Portable saw mill

[Johnsond]

19 hours ago, Splitter said:

I've some beech I'd like to plank up but have never used a saw mill, are the portable one's advertised for use with a chainsaw any good?

Cheers Robert 

Might be worth putting up a couple of pics of the actual logs, that will give the guys whom have done a bit of milling a better idea of the work involved. Lot of waste and graft with a chainsaw mill if it’s a decent quantity of logs to mill. 

[Dan Maynard]

 

Quite possible to make one, it's only a frame to hold the bar steady. 

[Splitter]

3 hours ago, Johnsond said:

Might be worth putting up a couple of pics of the actual logs, that will give the guys whom have done a bit of milling a better idea of the work involved. Lot of waste and graft with a chainsaw mill if it’s a decent quantity of logs to mill. 

I'll get a few pic, there between 20"-32" thick and 10-15ft lengths.

[trigger_andy]

On 14/07/2022 at 13:32, Splitter said:

I'll get a few pic, there between 20"-32" thick and 10-15ft lengths.

A 36" Chilaskan would do the job and your wee saw should manage with a Low Pro bar. 

[Splitter]

4 hours ago, trigger_andy said:

A 36" Chilaskan would do the job and your wee saw should manage with a Low Pro bar. 

I've a Chilaskan ordered up. You reckon my 572 would pull a 42" lo pro ?

I've a decent straight oak needing to come down about 32" thick also, but don't think I'll tackle it until i get setup proper and confident in what I'm doing 😁😁

[trigger_andy]

38 minutes ago, Splitter said:

I've a Chilaskan ordered up. You reckon my 572 would pull a 42" lo pro ?

I've a decent straight oak needing to come down about 32" thick also, but don't think I'll tackle it until i get setup proper and confident in what I'm doing 😁😁

I think you'll maybe be pushing the limits with a 42" Lo Pro but others might have more first hand knowledge. 

 

Am I right in thinking the 572 and Stihl 660 have around the same HP. I dont think I would wanna run a 42" bar on a 660 and thats a 90cc Saw.

[Splitter]

37 minutes ago, trigger_andy said:

I think you'll maybe be pushing the limits with a 42" Lo Pro but others might have more first hand knowledge. 

 

Am I right in thinking the 572 and Stihl 660 have around the same HP. I dont think I would wanna run a 42" bar on a 660 and thats a 90cc Saw.

I think it's 5.8hp? Maybe a 36" bar to mill 25" or so ?

Edited July 16, 2022 by Splitter

[Dan Maynard]

I've run 36" lo-pro on my 372, it cuts ok but is just faster with a bigger saw. 42 you will need to be careful when cutting the full width boards, it will be slow but you'll make progress.

 

It sounds to me like you have a fair bit of timber around, you should get the 42 as you'll end up getting a bigger saw later. Otherwise if you can live without the waney edge look (you probably take the sapwood off oak before using it anyway) then stick on 36". Freehand the sides off the log when you need to, it's not too difficult with a long bar.

 

The Stihl GB bars on chainsawbars can be adapted to either Husqvarna or Stihl with a little aluminium spacer, so that if you find a secondhand 660 or 395 you'll be ok, or indeed 880.

 

One last tip is the lo-pro 3/8 is a different height to standard 3/8 chain and requires a different drive sprocket.

[Splitter]

5 hours ago, Dan Maynard said:

I've run 36" lo-pro on my 372, it cuts ok but is just faster with a bigger saw. 42 you will need to be careful when cutting the full width boards, it will be slow but you'll make progress.

 

It sounds to me like you have a fair bit of timber around, you should get the 42 as you'll end up getting a bigger saw later. Otherwise if you can live without the waney edge look (you probably take the sapwood off oak before using it anyway) then stick on 36". Freehand the sides off the log when you need to, it's not too difficult with a long bar.

 

The Stihl GB bars on chainsawbars can be adapted to either Husqvarna or Stihl with a little aluminium spacer, so that if you find a secondhand 660 or 395 you'll be ok, or indeed 880.

 

One last tip is the lo-pro 3/8 is a different height to standard 3/8 chain and requires a different drive sprocket.

Many thanks for the advice 👍👍👍👍

[Splitter]

Got the Chinesium mill and cut my first board with stock bar, I'll probably only get 16"-17" from it though.

The finish wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be, lots more practice and messing about to do, but there's hope 🤣

Thanks for the help folks 👍