Revolutionary British-made log mill product launched

[john the saw]

My "gut" feeling is that it is tinny/flimsy and underengineered.

To withstand the rigours of log handling in even limited use.

Especially in respect of the relatively substantial purchase price.

I do however agree that a UK built casual user/non-industrial saw is a step in the right direction

Regards,

Marcus

Hi marcus - thanks for your post,

I know that a lot of you guys are big boy workers and can see from your avatars the size of lumber that you work with. The Transformer is simply not designed for that. A Honda civic would look small and flimsy next to a Humvee but what would you rather nip down to Sainsburys in? Fabricated steel is very strong when properly designed and manufactured. The table tops are reinforced underneath by 60x60 angle where the rollers run. The actual rolling beds are 3mm gusset-strengthened folded steel and topped with 9.0mm tricoya mdf to further spread point load. The rollers are closely spaced and each are designed with a loading capacity that exceeds the requirement of the design parameters of the machine. The result is a strong and stable structure that is fit for purpose. The main benefit is speed of process. I would think that there is a far greater national requirement for fencing and 6" oak flooring planks than 2 foot elm planks and we are just trying to provide a speedy and flexible facility. Horses for courses. Best wishes. John - Silverclaw.

[john the saw]

Hhhmmm, tend to agree. Would also like to see pics of roller system that enables 1 man to get a log weighing up to 1/4 ton( given system can handle 9"QG @ almost 10ftlong and longer with available extensions) onto cutting deck @ waist ht.

But otherwise I could see it meeting all of the claims made in the description on the web page.

 

Tim

Hi tim - thanks for your post.

Videos will be posted hopefully next week. We have put a lot of design thought into the manual loading process. A lot of the size of lumber for which the Transformer is designed, can be straight lifted by a couple of guys. The roller system just helps out when you're working on your own. I'm sure that you will be happy with it when you see it. All the best. John - Silverclaw.

[john the saw]

I'm not usually one to be negative, but I cannot see a useful application for it. A 12 inch diameter log is too small to be useful - it precludes the sawing of just about all hardwoods with the possible exception of Oak for mantels and posts.

 

The kind of people that will spend £7k on a part time sawmill are going to want to have the capacity to cut longer lengths and greater widths. A manual bandsaw would be the default choice and would be no slower.

 

I'm very happy to see a British engineered product on the market, but just wish it was more useful for the general sawmiller.

Hi Big J - thanks for your post.

This really boils down to what you expect to get from a machine. If you think about pollarded lumber rather than felled, that's probably nearer the mark for the Transformer. We gave our prototype to a small-scale farmer and he said that he made thousands of pounds worth of fencing within a week. He also made a few hundred pounds worth of oak flooring planks for his house. Whilst this is really the kind of guy that our machine is aimed at, the speed and convenience of operation means that it is a useful addition to larger lumber outfits, once the big machinery has done it's thing. Best wishes. John - Silverclaw.

[john the saw]

That was my thought that the depth of cut is way too small to be useful.

Its the 18+ inch size that becomes useful. Pity as its good to see Brits innovating.

 

Hi woodyguy - thanks for your post.

Please see my reply to Big J. As i said, nothing can be all things to all people but we have tried to produce a handy machine that fulfils a requirement. For example, on my own smallholding, i have no use for a larger, more expensive machine with greater capacity as i pollard trees instead of felling them. If you look into wood yards and stockists, it is the smaller sizes that dominate and we have tried to give you and others, a mid-range machine that allows people to tap into the sales potential of the domestic market. The main advantage of the Transformer is the speed and ease of processing lumber of a size within the limitations of it's design parameters. Best wishes. John - Silverclaw.

[difflock]

Well answered there John,

and good luck

marcus

[se7enthdevil]

i'm afraid i'd have to agree with big j, i believe that i'm your market as i would like to have a saw that could do what you offer but it's just too small and too expensive for what it is.

 

 

if i was to design something like that i would make a ripsaw that could cut 12-16" but not have "mdf" on the sliding table, it should be all steel. the cover should be disposed of in my opinion and if a cover is required then have a heavy duty version of a blade cover like you get on hand held circular saws, retractable as the log passes and spring loaded so it pops back as soon as the log is cut. it seems like you made a static lucas, just not quite as useful.

[john the saw]

i'm afraid i'd have to agree with big j, i believe that i'm your market as i would like to have a saw that could do what you offer but it's just too small and too expensive for what it is.

 

 

if i was to design something like that i would make a ripsaw that could cut 12-16" but not have "mdf" on the sliding table, it should be all steel. the cover should be disposed of in my opinion and if a cover is required then have a heavy duty version of a blade cover like you get on hand held circular saws, retractable as the log passes and spring loaded so it pops back as soon as the log is cut. it seems like you made a static lucas, just not quite as useful.

Hi steve - thanks for your post.

All fair comment but we have to comply with an amount of regulations that you would not believe nor anticipate until you got into it. There is a world of difference between an individual knocking up a machine to do a job, and a company marketing a CE certified product. From specified minimum steel hardnesses to precision engineered tolerances we have to comply whereas someone just making a machine for their own use would not. We do not use standard mdf as tricoya is state of the art in terms of molecular water repellant properties as well as durability - although there is an element of it being a sacrificial consumable depending on usage. It is also easier to mark with an individuals most-used fence settings etc. and gives a better friction grip than steel. Once the videos are posted, the capabilities (as well as the limitations) of the Transformer should be more clear. Best wishes. John - Silverclaw.

[Robert Raven]

I reckon there's a use for it- I just cut a load of cladding from 20" logs with a chainsaw mill, it was pretty hard work. I could have quartered the logs with the chainsaw and passed the quarters through this machine in much, much less time, and I expect it would be easy to make them quarter sawn too. £5k for pto version, you'd want a fair bit of wood to go at but doesn't sound ridiculous- cross cut pto saws make silly money.

[Big Beech]

I will just say that reading the posts that some of you have answered a little harsh in my view given the fact that john has yet to show it in use. At that point a fairer assesment can be made of the saw.

Personally i have no experience of milling with a mizer so cannot comment on thus as such but given its marketing for small individuals who perhaps own woodland and does not need 30k of mizer this may well suit them.

I wish John good luck.

Simon

[SteveA]

I will just say that reading the posts that some of you have answered a little harsh in my view given the fact that john has yet to show it in use. At that point a fairer assesment can be made of the saw.

Personally i have no experience of milling with a mizer so cannot comment on thus as such but given its marketing for small individuals who perhaps own woodland and does not need 30k of mizer this may well suit them.

I wish John good luck.

Simon

 

Well said Simon. I also wish John every success, and hope he can use some of the comments here in a positive way for his product development.