What tools to take when milling?

[petersenj20]

As a kid, dad did all the cutting for firewood. We were poor and never took "provisions" when falling trees. When the plug fouled, it was time to load the truck.

I will be milling soon and was wondering what tools people took when milling in the field. Milling seems to be much more labor intensive than just bucking logs and I will clearly need a support system.

The things I think of are:
safety glasses
leather gloves
secure protective clothing
saw - nick edit: extra saw, wrench for mill to bar bolts, tape measure
mill
Nick edit: files
1 gallon+ premix gas
1 gallon+ bar oil to match (reading here says they should run out together)
extra plug
cant hook (posts to follow for ideas)
wedges if a big log
screw driver for fuel mix
ratchet and socket for plug
hard working, non whining kid to haul the lumber
Beer

Optional:
lunch
drinking water

That..thats about all you can do with shrimp.

 

[nicklt040]

files
an extra saw if you got it.
for me prefer one saw to fell and one already setup on the mill.
besides its always good to have another saw
tools for the mill/wrenches.
Tape measure
cant hook
guides for the first cut
other than that you got it covered
I am probably missing something here but somebody here will surly tell you.

 

[petersenj20]

Yes. Extra saw I have, small and works well.
Files of course, I knew I missed something.
Will need wrenches for the mill mount-to-bar, Mill is all welded parts.
Tape measure yes.
Guides yes also. Guides will be unfinished lumber roughly 2x6 I have will be half lapped to extend the length.

 

[DRB]

As a kid, dad did all the cutting for firewood. We were poor and never took "provisions" when falling trees. When the plug fouled, it was time to load the truck.

I will be milling soon and was wondering what tools people took when milling in the field. Milling seems to be much more labor intensive than just bucking logs and I will clearly need a support system.

The things I think of are:
safety glasses
leather gloves
secure protective clothing
saw
mill
1 gallon+ premix gas
1 gallon+ bar oil to match (reading here says they should run out together)
extra plug
cant hook (posts to follow for ideas)
wedges if a big log
screw driver for fuel mix
ratchet and socket for plug
hard working, non whining kid to haul the lumber
Beer

Optional:
lunch
drinking water

That..thats about all you can do with shrimp.

Take a read on woodshops detailed set up.

http://www.arboristsite.com/showthread.php?t=19709&highlight=Milling+Tools


I have tried to model my set up after his system to make mobility more efficient and so that I don't forget things back at home. Most all of my milling equipment stays in one box that I bring with me. Extra bars, chains sharp and ready to go, small tool kit, level, square, tape, spare nuts and bolts for mill and saws, wedges, lag screws to mount guide board, files, Axe, gas and oil, safety equipment, I probably have things in my box that I don't even know are there but will come in handy. Its nice to be prepared for the unpredictable so you don't have to come home early with out the prized wood.

 

[dustytools]

As a kid, dad did all the cutting for firewood. We were poor and never took "provisions" when falling trees. When the plug fouled, it was time to load the truck.

I will be milling soon and was wondering what tools people took when milling in the field. Milling seems to be much more labor intensive than just bucking logs and I will clearly need a support system.

The things I think of are:
safety glasses
leather gloves
secure protective clothing
saw - nick edit: extra saw, wrench for mill to bar bolts, tape measure
mill
Nick edit: files
1 gallon+ premix gas
1 gallon+ bar oil to match (reading here says they should run out together)
extra plug
cant hook (posts to follow for ideas)
wedges if a big log
screw driver for fuel mix
ratchet and socket for plug
hard working, non whining kid to haul the lumber
Beer

Optional:
lunch
drinking water

That..thats about all you can do with shrimp.

I would have to recommend taking water out of the optional section. When working I can usually go without lunch but not the water. I was milling with Haywire Haywood and Stihl-in-Ky this past Summer on a very warm day and let me tell ya when those Gatorade bottles were empty it took the fun out of milling those big ole Oak trees. It might not hurt to up your fuel+mix to two gallons or better as those saws sure like to drink as much as I do when milling.:greenchainsaw:

 

[BobL]

It might not hurt to up your fuel+mix to two gallons or better as those saws sure like to drink as much as I do when milling.:greenchainsaw:

I don't think anyone has mentioned ear muffs or plugs.

I take a can of mixed fuel and one of unmixed. I do this to keep the mix as fresh as possible. If I need the extra fuel when I'm milling I mix it on the spot. If I don't use the mix within a week or two, or the unmixed within a month or two, I dump them into the car fuel tank just before I fill the car tank. It's going to be a bit harder to do that now I have bought myself a diesel van! I guess I'll be putting in the other car.

