Replies

1. 
   MikeHennessy | Nov 28, 2007 03:44pm | #1

   I've used one that I borrowed from a friend to cut about 200 bf from a pine log in my yard. I wanted this wood for "sentimental" reasons, or I wouldn't have bothered. It worked OK for that small bit of wood (it took about 4 hrs or so, IIRC), but I wouldn't want to do much more or do it on a regular basis. And don't even think of doing this with a crummy saw. This is definately not intermittant cutting.

   Fine for harvesting a small amount of "special" wood, but definately not for production work.

   Mike Hennessy
   Pittsburgh, PA

2. 
   jerry | Nov 28, 2007 06:08pm | #2

   As a young'n I had a Granberg mill that could cut up to 30" across - run with a Stihl 090 on each end. Although it was a lot of work we made 1000's of board feet with it. Another nice thing about it was that you could take the mill to the log (rather than the reverse) - cut out some big chunks that you could haul somewhere for a resaw. But there was many a long day just cutting out beautiful planks. And if I did not mention it before - it is a LOT of work.

   If you're ever interested I did a piece on how to setup for the 1st cut -not matter how long the log is. Let me know.

   jerry

3. 
   Senomozi | Nov 28, 2007 07:01pm | #3

   Never used one myself but I understand you need a ripping chain, not the typical cross-cut chain chainsaws come with.

   Senomozi

4. 
   saschafer | Nov 28, 2007 07:10pm | #4

   I have one (a small one--18" bar). It works. It's a lot more effort than going down to the lumber yard or ordering wood over the Internet, but it lets you get to logs that otherwise couldn't be harvested. As senomozi says, you need a rip chain (you can get one from Granberg).

   Overall, I think portable bandsaw mills are probably better, but they're bigger and can't get into as many places as a chainsaw mill can.

   -Steve

    

5. 
   JeffHeath | Nov 28, 2007 08:32pm | #5

   One thought comes to mind......back spasms.  They are a lot of work.  The chainsaw has a large kerf, so alot of wood is wasted.  I know quite a few guys over at the Forestry Forum ( a sawing and drying forum similar to knots for sawmill owners) that used a chainsaw mill once, only to move on quickly to either a swing mill or a bandmill.

   They are quite a bit cheaper than a bandmill, though, and as someone already stated, the quality of the saw is most important.  Don't expect to do any good with some backyard hand grenade saw for homeowners.  You'll need a saw like a Stihl, husqvarna, etc..... to get any decent results.

   If you only need to mill up a log or two, and don't expect to do it frequently, you're much better off finding a local sawyer who will saw the logs for you.  If he's experienced, you'll get nicer lumber, an extra board or two, and no backache.

   Jeff

1. 
   the rev | Nov 29, 2007 04:17pm | #6

   Ditto on the back. I've got the "alaska mill" with a big Husqi pushing a 24" bar. It's slow, loud work, most of it bent over because you can't really get a big log off the ground. Pretty smooth finish though, for a chain saw. After five logs, I called my lumber guy, and he picked up the rest of the logs for a small fee, sliced them up, and I went to pick them up. Much easier. But the chain saw mill is handy if you want to take it up into the hills.Scott

6. 
   aew | Nov 29, 2007 09:35pm | #7

   There are a bunch of us wood nuts out here that use chainsaw mills, bandsaw mills, etc. frequently. I recommend you pull up the ArboristSite.com link and go to the Milling Tab and take a look. There are a lot of people out there using these types of mills even if they don't have any woodlots. I use what is called a RipSaw which is a portable one man bandsaw mill driven by a chainsaw head and have slabbed off several thousand board feet of maple, cherry, and aspen for my woodworking hobby. I'm lucky to have some acreage to get trees from but there are people out here who through friends and acquaintances get more downed trees than they can ever hope to use. Both the chainsaw mills and bandsaw mills have there own advantages and disadvantages. I bought my mill used and keep on adding things to it. One warning-this is addictive.

7. 
   BobSmalser | Dec 02, 2007 07:10pm | #8

   I keep a Granberg Alaskan around to recover wood too remote to get the truck-mounted sawmill to.  They are good, economical mills for the occasional user, too.

   You need the biggest saw you can afford, a long bar, a couple ripping chains and the gear to sharpen them with.  Baileys logging supply in California and Tennessee has it all at decent prices.  Here's a pictorial on them:

   http://cannings.com.au/your-alaskan-mill-at-work.htm

   Understand the chain saw is vastly underpowered compared to the feed rates you see other sawmills cut at, and adjust accordingly.  At best, you are milling with 8hp of high-rpm/low-torque screamer milling a 1/4-3/8" kerf.   There is little comparison to 18-25hp of torquey, twin-cylinder power driving a narrower 1/8-3/16" kerf, let alone the 60hp, 4-cyl engine in a dimension mill driving a quarter-inch kerf.

   Use double ear protection, and if you get into it you can cancel your gym membership.

   
   

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   Edited 12/2/2007 11:13 am by BobSmalser

8. 
   terryb | Dec 14, 2007 12:39am | #9

   I welded one up once. The problem is that the kerf is so large it takes gobs of power to do. It's slow, hard on the saw and, in my opinion, dangerous. I now have a stationary bandmill and it's paid for itself many times over. You might look at the RIPZAW which is a bandsaw on a chainsaw motor. I tried one once and it worked pretty well but I opted for the bandmill.