Ripsaw

[Beefie]

If I remember there was a couple guys that had these for there saws. I am wondering if they still have them and how they are holding up. The idea appeals to me as there is not a lot of equipment needed for using one. Getting a large bandsaw mill just isn't in the budget as right now and I think it would work well with the Alaskan mill and mini mill.

It appears the website is different than what I remember. Seams as there has been a owner change.

Anybody delt with them lately?

Beefie

 

[Al Weber]

I haven't dealt with the company recently but I think the owner change goes back a few years at least. I've had mine for probably 10 years and I bought it used. Although I have only used it once in the past couple of years, it still works like when I first bought it. I've dismounted and remounted my 036 Pro on it several times without difficulty. There isn't much that goes wrong with these things as they are very simple. I'm thinking of mounting mine on a frame to saw short logs. There was a fellow who used to post here frequently that made one (If I remember correctly his username was Woodshop) and it will serve as a model.

 

[Beefie]

Thanks Al , I knew someone had one here. I called Ripsaw today to find out what the skiney was on them. Turns out the current company bought out the original owner in 2005. They said it was originally built in Massachusetts. Now being built in Alabama. They did not saw how many they sell a year but most of there sales are east coast.

Since we have lost lots of pictures here on A.S. , would you beable to post some pictures of your saw rig.

Thanks Beefie

 

[Al Weber]

Thanks Al , I knew someone had one here. I called Ripsaw today to find out what the skiney was on them. Turns out the current company bought out the original owner in 2005. They said it was originally built in Massachusetts. Now being built in Alabama. They did not saw how many they sell a year but most of there sales are east coast.

Since we have lost lots of pictures here on A.S. , would you beable to post some pictures of your saw rig.

Thanks Beefie

Beefie

Let me see if the following old thread from this forum will upload. I kept this when I was starting out with my unit and WoodShop started this thread on his methods. I'm not sure if this will work but if not, I may be able to send it to you if I can figure out if there is a way to PM you.

Thanks Al , I knew someone had one here. I called Ripsaw today to find out what the skiney was on them. Turns out the current company bought out the original owner in 2005. They said it was originally built in Massachusetts. Now being built in Alabama. They did not saw how many they sell a year but most of there sales are east coast.

Since we have lost lots of pictures here on A.S. , would you beable to post some pictures of your saw rig.

Thanks Beefie

Let me see if I can locate some pictures. I recently had to change computers and I've misplaced some during the conversion. I hope they aren't lost.

Al

 

[Beefie]

The joys of computers, such a wealth on knowledge gone in a blink of an eye. Hoping you find your picture Al.

Beefie

 

[psgflier]

I looked at those once, and am glad I didn't get one. A friend of mine bought one to make fence boards from some small red cedar. He wound up using my Alaska mill and another friends Mighty Mite.

 

[Beefie]

I looked at those once, and am glad I didn't get one. A friend of mine bought one to make fence boards from some small red cedar. He wound up using my Alaska mill and another friends Mighty Mite.

What was your reasoning for not buying it? Quality? Price? durability?

I like the idea of having a band mill that takes a narrow kerf compared to the Alaskan set up. Also not as much support equipment needed.

Beefie

 

[psgflier]

It was kind of awkward to use and didn't cut very fast. The blades don't have the stability they do on a band mill, and they're harder to sharpen than a saw chain. Band blades need to be sharpened pretty regularly.
The boards turned out ok, and the kerf is half of chains, so more product per log, especially important in small logs, but slow.
Seems like they're a lot more expensive than a Alaska type mill.

 

[mad murdock]

Beefie, if kerf is a concern with your Alaskan, you can retool your setup (85cc or less) with stihl's 63PMX ripping chain. Though a little more expensive than woodland pro 30RP or Oregon equivalent, it gives you a 1/4" kerf, only twice the kerf of a band mill, and speeds up feed rate a solid 25-30% over 3/8" ripping chain, due to the narrower kerf and less hp required. I switched to it about a year ago, and it was the single most best move I did with my milling with a CSM. It is well worth the little extra $$ for the chain. You will need an appropriate .050" bar to run the picco chain. Baileys can set you up with what you would need.

 

[Beefie]

Beefie, if kerf is a concern with your Alaskan, you can retool your setup (85cc or less) with stihl's 63PMX ripping chain. Though a little more expensive than woodland pro 30RP or Oregon equivalent, it gives you a 1/4" kerf, only twice the kerf of a band mill, and speeds up feed rate a solid 25-30% over 3/8" ripping chain, due to the narrower kerf and less hp required. I switched to it about a year ago, and it was the single most best move I did with my milling with a CSM. It is well worth the little extra $$ for the chain. You will need an appropriate .050" bar to run the picco chain. Baileys can set you up with what you would need.

My plan is to use my 066 on the mill.92cc. I have read about the narrow kerf stuff, not sure on it yet.
I do woodworking as well and aways hate wasting wood, that is why the ripsaw appeals to me, I would be getting 1 0r 2extra boards per log depending on the cut.
Some day I would love to have a big portable band mill like a wood mizer, but that is not even close to being in sight. Hope to get a small band mill for now or with in a year. Just going to do the Alaskan for the short term.

Beefie