Pics of the lumber pile......

buzz sawyer · Apr 4, 2006

Just how smooth of a cut do you get with a chainsaw mill - assuming the saw bar is in good condition and your guides are set correctly? The photos in the first post look amazingly flat - really suprises me. Hate to lose 1/4" in the cut and that much more when planing it. Does a rip chain cut smoother?

aggiewoodbutchr · Apr 4, 2006

Jwoods said:
aggie,

Nice stuff, -why did you live saw those logs?

Thanks-

A couple of reasons. I like to build furniture that features live edges for one.
Another reason is, since furniture and cabinet parts are mostly shorter than 4', I can get much better yeild from the log by leaving the latural edge if there is more than a little taper. I can explain with a drawing better (attached). The "board" on the left was live sawn and one on the right was squared on the mill. This illustration shows extreme taper but you get the point. Typically I take a large cant on the first cut to be quartersawn into small stock later and the bulk of the log is flatsawn. This gives me a lot of options when I get to use it. I can glue up a large book matched table top or selectively cut out only the best of each plank.

buzz sawyer said:
Just how smooth of a cut do you get with a chainsaw mill ...

Smoother than you would think for a chainsaw if you have a stable guide rig. I have both a full comp ripping chain and a skip tooth microchisel for my 72" chainsaw mill. The ripping chain does produce a smoother cut but not by much. I use the microchisel 90% of the time because it cuts faster and with less vibration.

coveredinsap · Apr 5, 2006

Yeah, I'm a proponent of "live sawn" myself. I'll square it up when I decide what to use it for, if need be.

If you're into making furniture, then the shape of a 'live sawn' slab can determine whether a pattern for a particular furniture piece will fit...as I hate joining lumber if I don't have to.