# Hello from new member



## Ian Rogers (Dec 29, 2009)

Guys

My first post and I hope I'm going about it the right way but any feedback on site protocol welcome.

I've been milling for a few years now using a Husky 385 and 24 inch alaskan type mill. I have the luxury of having a ready supply of cypress pine and iron bark trees on my farm as well as a tractor with front end loader and a truck. I make my own chains from bulk using Oregon skip tooth chain and sharpen them using an Oregon chain grinder.

I've uploaded 7 photos into an album under my user profile as per the instructions on the site but I've yet to work out how to put them into a post.

My original inspiration came from Will Malloff's book and I've now seen quite a few good ideas from posts on this site.

I won't ask questions until I've thoroughly researched the site but my main areas of interest are:

chain types particularly for Australian hardwoods like iron bark. 
making the job easier - elevating the log, winches etc

Anyhow enough for the moment and I look forward to learning a lot from many of you.


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## Ian Rogers (Dec 29, 2009)

Photos attacghed now


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## BobL (Dec 29, 2009)

Ian Rogers said:


> chain types particularly for Australian hardwoods like iron bark.
> making the job easier - elevating the log, winches etc



Firstly welcome - it sounds like you will fit in just right here.

RE: chain types particularly for Australian hardwoods like iron bark. 
I've tried various skip, semi chisel, full chisel and square ground and my conclusion is if you have enough power then full comp semi chisel is the best chain for Aussie hardwood.
If you don't have enough power then skip helps. 

RE: Elevating the log.
If you have a tractor you are already better off than most.
Here's what I use when I don't have access to a loader.
http://www.arboristsite.com/showthread.php?t=55860
Here is an interesting website with what they call an AJ log lifter.
http://www.swing-set.us/tips.html


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## mtngun (Dec 29, 2009)

Maybe there's a better way but here's how I embed attached photos.

First, you use the paper clip icon to attach them to your post, which you have already done.

Then "PREVIEW" the post and click on the attached photo. It opens in a new tab, at least on my browser. Select and Copy the attachment's addy.

Then return to your PREVIEW and click on the photo icon -- the yellow icon with a mountain. It'll ask for an addy and you PASTE the addy.

Repeat for each photo.

















By the way, you are not considered a vetted forum member until BobL has inspected your CSMing ergonomics. The only way you will get a pass for this pose will be if you are a double amputee. Otherwise, prepare for the lecture.


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## BobL (Dec 29, 2009)

mtngun said:


> By the way, you are not considered a vetted forum member until BobL has inspected your CSMing ergonomics. The only way you will get a pass for this pose will be if you are a double amputee. Otherwise, prepare for the lecture.



:deadhorse: 

One reason why I didn't comment because I guessed that's why he's asking about how to lift logs.


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## splitpost (Dec 29, 2009)

That cypress sure smells good when your sitting down having a cold drink admiring your days work ,welcome to AS


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## Ian Rogers (Dec 29, 2009)

Thanks for the responses and encouragement. To head off a lecture on ergonomics can I note that the kneeling option has long been discarded in favour of using the tractor to lift the logs onto the posts I buried in the ground using the posthole digger on the tractor.

Also see attached (now that I know how to do it thanks) photos of my Will Malloff inspired hand winch. I have not used his saw throttle trigger arrangement as I've yet to work out how to do this with a full plastic hand grip that also has a fuel ank inside it (Husky 385).

Ignorant question for BobL if I may - what is a "full comp semi chisel" chain. Do I presume it means a normal (full complement) tooth spacing not skip tooth and that semi chisel means 10 degrees? Do you buy this in Australia or do you modify chain? I've previously used my Oregon chain grinder to take 35 degree teeth back to 10 degree but haven't yet concluded that this is the best solution for cypress and ironbark.

Thanks


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## BobL (Dec 29, 2009)

Ian Rogers said:


> Thanks for the responses and encouragement. To head off a lecture on ergonomics can I note that the kneeling option has long been discarded in favour of using the tractor to lift the logs onto the posts I buried in the ground using the posthole digger on the tractor.


Great idea - now what you should do is make one end higher than the other so you mill on a slope. 



