Logosol Forum Down For Technical Reasons

Just a quick note to tell everyone that the Logosol Forum is down because of technical reasons. We are working to get a forum back up as soon as possible. We are hearing from forum users about missing the forum, and concerned that it is gone for good. This is not the case. We very much value the discussions on our forums and hope to have them back up and running soon. We will probably be bringing them back online in a new format, with the hope of being able to restore old posts to the forums eventually.

We appreciate everyone's patience in this and hope to get back to normal with the forums soon.

M7 Sawmill Power User

I heard from a Logosol M7 owner today that I call a power user. He has really put the M7 through it's paces. He had done something I did once, but haven't told anyone, drove down the road with the sawmill in the back and left the log grip on the mill while transporting it. Somehow, when you get to the destination you later realize, that log grip isn't on the mill anymore. So, be sure and take it off, even if it feels snug, as the wind will grab that log grip and take it off during transport.

He's had the mill for over 6 1/2 years and estimates he's cut more than 50,000 b.f with his sawmill. He's still using the original saw that came on the mill. He says his only regret about the mill is that he didn't have it ten years earlier!

He cuts a lot of lumber for himself, and for his neighbors. I asked him what are some projects he's done with the mill and he started listing them out. The first project was a 20 X 24 shop. Then other sheds, an 8X12, and a 12 x 16. Also, he added a 12 X 14 bedroom to his house that he estimates cost him $1000 for the materials other than the wood he put into it. He remodeled his living room area with wood from his sawmill, made siding for his house, and put on a deck or two. He's been busy!

If you do the math on the amount of wood he's cut with the mill, you can see that at .50/b.f he's paid for the mill about 10 times over. If you use a more realistic figure of $1/b.f, it's a much bigger payback. Plus, he says he's had a lot of fun with the mill.

I have not had much in this blog about the sawmill, but I will try to start adding some sawmill entries. I've encouraged our power user to send some pictures, and if I get them, I'll share some of them on here. I love to hear about how sawmill owners are using the mill. Don't forget that you can make a comment here on this blog, if you have something to share.

I wanted to include a summary of the conversation I had with this power user of the M7 in this support blog because sometimes people considering the Logosol M7 sawmill worry about how it will hold up, how the saw will hold up under heavy use, if it will cut good lumber, what all you can make with it, etc. Well, this guy's experience with the mill answers all those questions better than I can. It will produce quality lumber, and it will continue to produce quality lumber. I'm sure there are a lot of Logosol M7 power users out there who will tell similar stories.

But, remember, the log grip will fly off if you leave it on during transport.

The Robot Has Arrived! (Chain Sharpening Robot)

The future is here! Now you can be the first in your neck of the woods to have a robot working for you. Logosol now has available a new chain sharpening robot that will keep your chains at premium sharpness with minimum assistance on your part. We've just received our first shipment of these robots and are very pleased with what they will do.

I put one of them right to work on my backlog of dull chains, and after a brief learning curve, I was able to get the chains sharpened quickly and easily. Once the machine is set for the chain you are sharpening, it will grind every tooth on that side to the same precise angle and sharpness. Then, you make the adjustments to sharpen the other side of the chain, and presto, you have a perfectly sharp chain!

This will make a difference, of course, in your cutting on the mill. And, it might make you the most popular person in your neck of the woods, when your friends find out you have a robot sharpener.

I've been using this little robot, and I can attest that it does a good job on chains. You will have a little bit of learning to tweak it for the right result, but everything is straight forward on the adjustments, so it's easy to do. It's another example of the Logosol way of doing things - simple, rugged, versatile, and a joy to use.

You can read more about the robot on our website:

http://www.logosol.com/_sawmills/accessories/auto_grinder.php

First Ever Demo Day at Logosol

Well, we had a big time at Logosol on a recent weekend in October. We demonstrated our planer/moulder line outside the Logosol building in Madison, MS. It was a beautiful fall day and we had some great visitors to show up for training and demonstrations on the Logosol PH260 planer/moulder. We also demonstrated the SH230 planer/moulder, and the Log House Moulder. We had chips flying as we cut the cant for the Log House Moulder demonstration with the M7 sawmill.

All the wrong things

During the demonstration, I showed the class how to try and use the moulder with the knives in backwards, and later I tried to run a board through with one of the heads in backwards! Guess I was doing more talking than demonstrating and not paying attention. But, I used the situation to get the class to figure out what was wrong, and after much head scratching, someone actually figured it out. Anyway, it was a good opportunity to show how you can put heads in wrong, but when you do, it's not the end of the road. We simply made the correction and kept on planing. The moulder did a great job, in spite of its absentminded operator.

At the end of the day, several visitors brought out some boards they had brought with them for test running through the planer. Of course, they brought some of the hardest material available to see how the moulder would do - Kiln dried white oak, hickory, and maple. One person also had some cedar, and that made a nice planing piece. The maple turned out to be spalted, and really showed some figure after planing.

All in all, it was a great day! Dave Boyt was there taking pictures and doing a writeup for our upcoming issue of Fresh Cut. Everybody left with a Logosol hat and some new knowledge about our equipment, and some free issues of Sawmill and Woodlot magazine. We met some great people and made some new friends.

