Ax-man

We just had a local festival here. One of the main attractions is on a road close to me leading to this attraction. With the help of a neighbor who has property along this road let me set-up a small display of my carving and chain saw milling projects. I just wanted to see if my stuff would sell and see what people liked. The mushrooms that looked natural, burned with a torch a little and finished with spar varnish sold good. The benches and the welcome sign were also popular items. The biggest hassle was getting the right price on the stuff. The first day I had things priced a little high. The second day I had to mark things down and sold more. The benches I practically gave away considering the time I put into them, especially the one that had the back and was sanded and finished. I had many lookers on that item but no one wanted to crack open their wallets, ended up di counting that one toward the end of the second and final day just to get rid of it. Oh well at least I know what the market will bear. Hope you guys don't mind me getting in on this thread I have enjoyed reading it. I know benches and signs aren't carving but just thought I woud throw them in just in case someone is looking for ideas. The sign was my first time using a router and doing lettering which was another leaning experience.:001_rolleyes: I am no pro by any means but would like some honest opinions on my work as I plan to keep doing this for a little while longer anyways. I don't have any artistic talent so I have stayed away from carving figures like bears and eagles, but I'll get bold some day and give it a try. Here are some pics.

One of the pics shows a C clamp on one of the 2x4's that are supporting the small log or that pic of the slab. It acts like a stop. I have since refined this a little by switching to quick clamps made by Irwin. I got a super long one and now clamp one end to a scrap piece of wood to the bottom of the support 2x4's cross ways and clamp the other end on top of the log. Sometimes you have to make a little flat spot for clamp. As the saw gets close to the end of the cut I just undo it and finish the cut. A little trick I got into was to enter the log at a 45 degree angle with chain pulling the log into the mill . The log pretty much stays in place while your sawing but you still have to keep an eye on everything because the vibration can move the log sideways. After getting into the cut you can saw at any angle you want. I forgot to mention that I also built this thing to be able to do some edging . I have stuff to do that also. Haven't really had a chance to play with those attachments because we have been too busy doing tree work and that comes first.

Here is one more.

Hey guys, I have been checking out your milling and carving forums for awhile now. I like what I am reading. I got into this milling thing last spring and bought a 30 inch mill for cutting seats and backs for making outdoor benches. I also bought the smaller 20 inch mill for the smaller logs. I am not to keen on nailing or screwing guides onto a log to make that first cut and laying a ladder over a log wasn't going to work for me so I built this milling. It is adjustable by adding or subtracting 2x4's or 2x6's.The mill can be adjusted for the fine tuning to make a cut. I can slide one of stands to increase the length. Right now it is set at 8 ft. or just shy of 3 meters if my conversion is correct. I like this set-up and have straightened out a few pieces I tried to freehand with just a chain saw. The only draw back is for the mill with the two bar clamps you have to support the saw and then slide the guide rails under the mill and then get them to rest on the stands and then clamp them in. I still need to refine it a little but it does work and for the smaller 20 inch mill it works great because you don't have monkey around with the guide rails because that small mill has only one bar clamp. Here are a few pics. I don't have any idea what to call this thing other than an adjustable saw buck or saw guide.

Thanks, that makes more sense. If I remember right the 020t had just one adjustable low speed jet in those carbs and those carbs were a POS. I had one of those 020t's and never liked it. the ms's came out a little later with the adjustable or somewhat adjustable carb with both the H&L screws to adjust the jets. This was a vast improvement over the 020t. Larry

Did I read those few posts right about the carb on the ms 200's that are having trouble. That the old style square bodied 020 carb will interchange with the present day ms 200???? That don't seem quite right to me that they would, but then again I haven't tried to see if could be done. The 020 had a unique or let's just say different carb set-up to it than other saws do with that funky boot and flange. Larry

Looks good, but just a comment from my experience from using ring pulley type friction savers. If you install it from the ground and use it to body thrust up into the tree or footlock the tail of the rope. This set-up will work good as you are basically in line with the friction saver with the climbing rope being basically vertical. When you start to work the top of the tree the friction saver and the climbing rope are more at an angle with the friction saver also being at the same angle of the climbing rope. The cheeks of the pulley will sometimes get "off " so to speak and doesn't line up with the large ring the way it should and the climbing rope doesn't track quite straight adding friction, it works but not as good as climbing on a single pulley like the rope guide. The connecting link in this case the shackle puts a turn or twist on the webbing which is why I think the pulley doesn't run true all the time up in a tree because your full body weight isn't on the friction saver like it is when your body thrusting on the friction saver. Their are many different combinations of pulleys and ring sizes. Yours looks like like a good match of pulley width to the diameter of the large ring to eliminate that binding effect that happens sometimes. I would ditch that shackle as you could have your rope running against the pin and could turn it out, that would not be a good thing unless you can anchor that pin somehow. Even if you wired that screw pin so it wouldn't turn out would be safer than the way you have now. Give it a try and see how it goes, you never know till you try it out.

They don't vibrate that bad, my hands are just sensitive to a saw that vibrates a lot. Both of those saws are on rubber. The saws I have may need the rubber changed as I have had them for a long time, maybe the rubber is just stiff.

Both are good saws if vibration does not bother your hands. The 028 in the WoodBoss or Super is a better saw than the plain Jane AV. The 034 is a good saw for it's size they seem to be very durable. For a truck saw I would go 28 because it is a little lighter. It all depends on what your cutting, limb wood 028 small diameter logs 034. Larry

Nice site you have here Steve. I'll find a spot or two to post in. Thanks for the welcome. Larry