Why buy a Peterson?

There are many reasons why Peterson Portable Sawmills design and manufacture the best portable sawmill on the market today. The company stand behind their product 100% and are proud of their top quality, versatile and efficient mills.

Since the invention of the swingblade mill by Peterson Portable Sawmills, many people have tried to replicate the technology. The ease of use, the amazing versatility and the machine’s portability all make Peterson’s swingblade the best portable sawmill. Replicas on the market offer some of these things also, but they do not have the quality of the original swingblade mill, nor do they show as much innovation in their designs.

Advantages Over Bandsaw Mills

Our versatility sets us apart

  • Cut different dimensioned lumber out of one log with ease for higher yield.
  • Where some logs may be deemed ‘worthless’ by bandsaw operators, the Peterson is the best portable sawmill for the job.
  • It is much easier to quarter saw with a Peterson because the saw moves around the log.
    The Peterson mill does not require any extra equipment i.e. an edger or resaw.
  • Use the double cut feature on any of Peterson’s swingblade range for obtaining wide boards and slabs.
  • Add an optional clip-on slabber to cut even wider slabs or if you’re looking at a commercial slabber, check out the Dedicated Wide Slabber (DWS).

Portability, it’s in the name

  • Peterson mills do not require flat ground, they can be set up on a moderate slope with undulating terrain.
  • The All Terrain Sawmill (ATS) can be set up in very remote locations on uneven surfaces as pictured.
  • Easily push your mill head and frame to your desired location when jockey wheels are attached.
  • Set up from 5-30 minutes when changing milling sites.
  • Disassemble and load in under 10 minutes.

Achieving a simplistic design for all

  • Peterson mills are supplied with an instruction manual and video (where possible), and this is quite sufficient to get most operators started.
  • A half-day of training is provided in certain circumstances which equips you to be a great miller.
  • Peterson mills are so simple that even our most advanced model, the Automated Swingblade Mill (ASM) has fewer than 10 buttons needed for operation.

Handling lumber – we’ve made it easy

  • No log-turning required, a Peterson mill cuts dimensional lumber straight away and you can grade as you go.
  • Set up the mill over a log in under 20 minutes.
  • Load logs over or under your tracks (HiLo tracks are available for WPF models).
    Peterson blades cut true, they don’t go around knots on large cuts like bandsaw mills tend to.
  • A Peterson swingblade can handle large, abrasive logs with ease.

No expensive blade maintenance

  • Circular saw blades require far less maintenance than bandsaw blades as they’re so durable.
  • Sharpen the blade on the sawmill in under 5 minutes.
  • Bandsaw blades running cost per 1000bf: US$8 – Peterson circular blades running cost per 1000bf: less than US$1.

Thin kerf vs wavy boards

A bandsaw blade’s thin kerf reduces the ability to track or cut a straight line giving you improved accuracy and a better quality finish. Peterson’s durable blade with slightly more kerf provides a true cut with far less deviation when hitting a knot or foreign object. Peterson manufacture a MicroKerf blade which is still a far superior blade to those on a bandsaw, but with less kerf than Peterson’s standard blades.

The Peterson range is much more accurate than bandsaws which will make downstream processing more efficient.