Is milling hard on saws?

[trigger_andy]

Im looking at getting an 881 and a 60" Panther Mill in the first quarter of 2021. I used an 088 before and thought it was really good for milling but Rough said the new 881 is a good step up from the 880 then the step up from an 088 must be quite impressive. 

[trigger_andy]

10 minutes ago, Big Beech said:

my longest run was 11mins with my 090 at about 40"+ in hard Beech.

One tank per board.

Dont let Rough hear you say that!  

 

[tree_beard]

9 minutes ago, trigger_andy said:

881 is a good step up from the 880 then the step up from an 088 must be quite impressive. 

088 and 880 are pretty much mechanically identical. If anything your 088 would have performed better than some 880s as I think later 880s had more restrictive exhaust.

 

881 does look good though

[trigger_andy]

Just now, tree_beard said:

088 and 880 are pretty much mechanically identical. If anything your 088 would have performed better than some 880s as I think later 880s had more restrictive exhaust.

 

881 does look good though

Ah ok.  I really liked my 088, puled through the logs great. A fellow member here now has it and he is impressed with its performance. So may I'll not see such a bigger of an improvement after all.  

 

Ive got a classic car up for sale, if that sells I'll have the funds to get more heavily into milling on my own plot and having a range of slabs drying and for sale. Make it more of a proper business than just the hobby it is for me. Im also getting inundated with milling requests for Alaskan and Bandsaw work. 

[topchippyles]

35 minutes ago, Big Beech said:

my longest run was 11mins with my 090 at about 40"+ in hard Beech.

One tank per board.

My longest run was 26.2 miles in 2006 london marathon. 5 1/2 hrs 

[Rough Hewn]

Bedding in is a good idea before milling big timber.
3-5 tanks of disco biscuits with cooling time between is advantageous I’m told.

After I’ve cut a slab, I give it 30-60 seconds of decreasing throttle, idling, bit of revving before turning off, so as to not shock cool the hot engine.

As for the 881 performance, it’s almost identical to an 880.
But that’s where the similarities stop. It’s been completely re done.
Its an ergonomic chainsaw now.
You can use it for felling and cross cutting, which I wouldn’t bother doing with the 880.

To the original question,
Yes and no.
Your saw will not look like it’s been thrown around the back of a transit for several years, and the base will not be scratched or gouged.
But if you aren’t careful with maintenance it’s easier to damage a saw milling.
I didn’t clean my fuel filters and it leaned out until the piston seized.
[emoji106]

[Macpherson]

1 hour ago, tree_beard said:

leave your saw to idle for a while to cool down. Basic mechanical sympathy goes a long way

I agree with the second part as many are brutal with equipment, but a roasting saw fresh out of the slab really doesn't want to be subjected to much reduced tick over fuel / lubrication and the equal reduction in cooling air flow, I don't see a problem with shutting it off and letting it cool down....if it's not running no wear can take place.. the piston will shrink before the pot when combustion stops.

 

On the other hand warming up before use is essential good practice as the piston being smaller will get hot and expand well before the barrel reaches operating temperature.

' Warming up ' doesn't mean letting it tick over for 10 mins while you do something else....the best method is to continuously blip the throttle making sure it gets plenty fuel for a few minutes gradually bringing it up to full revs when it should smoke a little burning off the extra fuel / lube that's built up in the process.

 

Only my opinion of course..  but has long been best practice with high performance 2 stroke motorcycles.

 

Also the 881 is advertised for milling 👍

[topchippyles]

For the life of me a chainsaw is designed to cut timber and  big saws the 880/881 should work all day if its cross cutting/felling/ringing up or milling and should make no difference in my book.Yes they work hard but they are 120 cc for christ sake running a chain.Keep them well serviced like the wife and should last years.

Edited December 17, 2020 by topchippyles

[Stere]

Quote

Say you had two big saws. Would it be better to use one for one cut and then the other for a second cut and so on?

or  a double ender?

[Wonky]

23 minutes ago, Macpherson said:

I agree with the second part as many are brutal with equipment, but a roasting saw fresh out of the slab really doesn't want to be subjected to much reduced tick over fuel / lubrication and the equal reduction in cooling air flow, I don't see a problem with shutting it off and letting it cool down....if it's not running no wear can take place.. the piston will shrink before the pot when combustion stops.

 

On the other hand warming up before use is essential good practice as the piston being smaller will get hot and expand well before the barrel reaches operating temperature.

' Warming up ' doesn't mean letting it tick over for 10 mins while you do something else....the best method is to continuously blip the throttle making sure it gets plenty fuel for a few minutes gradually bringing it up to full revs when it should smoke a little burning off the extra fuel / lube that's built up in the process.

 

Only my opinion of course..  but has long been best practice with high performance 2 stroke motorcycles.

 

Also the 881 is advertised for milling 👍

I would say ask any 2 stroke air cooled keen motorcycle person, what do you do after a long ride and racing up a few roads ? When yo come to a stop do you leave you engine running to lub and cool off or just switch it off ?

 

I bet your get a few different answers, but the real thing is with chainsaws you have a flywheel pushing air over the cooling fins to help cool while it’s running. 
IMO the last thing you want is a very hot engine switched off and then bake the lub off as it gets hotter and the fan is not sending cool air over the engine any more

 

but as with most things everyone is different and we learn the hard way some of the time. 😉

my way with milling is to run the chain a bit after a cut by  bliping the throttle  abit here and there until I see lub on the chain links. Then let it tick over for a min or two to take away the heat a bit.

you could argue the day temperatures etc. But when you’ve been milling on a hot day you just know instantly to let it run a bit longer.