Saw recommendation for Granberg small mill

[Boogedy_Man]

Ok, so my milling experience is slim so far. I first bought a Granberg small mill and put a Husky 460 Rancher on it. It worked, and I milled a good pile of cherry logs with it. However, it slows down exponentially at around 14" in hardwoods. 16+ you can just about forget it, unless you want to take a nap while milling. I ended getting a 661 and a Granberg 36" mill, cannon bar...the full works. I've milled up to 34"..it's full capacity...and it just rips.

The problem is, the 661 and the 36" mill are a bit much when I do need to mill something smaller..I also think the husky will die a very early death if I continue to mill with it.

So, if I were to buy a pro saw to put in the small mill, where should I start? I have a good relationship with the Stihl dealer, so that's where I am looking. Would a 362 give enough advantage (power wise) over the husky, or do I need a 461? I'll most likely be running a 20" bar.

 

[kimosawboy]

Why do you not stick with the 661 and just stuff a small bar on it?? The weight difference between the 362 and the 661 is only 4lbs. but the CC is about 40% more on the 661 side.
For any cutting in the 16"- 20" range I would want at least a 60-70CC saw.
G Vavra

 

[Boogedy_Man]

Good question. It's not the weight of the saw that bothers me, but rather that I want to be able to use the small mill without moving the powerhead back and forth. The 36" rails and 50" cannon bar are like wrestling a Grizzly bear on a 16" log. I'm sure I'll get faster at it, but rigging up the big mill takes me quite a while.

60-70...that's about where I am at. But there's a pretty big price gap between. 362 and a 461! It's almost as if Stihl could wedge another model in there

 

[DTrap]

I would try to stay on the bigger side. The 460 would be perfect for the smaller logs.

 

[SeMoTony]

Good question. It's not the weight of the saw that bothers me, but rather that I want to be able to use the small mill without moving the powerhead back and forth. The 36" rails and 50" cannon bar are like wrestling a Grizzly bear on a 16" log. I'm sure I'll get faster at it, but rigging up the big mill takes me quite a while.

60-70...that's about where I am at. But there's a pretty big price gap between. 362 and a 461! It's almost as if Stihl could wedge another model in there

The price gap is large on new saws. But tradin' post offers considerable savings, I have a 046 that ran $500 and operates close enough to my ms 460 I don't really notice any difference. I've done similar muf mods on both.Oh yeah the 460 is in the upper left hand corner of this post, with 60" cannon, spinning skip chain.

 

[Boogedy_Man]

Thank you for the input. I guess I know I need more than a 362, and I'm trying to convince myself otherwise. Haha.

 

[DonnerParty]

I run my 440 on the smaller stuff. I don't think I would go any smaller than that. The 362 might do fine, but at some point you'll be happy for the extra power, especially when milling.

 

[Boogedy_Man]

Ok....skipped the 360 class and went bigger. Got a price I couldn't refuse, too!

 

[DonnerParty]

Great saw.