Mobile and static sawmill buyer's guide: 6 brands you need to know about

Here, Forestry Journal brings you the best of both with some of the latest offerings available.

GLOBAL RECYCLING SOLUTIONS 
NORWOOD SAWMILLS 

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.

Original Norwood mills from 1993, almost 30 years ago, are still running strong today.

Many of these are operating two eight-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.

This summer saw the launch of the LumberMax HD38. The HD38 is a sawmill engineered and built to go where other sawmills can’t. Unmatched capacity, next-generation patented technologies and exceptional versatility make this mill stand out from the rest of the market. In manual or hydraulic configuration, the HD38 is everything a sawmill should be, and you’ll know it from your first cut. Impressive oversized cutting capacity combined with rugged carriage and log deck engineering ensures this mill has unmatched output capabilities.

For further information, contact the Global Recycling Solutions sales office on 01476 568384, option 1, or visit www.globalrecycling.eu.

WOOD-MIZER 
LT40 

In 2022 Wood-Mizer celebrates the 40th anniversary of building its first portable sawmill, which set an entirely new standard of how sawmills should be designed and made. Today it’s no secret that with a Wood-Mizer sawmill, you can cut a log to ready timber quickly and smartly, and, most importantly, anywhere you want! 

It wasn’t that clear in the ’80s and ’90s as the sawmilling industry was inefficient and old-fashioned, needing new technology and reforms. Many European sawmilling companies used old and stationary circular or frame sawmills with thick blades that processed logs with limited diameter.

In addition, these old sawmills consumed a lot of energy and produced a lot of waste. Sawmilling of logs to boards and cants could take place only at stationary sawmills, which meant an additional cost of transportation for customers. 

The mobile LT40 sawmill offered a new way of sawmilling. 

“When we drove with the first sawmills around the nearby villages to cut logs for our customers, entire neighbourhoods turned up to look at the machine,” a Wood-Mizer spokesperson said. “People were asking us what kind of machine it was and what we would do with it. They couldn’t believe the sawmill bed would hold the weight of a large poplar. 

“To their surprise, the LT40 was cutting such logs into boards and beams without much effort. Our customers could get significantly more timber from a single log than expected. For the industry, it was not just a breakthrough – it was a revolution!” 

The LT40 sawmill was not only a revolution for the sawmilling industry but also a chance for ordinary people to start their businesses. From the business point of view, investing in a mobile machine for producing timber at the customer site was an intelligent decision. The LT40 could supply a customer with much more wood than expected, with minimal waste. 

Today, the legendary LT40 sawmill is well-established and recognised in the global community of sawyers and woodworkers. It’s most wanted for its versatility, durability, and affordability. 

Those interested in purchasing this trusted and proven solution can take advantage of a special anniversary promotion at www.woodmizer.co.uk/lt40-promo-2022.

More Wood-Mizer offerings, including stationary and portable sawmills, industrial sawmilling solutions, woodworking machinery, edgers, multirips, blades, spare parts, accessories, and more – all available at 

www.woodmizer.co.uk/ or by contacting the UK representative David Biggs on 01622 813201.

PETERSON

For over three decades, Peterson Portable Sawmills have been the passion and livelihood of thousands of satisfied sawmillers worldwide; from farmers and woodlot owners, to custom sawyers, arborists, woodworkers and commercial operators who enjoy the most innovative portable sawmills in the world matched with after-sales service that is second to none.

With Peterson, you get what you pay for; durable, well designed, efficient, and versatile portable sawmills with custom built features that will SAVE you time and money on running costs.

The Peterson brand began in 1989, when Carl Peterson sold his first portable swingblade mill. Even though it was only a basic version, it was a true invention – the world’s first commercially available portable swingblade sawmill! A machine that combats the issues of portability, limited-cut sizes, blade costs, time efficiency and durability.

Today, with over 33 years of R&D, Petersons is proud to promote the best a range of portable sawmills in the world. Five top-of-the-line models catering for a wide range of users, from hobby millers to professional foresters.

Designed and manufactured in New Zealand and exported globally, from the highlands of Papua New Guinea to the snow peaks of Alaska, Petersons makes machines that are well engineered, adaptable, and built to last.