> Also see attached (now that I know how to do it thanks) photos of my Will Malloff inspired hand winch. I have not used his saw throttle trigger arrangement as I've yet to work out how to do this with a full plastic hand grip that also has a fuel ank inside it (Husky 385).



Ah yes - that's a bit of a nuisance. but there are other options around, do a search for "remote throttle" or "hand throttle" 

I've tried using various winch arrangements, including a totally hands free operation of trying a rope to the mill and draping the other end over the loader forks and hanging my tool box on the end, but I'm not a big fan of winches on logs because I like to maneuver the mill around obstacles and have at least one hand on the saw to feel what's it happening. However, I can see that they would be useful on straight cants etc

BTW your mill will run a lot smoother with a winch if you add wheels to it.



> Ignorant question for BobL if I may - what is a "full comp semi chisel" chain. Do I presume it means a normal (full complement) tooth spacing not skip tooth and that semi chisel means 10 degrees? Do you buy this in Australia or do you modify chain? I've previously used my Oregon chain grinder to take 35 degree teeth back to 10 degree but haven't yet concluded that this is the best solution for cypress and ironbark.



Yep - normal tooth spacing not skip
Semi chisel is what the manufacturers call it - Full chisel or just "chisel" has a square shaped outside cutter corner, semi chisel has a rounded corner. I find that in Aussie hardwood the pointy end is lost very quickly. I buy most of my chain from Aussie member, Rooshooter, and buy either 10º, or 30º and file back to 10º.


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## Ian Rogers (Dec 29, 2009)

BobL

Re your comment "Great idea - now what you should do is make one end higher than the other so you mill on a slope."

I put my posts on a fair slope so that I didn't have to have them at different heights. Prevailing wind is an issue though - a fair bit of the time it is in my face frm the east hence saw dust and fumes also in my face - another reason to be interested in a hand winch. It won't be a problem in winter though when the wind comes from the west.

I've already come across the wheel idea on this forum and will seriously look at this.

Ian


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## mtngun (Dec 29, 2009)

Looks like nice country. I didn't realize you had hills down there ?


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## BobL (Dec 29, 2009)

Ian Rogers said:


> BobL
> Re your comment "Great idea - now what you should do is make one end higher than the other so you mill on a slope."
> I put my posts on a fair slope so that I didn't have to have them at different heights.


Even better !  - but see comment below



> Prevailing wind is an issue though - a fair bit of the time it is in my face frm the east hence saw dust and fumes also in my face - another reason to be interested in a hand winch. It won't be a problem in winter though when the wind comes from the west.


I agree about the wind and that's where level ground works because then you could have two sets of supports and then mill from either set end depending on the wind. Where I mill is a couple of miles from the coast so mornings the breeze is offshore and then in the afternoon it blows the other way.



> I've already come across the wheel idea on this forum and will seriously look at this.



Look out for my new wheel designs coming soon!

Looking at your setup I can see a lot of powder like sawdust. My guess is the log is dry but what raker depth setting are you using, and a how do you set your rakers?


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## billstuewe (Dec 30, 2009)

I use a winch system but have my hand on the saw/throttle so I can guide the saw as Bob does. Works pretty good on long cuts. Short ones I don't bother. A single pully is at the far end and I now have a hook on it that just hooks on to the edge. (The first picture was my trial run.) I also hang an old hydrolic jack that weighs about as much as the saw motor on the far end to balance things out. The jury is still out on that one but it seems to make it easier except for the stop once I get into the cut to hang it on (no, I do not lift the mill with that hanging on there!) If any of you wonder where I got the materials, ask BobL--I think we are kindred spirits at improvising with what we can scrounge up. The parts were in that pile of junk I never throw away.


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## Ian Rogers (Dec 30, 2009)

BobL

Re your question "Looking at your setup I can see a lot of powder like sawdust. My guess is the log is dry but what raker depth setting are you using, and a how do you set your rakers?"

This has been on my mind from the start as I have always got fine dust rather than chips like Malloff said I should. I eventually put it down to Australian wood being harder. Certainly the wood in my photos here is very dry being old logs. We are also in a relatively arid area with an average annual rainfall of 25 inches. I set them using the standard tool that comes in all chain sharpening kits. I've also with quite some trepidation gone another file stroke. Your advice on this would be particulalry appreciated.

