Thread: CS Mill Decisions

Welcome Ravvin.

I haven't had specific experience with chainsaw slabbers (Weisy and Bob hopefully will fill you in on most of it) other than the slabber used in a lucas mill, but some of the chain questions would be easy enough to answer. Also no experience with Sithl saws (Weisy will chip in on that)

As for chain, my feeling is stay away from full chisel and also use a skip chain, grind around 10-15deg. If your wood is clean, try knocking a bit more off your rakers and using a smaller diameter file. My slabbing bar is a solid tip bar, haven't used anything else, left that side of things up to Lucas to find out.

I hope that helps to start with?

One thing, a little disclaimer, I post info on what/how I feel things are, as all of us do. You will find folkes who have different points of view, it's up to you to take it all in a see what works for you.

Good luck and again Welcome

My 2 bobs worth.

First leave the tuning as is - the saw will run best running normal tuning.

For over 36 inch bar run a sprocket - reduces drag, loss of horse power dragging chain around end

48 inch bar i think is the absolute max without auxillary oiler.

Fullchisel chain will cut faster - but need sharpening more often.

I have a 660 magnum that i run at normal tune - use an alaskin mill (home made copy) run 36 inch bar with end sprocket use 3/8 full chisel skip tooth chain sharpened at 10 deg. I mainly cut dry blackwood up to the maximum width of the mill. (about 30 + inches. I sharpen the chain every time prior to going out with a electric grinder and touch up with a 12 volt sharpener every 2 tanks of fuel.

Have you thought of a dedicated slabbing mill?

Hope that helps.

Cheers

Show me some pictures of the 1200+ blckwood please - that will make my mouth water.

Thanks for the welcome and helpful comments.
My main reason for deciding on a chainsaw mill over other types of mill is that the places where my logs are, are only accessible on foot. Many are in windrows inside cultivated coupes or down in gullys or drainage lines where heavy machinery isn't allowed. I want something I can cart in on a 4-wheeler or on foot if necessary, to break down a log into slabs small enough to be carried out to the nearest access track.
The big logs with diameters of 1200+ are mostly Tas Myrtles and old eucs. These trees are too large to be trucked out to a mill and too tough to be split up with excavators to be hauled off to be chipped. Usually they get windrowed and burned. If they won't burn the first year they are just left and the plantation grows up around them. Too good to waste. I'll get some good pics of different Tasmanian timber trees in the coming months as my work takes me to many areas with remnants of old growth forest.
My intention here is not to cause arguments, but to learn what people are using and, more importantly, why they using it. From this I hope to learn enough to not waste my cash at my first attempt.

ok convert it to 3/8". leave the mix as it is if you adjust it it will make the saw run bady.

how many 1.2m logs do you have a laber 1.2m long will be a bastrud when milling anything under 900mm. if also if you need to get to them on foot the slabs would be to heavy to carry out. consider getting a smaller mill and either resawing them into sawn timber of getting them profesionaly slabed for you.

as for the aux oiler it would be needed on any mill over 40" especialy in hardwood. use a sprocket nose you can still drill it for an oiled just bring i back from the sprocket.

i am in mutch the same position as you i have to hike to a lot of my timber so i opted for a small saw and mill and just saw it up into esaly movable timber.

Welcome aboard Ravvin.

Originally Posted by Ravvin71

What I am after is some info on chainsaw mills.

Well even though there are very knowledgeable folks on this forum if you want very detailed CS mill advice I don't think you can go past the Aboriste ("http://www.arboristsite.com/forumdisplay.php?f=62") Milling and saw milling site. It's biased towards north american viewpoints but there must be thousands of person years of experience reading and posting on that site. Meanwhile we'll try and do the best we can.

My first problem is deciding on which one. I am trying to decide between an Alaskan and a GB mill. I asked questions of 2 local millers and got totally contradictory answers. One preferred the GB as he said it was more rigid and less likely to twist or flex. The other preferred the Alaskan as it was lighter in weight, being made of aluminium.

In broad terms the GB mill is a type of alaskan mill. One definition of an Alaskan is any type of mill you can attach a chainsaw to that one person can carry (into the bush) and allows you to cut slabs. The GB is just a type of mill frame mounting where the inboard clamp on an alaskan is replaced with mounting direct onto the bar bolts.

Each have their advantages and disadvantages. The direct bar bolt mounting is generally stronger and not clamping to the bar leaves more bar for milling. The standard GB and alaskan style clamp mounts requires the bar to removed from the mill to chained the chain. The BIL mill design uses a GB style mount but if one is careful in the design you do not have to remove the bar from the mill to change the chain.

The second problem is, do I need an auxillary oiler? I have access to logs with diameters of 1200+, so I will buy a bar and mill rails to suit. One miller said I definitely need it, the other said just turn the oil feed up higher on my saw.

Whether you need an oiler depends as much on the hardness of the timber and the lengths of the logs, as it does on the width of the logs. For harder timber are I reckon you need something around 40 mL of bar oil per minute per metre of bar cutting length to prevent chain and bar damage. if your onboard oiler can deliver this then there is probably no need to go for an aux oiler. Of the Stihl saws only the 088 can deliver 35 mL/min while he others deliver a lot less, so basically all mills using 1 metre or more long bars should run Aux oilers in Aussie hardwoods. Milling is a lot harder on chains and bars than regular cross cutting so good oiling is essential. An 084 only delivers a max of 25 mL/min so this would limit you to about 600 mm for long term regular cutting width in hard timber.

The third is which chain/chains would you recommend I run?I suspect that I will need different chains for the harder timbers. I had been planning on running 3/8 chain, but don’t know whether to use semi chisel, square or full chisel. I was told by one miller that a hard nose bar is best. The other said a roller nose is better. I read in a thread that people used hard nose bars as they could drill them to fit a dripper for the auxillary oiler, but I am not certain if this is the only reason.

