mtngun
Addicted to ArboristSite
I finally got the carb kinks worked out of the Oly 980, which is a good thing, because it's the only running milling saw on hand at the moment.
I'd run the Oly on the Alaskan years ago, and it had got the job done, but required a gentle feed to avoid bogging, even on the modest 16" - 18" trees that are typical around here.
Since then, the Oly got a woods port. I was curious how the ported Oly would perform on the Alaskan.
The Oly has been tweaked to use the same chains and bars as the Stihl 066, however, when I tried to put a lo-pro chain on the Oly, it was a hair short of fitting. So, I headed to the woods loaded with 3/8 ripping chain, rather than lo-pro.
First up, a 26" doug fir blowdown, because Murphy's law implies that whenever you take a small saw milling, you'll have to mill big wood.
It was slooooow going, using 33RP chain modified to Granberg style. The Oly had no problem at all pulling it, averaging about 9300 rpm even in the widest cuts, but the Granberg'd chain was making dust, not chips. Definitely got to experiment with more aggressive rakers.
Finally, I finished the big log, and now I could move on to a small dead standing doug down the hill. Looked to be about 16" diameter. Just the right size for the little Oly.
Funny thing happened as I walked over to the little dead standing. It experienced a miraculous growth spurt, and by the time I reached the tree, it had grown to 26" diameter ! ! ! Chiiiit
I love to mill big trees -- but not with the little saw, and not with the sloooow 3/8 chain. Aaargh.
The 24" bar on the CS62 could not reach all the way through the wood, so I had to cut on both sides. No big deal, the woods ported CS62 threw chips with authority, and the tree fell right where I wanted it.
The GMC skidder drug the logs up to the skid trail, and the Oly went to work. By now it was wearing a regular (non-Granberg) 33RP, and it was cutting faster, though not pulling as many RPMs. Typically 8800 - 9000 RPM. It didn't bog at all, even on the widest cuts, so apparently the woods port did help.
I'd forgotten how much sawdust 3/8 chain generates.
I'd run the Oly on the Alaskan years ago, and it had got the job done, but required a gentle feed to avoid bogging, even on the modest 16" - 18" trees that are typical around here.
Since then, the Oly got a woods port. I was curious how the ported Oly would perform on the Alaskan.
The Oly has been tweaked to use the same chains and bars as the Stihl 066, however, when I tried to put a lo-pro chain on the Oly, it was a hair short of fitting. So, I headed to the woods loaded with 3/8 ripping chain, rather than lo-pro.
First up, a 26" doug fir blowdown, because Murphy's law implies that whenever you take a small saw milling, you'll have to mill big wood.
It was slooooow going, using 33RP chain modified to Granberg style. The Oly had no problem at all pulling it, averaging about 9300 rpm even in the widest cuts, but the Granberg'd chain was making dust, not chips. Definitely got to experiment with more aggressive rakers.
Finally, I finished the big log, and now I could move on to a small dead standing doug down the hill. Looked to be about 16" diameter. Just the right size for the little Oly.
Funny thing happened as I walked over to the little dead standing. It experienced a miraculous growth spurt, and by the time I reached the tree, it had grown to 26" diameter ! ! ! Chiiiit
I love to mill big trees -- but not with the little saw, and not with the sloooow 3/8 chain. Aaargh. The 24" bar on the CS62 could not reach all the way through the wood, so I had to cut on both sides. No big deal, the woods ported CS62 threw chips with authority, and the tree fell right where I wanted it.
The GMC skidder drug the logs up to the skid trail, and the Oly went to work. By now it was wearing a regular (non-Granberg) 33RP, and it was cutting faster, though not pulling as many RPMs. Typically 8800 - 9000 RPM. It didn't bog at all, even on the widest cuts, so apparently the woods port did help.
I'd forgotten how much sawdust 3/8 chain generates.
