Ryan keeps a close eye on the TimberKing head’s progress through his squared-off cant.
“I’m a landscaper. In my business, landscaping includes handling everything on a property. I do excavation, stone work, roads, foundations, heavy construction, even build outbuildings, cabanas, and custom homes. And I fell clients’ tress and saw them into lumber with my TimberKing 2000 sawmill.
I started down this road at 14 years old. I was fascinated by machinery. While other kids were playing ball, I was checking out construction sites. I had mentors along the way and I started my own business in 1984. I’ve always liked challenges and I do this landscaping work because I love it.
But let me tell you about my son…
My son, Ryan, went with me to my job sites since he was a kid. After college, he worked with me for awhile then took a management job with a big corporation. One day he called me and asked to come back to work with me. Of course I was very happy to have him back.
Time to get a TimberKing
I’d wanted a sawmill for a long time and this was the time to get one. I actually bought the TimberKing 2000 for him to work with. My son has remarkable skills. 28 years old and he can build or fix anything. I put him in charge of a big project and he used the TimberKing to make an outstanding structure in an innovative way
The project was building a large cabana, outdoor kitchen, patio, bar, and what I call an ‘underground speakeasy’ or wine cellar. Or man cave! We cleared the site, taking out large oak trees. Ryan sawed all the logs on the TimberKing. All the materials, lumber, paneling, beams, trusses, even the mantle and countertops. We moved the lumber to my big shop, stickered it, and dried it with a big dehumidifier.
Shop-built structure reassembled on site
My client’s property was extremely difficult so Ryan decided to build the structure in my shop.
Using the lumber he’d sawn, Ryan built an incredible structure. Then he numbered everything, disassembled it, and hauled it all to the job site. We raised the components with a 100-ton crane and lowered them down a steep embankment and into place. Then Ryan reassembled the structure. Perfect.
When the job was done, my client said, ‘Ryan, you should be an engineer!’ And that’s what he’s doing. He’s gone back to school to become an electrical engineer. His work with the TimberKing was an incredible learning experience for my son. It inspired him to grow into a whole new level in his professional career…and his life.
I always wanted a sawmill…
I’ve owned and operated heavy equipment for decades — excavators, wheel loaders, dozers, rollers, and more. But I always wanted a sawmill. I liked TimberKing because the welded steel frame and 4-post head make it very strong and stable. The 2000 is great all around. It’s straight-forward and uncomplicated. I felt it was small enough to tow and big enough to cut what I need – logs up to 36” diameter. My TimberKing has paid for itself a thousand times over. I’ve had no problems. It’s a great mill and I really enjoy it.
And I like the Kubota diesel engine. Diesel gives me lots of torque, power, reliability, fuel efficiency, and low maintenance. Diesel’s safer than gasoline and it doesn’t gum things up like gas can.
Old-school customer service
As far as customer service, when you call TimberKing, you talk with tech reps who really know their machines inside and out. Parts shipping is fast and you get what you need quickly. I tell people all the time — with a TimberKing, I have fun and make money, too.
Towing and sawing up and down the East Coast
Meanwhile, I’m sawing lumber with the TimberKing. I’ve towed it and sawed logs from New Jersey to Florida, New Hampshire, and Maine – all kinds of oak, cherry, pine, maple, ash, black walnut and more. I’ve even sawed up redwood – specimen redwoods planted in New Jersey back in the ’80s.!
So I’m sawing, working, building, landscaping, making furniture, and loving it all. I’m 63 years old and, God willing, I’ll still be having fun sawing when I’m 73.”
— James Crimmins, Crimmins Landscaping, TimberKing Sawmill Owner, Clouster NJ
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