A hard nose bar allows the aux oiler chain lube feed to be installed direct onto the bar nose without losing too much cutting bar length but you do lose some power. A roller nose can save bar length by using an oil dripped direct onto the chain but this wastes a lot of oil and is not as effective.

Chains are personal, semi chisel full comp chain works best for me in hardwood and gives a better finish than full chisel. Smaller thinner chains work better and faster but can stretch and even break or come off the bar. Water cooling reduces that possibility but requires a water supply. With chains you should think about getting a couple of different types and try and see what works for you.

The final question,(so far) is about my saw. I have a Stihl 084AV with a 30” bar running .404 chain. I have been using this for docking and some falling. Used it a few times for cutting firewood, but the 30” bar is a bit unwieldy and after a few hours your arms feel like they will fall off. One of the millers suggested I have it detuned, so that it ran richer and with a lower top rev limit. He believed it was too high revving for milling. The other miller said that was (wrong) and said I needed it running as fast as possible to clear the chips from the cut when milling wide slabs.

I'm a fan of slight detuning (ask this question on Arboriste site and see what you get) but this will do nothing about how unwieldy or heavy the CS is. Milling is hard on powerheads and taking 500 - 1000 RPM off the top end doesn't slow the cutting down all that much and is cheap engine insurance.

Counteracting the weight and unwieldiness of a big CS Mill is all about adding all the little ergonomic extras and setting up for milling properly. I am not a fit person and have bursitis in both shoulders but can still manage to start the old 076 (two pulls when its warm!) and do a couple of days milling without feeling like I have been take out the back and touched by a gang of drunk Freo Dockers supporters.

have a look at this post and see which images gives you a sore back just looking at them.

Hi Ravvin,
After reading your post why not start with a standard alsakan mill with your 30" bar, try some skip chain sharpen at 10 to 15 deg and find what suits you before moving into larger bars and mills, i have a 36" alskan mill and use the end brackets bolted onto 25mm rhs to make a slabbing frame that could hold a 6' bar on an 090. maybe after some time milling you can find out what works best for you. i did find that on the long bar that it was always better to have someone helping keep the frame level on the timber. have you thought about a small lucas mill as these can be very mobile in to tight ares with 4 wheelers?

Might be worth comparing the Aussie Westford CS mills too against the others.
http://www.onlinetoolreviews.com/rev...stfordmill.htm

Hi Ravvin71 & everyone,

I have my own opinion and ideas about your enquire but, instead I would like to introduce to you and anyone interested, my chainsaw/chains & all accessories supplier and adviser. His name is Laurie, his prices are unbeatable, and his experience is "hands-on" so, he knows his stuff...!
I believe, Laurie has recently joined (member) to the Site so he will be in the position to help anyone on these issues.

I have been dealing with Laurie for 2 years now, we met through eBay ( Laurie's sales), and have become good friends since. I have no hesitation in asking Laurie for his advice in regards to anything that has to do with chainsaws, parts, accessories and anything else a chainsaw can be used on/for. I like to know that his knowledge and experience come from his everyday work, also!.

He is a busy "boy" at the momment but, I'm pretty certain he will assist anyone that contacts him. Laurie has also a web site and some "specials" running at the momment so, here he is;

Sawchain Supply & Lopping Service

ABN: 45 402 659 591
PO Box879 ( 6 Agnes Ave )
Queanbeyan NSW 2620
Ph 02 62993328 M 0413 392960

Fx 02 62993328 [email protected]

Good luck

Cheers
RBTCO

Tried looking for your mate on Ebay - couldn't find him, got any other info? or his actual web site?

likewise.

ravin: you must really like reading.

Sorry guys, I've sent an email to Laurie about his present location on the web, I'm waiting on his reply. I have also asked him to respond directly on here, I'm just not sure if he know exactly how to do it. I will guide him through if necessary, and as soon as i get in contact with Laurie.

Cheers
George

Hi everyone,

So that everyone know, and due to the fact that I was the one the introduce my friend (Laurie) to this forum, his forum name is sawchain. He already done a couple of replies (posts) but, the reason why none of you did find him on eBay is because is Store there is empty at the moment. Apparently due to some issues with eBay, he moved his stuff into other places for sale. A PM to him will get all the location of his products.

I do not receive any commission, nor I would accept any, for introducing Laurie to this forum. His best "value" (if you know what I mean), is in been able to assist anyone at anytime with any chainsaw issues and or any related matters, provide prices no one can match and be quick in getting stuff moving. You will find, he is someone you can count on, just don't play "silly games", he doesn't like them much, and he will tell you so...!. No, we are not "brothers"


Cheers
RBTCO

Good work George!

Heres his email address [email protected] Cheers MM

Originally Posted by robutacion

Hi everyone,

Originally Posted by robutacion

So that everyone know, and due to the fact that I was the one the introduce my friend (Laurie) to this forum, his forum name is sawchain. He already done a couple of replies (posts) but, the reason why none of you did find him on eBay is because is Store there is empty at the moment. Apparently due to some issues with eBay, he moved his stuff into other places for sale. A PM to him will get all the location of his products.

I do not receive any commission, nor I would accept any, for introducing Laurie to this forum. His best "value" (if you know what I mean), is in been able to assist anyone at anytime with any chainsaw issues and or any related matters, provide prices no one can match and be quick in getting stuff moving. You will find, he is someone you can count on, just don't play "silly games", he doesn't like them much, and he will tell you so...!. No, we are not "brothers"


Cheers
RBTCO