agg221

Walnut isn't the world's most durable timber outdoors, but with suitable sealing it will last a fair while. If it's going to weather relatively quickly, it's probably worth thinking about bolder, simple forms rather than lots of detail work. If it's going up the middle it may be worth thinking about a form that allows retention of a bit more height up the edges - something shard-like. The other option would be, once the top is off, to see just how long the sound bit is, and how much heartwood. If there's a lot of heartwood and only a narrow sapwood band, and a decent proportion of the total cross-sectional area is sound, they may do better to keep the maximum length of straight material possible and dig out the stump full-length, having this milled in-situ to subsequently create something for indoor use, meanwhile looking out for a lump of oak/cedar to put in its place as a more durable carved specimen. Milling through the stump is a risk to damaging chains, but if taken into account in the kit used is perfectly viable - see http://arbtalk.co.uk/forum/alaskan-mill/49031-need-some-milling-done-near-ipswich.html Alec

Hi Rich, I've been thinking about this - not from experience at all (never even looked at a 200) , but more of a thought experiment. You've got three 'symptoms' identified which differ from normal: Compression is a little low. It needs a bit of choke to start but is fine when running. There is no spurt of fuel when you take the fuel pipe off. If it needs choke to start, it suggests there isn't enough fuel getting through on start-up. Is tuning completely standard? If so, you can reasonably say that the condition cures itself when running. If not and you are tuning rich to get normal running it suggests the issue is not transient, which in a way would help as it would make it easier to find. Causes I can think of are a poor vacuum on the diaphragm pump, poor pumping action (ruled out if you've tried a known good carb) and a partial blockage in the fuel pathway. You have the same symptoms with different carbs, and from the way you test pressure and vacuum there is no leak between the impulse line (pot side) and the carb boot (pot side). Areas you haven't tested for sealing with the current set-up are carb boot (carb side) and impulse line (carb side). If it is either of these you could assume that, since different carbs produce the same symptoms, you have a problem with the rubber side rather than the carb side. It needn't be a split - could be a partial internal defect on the sealing face. Seems relatively unlikely, as you would probably struggle to get a seal on the carb boot with your marker pen, and on the tester on the impulse line, however if they're not sealing in quite the same location, or with matched diameters to the normal component, it could still pass testing. You could test the complete impulse line if you can pressure test through the spark plug hole, with the carb off but connected to the impulse line. You couldn't directly test the carb/carb boot seal, but a good smear of grease over the interface would temporarily seal it, so if it ran normally after applying this you could reasonably infer it was the problem. However, this would be a consistent weakening of the mix, so is unlikely to be the issue as you could tune it out by tuning rich. If it's a fuel flow issue which is consistent with different carbs (particularly if one is known good), it suggests it's not the carb. This leaves the tank and the fuel hose/filter. If the tank breather is fine, there's nothing else to test in the tank. Have you tried a different fuel hose and filter? I can see it would be possible to have a manufacturing error here which left a 'flappy bit' (technical term) of rubber in the bore which took a bit of 'pull' to move out of the way, which may not be achieved when pulling over but would be easier once running. A manufacturing error in the gauze of the filter may create similar symptoms, but is less likely as it would tend to be more of a consistent blockage of certain holes in the gauze. These latter would also be consistent with the lack of fuel spurt. Hope the above thoughts are of some use! Alec

I bought a rubber backing disc and discs from the local welding suppliers - a box of 50off 40 grit for about a tenner. Pretty good at shifting a large amount of material. Personally, I would tackle your job with a well sharpened gouge and a mallet, and it would be surprisingly quick (and comparatively very cheap). Depending on whether you want mirror-smooth or hand-tooled, I would then decide on whether to take all marks out with a sanding disc or not. Alec

They are pretty unsophisticated and brutal, but there's nothing quite like them for sheer unstoppable grunt. Is yours the AV one (with the bar handle running front to back across the top) or the non-AV one? The non-AV one is even more brutal! Alec

090 is as big as they get. 137cc, quoted power varies but was advertised as 13hp at 6,500rpm. Very nice saw to have. Alec

Thought you might spot this one.....

