Big J

Please, please, PLEASE post the CCTV footage!

This is my sawmill shed, constructed last October. 12x12 posts, 12x9 main beams, overall dimensions 40x20ft. It faces the prevailing wind and moves not one millimetre in gale force winds. This is my office, constructed just after using the spare roof sheets from the barn. Tongue and groove construction (done here with the four side planer), insulated and clad in poplar. And finally, this is my log shed at home. All oak constructed, and despite holding 22 cubic metres, it's not big enough!

Sorry to hear that Matty. I hope that you get your kit back, or at the very least that they catch the scum who took it.

Hi Tony, Nice boards, well cut. To avoid the dip at the end of the cut, put a lot of pressure on the back rail by leaning down on it. That usually stops the cut dipping the end. Jonathan

Whilst I agree with much of what you say, in that firewood weights and measures are all over the place in the UK (and firewood is a bit too expensive, though we don't have the resources that mainland Europe has, and premises costs tend to be higher), selling a stacked load is just too time consuming. It would take me as long to stack a cube as it would take to cross cut and split it. If everyone sells the same amount loose, you have parity. The problem is the builders bag brigade. I emptied a 1m cube crate of small pieces of firewood (very dry stuff I use in the woodburner in the office) into a builders bag today as I needed the crate. The crate was only a touch over half full. That completely filled the builders bag.

Ended up being a bit more expensive - my father pays 145 Euros for 3 cubic metres of Oak.

Ruffec is just around the corner from where my father lives (St Macoux). I could ask him where he gets his if it's any help.

Good stuff. It really does look like good value for money and ideal for the smaller sized softwood that you usually deal with. I shall watch this thread with anticipation.

Very nice Marcus, get it ordered!

I only usually use the Alaskan mill to break down large logs for the Logmaster LM2 bandmill that's sitting under the roof in the pictures: I did actually work out that production rate for the double ended mill was comparable to a hydraulic band mill - about 35-40 cubic foot an hour. The customer wanted the oversized boards - I don't put boards of that size into my own stock. Using an Alaskan on an inaccessible site suits smaller sized mills - boards of this size aren't really possible for people to lift, so every board was moved by forklift. Chainsaw milling is certainly very hard work, but has it's place!

Wait until you use it again. I've been fettling the chain and you'll be too busy trying to hang on for dear life to get bored!

It must be something to do with the aromatic qualities of cedar. Perhaps he just grinds all down for some sort of homeopathic hit?!

Not here. Miserable, damp, drizzly rubbish. Living near the sea sucks!

The feel of it is mostly just very hard work. It's been a while since I've ached like that - controlling over 17hp is knackering!

It doesn't say anything about artic access.....I'll check with the seller.

The clutch deals with it to a degree, but there is a fairly concise system of 3 - 2 - 1 - GO going on!

You don't disappoint!

Excellent!

It's 56 inches as it is at the moment, but there is a bit of spare space on the bar, so 60 inches would go with slightly longer rails. Jonathan

I should think that 84" would still be fine. It flew on a 72" bar, and I imagine that it would still be faster cutting a 70 inch wide board with two powerheads than a 35" board with one. The real issue is moving the boards. I've got a forklift, so the boards I can handle - it's the logs that present the issue! Where I think it would be truly awesome is cutting 40" stock. A 56" bar on two 088s would easily churn out 200-250 cubic foot a day. Boards are easier to handle too.

Excellent! Ideal for a small scale biomass coppicer!

Poor Clive (delabodge) is going to be bankrupted at this rate, there are so many nice Cedars up for sale! Nice stick that, too good for firewood in my opinion.

I've recently become a complete convert to chainsaw milling with two power heads. Stephen Blair has very kindly loaned me his 72" set up and the difference between it and single ended 088 milling is staggering. I've long been of the opinion that with regard to chainsaw milling, a doubling of power results in a greater than doubling of cut speed. The difference going from 8.7hp to 17.4hp with the two power heads is a four fold increase in cut speed. Through 45-55" wide chestnut (very knobbly too - a lot of burrs to maneuver around) I was getting a cut rate of 2 to 2.5ft a minute. Conversely, cut rate though 35-40" Oak with one powerhead is usually no more than 1.5ft a minute, and I find each extra inch of with of cut slows things down a lot. Other benefits - no need for auxiliary oiling, as chain stays well oiled from both ends. Sawmill is far better balanced - I haven't chainsaw milled by myself for a long time now and the even weight of each powerhead makes for a smoother cut. It's also more efficient in terms of fuel - I cut 194 hoppus foot in 5 1/2 cutting (2.25" boards) on about 13-14 litres of fuel. I would have used 19-20 with a single power head. Finally, you have to sharpen far less. Due to the much much quicker cut rate, depth gauges can be brought right down (wait until you use your mill again Stephen - you're in for a treat/shock/both!) resulting in fewer passes by each tooth to achieve a set distance of cutting. On wide hardwood I generally sharpen every 25ft of cut with a single powerhead - it wasn't necessary to sharpen more than once every 45-50ft of cut (and that was a wider cut). So, I'd urge each of you chainsaw millers out there to seriously consider the merits of a double ended mill. I'd wager that most of you who chainsaw mill reasonably frequently do so with a helper to help move the boards. You might as well have two powerheads, save yourself 75% of the cutting time, 30% of your fuel, 50% of your sharpening and all that HAVS exposure! Here are a few pictures from the cutting of the sweet chestnut. This was the first length, which was quite clean and free of burrs.

I just want to say that I really hope that the stem is as good as it looks - rarely do you find a more beautifully uniform sawlog than that