Just got back from the hills where I milled a bunch of 2x4's for my friend from some Ponderosa Pine trees. I wanted to see just how many I could mill using only my mini-mill. Based on the log size I was only going to get six boards per log. What I found was that I could mill four boards and then what was left of the log was just to narrow to mill with the mini-mill. I then had to use my big Alaskan style mill to make the last two boards. Here are some pictures of my setup to mill the 2x4's.
Also want to note you will see that I have drilled additional holes in my dedicated milling bar. These additional holes made it very easy to adjust the depth of cut into the logs.
Here we are making the side cap cuts after making the top cap cut.
Here we have set the mill up to make the center cut on the cant.
Closeup of the additional holes I have drilled into my bar to make adjusting the depth cuts easier. The holes are drilled on 1" centers using a drilling jig I made so that any additional holes I drill will be spaced evenly.
Here I have rotated the cant 90* and positioned the mini-mill guide board to make a 2" cut. I was only able to make two cuts yielding four boards.
Also needed to use plenty of wedges when making the cuts to prevent the cant from wanting to spring inward making the initial center cut narrower. The boards cut very square using this setup.
jerry-
Also want to note you will see that I have drilled additional holes in my dedicated milling bar. These additional holes made it very easy to adjust the depth of cut into the logs.
Here we are making the side cap cuts after making the top cap cut.
Here we have set the mill up to make the center cut on the cant.
Closeup of the additional holes I have drilled into my bar to make adjusting the depth cuts easier. The holes are drilled on 1" centers using a drilling jig I made so that any additional holes I drill will be spaced evenly.
Here I have rotated the cant 90* and positioned the mini-mill guide board to make a 2" cut. I was only able to make two cuts yielding four boards.
Also needed to use plenty of wedges when making the cuts to prevent the cant from wanting to spring inward making the initial center cut narrower. The boards cut very square using this setup.
jerry-
