Is Stihl 661 enough? too much?

[denmark219]

I live in the midwest and all of the wood on our property is elm, oak, maple, walnut and cherry (a few basswoods but we don't talk about those... ). Anyways, I have a sawmill that only has a 29" capacity. I have a number of logs that are 48"+ in diameter. I am considering getting a 661 with a 36" bar to slab off these logs to be able to get them on my machine. I would also use the larger power head and a smaller bar combo for blocking firewood (I do this every year 7+ cords of wood). If I set up an Alaskan CS mill, would the 661 w/ a 36" bar be enough to get the outer flitches off the log? I'm running a smaller echo at the moment with a 19" bar and that works fine for blocking and woods work, but I think I need to add a 661 to the arsenal to be able to handle the rest of what I have. I would love to do an 880, but that's a ton of saw, and I don't really believe I'd ever be able to handle a 48"+ bar safely or often enough to make it worth it.

 

[Boogedy_Man]

I mill up to 36" hardwoods with my 661. That's in a Granberg mill with a 50" doubled ended bar. With the mounting of the mill, the oiler, and etc, you loose a lot of length. That's about as big as I want to mill with that saw, but others mill much more. Some even mill that big and bigger with a 460.

I'd guess if you went with a regular sprocket nose 36" bar and 36" mill, you'd probably only have around a 32" cut capacity....maybe less.

 

[denmark219]

I would never be cutting through the center of a 48" log, only cutting off the outsides to get it down to a manageable size. If I mount it properly, I could still use a 36" bar on a tree that size right? When you say double ended bar, do you mean you have a powerhead on each side? or your mill holds onto the tip of the bar? (Sorry for the newbie questions).

 

[Boogedy_Man]

Double-ended meaning it can have two powerheads or a roller handle. Mine is set up with the roller handle.

I understand you're not looking to cut through the center, I just wanted to make sure you knew you couldn't get 36" of rip cut with that setup. Some people are able to clamp (or drill) way up on the bar nose. Doing that and taking the dogs off the 661 might get you close to 34" with a 36" mill.

Another thing, too, it's always harder to cut when you get close (within an inch or so) to max capacity. This is just because you lose all the wiggle room needed to follow the contour of the log.

With a 661 I would buy a 48" mill even if you plan to run a 36" bar. Granbergs uses heavier rails on the 48" and up, and you'll have a more flexible setup.

 

[denmark219]

That's exactly the info I'm looking for. My thought is that a 48" bar (even though I'll never use that capacity) will allow me to get a better hold of the saw and be more flexible while cutting my 36" or whatever. Great tip. Thanks! Now I just gotta find a used 661....

 

[Boogedy_Man]

Here's a picture of my two mills. The setup on the left is the one I've talked about in this thread.

 

[denmark219]

Is that this mill? https://granberg.com/product/g778-48c2-alaskan-mark-iv-48-c2-series/

 

[Boogedy_Man]

Mine started as a MkIII C3 36"er. MkIII is the older version and C3 means it was set up for 3/8 chain vs .404. I then swapped out the 36" rails for 48" to use a bit more of the bar.


And....the mill you posted uses a 56" bar. Mine is 50" and you can see I can't use the full 48" of the rails.

 

[denmark219]

Would you agree that anything over a 30" cut is a 2 man job?

 

[Boogedy_Man]

A second hand is nice getting a cut started, but you can do bigger than 30 alone without issue. My helper handle never gets used.

 

[denmark219]

Thanks Boogedy_Man, I owe you a couple beers! Where are you located in NC? Is this a hobby for you?

 

[Boogedy_Man]

Right on the coast....100% hobby.

 

[denmark219]

Awesome, me too. I restore boats, so I want to start cutting my own white oak. Thanks for all the info.

 

[Definitive Dave]

Now I just gotta find a used 661....

Looks like you got great advice, I would however reconsider a used MS661.
Milling is hands down the hardest work you can make a chainsaw do. The MS661 is a new enough model that you would be hard to pressed to find one whose owner was upgrading to another saw yet.
Most of the used ones for sale are the worn out or tree crushed rebuilds that a commercial service rode hard and put away wet.
With all the issues they had early on, I would feel alot safer putting a new one on a mill OR buying one and having a good mechanic (or you) go through it with a fine tooth comb to be sure it is tip top shape.
Just my 2 cents, would hate to see you get discouraged from something fun and rewarding by equipment problems

 

[denmark219]

Is it worth just trying to find a used 660? I like the benefits of the newer models, but if I'm not going to notice enough of a difference for a decent price differential, I would consider a 660. There are a number for sale around me that appear to be homeowner/non-commercial units.

 

[Boogedy_Man]

You're lucky to have a good used saw market. We just don't have that here....460 and up for sale is virtually unheard of. Only a few tree companys run saws that big and they tend to hold on to them forever. The only 660s you see are chinese copies.

I don't have any major problems my 661, but I tend to prefer my 461. Maybe it's just me being spooky about the Mtronic, but I feel like the 461 is more predictable and smoother.

I haven't ran a 660 to offer a direct comparison, but if I had access to a used one in good shape and I knew it hadn't been rode hard, I'd probably buy it before investing in new.

 

[blsnelling]

394/395XP

 

[Boogedy_Man]

C'mon, Brad. Tell us more. I'm not terribly chainsaw-smart, so some wisdom would be fitting here.

I'm running all Stihl (for all O P E) because we only have one Husky dealer and he has funky hours and is too far away. It's built a good relationship with the dealer and we don't have to haggle on anything anymore - a good mutual understanding

 

[blsnelling]

Milling is as hard of work as you can do with a saw. There's not a stringer built saw in class than the 394/395XP. I also like that you can fatten up the tune when milling.

 

[Marshy]

I second that motion for the 394/395. I just picked one up freshly rebuilt and cosmetically pleasant for 6 bills shipped.