Other useful things I've found are:

A jack to lift logs
An air tyred sack trolley - I move slabs weighing up to 350 lbs with mine.

As I have space (vans sure nice to go milling with!) I also bring 4 saw horses , 2 act as table legs so I can service the mill at a nice height and 2 I put small logs on.

Oh one more thing. If your powerhead ever stops half way down that big slab and you have to get it out here is a way I found that does not involve taking the mill/saw apart or cutting the slab. It's not always possible to just back the mill out as the sawdust that is left behind just backs up and jams the bar in the cut. If you are near a hose/tap you may be able to blast the water out. If not get yourself a 3 ft long bowsaw blade and a cheap gardening saw handle. Attach the handle to the blade and working from either side of the log use the blade to loosen the backed up sawdust. It's only ever happened once and and was lucky to have both a 3ft bowsaw and cheap plastic saw handle on hand and it worked.

Cheers

 

[woodshop]

Welcome petersenj... if you follow through with this, prepare for addiction. Know now that we will NOT intercede on your behalf, but will lead you ever further into said addiction .

Best beginners advice I can give you is kinda what DRB alluded to, that is take enough spare parts and tools for when (notice I didn't say IF, I said WHEN) the unexpected happens. I actually went over all my equipment and mills and took note of some of the major nuts and bolts that if they failed would leave me dead in the water. I then threw a couple of each in my toolbox along with standard spare parts like an extra bar nut, an extra of one of those teeny tiny little E-clips that go flying off into the piles of sawdust you will generate, never to be found. Stuff like that. I take enough tools to disassemble all of my equipment to a point. Don't think I'm gonna do a carb rebuild in the woods, but I've been known to tear the powerhead down to the cylinder to clean debris that had lodged in the fins and thus I thought was interfering in keeping my saw cool. Keep all small tools and parts in a couple toolboxes dedicated just to milling/chainsaw stuff so grabbing those assures you won't forget anything, and be consistant in where you put stuff so when you need to grab it you're not poking through 3 boxes to find it. Not trying to get too anal on ya, just letting you know what has worked for me.

Dusty is right... take at least a gallon jug of drink. Beer (alcohol) and chainsaws don't mix all that well, at least not until you're done swinging that saw around.

 

[ThatWoodGuy]

Everything, take everything you can fit in your truck...

A hi lift jack is a tool that you should never be without.
Extra chain is always a good idea.

I put all my tools in one of those canvas tool bags with handles, easy to throw in the truck or haul up the hill if needed.

Take some extra fuel and oil hose just in case. I had to rob some vacuum line off my truck carb Thursday to patch up a bad oil hose while milling a big oak out in the middle of nowhere, it was that or drive 2 hours to get parts.

And most important, bananas, gives you a boost of energy about half way through the log.

 

[big daddio]

the beer is awful handy if the non-whiner turns into a whiner. [after the chain saw work is done but the haulin' aint]

 

[Haywire Haywood]

-1 on the beer. So you're gonna saw up your logs, drink a few beers, then load up and drive home... NOT. +1 on the water.. I never take enough.

Ian

 

[stonykill]

extra chains. If you hit hidden hardware, and you will...... you'll be filing all day instead of milling. I rarely if ever touch up chains in the feild. When the chain is dull, I change it out. Then sharpen all my chains, dress my bars, clean saws, make new chains if needed before the next outing. When I'm milling I want to mill , not sharpen chains.

Lunch is mandatory as is water. Running a chainsaw is labor intensive, and if your sugar/energy level drops, you are more likely to get hurt.

Extra bar or bars, cause you never know.

lots of wedges

Beer does not belong anywhere near a chainsaw, unless you have a problem with your limbs or your life. Milling all day is exhausting. Your reaction times slow as you get tired. Add to that the effects of alcohol, you WILL at some point, cut something off that you don't want to. Beer is such a bad idea, that I can't beleive it was mentioned, unless as a joke. Not a funny one either.

chains cables, rope to drag logs or cants

lever of some type to roll, lift etc heavy logs or cants

LEAVE THE BEER HOME!!!!!

 

[stonykill]

the beer is awful handy if the non-whiner turns into a whiner. [after the chain saw work is done but the haulin' aint]

and just think, after you get your DWI or worse yet kill someone, you will spend all the money you saved by milling your own wood on a lawyer, court costs,bail, impound fees on your truck, saws, etc. Then again, you may not get to drive again for the next 10 years, so it may be a moot point. Here a 2nd DWI offense usually means a 10 year suspension. Seems worth it though?

