Need Help Picking a Small CSM and Chain

[tomandjerry00]

Howdy y'all,

To preface, I know I am going about this in a very "cheap" way. I realize this is not how the pro's would do it and I know many on here would suggest I don't do this at all or that I sent it out to be done. But I am very stubborn and very cheap and thus, looking for some guidance. I am 24 years old working near the bottom rung. I don't have $400-600 for a new saw, I have a couple hundred bucks to get a small mill, wedges, and a chain.

About a week ago my mom started talking about how they wanted a new 6' high wood fence at their place, about 70 ft long give or take. She was going to buy 4-6" boards from the lumbar yard for the project (costing a fortune...). Well about the same time, I had happened to purchase a new PP 5020AV. 50cc saw with a 20 inch bar. Last night I happened to find a lot of nice, straight oak that has been sitting for a couple of months and seems like a perfect candidate for milling for the fence. She loves the look of rough cut stuff. Great excuse for some more time outside and new tool

Anyhow, these logs are from 18" to 30" in diameter. I figured instead of turning em into firewood, my parents would appreciate a fence. Can I cut them down first to 10-14" wide and 6' long and then mill them? Followed by cutting to 4-6" wide on my table saw? What mill/chain would you recommend?

I know this sounds pretty crazy, but like I said, I'm stubborn and always looking for a new project/adventure.

Any and all help would be very appreciated! Thanks!

James

 

[BobL]

At 50cc and in PP own words, a "medium duty chainsaw ideal for general property management and firewood cutting" and on the front cover of the manual "For Occasional Use Only". that saw is clearly not up to the job you propose. CS milling is very hard on saws and your proposed job will probably just kill it.

The CS forum suggests that even a 20" bar on the 5020 is a bit of an ask for that saw, but even so with an alaskan mill it will only have a cutting width of 14". Using a mini mill it might be able to cut 16" but if the logs are 18 to 30" wide the only way you are going to be able to break them up with such a short cutting length is by lots and lots of rolling and lots and lots of cutting with the nose buried in the wood. This will be even harder on a saw than meaning it is even more unlikely to do this all day in oak and survive.

Instead of a 5020 you would have been better off going for a much tougher used 70 cc saw.

 

[autis]

howdy James, welcome to milling!!

i find myself in much the same situation. 23 years old, low income, lots of logs - so little time!!
ive been milling with an alaskan mkIII with 30 inch rails mounted on a husky 372xp with a 24 inch bar. im milling white oak logs from 9 to 18 inches in diameter. theyv been down and decked up for seasoning for about a year now.

i see your wanting to take a 50cc saw up to them big oak logs that have been down for 2 months? i dont envy you right now man, ive got a 71cc saw cuttin my stuff and believe me, im wanting more power!! its slow and very taxing on my saw! please do yourself a favor and find some way to get a bigger saw, you will thank yourself in the long run for it! now that the warning is out of the way -

ive been looking at panther chainsaw mills.. they look to me like a great alternative to the granberg alaskan. google panther chainsaw mills and you can find them. handmade usa steel mills. awesome! and cheaper than granbergs, totally awesome! the owner of the company is a member here at AS, cant remember his name right now but seems like a great guy! i want one of his panther cub mills, maybe after i get my 372 ported! dont spend your hard earned money on plastic wedges, just cut some out of some scrap lumber or something, preferrably hardwood. i logged for about a year and a half and ive used wood wedges to fall trees when we were in a pinch. theyll work great for milling and save some coin. some of the more experienced guys can help you out with bar/chain setup and other specifics but i thought id chime in with those tips! good luck!!

 

[Isna]

Welcome to milling!
I would avoid milling with a 50cc saw. Chances are you're going to kill it. I spend almost a year finding a good, cheap milling saw (stihl 088). I did also get help from my parents funding my first milling saw: they needed wood and it was much cheaper to fund me rather than buying planks. they got 10X more wood for the price. As for the mill, if you can weld, it's easy to make it yourself. I now have a Granberg alaskan mill but still also use one of my early homemade mills when I need really precise cuts (it is heavy but guided by rollers on ball bearings and can make perfect 90° angled cuts.).
Conclusion: take your time to find a good deal on a bigger saw and learn to make a mill yourself. Killing that 50cc saw will only cost you...

