New to the alaskan mill

[Juliand]

Hey guys,
this is my first post here. I've found this is the best online resource for chainsaw info. Maybe you guys can help me out.
I was recently gifted an old stihl 031av (in the shop for repair, seems it should be running again soon). After that I was gifted a husqvarna 65L. I couldn't find parts so I was sold another old practica 65 (in running order) from my local dealer to swap the air filter (got it for 100 bucks) so now I have 2 running 65cc saws and an alaskan mill on the way.
For the most part i'll be milling cedar, maybe some Doug fir and a bit of arbutus and am looking for some info on bar size and best ripping chain. I currently have 2 20" bars and a 16". The majority of the logs ill be cutting are 16-18" but if I can use a longer bar, my options for logs opens up, especially since I'll be losing 4ish inches of bar with the mill.
What do you guys think? Can I pop a 24" or 32" on my saw? Should I go with a narrow kerf ripper? Low profile?
Also... if anyone knows where I can find a replacement air filter and back cover for the 65 without paying more than the part is worth in shipping to BC I would be forever grateful. Everything I find is out of stock or or $30+ for shipping on a 20$ part.

 

[Brent Nowell]

I think you should try milling with what you have first and see what you like.
I personally do not care much for shrinking the kerf on my setup. I am more about keeping The same chain pitch/gauge and having a variety of bar sizes.
I really dont know much about your chainsaws but judging by the displacement a 24 would be fine if they are in good mechanical shape.
Like i said i would start with what you have and go from there.

 

[kimosawboy]

Have you tried calling the saw shops in Duncan?? They might not have the part but they can probably shoot you in the direction of a local who works on Husky's that probably has a big ol pile of spare parts.

 

[djg james]

The Stihl 031 is 48 cc. Underpowered for milling? I have a 038 and that's a little underpowered.

 

[Juliand]

Have you tried calling the saw shops in Duncan?? They might not have the part but they can probably shoot you in the direction of a local who works on Husky's that probably has a big ol pile of spare parts.

Looks like I got it on the way.

 

[Juliand]

The Stihl 031 is 48 cc. Underpowered for milling? I have a 038 and that's a little underpowered.

Looks like the 031 was gonna be 300+ to fix do its gone for parts to the local dealer/repair shop. The 65's are going to be my go to. I also picked up a remington 4620 for cross cutting. Its decently powerful.

 

[Juliand]

I think you should try milling with what you have first and see what you like.
I personally do not care much for shrinking the kerf on my setup. I am more about keeping The same chain pitch/gauge and having a variety of bar sizes.
I really dont know much about your chainsaws but judging by the displacement a 24 would be fine if they are in good mechanical shape.
Like i said i would start with what you have and go from there.

I've got a skip tooth ripping chain being made for me by the husqvarna shop in town. We'll see how that does on a 20.

 

[djg james]

Looks like the 031 was gonna be 300+ to fix do its gone for parts to the local dealer/repair shop. The 65's are going to be my go to. I also picked up a remington 4620 for cross cutting. Its decently powerful.

Sorry I guess I misread. Not enough coffee in me yet.
I'm be interested in seeing some shots of your milling because I'm rigging up a small log mill for my 60 cc saw.

 

[Juliand]

Sorry I guess I misread. Not enough coffee in me yet.
I'm be interested in seeing some shots of your milling because I'm rigging up a small log mill for my 60 cc saw.

I'm back to work now, so it might be a bit before I get milling.

 

[Skeena2]

What you’re going to run into is that you’ll have enough power to mill with a skip tooth chain. Yes it will be slow. But the problem you will run into is that a 24” even 28” bar once on a mill doesn’t give you much cutting width. Making your tree selection very critical.

Then you’ll find that because you can only cut 18” with a 24” bar that it’s the longer bar options that cause people to go to bigger saws. The waste from setup vs actual production is a lot lower when you’ve got a 36”+bar.
Buy the mill.

Try it out on the 65. Then you’ll have learned a little bit. At that point you’ll realized to get meaningful production you’ll need a bigger saw.

 

[AUSSIE1]

Id be checking to see what bar mount the 65 maybe compatible with. If you do buy a decent length bar for milling but find the saw too small, it would be beneficial for that bar to fit another decent size saw.

 

[Husky Man]

Id be checking to see what bar mount the 65 maybe compatible with. If you do buy a decent length bar for milling but find the saw too small, it would be beneficial for that bar to fit another decent size saw.

acresinternet.com shows the Husqvarna 65 as using the D009 Husqvarna Large Mount, so that should be compatible mount wise with anything current from the 562XP through the 3120XP.

If you haven't seen, the info in several other threads, you basically figure losing almost 4" from a Mills "Listed Size" to what it's actual absolute maximum log width that it can mill. A Mills "Listed Size" is the overall length of the mill frame rails, for example my 36" Granberg measures 33.5" between the clamp inner faces, with the end Brackets at the maximum width.

You also want to figure about 6" more bar length, than your mills "Listed Size"

Don't buy a 36" Mill, and a 36" Bar, and expect that you are going to Mill a 36" diameter log, you will be down to about 28" or so that you can possibly mill, with a 36" Mill and Bar.

Go Ahead, Ask me how I KNOW these things

There are ways to get a little more out of your mill, removing the Dawgs from the powerhead, will gain a bit, and drilling Through the Center of the nose sprocket bearing, then bolting, rather than clamping the nose end of the bar will gain you a little more, but to use a stock saw, conventionally clamped, the way the mills are designed, the numbers above are a Good Guide, but not precise. Remember when clamping the nose end of the bar, that the sprocket and it's bearings are in there, and don't clamp the bars nose so close to the end that you crush the sprocket or bearings in the nose, Nope, Fortunately I DIDN'T learn that the hard way


Doug