Home Made Mills

[Brewz]

Hi Folks

I have cut enough firewood to last me and my parents a few years

I thought....... what can I do with my saws, I want to keep using them but there is no money in selling firewood.

I want to make a mill to start cutting some slabs.

I have an 066 which will soon be ported and have a 42" bar.

I can also make things, I am good at it, so am interested in people posting up their mills, home made or bought to help those of us on a budget to make one

I am talking Alaskan mill's only here.

Post em up folks!

 

[Sty57]

I've been thinking the same thing.
Pic's of different mills and what you do and don't like about them would be great.

 

[Jimmy in NC]

Brian I owe you pictures of my Granberg. This weekend the wife is out of town so I know it'll happen.

Anyways I'll share my limited chainsaw mill (CSM) knowledge..

-I figure a minute per foot to cut when using a 32" bar on a 394 so 26-27" width slabs.
-You DO need an auxiliary oiler.
-You will burn more fuel in a day than you thought was possible on such little logs.
-Don't mill unless you have somewhere to sticker your product.
-You can not have your mill rigid enough.
-You will loose fasteners; any brand saw.
-Get the log off the ground and a slope is better.
-Wooden shims are a must to keep the kerf from closing up and always keep a back pocket full.
-A fan blowing from behind is a God send keeping you cool, exhaust going away, and saw dust moving forward. I use an old furnace blower.
-File every cut or at least every other. Failing to do so will mess with that new fancy bar.
-If I took all the money I have spent on Alaskan Milling and had saved it, I could have bought a band mill and been productive.
-You need a minimill to compliment a full blown alaskan.
-Have a friend help you move slabs even if you have a loader with forks.
-Enjoy the first cut through a log. It's the prettiest that wood grain will ever look when you open it up.
-Drink lots of water... lots.
-Do NOT mill somewhere you like the grass, it make a LOT of sawdust.


I'll think of more I'm sure.

 

[Sty57]

Thanks Jimmy
It's nice to see it put that way, gives a guy stuff to think about.

 

[Sty57]

What about Dry time?
Do you cut green logs or can you let them sit?

 

[Wolverine]

I found this vid to show another member asking about homemade.

 

[quietfly]

Cool video!

 

[quietfly]

"-You need a minimill to compliment a full blown alaskan"
Can you talk a little about this?

 

[mdavlee]

"-You need a minimill to compliment a full blown alaskan"
Can you talk a little about this?

If you have a mini mill you don't have to flip the log to cut the sides.

 

[quietfly]

Ah ok. But is flipping the log more difficult than swapping the bar?

 

[czar800]

I built this one and you can see in the first Picture there's no handle or extra cross brace very important to have. Top picture is of the first time I milled

You really need a handle, but the extra brace was more important.
I found out fast it's needed to start your cut after you remove the rails.

I'll get better pictures later of how I built tonight.

 

[mdavlee]

Ah ok. But is flipping the log more difficult than swapping the bar?

Sometimes. 2 saws works for that so you don't have to take one out of the Alaskan.

 

[quietfly]

Heh i haven't even gotten my first saw delivered, and already i need more.... sounds like my kind of hobby... .

 

[Wolverine]

Careful, it can get addictive/expensive.

 

[Wagnerwerks]

Just found this when I came home from tacking up my first mill. .

 

[czar800]

One of the down sides to how I built my is its fits only a 36" bar.
I built my mill very quickly as a prototype, but it worked and it's very basic. It's 1"X11" 1/8"

 

[Jimmy in NC]

What about Dry time?
Do you cut green logs or can you let them sit?

Always try to cut green. Dry wood is very tough to mill. The wood coming off the chain when milling resembles the dust from a circular saw. When dry its worse and makes things 100x harder all the way around.

 

[Jimmy in NC]

"-You need a minimill to compliment a full blown alaskan"
Can you talk a little about this?

You initially take a cap off the log. Then you can roll it 90° and repeat the setup or take a minimill and knock a side off. A mini is quick to setup and can be run with a 70 cc saw as you wont go over 20" bar with one.

Also large logs can be quartered with a mini quickly to a manageable size for the Alaskan.

Not squaring two sides makes a lot of ripping with a skill saw to start making useable stock. With a square edge you can run that down a table saw fence and bam...usable material.

 

[czar800]

I use a few blocks to set depth. I tied them together because once you start milling anything left on the ground will disappear quickly.

 

[Wagnerwerks]

I use a few blocks to set depth. I tied them together because once you start milling anything left on the ground will disappear quickly.
View attachment 11708
View attachment 11709

Excellent... This looks almost exactly like the one I'm building. Thanks for the reassurance.