 

[excess650]

I like the Granberg Mini-mill for edging, and it should be OK for quartering logs. I've been able to follow their guide rails pretty well, and results are MUCH better than trying one of the "bean machine" type guides. Semi-chisel chain works well for ripping and cross cutting, so would be my recommendation there. Obviously your saw is on the small size, so is your problem. The fact that your saw can be tilted somewhat in a Mini-mill means that its doing a cross between noodling and ripping, so not as stressful on the saw. Maybe a series of cuts would be OK, but time consuming.

Cutting boards with a chanisaw is a huge amount of work. I cut 10 slabs from (3) 8' walnut logs up to 20" in diameter yesterday and it wore me out....old and outa shape, ya, I know. I was using a 99cc saw with Alaskan Mill. These were easy cuts for my saw, but would kill yours.

 

[tomandjerry00]

Thanks!!

Thanks for all your help and well-deserved worry and recommendation against. I'm gonna try some more cutting with my saw and depending, pick up a mini-mill with an oregon ripping chain. Seems like a great option for small stuff and takes up very little space. I can always rent a bigger saw from HD for $48 a day if I get antsy.

I want to get as much use out of my saw as possible before the 90 day no-question warranty expires...

If any other thoughts come to mind, let me know!

 

[mad murdock]

Thanks for all your help and well-deserved worry and recommendation against. I'm gonna try some more cutting with my saw and depending, pick up a mini-mill with an oregon ripping chain. Seems like a great option for small stuff and takes up very little space. I can always rent a bigger saw from HD for $48 a day if I get antsy.

I want to get as much use out of my saw as possible before the 90 day no-question warranty expires...

If any other thoughts come to mind, let me know!

FWIW, if you mill with the poulan 5020, I would not even breathe a word that you have or plan to mill with it, come warranty time it will prolly not be honored. Get a used 70cc+ saw look around, check Craigslist, ask your uncles or grand parents if they have any old saws in the shed/barn that have been collecting dust for years, you will turn up a food used saw for little $$ in no time with a little persistence, and you will be MUCH happier!

 

[mikeb1079]

milling oak of that diameter w/ a 50cc poulan to make enough boards for a fence that's 70ft long?

well, i'll say this....if you can pull that off i would literally bow down before you, for you'd be a better man than i.

good lord i would not even attempt such a thing and i've got an 066.

all joking aside....i definitely understand where you're coming from man i've been there. what you maybe could do is keep your eyes open for some small diameter softwood logs (such as cedar or hemlock perhaps)in the 10-14" range. these would be far far easier to mill than those big dried out oaks and you could get in some milling for fun. if you took your time, kept your chains razor sharp and limited your cut lengths (to minimize wot time) your saw might just make it. it would be a good way to get your feet wet until you can scrape up enuff money to buy a bigger saw.

 

[kpantherpro]

hey thanks its always good to hear good feedback, but I have to agree with the 50cc, use it to see how you like milling but try and find yourself a bigger saw, deals can be had all over, I bought a used husky 3120 a few months back for about $300 and it runs awesome most of the saws I have bought were used and they are still going today, i would also try to find some differant softer wood for your fence and possibly use the oak for other projects around the house, depending on the oak it just may not last as long, not to mention depending on climates if not treated right they can be more prone to molds and fungus when used outdoors.
that 50cc will make a good prep saw too.

 

[BobL]

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I want to get as much use out of my saw as possible before the 90 day no-question warranty expires...

If any other thoughts come to mind, let me know!

Sorry to burst your bubble, but there is no such thing as a "no-question warranty" on a CS.

Here is what the PPro warranty says.

"Use of Accessories or attachments . . . . " means mills of any kind.
This is no different to all other CS warranties and why buying a used saw is a better way to go for CSMing.