Billstuewe

I thought about doing it your way but decided to try the Malloff way first as I had his plans, was in a hurry, and was also attracted by the idea of being away from the saw. I now think I will try it your way so I can retain control of the way as BobL suggests, avoid the hassle of the remote throttle, and mitigate the dust and fumes by wearing my full face respirator helmet.

Mtngun

Yes we have hills here although our hill is only about 300 feet high and over looks the nearly dead flat alluvial plains of Queensland's darling Downs, probably the richest agricultural soil in Australia and rivalling the best of the US Prairies, not that I've ever been there.

Attached a few photos that show a better view looking across our houses and Olive trees, some of the wildlife literally with 50 metres of my mill site (not while the saw is running of course) and a secondhand bandsaw I've got visions of using to cut cants produced by the CS mill.

I'll post separately some photos of my building projects if anyone is interested. I'm assuming we all mill for timber for a purpose!

Ian


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## splitpost (Dec 30, 2009)

help ya out


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## splitpost (Dec 30, 2009)




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## mtngun (Dec 30, 2009)

Thanks for the pics, Ian. I wish I had roos in my yard ! ! ! Do you get along with them, or are they considered a nuisance ?

My take on rakers is that it depends on the saw and wood, etc.. 

Malloff used a hi-torque, low rpm saw. You are using an high rpm saw. The high rpm saws take lots of small bites while Malloff's saw took a few big bites. 

BTW, racing saws run at very high rpms and use shallow raker depths. 

If the rakers are too short, the saw will bog down easily. 

If the rakers are too high, the chain won't bite (unless you push it forcibly) and you get dust.

Ultimately you may have to experiment with different raker heights and see what makes your saw happy. And, the optimal raker height may change over the life of your chain, as our resident nuclear physicist will probably explain in more detail.

I tried using the file-o-plate to set rakers and it was too aggressive for my lame 066. But, I suspect the FOP would work fairly well with your Husky.


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## Ian Rogers (Dec 30, 2009)

Mtngun

Thanks for the detailed response. I'll experiment with raker height starting with being a bit more aggressive than I have been.

The roos are now protected but are harvested commercially by licensed shooters for an export game meat trade. The place is literally overrun with them now but now that our olive trees are big enough they are no longer a problem. When the trees were young I had to get a "damage mitigtion permit" that allowed me to shoot them. Shooting and reloading by the way is another of my lifelong hobbies cum occupational tool necessity for feral wildlife control.

I'm off to the farm now for a fortnight and may be on less frequently although we now have reasonable 3G wireless internet there now.

Ian


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## BobL (Dec 30, 2009)

Ian Rogers said:


> This has been on my mind from the start as I have always got fine dust rather than chips like Malloff said I should. I eventually put it down to Australian wood being harder. Certainly the wood in my photos here is very dry being old logs. We are also in a relatively arid area with an average annual rainfall of 25 inches. I set them using the standard tool that comes in all chain sharpening kits. I've also with quite some trepidation gone another file stroke. Your advice on this would be particulalry appreciated.



By standard tool do you mean the standard oregon depth raker? They work OK when the chain is new but the shorter the cutter gets the worse the chain will cut. Chain cuts much more effectively using what is called progressive raker depths.

If you can post a close up of your chain like this




I can assess if your raker depths are well set up to give chips



> . . . . . . .and a secondhand bandsaw I've got visions of using to cut cants produced by the CS mill.


That bandsaw looks like a real beauty. If you are interested I can provide you with links to a Queenslander (PJT - same guy I got my latest wheels ideas from) who has set up his bandsaw to resaw cants.



> I'll post separately some photos of my building projects if anyone is interested.


Please do!



> I'm assuming we all mill for timber for a purpose!


It surprises people when I say this, but I often find I am not milling for a specific purpose. I do it because I like it and I like making and modifying mills. If all my milled timber was to disappear it would not upset me all that much


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## lumberjackchef (Dec 30, 2009)

> Thanks for the pics, Ian. I wish I had roos in my yard ! ! !