 

[BlueRider]

A couple of tools I didn't see mentioned but that I always take along are a small trenching shovel, a wide broom for cleaning the sawdust off the slabs as well as moving it around on the ground, and a large snow shovel like dust pan for cleaning up if I am milling in an area where that is necessary.

I also like to sometimes take along a change of clothes and a bit of extra water to clean up with. This was never anything I considered untill I milled a tree that involved a 2 hour drive. it was kind of nice to be a bit less pigish on the ride home.

Ditto on what stony wrote about the beer.

 

[Mikecutstrees]

I'm no expert on milling, but my MS 880 uses fuel like it's going out of style. I'd bring a minimum of 3 gallons of mix gas for a days milling with it. Depending on what saw your using you might want to bring more fuel than just a gallon or two. Just my observation with my saw. Have fun.

 

[DRB]

A couple of tools I didn't see mentioned but that I always take along are a small trenching shovel, a wide broom for cleaning the sawdust off the slabs as well as moving it around on the ground, and a large snow shovel like dust pan for cleaning up if I am milling in an area where that is necessary.

I also like to sometimes take along a change of clothes and a bit of extra water to clean up with. This was never anything I considered untill I milled a tree that involved a 2 hour drive. it was kind of nice to be a bit less pigish on the ride home.

Ditto on what stony wrote about the beer.

Good call on the change of cloths & water to clean up with.

I did some milling on a windy rainy day this winter, I was soaked and had fine milling sawdust all over me, a fresh change of cloths would have been nice for the ride home. Although I was only minutes from home.

 

[TedChristiansen]

Toolbox for Milliing Equipment

This kind of box is handy to keep all of the equipment in one place.

Ted

 

[wdchuck]

Jeez a loou, the guys have covered everything,
tools
spare parts
plenty of fresh water
methods to move logs/slabs
food to maintain energy/blood sugar levels
clean clothes, method to wash up;...it really does help refresh you
fuels
bar oil

Spare tire for truck and trailer is at proper psi.
....lug wrench that fits truck wheels, also fits trailer, (I found out the hard way)

first aid, ahhh, milling has fewer opps for bad accidents, but it helps to be prepared;
for cuts of any size,
chemical cold pak for strains/sprains or other
dehydration, heat exhaustion, heat stroke(A/C in the truck works?),
charged cell phone? if you have one, and it works where you are milling/cutting,
someone else knows where you are, and a rough timeline
anti-inflammatory pills, so you can get out of the truck when you get home...this usually only happens the first time you csmill, then you realize just how physical it is.

Surely there is something we forgot?????

 

[glennschumann]

In addition to the above listed... If you can afford it... take a few chains. It is easier to swap them, rather than sharpen them... especially if you have a strong backed, persuadable minded friend along to assist with lifting slabs and logs. Don't waste his time while you are sharpening.

Seems obvious, but a long strait edge for the first cut, with a means of fastening it... screws and cordless drill. And an extra battery?

I also take an axe or hatchet for hacking off some of the bark if it is dirty.. dirty wood = dull chains. A wire brush also works for the end of the logs if you end up with dirty ends. A flat pry bar also works on the bark, depending on the condition of the log.

Water, water and more water, and that is just if it is 40 degrees or less. Food food and more food is just as important.

Kevlar chaps. Ask a friend of my who still has his legs, but is one set of chaps short.

I don't bother with the plug, but e-clips, rim sprockets, and the little washer that holds them on are in my box. A clutch bearing if you have the $. A few bar nuts will be handy too... I stripped on once. Glad to have a spare. Then I stripped the stud out of the case. That meant I was done for the day... I don't bring helicoils to the milling site.

A screw driver and wrenches to fit the saw / mill parts. A pair of pliers / vice grips.

I take 2.5 gallons of mix, and a gallon of oil. And a long neck funnel. With a mill, sometimes it is hard to fill the oil tank. One thing I want to make is a top for the oil jug that has a 8" hose sticking out of the top... I think it would be easier to fill the tank, but don't let it fall over en route. Have the regular top too.

Stickers, straps to hold the boards in your truck, blocking to put under the log if you don't have any at the site.

Things like bags, and shovels to clean up your dust if you are in somebody else's yard. Lots of bags... you make lots of dust, and it is heavy.

A few rags. A cell phone if you have one... for 911, and to tell your better half that you are running late (two hours after you are supposed to be home).

A hat to keep the dust out of your hair.

All ear plugs / muffs, safety glasses etc.

Hope that helps.

Schumann

 

[zopi]

JB WELD.

 

[Dai Sensei]

As others have said, plus a metal detector to hopefully find those burried nails etc