Time to venture into milling

[huskyhank]

Would a 48" mill be significantly harder to handle and keep level in 20" wood than a 36" mill? Or would the added length just help balance out the power head?

I think it will work just fine. You'll have a foot more length to move around but very little extra weight.

 

[blsnelling]

I just ordered the 48" Alaskan, and a set of slabbing brackets. I'm still not sure what I'm going to do for rails though.

 

[mtngun]

I just ordered the 48" Alaskan, and a set of slabbing brackets. I'm still not sure what I'm going to do for rails though.

You didn't really need to buy the slabbing brackets. Most of us use something homemade.

I make my "end boards" out of scrap pieces of OSB underlayment, the kind that is about 3/4" thick. 3 dry wall screws attach the end board to the log (carefully checking with a torpedo level) then 1 drywall screw or deck screw attaches the guide board/rail to the end board. Eventually the end boards get chewed up and have to be replaced, which is no big deal.

Looks like your storebought slabbing brackets are designed to be used with a pair of 2x4's. 2x4's should work fine when they are new, it's just that they'll warp and twist after a while. I imagine you could also substitute unistrut, though I think the unistrut is over-rated -- it's heavy and expensive and not particularly stiff.

You'll find something for a guide rail, preferably something that you already have laying around. Start out cheap and simple.

 

[dustytools]

If someone has a GTG this Spring I will hook you up with some uni-strut Brad.

 

[BobL]

I imagine you could also substitute unistrut, though I think the unistrut is over-rated -- it's heavy and expensive and not particularly stiff.

Yep I agree.

The way I get around the stiffness is to effectively use double thickness non-perforated unistrut but that stuff is HEAVY.

That means lifting 2 lengths of 20', 12 gauge non perforated unistrut (Plus 6 all thread rods plus 2 angle iron slabbing ends) on/off the log for every cut.
The unistrut alone weighs 76 lbs (so marginally more than the BIL mill with the 880 attached!) but with the extra bits and pieces the total weight is >80 lbs

Lifting the rails onto my roof rack also aint that easy (imagine lifting the BIL mill above your head to put that on a roof rack) - so where I can I use other methods.

When I get some spare cash I'm going to upgrade to ally unistrut.

 

[Brmorgan]

That is THE coolest forklift I've seen. It just needs some good swamper tires!

 

[gemniii]

Yep I agree.

The way I get around the stiffness is to effectively use double thickness non-perforated unistrut but that stuff is HEAVY.

That means lifting 2 lengths of 20', 12 gauge non perforated unistrut (Plus 6 all thread rods plus 2 angle iron slabbing ends) on/off the log for every cut.
The unistrut alone weighs 76 lbs (so marginally more than the BIL mill with the 880 attached!) but with the extra bits and pieces the total weight is >80 lbs

Lifting the rails onto my roof rack also aint that easy (imagine lifting the BIL mill above your head to put that on a roof rack) - so where I can I use other methods.

When I get some spare cash I'm going to upgrade to ally unistrut.

So Bob, it seems that you are designing an exercise program.

How many reps do you do you recommend lifting the BIL mill over your head?

I'm glad my tiny 660 w/ Mark III only weighs about 50lbs.

 

[BobL]

So Bob, it seems that you are designing an exercise program.

How many reps do you do you recommend lifting the BIL mill over your head?

None if I can help it

I'm glad my tiny 660 w/ Mark III only weighs about 50lbs.

All this is of course nothing compared to the weight of the slabs.

And to top it off, SWMBO says I can't be getting any exercise milling cos I'm still gaining weight!

 

[blsnelling]

Here's a HD vid I made of the 084 that I will be milling with. It has a brand new OEM piston. The cylinder is stock except for a little transfer work. I also modded the muffler. In this vid it's tune to 13,000 and still 4-stroking hard when not loaded. It's pulling 11,000 in the cut.

VIDEO

It looks like I can't embed a video in this forum???

 

[BobL]

Here's a HD vid I made of the 084 that I will be milling with. It has a brand new OEM piston. The cylinder is stock except for a little transfer work. I also modded the muffler. In this vid it's tune to 13,000 and still 4-stroking hard when not loaded. It's pulling 11,000 in the cut.

VIDEO

It looks like I can't embed a video in this forum???

looking good, real good Brad, - I'd like to see that puppy cutting some good ole Aussie hardwood.

You will definitely need better ear protection if you are going to mill with thing.

 

[blsnelling]

looking good, real good Brad, - I'd like to see that puppy cutting some good ole Aussie hardwood.

You will definitely need better ear protection if you are going to mill with thing.

Thanks Bob. Yes, it is VERY loud. I will be taking your advice and using ear plugs and muffs. For those of you that haven't run a muff modded 084 turning 11K in the wood, it' has an extremely loud piercing tone. I will hurt your ears!

 

[BobL]

Thanks Bob. Yes, it is VERY loud. I will be taking your advice and using ear plugs and muffs. For those of you that haven't run a muff modded 084 turning 11K in the wood, it' has an extremely loud piercing tone. I will hurt your ears!

Even though I opened up the muffler on the 880 from 14 to 19 mm (area increase of 84% minus the effect of the pipe), my muffler noise did not increase all that much. Before the mod, especially when milling the top half of the log the noise would bounce off the log up into the operators face. Now with the pipe directing the noise and exhaust away from the operator it quite reasonable but I still wear muffs and earplugs.

 

[blsnelling]

I didn't measure, but I probably doubled the exhaust opening. The are no internal baffles or spark arrestor screen in the muffler either.

 

[BobL]

I didn't measure, but I probably doubled the exhaust opening. The are no internal baffles or spark arrestor screen in the muffler either.

I didn't mess with the baffles but I did remove the spark arrestor.

 

[blsnelling]

This muffler body had no baffles or cage. So I got lucky there.

 

[mtngun]

It looks like I can't embed a video in this forum???

Not sure about that, but some of us country bumpkins don't have broadband so video is not missed on this forum.

The chainsaw forum drives me nuts with its never ending parade of cookie-cutting videos.

Time after time I click on a thread -- which can take a couple of minutes to open in the evenings when my satellite service is bogged down with traffic -- only to learn that the thread is about yet another cookie-cutting video that I can't view, anyway.

Seriously, your 084 should be perfect for milling. Wish one would fall into my lap.

 

[blsnelling]

Seriously, your 084 should be perfect for milling. Wish one would fall into my lap.

This 084 didn't exactly fall into my lap, but I wasn't looking for one when I found it. I was just browsing around and found it for sale. Next thing you know, I had another 084, lol.

 

[TraditionalTool]

It looks like I can't embed a video in this forum???

That is probably so, I know in the Homeowner forum you can't embed a video, and I think it is dependent on how the moderator of the forum sets it.

 

[gr8scott72]

That is probably so, I know in the Homeowner forum you can't embed a video, and I think it is dependent on how the moderator of the forum sets it.

Just look at the bottom of any page in question. In here is says:

HTML code is Off

so, no embedding.

 

[gemniii]

Just look at the bottom of any page in question. In here is says:

HTML code is Off

so, no embedding.

Thanks for small favors!