Mobile sawmills have become increasingly popular in recent years, offering a practical solution to processing large pieces of timber on site. This allows timber to be turned into a usable form without the need for equipment or haulage facilities to transport it to the sawmill and back – but the static mill will always have its place. Here, Forestry Journal brings you the best of both with some of the latest offerings available.
DAKIN-FLATHERS
RIPPER37 SAWMILL BLADE
REDUCE your production costs and increase both your profits and the quality of the sawn timber with Ripper37, a new generation of sawmill blade.
From purpose-built 24-hour facilities in Yorkshire, England, Dakin-Flathers has combined its 125 years of saw manufacturing experience and developed a premium sawmill blade which lasts 37 per cent longer than the competition.
Ripper37 is crafted from high-quality, carbon-rich Western European steel, developed with unique metallurgical properties to deliver the optimum balance between strength and flexibility.
An extensive digitally controlled quality assurance programme, which involves photographic tooth profile checks, set analysis, straightness testing, hardness testing and microstructural analysis, results in a blade that cuts straighter, and has harder, longer-lasting teeth, producing one of the most superior blades on the market.
In short, Ripper37 delivers:
- 37 per cent greater durability than its leading rivals,
- up to 100 per cent more regrinds,
- unparalleled ‘out-of-the-box’ performance,
- minimal waste and maximum cutting power,
- improved quality of finish on the sawn timber,
- reduced production costs.
Thanks to its focus on quality and performance, Dakin-Flathers has grown from being the leading supplier in the UK to one of the leading suppliers in the world, exporting to over 100 countries, with an unrivalled worldwide reputation for quality and performance.
Dakin-Flathers has partnered with Stephen Cull BladeMaster to distribute its full range of sawmill blades in the UK. As well as distributing Ripper37 blades, Stephen Cull also offers sawmill servicing and technical advice borne out of over two decades’ experience.
To discover the full benefits of Ripper37, and to order sawmill blades online, visit www.stephencullblademaster.com for more information, or call 07887544333.
FUELWOOD
LUCAS MILLS
THE success of the Lucas Mill is quite simply down to the brilliance of its design.
Not only is it easily portable into otherwise inaccessible locations and capable of being quickly set up in 15 minutes around any log up to 6 metres long, on uneven terrain, but it is the simplicity of its operation, consistent accuracy, speed and finish of the cut that never fail to impress. It inspires confidence and encourages the conversion of felled timber into high value beams, dimensioned timber, boards and slabs.
There are options of either a swing-blade mill that can have a slabbing attachment fitted as a very cost-effective optional extra, or a dedicated slabbing mill. With the capability of cutting any size dimensioned timber up to 500 mm x 250 mm and slabbing logs up to 1.5 metres in diameter, the versatility of these mills is extraordinary.
READ MORE: Buyer's Guide: Firewood production and handling solutions
The most popular model, the 10-30 swing-blade mill, is powered by a 30 hp Kohler engine, and is easily transported in a standard pickup truck with roof bars.
Lucas Mills are manufactured in Australia and imported into the UK by Fuelwood (Warwick) Ltd. Fuelwood is renowned for its expertise as dealers in a huge range of forestry and firewood machinery as well as its engineering capabilities. It designs and manufactures its own range of professional timber-conversion machinery from its own factory in Warwickshire. All of this means you can be confident that this machine will give years of very profitable service, with the backup and support of one of the best companies in the business.
For more information, or to arrange a Lucas Mill demonstration, contact Fuelwood on 01926 484673, email sales@fuelwood.co.uk or visit www.fuelwood.co.uk.
GLOBAL RECYCLING SOLUTIONS
NORWOOD SAWMILLS
AS milling goes from strength to strength across the world, lockdown has seen forgotten projects given a new lease of life.
What makes milling a go-to for so many people? We believe it is the uncapped potential and versatility that quite literally allow dreams to become a reality. The team at Norwood Sawmills understand this and have created a sawmill range that is built on three staple principles: innovation, quality, and integrity.
Norwood was the very first company to develop affordable personal bandmills and is the only company to focus entirely on this class of sawmills. Since Norwood launched the first LumberMate, other companies have followed suit, selling their own lines of personal band sawmills, but only as an afterthought to their main focus of super-sized, and super-expensive, hydraulic mills.
