Alaskan vs Mini Mill...

[outdoorlivin247]

Have some extra bonus money at work and thinking of buying a mill for making cants...I have seen some milling at GTG's and think that a Mini Mill will work for 95% of what I would do, but can't decide...What are the advantages of the Alaskan over the Mini Mill?..Thanks for the help...

 

[mtngun]

The Alaskan excels at cutting live edge slabs.

The mini-mill excels at squaring up beams and cants.

They work best as a team, though.

There are several threads on the mini-mill. I like mine, even though it has its faults.

 

[BobL]

Have some extra bonus money at work and thinking of buying a mill for making cants...I have seen some milling at GTG's and think that a Mini Mill will work for 95% of what I would do, but can't decide...What are the advantages of the Alaskan over the Mini Mill?..Thanks for the help...

Probably the best thing about minis are a cheap entry to milling and if you move onto an alaskan your money will not be wasted because they are always useful for edging logs/slabs.

Mini Mill;
Pros: cheap, good for edging logs and slabs.
Cons: awkward milling position, operator gets covered in sawdust (I hate that!), it does not help much milling on a slope, limited to about 20" width of cut if you want consistently straight. I also reckon they are potentially more dangerous.

Alaskan:
Pros and cons: All the opposites of the mini.

Here's why I use an alaskan.

 

[stipes]

I enjoy em both...

The Alaskan excels at cutting live edge slabs.

The mini-mill excels at squaring up beams and cants.

They work best as a team, though.

There are several threads on the mini-mill. I like mine, even though it has its faults.

:agree2:

I use the alaskan for the top cut,,and the mini mill for the sides,,and then slab the rest with the alaskan...Saves me from flippin a log over several times..
First time I made a full cant with the mini was at the GTG at Ericks...worked out pretty good...

 

[chuckwood]

team work

The Alaskan excels at cutting live edge slabs.
The mini-mill excels at squaring up beams and cants.
They work best as a team, though.

Yup, it's team work, you'll really need both if you're cutting regular lumber. The two mills I use the most are the Granberg mini-mill and small log mill. I use husky 288xp's on both of them, each one having it's own powerhead, that way you don't spend so much time bolting and unbolting, which gets old after a while. Also, you give one saw a chance to rest and cool while using the other one. If you don't use the mini mill to cut off the side slabs with all the bark, you'll dull your chain much more quickly unless you have a way to powerwash the logs. That will cost down time in sharpening chains, and your chains won't last as long. I also use a 36" Alaskan MkIII with a big Stihl, but it's a heavy beast and I've not had much experience with it yet, I'm still learning, and the small log mill works fine for me for most of the logs I've encountered so far. Granberg claims the small log mill is good for saws with up to 20" bars, however I've used the small log mill with a 28" bar and had no problems. Used small mills are often on ebay for about half what you'd pay for a new one, and they work just as well.

 

[outdoorlivin247]

:agree2:

I use the alaskan for the top cut,,and the mini mill for the sides,,and then slab the rest with the alaskan...Saves me from flippin a log over several times..
First time I made a full cant with the mini was at the GTG at Ericks...worked out pretty good...

Jessie, you are one of the ones I have seen do this and have made me ask this question...I really just want to know if the Alaskan is worth the extra money...

 

[stipes]

To me it is Sean...Cutting slabs with the mini you have to reset after each cut,,and you can only go so far till you run out of guide board width..End up wasting good wood...Thats where the Alaskan comes in,,for after I get 3 sides cut..I can set the Alaskan,,lets say,,I want to cut alot of slabs the same thickness...Just set the thickness once and your done...No resetting..
When I first got into this I bought the Mini and the alaskan at the same time cause all the input for both of em...To me it is worth it cause some logs here I dont have a good way to move then,,so I drop em and mill em on the spot....

 

[matt9923]

any updates?

I got an 066 coming and am debating if I want to mill or not. I know there is a huge amount of info so iv been reading.

 

[headleyj]

Sean - I'm on the same train of thought as you...re: the Alaskan - I've seen it labeled as the "MKIII Alaskan Mill" up to 36" and the "Std. Alaskan Mill" up to 54" or something. Std is cheaper too....

Anyone know what the difference is b/t the 2?

 

[gemniii]

Sean - I'm on the same train of thought as you...re: the Alaskan - I've seen it labeled as the "MKIII Alaskan Mill" up to 36" and the "Std. Alaskan Mill" up to 54" or something. Std is cheaper too....

Anyone know what the difference is b/t the 2?

Advertising and 18".

http://onlinestore.forestindustry.com/scripts/granbergint

You can get them w/ bar & oiler etc.

 

[outdoorlivin247]

I am cutting some Hard Maple at an old farm house right now for firewood before they tear down the buildings...There are 4 small or should I say decent size cedars for this area...If I have time to get them before the excavator gets there, it might be a good reason to buy the Alaskan...