 
I agree That would be very cool!



> I tried using the file-o-plate to set rakers and it was too aggressive for my lame 066. But, I suspect the FOP would work fairly well with your Husky.



Do you know how far it takes them down?

I have experimented a little with my rakers as well. I've gone down to about .035 - .040, with 10 degree top plate angle, using full comp chisel on my modified 066. Even in hard woods, using this method, have had very good success. Not sure about the FOP having never used one but it is very important to get them uniform in height. 

Oh BTW welcome to AS. Glad to have you on board!


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## mtngun (Dec 30, 2009)

> Do you know how far it takes them down?


The FOP will take the rakers down more as the chain wears and as the cutter length shrinks. It's not a constant height raker guide, but rather a semi-progressive guide, that attempts to maintain the correct angle as the cutter wears.

On a used chain, the FOP will take the rakers down more than the typical 0.030" or 0.035" raker guide.

Baileys ripping chain starts out at 0.025". My lame 066 seems to cut better at that raker height. The FOP was taking them down more and, while it didn't cut badly, finesse was required to avoid bogging.


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## Ian Rogers (Dec 31, 2009)

Guys,

I think its fantastic the amount of good advice I'm getting from your responses as well as looking at the whole site.

BobL, yes please to a link your your Qld contact re bandsaws and I'll get you a photo of my chain in the next day or so.

Splitpost, I forgot to thank you for putting my photos up. By the way how sensitive do you think we should be to the size of our images particularly for dial up users? By this I mean is it better to just attach the images so that dial up users have the discretion to spend the time downloading them? My internet access plan has a 5Gb download limit and then the speed is slowed to 64K. This happens every month about day 20 as my boys seem to blow it with music and other downloads.

Mtngun, Lumberjackchef, I don't know what the right word to use is regarding your interest in our kangaroos as most Australians I know are fascinated with what we see as far more interesting wildlife in North America! You have more varied species than we have.

Ian


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## splitpost (Dec 31, 2009)

in Australia with todays gov rebates and cheap plans there really is no reason to run that dial up dinosor ,might spur them to upgrade,geez would thinks it a pain with dial up on forum sites,Nah the only thing i look out for is my up/down load usage which is really easy to blow


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## lumberjackchef (Dec 31, 2009)

> Mtngun, Lumberjackchef, I don't know what the right word to use is regarding your interest in our kangaroos as most Australians I know are fascinated with what we see as far more interesting wildlife in North America! You have more varied species than we have.





I can see where you're coming from there. Our wildlife does still get my adrenaline pumping every now and :jawdrop:then like when my buddy spotted this monster whitetail buck in our neck of the woods! :jawdrop:


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## mtngun (Dec 31, 2009)

Ian Rogers said:


> By the way how sensitive do you think we should be to the size of our images particularly for dial up users?


Depends on who you ask but my personal habit is to crop and scale photos to 800 pixels wide, then "optimize" the file so that it is only about 50 - 75 kbytes. 

There is no broadband available in much of the rural US (one of several ways the US is lagging the rest of the world). I have satellite internet with an advertised 512kbps download speed and a strict download quota (know what you mean about the kids and their music). In the evening the satellite is saturated and download slows to a crawl.

Saw this little critter as well as his stout mama while collecting firewood a while back. He was 15 yards away while his mama is the dark shadow behind the bush in the upper right. They saw me but showed no alarm. They were ripping up logs and stumps, looking for ants and other insects.


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## 820wards (Jan 1, 2010)

Ian Rogers said:


> Mtngun
> 
> Thanks for the detailed response. I'll experiment with raker height starting with being a bit more aggressive than I have been.
> 
> ...




Do they taste like Chicken? 

jerry-


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## splitpost (Jan 1, 2010)

mtngun said:


> There is no broadband available in much of the rural US (one of several ways the US is lagging the rest of the world).
> I apologize ,i thought we were the ones behind


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## mtngun (Jan 1, 2010)

splitpost said:


> I apologize ,i thought we were the ones behind


U.S. ranks 17th in average internet speed according to this site.

They don't list Oz ? ? ?