No other company has more portable sawmill patents than Norwood. Every Norwood is quality built in the USA and Canada. They are designed, and built, to mill millions of board feet reliably and smoothly.
READ MORE: Buyer's Guide: 750+ kg chippers
Original Norwood mills from 1993, over 25 years ago, are still running strong today. Many of these are operating two 8-hour shifts a day, milling even the hardest exotic hardwoods in Africa, South America, and Australia.
Every component of a Norwood sawmill is made of top-quality steel by highly skilled operators with cutting-edge fabrication and machining technologies.
The LumberPro uses twin double-plated debossed commercial-grade steel rails in its wide-track log deck. Debossed steel is much stronger and more rigid than flat, unformed steel. Combined with the boxed front- and rear-end frames, this log deck gives you greater strength and stiffness, lighter weight, and ultimately greater structural integrity.
Norwood’s cutting head is designed to eliminate any bounce or sag.
The fully supported four-post design is fortified with structurally engineered reinforced 2” x 5” precision-extruded vertical guides, and heavy gauge 2½” structural tubular steel rear vertical mounts and front horizontal stabiliser bar.
This means the LumberPro manages higher load inputs for better milling, with more accuracy and control.
Industrial-grade powder-coating protects the sawmill better, and longer, than old-fashioned spray paint, which chips, scratches and rusts. It costs a considerable amount more to powder-coat steel and this sets Norwood apart.
Norwood has the only sawmill that can take you from manual to hydraulic whenever you are ready. Even Norwood’s manual-only models have more optional attachments and time-saving upgrades than any other brand.
For further information, contact the Global Recycling Solutions sales office on 01476 568384, option 1, or visit www.globalrecycling.eu.
WOOD-MIZER
WOOD-MIZER is a world-leading producer of quality machinery for the wood-processing industry. The American company was founded in 1982 by two engineers who developed a revolutionary method of converting logs to timber in a very efficient way using a mobile machine with a thin-kerf bandsaw blade. Today Wood-Mizer provides wood industry with a range of portable and stationary machines for sawmilling and woodworking at professional and industrial level. Small and large companies benefit every day from the services and solutions offered by Wood-Mizer dealers and agents located in almost every country in the world.
The offering of Wood-Mizer has recently expanded significantly. For small and medium-size sawmilling companies, Wood-Mizer supplies popular and proven machines such as the LT15, LT20 and LT40, in both mobile and stationary configurations. Milling logs on these machines is efficient and convenient as they feature a precise head, solid bed and many options which customers may add if necessary. These sawmills are often ordered with a debarker, an automatic board thickness control system (Setworks), a hydraulic system of log manipulation on the bed, or a log-loader.
Wood-Mizer has recently prepared a special promotion on the well-established LT20 sawmill. Currently the LT20ME15SAH3-SWR with the AH3 hydraulics package and a debarker is only £16,995 (+ VAT) through to the end of 2021.
Larger industrial operations may require heavy-duty solutions such as industrial sawmills WM1000, WM3500, WM4000 or WB2000 Titan. An interesting solution for semi-industrial operations is the LT70 Heavy Duty combined with the edger EG300, sorting tables, loading ramp and a remote station. It’s an example of a small sawmilling system which can be customised for customers’ individual needs.
Sawmilling may sometimes take accessory machines in order to fulfil a complex project – the Wood-Mizer catalogue is complete with a range of vertical saws, edgers, multirips and resaws. For the enthusiasts of making final wood products, the company has prepared a series of versatile, compact and affordable woodworking machines (e.g. MP160, MP220, MP260, MP360).
For more information, please contact Wood-Mizer UK on 01622 813 201, email info@woodmizer.co.uk or visit www.woodmizer.co.uk.
Forestry Journal remains dedicated to bringing you all the latest news and views from across our industry, plus up-to-date information on the impacts of COVID-19.
Please support us by subscribing to our print edition, delivered direct to your door, from as little at £75 for 1 year – or consider a digital subscription from just £1 for 3 months.
To arrange, follow this link: https://www.forestryjournal.co.uk/subscribe/
Thanks – and stay safe.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here