Chainsaw Mill Christmas Project - New here

[Back Woods]

Hi arboristsite
I lurk here all the time, but have never posted
ETA- yes I read the newbie thread about chainsawmills, but neither of my questions below were covered there.

I am (last minute) planning to build a small wagon for my kids as a Christmas present. I want to do it 100% by hand, and recently bought an Alaskan Saw mill for my chainsaw (Husky 372xp)

I have a lot of Tulip Poplar growing in my woods that needs to be thinned out, and I identified a good candidate. My problems are twofold.
1. I do not have a ripping chain that fits my saw bar
2. Christmas is a week away.

My questions:
1. Will using a standard cutting chain on my sawmill seriously damage the boards I cut? Or do I need to use a ripping chain?

2. Will cutting the boards right now, without any seasoning or kiln-drying cause them to warp beyond control as they dry? The tree is completely straight with no visible knots or branches for the first 15 feet, at least. Obviously I don't have time to dry them and then assemble by Christmas. Does coming from a straight tree reduce warping?

The rest of the tree and scraps are just going in the firewood pile.

thanks!

 

[IyaMan]

How wide will the cuts be? You shouldn't go too big with a 372, maybe less than 18" max width. And don't overheat it by running too long/hard. Let it cool on idle a couple minutes between cuts and/or before shutting off.

You should be OK with regular chain, just keep it sharp sharp sharp. Though it may give a rough finish, so you'll probably want to plane it.

I'm not familiar with poplar, but building with wet wood has a variety of downsides, and shrinking will possibly be the worst. This will lead to the boards cracking/splitting over time and/or throwing joints out of wack and/or buckling of the whole piece. Fresh wood is also plenty heavier. Do you have any standing dead trees you can use instead... though that may be hard to determine now without any leaves.

 

[Back Woods]

Thanks for the reply! The widest portion of this trunk is 14inches. I have actually now cut the boards, and it was slow going. I sharpened after each cut, but the sawdust was extremely fine, like an actual dust, not the big chips I get when cutting rounds.

Poplar is very wet wood, and when I use it for firewood it loses probably half its weight as it dries. So that is not looking good for this project. I am going to just do it anyway, and if the wagon pulls itself apart I will have to make them another one. Lessons learned, I guess

 

[SeMoTony]

Hi arboristsite
I lurk here all the time, but have never posted
ETA- yes I read the newbie thread about chainsawmills, but neither of my questions below were covered there.

I am (last minute) planning to build a small wagon for my kids as a Christmas present. I want to do it 100% by hand, and recently bought an Alaskan Saw mill for my chainsaw (Husky 372xp)

I have a lot of Tulip Poplar growing in my woods that needs to be thinned out, and I identified a good candidate. My problems are twofold.
1. I do not have a ripping chain that fits my saw bar
2. Christmas is a week away.

My questions:
1. Will using a standard cutting chain on my sawmill seriously damage the boards I cut? Or do I need to use a ripping chain?

2. Will cutting the boards right now, without any seasoning or kiln-drying cause them to warp beyond control as they dry? The tree is completely straight with no visible knots or branches for the first 15 feet, at least. Obviously I don't have time to dry them and then assemble by Christmas. Does coming from a straight tree reduce warping?

The rest of the tree and scraps are just going in the firewood pile.

thanks!

Boards cut "quarter sawn" , where the growth rings are near parrallel to edge of board "cup" very little. Other tensions within log may or may not cause other forms of twist warp or other. If the outside is fairly straight , growing on flat ground ,without a lotta wind it may be decent to use. Sorry there are no warranty on green wood.

 

[JTM]

My father has built some amazing furniture with tulip poplar. Green wood is gonna move on you.

 

[IyaMan]

Also, with green wood you may have irregularities and/or difficulty with whatever finish/stain you may use. Paint may also have trouble adhering. Test first on a separate piece before applying.