1. S. Korea

2. Japan

3. Hong Kong

4. Romania (_pretty sad when Romania is ahead of U.S._)

5. Sweden

6. Switzerland

7. Netherlands

8. Belgium

10. Norway


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## mrlynx (Jan 1, 2010)

I am happy that I live in a country where good internet access is cheap and readily avalible.
Here are fiberoptic as common as DSL in rural areas.


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## mtngun (Jan 1, 2010)

mrlynx said:


> I am happy that I live in a country where good internet access is cheap and readily avalible.
> Here are fiberoptic as common as DSL in rural areas.


I wish I had your internet service and health care. But, we Yankees would rather spend our money on never ending war.


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## jimdad07 (Jan 1, 2010)

Yep - normal tooth spacing not skip
Semi chisel is what the manufacturers call it - Full chisel or just "chisel" has a square shaped outside cutter corner, semi chisel has a rounded corner. I find that in Aussie hardwood the pointy end is lost very quickly. I buy most of my chain from Aussie member, Rooshooter, and buy either 10º, or 30º and file back to 10º.[/QUOTE]

Do you use a round or a triangle file?


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## Ian Rogers (Jan 2, 2010)

820wards

You asked what roo tastes like - I actually can't recall the last time I ate it but my wife who is a food technologist and into meat tells me it tastes like venison- a strong gamey taste. I've tried crocodile - it tastes like a cross between chicken and fish.

Was it you who asked about how easy it is to get reloading components here? Not too bad - you have to show your weapons licence and fill in a few forms and they take a photocoy of your licence and drivers licence the first time you buy that that store. There is a limit on the amount of powder you can store in your house - it varies between States but in Queensland it is 15 kilograms per household regardless of how many licenced shooters live there. Interestingly it is not the Police who are interested - it is the Deparment of Mines.

Anyhow back to milling - I've yet to try out some of the advice I've been getting but today using a brand new 30 degree skip tooth chisel chain I milled a 260mm X 75mm ironbark slab with relative ease but still the fine powder. The log of course is dead dry.


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## BobL (Jan 2, 2010)

jimdad07 said:


> Do you use a round or a triangle file?



Round. 

If by triangular files you mean for square ground chain then that can be only done on full chisel and not using a triangular file.


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## splitpost (Jan 2, 2010)

*ironbark*

Ian your not the only getting that fine sawdust,I am using stihl semi chisel std chain and yep getting same outcome when milling only whether it be old dry timber or a log that was cut 2 weeks prior but if i freehand rip some posts the chips are larger, got me


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## splitpost (Jan 2, 2010)

might just be how it is, gum does the same when i cut it ,that fine dust really gets in everywhere


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## BobL (Jan 2, 2010)

splitpost said:


> Ian your not the only getting that fine sawdust,I am using stihl semi chisel std chain and yep getting same outcome when milling only whether it be old dry timber or a log that was cut 2 weeks prior but if i freehand rip some posts the chips are larger, got me



If the log is green, and the chain is set up right, you should be able to get lots of chips from Aussie hardwood at least in the first 3-4 ft or so of cutting. As the cut progresses there will be more dust and less chips. I will put a "what I do" together and post it into the sticky above.


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## billstuewe (Jan 2, 2010)

Remember what/how you are cutting--If you orient the bar along the axis of a log and saw with the grain--you will get very long stringy "chips". If you crosscut, you are sawing at a right angle to the grain and you will get grain strands the width of your cutter and as thick as your raker depth--what we normally call "chips". But when we mill, we are cutting at a right angle into the end grain so we get individule grain strands as long as the raker depth and as wide as the tooth but being end grain and being violently ripped out and slung around at 60MPH, that "chip" flys apart into dust. every now and then a knot (limb) appears and the grain orentation changes and you may see larger chips, but when milling expect sawdust finer than what your table saw spits out.
Yes, if your chain is very sharp, your raker depth is right and the wood is green then expect your dust to be more like what the table saw makes. Dry wood means finer dust, duller chain means finer dust, and high rakers mean finer dust. Put all three together and be sure to wear a dust mask.
FYI--

