Milling lumber woodshop style

[rarefish383]

Woodshop, where in PA is Fort Wash? My daughter goes to school in Reading and I'm up around Mercersburg quite a bit. I just sat for several hours and enjoyed this thread so much I'd like to drop off one of Stoudt's special blends just to say thanks for getting it all started, Joe.

 

[woodshop]

Woodshop, where in PA is Fort Wash? My daughter goes to school in Reading and I'm up around Mercersburg quite a bit. I just sat for several hours and enjoyed this thread so much I'd like to drop off one of Stoudt's special blends just to say thanks for getting it all started, Joe.

Wow... Stoudt's special blends, I'm honored. Ft Washington is right off the PA Turnpike, exit 339, outside of Philadelphia going west. I have lots of family west of Reading and used to live there. If you're coming this direction give me a shout or email me... [email protected], which I check hourly on my cell (I know... pathetic).

 

[woodshop]

... Climbing, felling, milling, drying, planing, measuring, sanding, oiling, burning, studying and enjoying trees.

Sounds like you have all bases covered, my kinda life, keep it up.

 

[ROOTSXROCKS]

so, does anyone know if this band saw attachment is available for a 394xp ?
If so were and how much ?
and is it worth it, Im not inclined to the Alaska mill if I can use the bandsaw.

 

[woodshop]

so, does anyone know if this band saw attachment is available for a 394xp ?
If so were and how much ?
and is it worth it, Im not inclined to the Alaska mill if I can use the bandsaw.

The Ripsaw comes in two flavors, Stihl and Husky... has to do with the way the oil exits the saw into the Ripsaw. Your 394XP will fit the Ripsaw designed for a Stihl. That saw is overkill though for milling with the Ripsaw, if you have a smaller Stihl, 60cc range, use it instead, more than enough power for that thin blade. The weight makes a difference when your lifting that thing on and off a cant 100 times. Don't know the latest prices but the whole package which includes the guide bars etc is pricy... close to $2k, maybe more by this time. If you're just gonna slice a few logs into lumber it's an expensive option... if you mill couple thousand ft a year as I do to feed my woodshop, then it can pay for itself.

 

[ROOTSXROCKS]

The Ripsaw comes in two flavors, Stihl and Husky... has to do with the way the oil exits the saw into the Ripsaw. Your 394XP will fit the Ripsaw designed for a Stihl. That saw is overkill though for milling with the Ripsaw, if you have a smaller Stihl, 60cc range, use it instead, more than enough power for that thin blade. The weight makes a difference when your lifting that thing on and off a cant 100 times. Don't know the latest prices but the whole package which includes the guide bars etc is pricy... close to $2k, maybe more by this time. If you're just gonna slice a few logs into lumber it's an expensive option... if you mill couple thousand ft a year as I do to feed my woodshop, then it can pay for itself.

So what your saying is I should build a bigger one for the 394 to be efficiant

I think I might have a few parts around to consider using

 

[woodshop]

So what your saying is I should build a bigger one for the 394 to be efficiant

I think I might have a few parts around to consider using

Many folks on here have built their own bandmill, but not a small handheld one like the Ripsaw. Not saying it can't be done, of course it can. From what I've gathered though, toughest part will be designing in the tracking. It can't rack but it has to be tensioned pretty tight or it won't cut a flat board, especially when it starts to get dull. That and designing a way to avoid the cast piece of aluminum with the holes to mate the powerhead to the bandsaw. I'm sure there are other ways to do that, but I can't think of a way offhand other than to maybe start with a solid chunk of aluminum and custom machine it down to size, maybe somehow routing the oil channel through it and then into the bandsaw gear/drivewheel from above, I don't know. If you try and build one, the other downside might be that it ends up heavier than the Ripsaw, as many homebuilt alaskan mills end up. With a 361 it's a tad over 50 lbs, which is about as much as I want to swing/lift all day board after board. Remember this thing is portable... you take IT to the log, not the other way around like 99% of bandmills. That is it's claim to fame, it's not designed to compete with a larger stand alone bandmill. I will only mill 14 inch wide board, and its slower than most stand alone bandsaws. The main advantage of a Ripsaw is that you can take it to logs that you can't get to like in somebody's back yard where you don't want to or can't due to space, take something big enough to lift/drag/haul away a 2000 lbs log.

 

[gemniii]

so, does anyone know if this band saw attachment is available for a 394xp ?
If so were and how much ?
and is it worth it, Im not inclined to the Alaska mill if I can use the bandsaw.

After perusing woodshops post last September I realized that the Ripsaw was one of the ideal tools for my application, which required extreme portability. However, the down side is that the "lightness" of the Ripsaw is more than set off by the lightness it would induce in my wallet.

I've found them for sale used for about $1K, w/o powerhead but with various adapters.
Well, it's a New Year and I've got to get started on "gettin 'er done".

So I called Ripsaw.
Per phone con with a nice Southern Lady at Ripsaw Monday Jan 4th 2010 about 0915 -
she's not sure if or when production will resume but it will only produce the adapter for the Stihl MS361. They do not have a backstock of adapters

So - back to the search for a truly portable bandsaw solution.

