DIY first cut rails for small logs around 14" diameter?

[MtnHaul]

From time to time I come across some logs that I would like to mill into beams for outdoor projects such as stairs, garden beds, small retaining walls, etc. On larger diameter material an extension ladder is quick and easy to setup for the first cut but it can be a beach on the smaller stuff. I don't really want to pay for the Granberg rail system and was wondering if anyone has come up with a lower cost first cut setup for smaller logs? If I could weld I would just fabricate something appropriate and call it a day but that's something I would have to hire out.

 

[Sloughfoot]

I always built my rails out of straight 2x6 when I was milling. Short ones screwed to each end level and the rails screwed to outside of those. Another short one every 8 feet or in the middle notched in to keep rails from sagging under the weight of the saw. Doesn't matter how the log is laying. If you level each end piece there won't be any twist. Make it as wide, narrow, short long as you want.

 

[MtnHaul]

I always built my rails out of straight 2x6 when I was milling. Short ones screwed to each end level and the rails screwed to outside of those. Another short one every 8 feet or in the middle notched in to keep rails from sagging under the weight of the saw. Doesn't matter how the log is laying. If you level each end piece there won't be any twist. Make it as wide, narrow, short long as you want.

I guess 2x6 selection at the lumber yard will make or break the results. Did you ever plane the boards or otherwise mitigate the variances often found in plain ol' SPF(Spruce/Pine/Fir) lumber? Things don't have to be perfect but when I take the time to mill something I always aim for as close to perfect as is reasonable.