Chain Saw Milling

[Oregon_Native]

I am interested in doing a little chainsaw milling probably not enough to justify buying a new saw, but I would like to give it a try.

Although I have a Mac 4900 (it’s a pro Mac 5000 with different stickers) with a 20” sprocket tip bar, would this be an ok saw to mill smaller 12”-18” trees mostly soft wood don’t have a lot of good hard wood around my neck of the woods.

Also would It be worth buying ripping chain or modifying a standard chain.

 

[woodshop]

Oregon, check out the recent thread which talks about this extensively. Basically yes, your saw will do what you ask in softwood, no problem.

Dave

http://www.arboristsite.com/showthread.php?t=19121

 

[weimedog]

You can probably do that with a 50cc class saw, just won't be as fast. I think you might find that being able to creat your own wood for project will cost justify a larger dedicated saw over time. No need to buy new...just find a good used saw. Something like a Husqvarna 288 class or larger. Or if you are a mechanical puzzle solver an old 100c class vintage saw. Like a McCulloch 795 or 797. (I practice what I preach here)

Sometimes you can eBay a combination saw/mill/blade/chain for the $400 dollar range. If its from that seller "saw king" he's honest to the point its a good risk for a used saw. Thats buying an entire setup for less than the cost of a new saw. That is the direction I would try in your situation. Then you can keep your McCulloch free to drop trees and do those things you need to do with a saw without having to tear apart the milling setup all the time.

 

[woodshop]

Oregon, you asked about ripping chain. I have found that when milling only 12 or 15 inch stuff, there is no real difference between using standard chain or rip chain, especially in soft woods. For the bigger cuts though, like quartering a 30" oak, the rip chain is definitely an improvement. About a month ago I ripped 28 inch wide slabs of Butternut using an MS460 Magnum with 32" bar and regular chisle chain in a Granberg. Worked fine, did not miss the rip chain on that one. Point is that I have found you don't HAVE to have rip chain on small stuff, or soft stuff, especially if you have a powerful saw.

Dave

 

[Oregon_Native]

thanks a lot guys