speciality.

 

[hacskaroly]

end of next week I will be hauling another pile of belts, chains, and cables to drive the carriage, and hopefully the motor home, I have always wanted a sawmill, and getting some old crap running is my speciality.

That is awesome, looks like a fun project!! I look forward to seeing the progress!

 

[redneckhillbilly]

That is awesome, looks like a fun project!! I look forward to seeing the progress!

hopefully its making lumber sometime this fall, the motor is the big variable, your close enough you may be able to see it in action live.

 

[Woodtroll]

That's a worthy endeavor! I, too, like restoring old things to function, even when it would be easier to just buy something new. Having to rebuild something almost from scratch is one of the best ways to learn the intricate details of exactly how a thing works, and I've learned a lot that way.

Best of luck, and please keep us posted on your progress.

 

[Coupe]

The old fairbanks Morse looks interesting, and yes keep us posted. I too like
restoring old things that's why I have last count 38 ghainsaws I have restored.
One of my first jobs when I left school was working in a circular saw mill and went
from breaking down the logs to benching and finished in the yard grading
the timber.
Good on you for taking it on.

 

[Sloughfoot]

Where I lived for awhile every watershed of any size previously had a circle saw mill at the bottom of it. They were free for the taking when the lumber companies moved on and a lot of old guys had one, usually hooked up to an old diesel tractor that barely ran. I don't know what happened to the original motors. I bought a lot of lumber from one of them and part of the deal was helping him mill it.

 

[redneckhillbilly]

Ive spent the weekend spraying everything with diesel, and trying to find info on the motor, so far very little info, I have a few parts supliers i use for the old stuff when I work on it, so tomorrow Im gonna make some calls.

if anyone has a line on new/used parts for that fairbanks morse 36A I would be very interested in knowing about them.

and I will definatley keep this thread updated regulary, I do appreciate the good words from all who have commented, Im sure I will have questions as this thing gets closer to assembled.

 

[Basher]

One big problem resurrecting old mills is rusted shafts where the shafts mount to the bearing boxes. If the shafts have rusted or pitted at the babbit bearings the rotating shaft will quickly eat up that soft babbit. I have been involved with old rotary mills since I was 8-10years old when steam power was still around. I ran my own mill off a Caterpillar diesel with a 10 speed transmission. Oiling up the bearings every morning before startup helped preserve the babbit but eventually all those bearings wear out.