Things are continuing to progress nicely with the saw mill restoration. With a combination of penetrating oil, brute strength, and some judiciously applied heat, we’ve managed to get all the rusted parts moving again.
The carriage assembly had many parts that needed to be unstuck. The engine attaches to this carriage, with the belts transferring power from the engine to the saw blades and the carriage movement mechanisms.
Next we needed to free up the sleeves on the end stands. After several applications of penetrating oil and a large pipe wrench, we ended up applying heat to expand the metal and help loosen things up.
Once the end stands were freed up, we started assembling the stands and the rail on the trailer.
There are two cross-beams on either end of the trailer that connect the end stands. Metal rack-and-pinions are attached to the cross beams, and the rail travels along the rack-and-pinions to adjust the saw’s position across end of the log.
There’s still a lot more work needed to get the mill squared, and to get the engine onto the carriage, but it’s encouraging to see things starting to come together.