May be worth contacting Big J on here - he mills some elm and can give a fair assessment. Alec

Whereabouts is it? Alec

051AV is a decent smaller milling saw - would be a very good fit to a 24" mill and would cope with a 30" mill (36" if you keep the chain spot on with one of Rob D's grinders). Alec

I presume from your description that the 5th is Study 11?, I can't work out which number the other one you like is. I agree with 11 and also like Studies 2, 5, 9 and 18. Alec

Excellent find. Really effective technique and some great subject matter. Thanks for posting. Alec

It's an ambitious opening bid for a non-runner. In known running condition they make around the £300-350 mark if the seller will ship. Pick-up only depends heavily on location - one in Aberdeen made £225 recently in good working order. The last non-runner made about £120. That one has also had at least its top cover changed at some point. Would need the serial number to work out whether it's actually an early one or late one. Alec

Chainsaw mounted band mill. http://arbtalk.co.uk/forum/milling-forum/29832-why-i-like-my-ripsaw-mill-good-day.html

No shrouds of that type I'm afraid - only the short ones. There may be a muffler - depends if I can fix the one on my saw back together or not. Alec

I use a chainsaw mounted bandsaw mill, and have hired in a large portable bandsaw mill before. There are others on this site who do too. However, this particular thread is on the Alaskan Mill sub-forum.... Alec

Martin, just wait a bit and you too will be an expert on the Octonauts (and making associated blue cakes). Alec

Your feeling would still be correct, but hopefully just for testing. Not sure if I've cured all leaks. Cakes lie within our combined repertoire, although the last one may have been a little blue for your taste, it representing the sea for our eldest's fourth birthday cake, with little icing figures of the various characters from Octonauts on top. Alec

Great story. I think skills like this still have their place and the advent of the internet makes it a whole lot easier to keep them alive. The scythe I used had previously belonged to my grandfather, who had given it to Dad (his son-in-law) in the early 1980s as he had conceded he wouldn't use it again, being in his 80s himself at this point. It came minus the back handle, which had succumbed to woodworm. In that pre- internet age, trying to find a scythe handle was near impossible. None of the local ag dealers or hardware shops still had them, even the old shops which had been going since they had been commonplace. We eventually found one, in an old hardware shop on holiday in Yorkshire in about 1986. Just checked ebay - four suitable handles instantly available! Alec

In my opinion, no. Ash is not naturally durable and any piece which tends by design to have flat, horizontal surfaces exposed outside is likely to end up with lying water. This will end up in surface checks and hence you tend to get fairly rapid rot setting in. You can overcome inherent water traps by good design - something well known to joiners in previous generations which is why so many 19th century and earlier wooden windows still survive (although admittedly they did have more stable timber than was used in the 1960s/70s). You can overcome this by regular treatment with something water repellant (oils and waxes), sealing (e.g. varnish) and/or fungicidal, but it's not ideal. 'Best' is subjective, but outdoors oak, sweet chestnut and cedar are durable (as is yew if you feel so inclined) and robinia is extremely durable. Indoors, whatever you like really. Some things are harder, others softer, some lighter, redder, darker, more pronounced grain etc. but they all have their uses - some things are in fashion and others aren't, but if it's for your own use that doesn't make much odds. Alec

Hmmm. Aged about 16 I cut the grass in the orchard one summer holiday (around an acre) with a scythe as the mower was bust and we didn't have a brushcutter at the time and it had got to about 2ft high. Doing it took me two days and I was shattered. Doing it to the standard on that video takes a huge amount of skill. Alec

And thanks Barrie too - I was actually outside testing it when you posted. Oh yes. It didn't catch me out this time around though - I checked it by opening the tank and listening for the hiss, rather than firing petrol across the kitchen (again). I know I use Aspen, and it's very clean and everything, but my wife was doing the dinner and I thought the Aspen/gas ring combination may not be optimum in a thatched house..... Alec

Cheers Rich, ideas much appreciated and spot on in identifying the problem. Well, if nothing else I have become pretty quick at this - since reading your post I've started from fully assembled saw, stripped the carb, established fuel pressure was fine but not getting through to the top end. Realised I hadn't set the height on the metering arm, set the height on the metering arm, put it all back together again, started it and established it's fine. I make that a shade under half an hour all in. It can now go off and be pressure/vac tested and tach tuned - assuming all's good I finally have a happy saw again and can carry on cutting up the milling offcuts for firewood. Alec

Well, the 026 is still proving annoying. Carb fully cleaned and carb kit installed, new impulse line (without even swearing, is this where I went wrong?) and new fuel line. All back together, H and L screws at 1 turn and it won't now run at all. It's fine if you pour a teaspoonful in through the air filter - starts and runs fine. It just won't run on the carb at all. Suggestions? Alec

Are you using a processor? If not, it may be useful to know that I sometimes get sawlogs from people who normally do firewood, as they don't want the oversized stuff. There are pieces that are oversize for processors, but fine for hand processing, and no use for milling, so oddly enough it may be worth talking to firewood processors directly if that would suit. Alec

Which model of muffler and shroud are you looking for (there are at least two mufflers and three shrouds!) If you can point me at a picture I'll see which ones there are. Alec