Want to buy a sawmill - Talk me out of it!

[MoKelly]

As has been mentioned, I’d do this in a heartbeat if I was younger.

Follow your dream!

 

[HawkinsHollow]

I am 98% sure I am going for this. The wife is on board. It just makes perfect sense to do this now. Another thing that has not been said is, after the last 3 years there are no promises that these things will be easy to get 5 years from now. I plan on ordering it to be delivered right after the first of the year. I will make a new post about set-up and creation of my mill site/mill so you all can follow along.

 

[caver]

Get extra saw blades and the largest engine they offer. A metal detector is handy too.

 

[deezler]

Crap, I also regret opening and reading through this thread.

I just turned 40. My house is done and easy to live in, but I have a lot of desires to add sheds, outbuildings, a sauna, etc. around the property. The idea of having my own mill to make these structures (and other fun woodworking ideas) out of black cherry, walnut, and oak logs is SO TEMPTING.

Three things that are holding me back:
1) Cost. A good mill, outfitted the way I want it, is $6-8000. Not a trivial expense, and would take a LONG time to pay back from lumber savings alone
2) Covered storage. I can't stand to see equipment sit outside a rot, and it seems a sawmill should DEFINITELY be kept under a roof.
3) Time; I don't have much spare of it, with my full time career and two younger kids. What if I buy a mill and never have time to use it? That would just be sad.

 

[HawkinsHollow]

Crap, I also regret opening and reading through this thread.

I just turned 40. My house is done and easy to live in, but I have a lot of desires to add sheds, outbuildings, a sauna, etc. around the property. The idea of having my own mill to make these structures (and other fun woodworking ideas) out of black cherry, walnut, and oak logs is SO TEMPTING.

Three things that are holding me back:
1) Cost. A good mill, outfitted the way I want it, is $6-8000. Not a trivial expense, and would take a LONG time to pay back from lumber savings alone
2) Covered storage. I can't stand to see equipment sit outside a rot, and it seems a sawmill should DEFINITELY be kept under a roof.
3) Time; I don't have much spare of it, with my full time career and two younger kids. What if I buy a mill and never have time to use it? That would just be sad.

Well I will make a post about the process. Ups and downs, maybe that will help steer you in the right direction. You're still young, you got plenty of time. But you know what they say!?! The best time to mill a 4x6x12 timber was 4 years ago, the next best time is today!!

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

I'm 71, if I was younger I'd love having one. I have an red oak recently cut down 32" and straight as a telephone pole, first limb up about 20 ft.
Lots of youtube videos of people using them like this one:

 

[MAX-24-Dean]

Some things never pencil out in the short term, but "following your dream" as @MoKelly says will have a return on investment everyday you work with your mill.
May not be a financial return!

That satisfaction of working with the logs turning them to lumber and the enjoyment of seeing the final product.

Not everything in life needs to make financial sense, but it sure helps if it is part of the consideration in the purchase.

If you can afford to stay away from a manual mill you will be thanking yourself later.

 

[Sprinkler Fitter]

How long do the boards have to dry before you can or want to use them?

 

[Jstpssng]

How long do the boards have to dry before you can or want to use them?

That depends on species, time of year cut from the stump, where you are ( humidity and drying conditions) time of year sawn and what you want to do with them. Also air or kiln dried.
March and April are optimum drying months here as there isn't a lot of humidity in the air. I will be sawing hemlock to enclose my outbuildings and will put it up the week that it's sawn. Hemlock is almost impossible to nail without splitting it once it's dry.

 

[amarsh64]

The wife and I bought a Woodland Mills HM130 max about a year and a half ago to mill lumber for a garage / shop. One of our better purchases by far. Very satisfying milling your own lumber. You wont be disappointed and you likely wont have buyers remorse once you get a taste of milling . Go for it . You won't look back !