Chainsaw Facts - Did You Know That....
A chainsaw piston goes up and down in the cylinder 20,000 times per minute.
The piston ring speed on the average chainsaw travels 2,500 surface feet per minute.
A chain slides across the surface of the sawbar rail at around 5000 feet per minute.
The chain is moving at 55 to 60 m.p.h. or a mile per minute ( 88 feet per second ).
The drive links impact the sprocket an average of 1,300 times per second.
The chainsaw bar sprocket rotates nearly 1 million times daily when sawmilling so grease that sprocket daily .
Chain Speed for Milling Lumber
The higher the chain speed, the faster the sawmilling speeds and to calculate this:

Take the chain pitch and multiply by 2. Multiply the above number by the number of teeth of the saw sprocket.
Multiply that number by the saw R.P.M.
The final answer will be the chain speed in inches per minute, just divide by 12 to convert to feet per minute.


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## BobL (Jan 3, 2010)

mtngun said:


> U.S. ranks 17th in average internet speed according to this site.
> 
> They don't list Oz ? ? ?
> 
> ...



I don't think these are necessarily fair comparisons. There are some ranches in australia that are bigger than several countries on that list.


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## splitpost (Jan 3, 2010)

BobL said:


> I don't think these are necessarily fair comparisons. There are some ranches in australia that are bigger than several countries on that list.



:agree2:


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## Ian Rogers (Jan 3, 2010)

splitpost said:


> might just be how it is, gum does the same when i cut it ,that fine dust really gets in everywhere



Splitpost

I'm just about at the same point of accepting this is how it is with our wood. While I will continue to read responses and search the site to learn from others my focus now will be towards a winch arrangement, wheels and other ergonomic issues.

I've run out of old iron bark logs now and will drop a few trees this week with a view to milling them immediately and storing them for months to dry out. I've found that old dry cypress logs are not that much harder to mill than when green. I also think I've observed that green iron bark actually mills easier than cypress.

It's probably stating the obvious to most people on this site that know cypress pine but I find I can use it for most purposes quite soon after milling green. It doesn't shrink or warp nearly as much as iron bark does. Mind you I laid a floor using random widths of green cypress boards plain sawed quite some years ago and found that the 2 inch nail gap I deliberately left between them is now about twice that. These boards were anywhere from 6 to 10 inches wide. The wider gaps are not however an issue as snakes, mice and other nastis cannot get through them.

Ian


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## splitpost (Jan 3, 2010)

Ian Rogers said:


> Splitpost
> 
> 
> I've found that old dry cypress logs are not that much harder to mill than when green. I also think I've observed that green iron bark actually mills easier than cypress.
> ...



:agree2:I think it is the sap in the pine ,its really gooey and sticks to the chain and bakes on , where the ironbark does not,having said that i don't remove the bark from cypress before cutting up because it just wont release easy,ironbark on the other hand with a few hits with the back of the axe head or drive over it with the rear tyre of my tractor and its all off.
chris


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## BobL (Jan 3, 2010)

splitpost said:


> :agree2:I think it is the sap in the pine ,its really gooey and sticks to the chain and bakes on , where the ironbark does not,having said that i don't remove the bark from cypress before cutting up because it just wont release easy,ironbark on the other hand with a few hits with the back of the axe head or drive over it with the rear tyre of my tractor and its all off.
> chris



When milling resinous wood I turn the Aux oiler up a notch or two. That's also why I have an aux oiler on my little mill. For extra gooey wood, to reduce resin build up I use a hand pump spray bottle full of diesel and hook the bottle onto the mill and every now and then squirt some diesel onto the chain.


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## BobL (Jan 4, 2010)

Ian Rogers said:


> 820wards
> You asked what roo tastes like - I actually can't recall the last time I ate it but my wife who is a food technologist and into meat tells me it tastes like venison- a strong gamey taste.


I've had roo a few times and didn't think it tasted all that gamey. It's supposed to be eaten rare because it has very little fat in it so it toughens up when "well done". What puts me off eating roo rare, is the large number I have seen riddled with tics and parasites on the outside and the inside. However, being a soft footed animal they don't destroy our native environment like hard hoofed animals and I can accept that we should be farming them instead of beef. 



> I've tried crocodile - it tastes like a cross between chicken and fish.


