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A WINTAGE WORKHOUSE
Flywheelers' Frick Sawmill still going strong at 80
By Leslie McDaniel
The more things change, the more they don't. And so it is that a nearly 80-year-old Frick sawmill - powered by an equally elderly steam engine -- continues to peel planks of lumber from logs at the turn of a new century.
"A lot of mills of this vintage are still being used commercially," said Chuck Koehler, Williston, Fla. Chuck, a member of the Florida Flywheelers Antique Engine Club, directs operations at the mill, one of the big draws at Flywheeler Park. "There's even some made before the Civil War that are still in use."
The sawmill was donated to the club by Ron Weagraff, Kissimmee. It was purchased at an Ocala auction, and was moved to the showgrounds over a year ago. A small army of club members has worked ever since to get it in good running order.
The "to do" list included replacing wood, cleaning up rust, reworking belts, adding steel plates to reinforce the mill, rebuilding the blade and installing new shanks.
The renovation work also required work on the pulley sizes to accomodate both the James Leffel steam engine, and a 1952 8800 Caterpillar diesel used as an alternate power unit.
"Last year, we didn't get it going real good," Chuck said. "There were a lot of little bugs. It's running real well now. It cuts true, but we still need to rebuild the carriage."
The mill has a 16-foot carriage (and a 60-foot track), a standard size used to cut lumber 16 to 20 feet. The blade is run at 600 rpm, requiring about 100 hp in diesel, or at least 35 to 40 hp in a steam engine.
The different power units give the mill a different feel, Chuck said.
"When you start feeding in a log with steam," he said, "it comes on slow, until you get the governor to kick in. You've got to let the steam engine come up in power. And you use a sawyer's governor on a steam engine that's running a sawmill. When you're threshing, you'd use a straight governor."