Peterson Portable Sawmills’ website is home to hundreds of interesting owner’s stories, and endless testimonials, but they also offer one of the greatest resources in the world for people who have never heard of their brand. If you’re researching a sawmill purchase, you would agree that the best people to speak to are those who operate the machines on a regular basis. As a result of identifying this need, Petersons has created an ‘Owner’s Network’. A global map of Peterson owners who have put their hand up to take your calls, answer all your questions and even demonstrate their mill to help you make the most informed decision possible.

Simplicity, accuracy, and cost-efficiency are only a few of the many remarkable product design features that set Peterson apart from other brands with some owners saying their Peterson is the best forestry or agriculture machine they’ve ever purchased. With a Peterson, you can grade as you go, cut dimensional lumber or high value slabs, all without turning the log or requiring any additional machines to edge, re-saw, plane, sand etc. You really can do it all with a Peterson and with global support only a call away, why settle for anything less?

petersonsawmills.com/

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.

CHAINSAWBARS 
PANTHER CHAINSAW MILLS

The Panther Chainsaw Mills were developed in July 2017 and have continued to be tweaked and improved over the last few years. This includes cut-through markings on the uprights (in both inches and cm), oiler holes in the nose guard, wider options on first cut system, folded joins on thrust skids and nose guard (rather than welded). 

No other chainsaw mill on the market looks or performs as well as this one – a chainsaw mill designed by millers for millers. The Panther Horizon model is the main version. 

Advantages include:

• The bar clamps to the mill – this makes attaching and removing much faster and more secure.
• Bars have a slot near the powerhead end for quick and easy attachment.
• Height adjustment is done via rack-and-pinion system which is also tool-less – changing the height of the mill is smooth and easy without needing to reach for a spanner.
• Nose guard and thrust skid are made out of stainless steel rather than plated steel.
• Magnets on the mill help secure allen keys and 13 mm spanner so they are to hand at all times.
• Light winch kit is included as standard to take the strain out of milling.
• Standard width first cut system also acts as the guide for the Panther Intersect.
• Greater range of bar and chain options in both 3/8 lo pro and 404 (in which there are both full skip and hyper skip sequences). 

Panther Mills come in 48”/60”/80”/85”/95”/105” width mills, 60” and larger made out of stronger 45 mm aluminium profile.

There is also the Panther Cub for bars up to 25” – this utilises many of the components of the larger Panther mills so you can always extend the mill at a later date.

The Panther Intersect is the vertical cutting mill of the range – this runs on the standard first cut rails that the larger Panther Horizons run on.

Visit www.chainsawbars.co.uk/ for more information.

OLD STATION YARD SAWMILL
TRAKMET UK

OLD Station Yard Sawmill provides a range of TrakMet UK sawmills, starting with the TTP-600 Standard. The machine output depends on the thickness of the log to be sawn and the required thickness of sawn wood. On average, it is 1–2 m³/h. The band-sawing machine is popular for domestic use, in wood carpentry, and in the furniture industry due to high material savings as well as the precision cutting ability.

An innovative solution applied to the TTP-600 machine is a guidance on the band guiding wheels, tightly fitted with a multigroove belt to avoid sawdust and resin in the space between the wheel guidance and the belt. Additionally, the belt is not subject to crushing. This ensures the stable, even and quiet operation of the saw. It eliminates vibrations, improves sawing accuracy and extends the saw band lifetime by 40 per cent.

A mobile version of the TTP-600 is also available. 

The TTP-600 Premium is designed for use mainly in sawmills cutting up to 20 m³ per day, as well as for users requiring a very high accuracy and quality of the resulting raw material, e.g. oak, hornbeam, and beech, once sawn. 

The hydraulic system, mounted on a massive substructure made of a closed profile (200 mm x 120 mm x 6 mm), ensures a very high degree of operational stability to make the manoeuvring of large logs of up to three tonnes easier. As the TTP-600 Premium is provided with a stellite-edge blade (a special alloy based on cobalt and chromium), the sawing output is increased by 30 per cent, compared with typical blades (confirmed by many operation tests). Kerf is only 2.2 mm, and the tooth pitch is 25 mm.

The TTP-800 Standard is a modern machine offering high output. The machine clearance is 950 mm or 1150 mm, which allows very thick logs to be sawn without the need for manoeuvring. The 60 mm wide saw band allows precise cutting up to 0.2 mm with the surface of sawn wood remaining very smooth. A pre-cut debarker used in the sawing machine considerably extends the operating time of the saw, reduces waviness of elements being cut and improves the lifetime of saws, and features the same hydraulic system as the TTP-600 models.

www.oldstationyardsawmill.co.uk/