Yep - very nice it s too. Crumbed or Battered Croc and Chips (fries) is a great takeaway meal. 



> Anyhow back to milling - I've yet to try out some of the advice I've been getting but today using a brand new 30 degree skip tooth chisel chain I milled a 260mm X 75mm ironbark slab with relative ease but still the fine powder. The log of course is dead dry.


 
(As usual) there is a trade off between ease of cutting and the top plate filing angle for a cutter. A 30º top plate cutters will dig slightly more sideways into the kerf and create a slightly bigger kerf. While this makes it easier for the cutter to cut through wood fibers , more wood has to be removed so more power is needed. This angle also induces more vibration especially when starting a cut. If you try bringing the top plate angles back to around 10 -15º you should notice smoother cutting and maybe a little faster cutting.
There are a couple of ways of converting to a lower top plate angle over successive sharpenings - it's fairly obvious if you think about it but just in case, Method B is better than Method A because B sharpens the whole cutter.


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## Ian Rogers (Jan 4, 2010)

splitpost said:


> :agree2:I think it is the sap in the pine ,its really gooey and sticks to the chain and bakes on , where the ironbark does not,having said that i don't remove the bark from cypress before cutting up because it just wont release easy,ironbark on the other hand with a few hits with the back of the axe head or drive over it with the rear tyre of my tractor and its all off.
> chris



Chris,

My experience and method exactly although I use the bucket on the front of the tractor to very neatly de-bark iron bark. Old cypress logs do tend to de-bark fairly easily and I'm inclined to do so as the amount of grit in the bark has to be a guaranteed chain killer - I even see sparks occasonally and its not nails or rocks!

Ian


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## Ian Rogers (Jan 4, 2010)

Guys

Some photos attached showing my building projects past and present.

The clap boards are cypress and they are on the walls of an extension to the farm house we live in on weekends and holidays. We had an original separate outside toilet so I made a weather and insect proof walkway. It actually freezes hre in winter and the older I get the more often I have to get up at night.

The bearers photo tries to show how I am replacing every second wooden stump with 75mm RHS steel posts and clapping a iron bark bearer 75mm x 150mm along side the original 100mm x 75mm cypress on about 1600mm centres. This is on another of our farm houses that we are renovating and intending on living in during our retirement which is about November 2011 subject to anothe global financial crisis that messes with my superannuation.

The farm house photos are of the house I just mentioned. After doing the stumping bit underneath I will be building a huge deck about 12m x 3m along the front of the house over the existing lean too garage. I'm also going to build a deck at the other end of the house and have started on this. All of this will be done with chainsaw milled iron bark for posts, bearers and joists and cypress for the flooring.

Ian


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## Ian Rogers (Jan 4, 2010)

BobL said:


> When milling resinous wood I turn the Aux oiler up a notch or two. That's also why I have an aux oiler on my little mill. For extra gooey wood, to reduce resin build up I use a hand pump spray bottle full of diesel and hook the bottle onto the mill and every now and then squirt some diesel onto the chain.



Bob,

This whole topic of auxillary oilers interests me now that I see frequent reference to it on this site. But my question is why do I need it or how should I know I need it? Should I be seeing bar damage or premature chain wear? I'm only using a 24 inch mill on cypress and ironbark.

Ian


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## BobL (Jan 4, 2010)

Ian Rogers said:


> Bob,
> 
> This whole topic of auxillary oilers interests me now that I see frequent reference to it on this site. But my question is why do I need it or how should I know I need it? Should I be seeing bar damage or premature chain wear? I'm only using a 24 inch mill on cypress and ironbark.



The cypress is probably not so big a deal but I would use an aux oiler on ironbark even on a 24" mill. It's not just for bars and chains but for reducing engine load. With a temperature gauge on my 880 with 42" bar in ~ 30" diameter hardwood wood I can see all manner of subtleties - for example; the difference in engine temp between running and not running the aux oiler is about 5ºC - it doesn't sound like much but it shows the extra load on the engine involved. If the wood is smaller then the effect would be smaller but it would be more evident on a smaller saw. Even if it ends up increasing engine life by 5% that is ~100 hours more milling.


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