 

[htpd43]

After perusing woodshops post last September I realized that the Ripsaw was one of the ideal tools for my application, which required extreme portability. However, the down side is that the "lightness" of the Ripsaw is more than set off by the lightness it would induce in my wallet.

I've found them for sale used for about $1K, w/o powerhead but with various adapters.
Well, it's a New Year and I've got to get started on "gettin 'er done".

So I called Ripsaw.
Per phone con with a nice Southern Lady at Ripsaw Monday Jan 4th 2010 about 0915 -
she's not sure if or when production will resume but it will only produce the adapter for the Stihl MS361. They do not have a backstock of adapters

So - back to the search for a truly portable bandsaw solution.

gemniii - you just burst my bubble

when i first tried milling this summer/fall, i milled a 4" x 30" x 8' live edge slab for my dad's mantle. i told him how much fun i had doing it and he ended up finding what he called a "chainsaw powered bandsaw mill" that a friend of his is selling. i'm guessing he means a Ripsaw. but now i wonder if i'm going to be able to use it with the saws i have? i guess i'll have to do a little digging and see what he's got.

 

[woodshop]

...So I called Ripsaw.
Per phone con with a nice Southern Lady at Ripsaw Monday Jan 4th 2010 about 0915 -
she's not sure if or when production will resume but it will only produce the adapter for the Stihl MS361. They do not have a backstock of adapters...

You folks must know something I don't, because if you're talking about that cast aluminum chunk of metal that you bolt the saw to, it used to only come in two flavors, and it was my understanding that the Stihl version would fit amost ANY Stihl saw midrange and up, and the only thing that would be different from saw to saw is that standard piece that fits over the clutch (name escapes me now) that mates to the Ripsaw drive gear, available off the shelf at most chainsaw places as well as online. If the lady at Ripsaw is telling you they only make something that mates to a 361, that's news to me. Just as a Stihl bar will fit most Stihl saws, I thought a Stihl version of the Ripsaw would fit most Stihls. I may have been wrong about that all this time. I have mounted an MS460 Magnum on my ripsaw, as well an older 036 and my MS 361 is on there now. Had no problems mating any of them to it.

 

[htpd43]

Good to know woodshop. I hope the same goes for husky/j'red saws - that was what I was planning on using - my 2165. I only have two bigger stihls - an o56 mag and an o66 mag. I was hoping to not use either of those two since I figured it'd be overkill.

 

[gemniii]

The saws listed at the Ripsaw website:
* Stihl models: 026, 028, 029, 034, 036, 036PRO, 038, 044, 046, 064, 066, E20(Electric), E220(Electric)
MS260, MS280, MS290, MS340, MS360, MS380, MS440, MS460, MS640, MS660
* Jonsered models: 2065, 2165, 2071and 2171
* Husqvarna models: 365, 371XP, 372 and 395

Represent 3 Manufacturers and a lot of Stihl Models including some electric ones, but no 361. I think the lady was only emphasizing that he was cutting back to one adapter.saw combo that he's going to SUPPORT for future sales. She also mentioned 3 units ordered in the summer were still on backorder and he wasn't able to get adapters for the Huskies.

I had been wanting to get a used Ripsaw and potentially using another adapter.

It seems what the guy needs is an active, supportive user base to encourage production. It looked like an ideal niche sawmill.

 

[aardquark]

I chose the Stihl MS361 to match to my RipSaw, and there was some confusion regarding the required sprocket. You need a 7 tooth 3/8" chain spur sprocket drum, but the 361 only comes with a rim drive drum. My dealer could find nothing in his documentation to suggest which drum might fit. According to other searches I have done, the correct part number is probably 1128 640 2000, which is listed for an 044, among others. But I think I ended up with a 1125 640 2000, which is listed for an 036 and MS360. Anyway, to make a long story short, while the drum I got looked right (at the dealer), it was a little too deep. I ended up milling it down about 1/16" and deepening the oiler spring slot before it fit well. So the moral is, compare very carefully the depth of your new spur sprocket drum to the original rim drum, to save yourself either the return trip or the additional work making it fit correctly.

 

[jandc]

Anyone milled with an Stihl electric chainsaw + ripsaw?
Would that work fine

 

[woodshop]

Anyone milled with an Stihl electric chainsaw + ripsaw?
Would that work fine

I've heard through the grapevine that the reason Ripsaw discontinued it's electric motor option (years ago you could buy a Ripsaw with an electric motor) was because of power and torque issues. Hard to get enough power from an electric motor pulling only 110 or 220 single phase that is also small and light enough to mount on a Ripsaw you will be swinging around all day. Not saying somebody wouldn't be able to tweak something that would work, but whether it's true of not I heard that is why Ripsaw stopped selling the electric option.

 

[gemniii]

I think for a lot of uses one of the problems would be stretching the electricity.
Here's a portable electric bandsaw with a 12" throat:
http://www.crmsaw.co.uk/crm_026.htm
but it's real expensive.