If you missed this one, look for upcoming demo days. This is something we plan to work into our calendar throughout the year, so you can always find a day to come by for some training and fun. Be sure and get on our mailing list in order to be notified of the next one. We are also planning a demo day in the northern part of the U.S. in the near future at one of our customers locations. We did have people come from as far away as Missouri to learn about this planer.

Hope to see you at the next Logosol Demo Day!

Logosol Hosts Demonstration Day in Madison

We are having a Planer Demonstration Day at Logosol! For the first time ever we are having a full day of Planer and Log House Moulder Demonstrations for our prospects and customers. We have invited our recent prospects and customers in Mississippi and neighboring states to visit us Saturday October 20th here at the Logosol U.S. Headquarters for a day of demonstrations and fun. We will be making mouldings with the PH260 and also demonstrating the DH410 and the SH230 Soloplaner. Also, we will have some logs available to show the use of the Electric Log House Moulder.

If you've been wanting to see the Planer first hand, this is your chance. We will be making mouldings all day, and changing from one pattern to the other on these machines so you can see how to set up for various types of mouldings. We will also be putting the new machines to work making mouldings as well.

We will have some free items available to all who show up, including back issues of Independent Sawmill and Woodlot Management, and stylish Logosol Caps, as well as a grilled hamburger lunch! Some representatives of the Sawmill and Woodlot will be here on that day, so it will be a great time to meet them and learn what else is happening in the milling world.

And, for those wanting to purchase, we will have coupons available that will be worth far more than the cost of the trip to come see us(unless you are coming from California).

Hope you can make it to the Demo day!

Making a Ramp for the Big Mill

I heard from an owner of a Big Mill Basic the other day about his use of the Big Mill. Gary, from New Jersey has been cutting up logs from trees in his neighborhood in New Jersey that have come down and is loving using the Big Mill to mill these logs into lumber. He included in his email a picture of his setup in a recent email. He told me in his email:

" I love the fact that I can get my hands on wood with out spending money that I don't really have. Right now I'm finishing up some walnut that a tree guy dropped off for me, it's really a joy to see the grains come alive after you make your cut."

From his picture you can see that he has built a ramp for logs to rest on so he can then take them apart with his Big Mill. Building this ramp makes it easier to operate the Big Mill since it puts the work at the right height. You can work the Big Mill standing up, rather then bending over to work the saw. This can make a big difference if you are doing more than one log occasionally. The ramp allows you to take the log up in steps, rather than having to roll the log up a steep incline without resting. You just take it up one step using a cant hook, and then can rest, roll it to the next step and then take it up to the next level.

The plans for this ramp are on the website: http://www.logosol.info/media/_pdf/US/big_mill_system_log_ladder_gb_060120.pdf

Just click on that link to get the plans and build your own. Thanks Gary for sharing this picture with us!

Phase Converter 101

Confused about phase converters? You are not alone. A lot of people, including qualified electricians, are confused also. But, Phase Converters can be a great thing for your shop. It can bring you the ability to utilize more efficient and compact 3-phase motors for your equipment. 3 Phase motors are smaller, and can pack a lot more horsepower into a smaller space. But, I don't need to tell you about the advantages of 3 phase power, I'm sure. Of course, many of the Logosol products are available in 3 Phase, although some are now available in single phase.

Logosol has recently begun offering a high quality Rotary Phase Converter to our customers at a low price, just so they will be more apt to take advantage of 3 Phase power. So, now it's more incentive than ever to move up to 3 Phase power in your shop.

But, before you order that phase converter, here are a few things to consider. First, do you have enough power available in your shop to run a converter? For our discussion, I will be discussing phase converters sized to run our 3 Phase Planer/Moulder and Chip Extractor, which is a 20 HP Rotary Phase Converter. To install this converter, you need to insure that you have two major things:

1. A Electrical Service Panel Rated at least at 200 Amps


2. A transformer on the electric pole outside your shop rated at 25 KVA(ask your electric company what the transformer feeding your shop is rated)

If you don't have both of these conditions, then you will not get the full use of your phase converter. It will run, but you will not get full power out of your equipment in certain operations. So, if you do not have these criteria met, you will be better off with single phase equipment.

If you have the above two items, you will need to add a 100 amp circuit breaker for the phase converter. This will power the phase converter. Then your three phase wiring will come out of the phase converter and be distributed to the appropriate equipment. One way to do this is to feed a three phase electrical panel box from the phase converter and put breakers in this box for each piece of equipment. I've include in this section a picture of one of our phase converters installed in the Wichern woodworking shop in Missourri. They had an electrician do a great job of installation for their shop. This is what a good installation should look like. The box to the left is the 100 Amp Circuit Breaker. Not shown is the main electrical panel that feeds this breaker. At the bottom of the photo is the phase converter, and then the top right box is the 3 phase electrical panel. Notice the conduit connecting the 3 phase box with the 100 amp circuit breaker. Two legs for the 3 phase box are coming from the breaker, and one leg from the phase converter. You can see a diagram for this on Smith Electric's website.

You can read more about phase converters there. But, overall, phase converters are simple to install. Just make sure you have adequate power to your facility. Find a good electrician who understands 3 phase power, and you should have no trouble getting your converter installed. Be sure to follow local codes for your installation and use a qualified electrician. We are always here for consultation if you need assistance, as well as the manufacturer of the phase converter. Enjoy 3 Phase Power!