Gas Consumption Question On 1 Cut Or Pass

[StihlRockin']

Hey guys. I can't recall who I private messaged, but a while back someone mentioned about burning a tank of gas with one cut of the saw.(don't know size of the saw, etc)

I think what was said is that a tank of gas was used up cutting a 20" wide log that was 18' feet long... single cut from one end to the other.

I don't recall much other specifics, but I guess it's not that important at the moment. I gather the harder the wood, the more gas consumption.

Does the above scenario sound about right though? To me it seems expensive, gas cost anyway, to make only 1 cut. Am I missing something? I don't know how much a tank of gas holds, but I guess if I knew or found out,(which isn't that hard) I could figure the math to determine how much that one cut actually cost.

How do you guys figure or quantify what the gas consumption costs are for your mill practices using something like an Alaskan Mill?

Your thought, opinions or replies are appreciated by this wanna-be-learnin'-sumtin'-guy!

Thanks,

StihlRockin'

 

[BobL]

It's not uncommon in the wider part of a big log to refuel after every pass. This is to try and minimize running out of fuel in the middle of a cut. It's a bit hard on a saw to constantly go from WOT for about 10 minutes to dead stop without a chance to cool down at low revs.

If a log is a bit dirty, wide (>30" diameter), and long (>10 ft) and hard (as in Aussie hardwood) by the time I get to about 5th slab down (ie in the wider part of the tree) I might even have to refuel twice during the cut. This happens because my power head (076) is not designed to be filled on its side so not much fuel can be put in. Along with slower cutting speed this is a sure sign of needing to change the chain to a freshly sharpened one.

I'm not doing this for a living so by the time I've slabbed one big log or a couple of smaller ones I've often gone through a gallon of gas, my sawdust lust is satisfied for a while, and I usually call it a day.

 

[slabmaster]

I usually run a modded 394 on a granberg mill and have to refuel every pass or two.I'm always cutting hardwood though,and it takes longer to mill than softwood.Dollar for dollar it's well worth the cost of gas & oil,And don't forget bar oil as it isn't cheep,but the lumber i get is worth 10 times the amount i spend on gas and oil.I go through 1 and 1/2 gals. a day of gas mix and 1/2 gal.of bar oil.But i get 20 18" 16 ft. boards from that,all nice hardwood.That is a great deal if you ask me.I sure wouldn't want to pay for those boards outright from a lumber yard.So i save alot milling for myself.:biggrinbounce2:

 

[Ironbark]

I milled a 32 inch diameter cedar with my 660 and it used probably 2/3 of a tank to to about 12 feet in the middle sections.

 

[Marklambert61]

Burning gas

I judge the days milling by the amount of fuel i burn.

1 gallon- Didn't cut that much
1-1/2 gallon- Just a nice days work
2 gallons- I'm tired
over that- I'm tired sore and cranky

Eaten saw dust snorting exhaust....cant get enough I love that sawing


Mark...

 

[slabmaster]

I milled a 32 inch diameter cedar with my 660 and it used probably 2/3 of a tank to to about 12 feet in the middle sections.

A modded saw eats more fuel,but a sharp chain makes a big difference.Mark Groza

 

[carvinmark]

Alot of variables here, saw size, chain condition, hard or soft wood, ect. I get lumber that I can't buy around here, so it is well worth the fuel cost plus it's enjoyable.

 

[timberwolf]

With a modified 066 I found I needed to tank up every 2 slabs on a 24 to 28" maple about 10-12 feet long.

But then I have seen 2 inch hardwood slabs like that selling for $100 plus.

 

[peter nap]

With a modified 066 I found I needed to tank up every 2 slabs on a 24 to 28" maple about 10-12 feet long.

But then I have seen 2 inch hardwood slabs like that selling for $100 plus.

Same here!

 

[carvinmark]

Same here!

+1

 

[Ianab]

Well using a chainsaw mill to cut construction grade 4x2s probably isn't good economics. But using a chainsaw mill to saw out 24-36" slabs of walnut, redwood or cypress to make table tops on the other hand. Burn $1 or $2 of gas, get a $100 slab of wood. Works for me.

My mill has a chainsaw powerhead running a swingblade, so it's not the most economical mill around. But I might burn 5 gal of gas in a day. A couple of good boards covers that

Ian

 

[Mad Professor]

I can get a few cuts with my 066 on a logosol mill on one tank. I'm running stihl pmx chain and the cuts are with a buried 16-24 " bar in hardwood (ash hard maple oak). With white pine I can get quite a few cuts.........

P.S. pmx chain is stihl picco (e.g. 3/8 low profile) ground to 5-10 degrees, less kerf = less gas

 

[aggiewoodbutchr]

The most I've used on a cut was nearly 2 tanks in a old, dense southern yellow pine butt log 48" wide and 20' long.

The hardwoods I do in the 40"+ and 10'-12' range usually take a tank per cut, sometimes a little more.

It takes a lot of juice to pull 10' of chain on a 5' bar.