Picking a saw

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gsxblaze

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Hey all, new to milling, I bought a 24" Alaskan mill recently and am in the process of tracking down the right saw to run in it. Trees from the property rarely are more that 16-18" diameter so I'm not looking at anything too wide, mostly softwood though I may occasionally want to do the odd maple. Planning on a 20-24" bar depending on what I can track down for a saw. What cc would you figure would be minimum for this type of milling?

I'm more of a hobbyist, might use it every other weekend or so. It will be strictly used in the mill so just looking for opinions on it. My biggest hurdle is budget, while I know bigger cc is better/faster, what's the minimum cc you all would suggest for my milling needs?
 
There is a ton of milling info in this milling thread. You may be able to mill 18" lumber with a 24" Mill and bar. You can't do it with a 20" bar. A lot of people are milling with the Chinese ms660 clones.

Sent from my moto g(7) power using Tapatalk
 
Yea I've been doing some reading there, tons of info thanks.

From what I gather, you loose about 3" of bar on the mill so absolute max with a 24" bar is 21" board (according to the manual). That said I probably will be keeping it well below that for now. Currently only planning on some average dimensional lumber milling. Some 2x4's to build chicken coops, occasional boards, stuff like that. Ideally a 24" bar to have the full range that my mill allows.

I was looking at those clones and read some pretty good things, by the time I factor in currency conversion (canada) and shipping though and they're pushing $500. I'm working on very limited budget for now so looking for cheapest option I can run. That's why I'm wondering minimum size I could reasonably run.
 
With a 24” mill, the maximum width between the inside faces of the bar clamp brackets will be approximately 21.5”, and you will want an inch or so “Wiggle Room “, so figure about 20” diameter log being the largest that you can mill through the center.

It doesn’t sound like you are interested in double live edge slabs, so you can mill some slabs off the sides to get your log narrow enough for your mill, if you want to mill a log larger than 20”

To get the full capacity out of your 24” mill, you will need about a 30” bar, which is a rather rare breed, but out there, a 32” bar is Very common, and would give you the full capacity of your mill, a 28” bar, would come close, but might not get you full capacity, taking the Dawgs off your saw, might get you there. To get the full capacity from a mill, you typically need about 6” more bar than the “Listed Size “ of the mill.
Go Ahead, ask me HOW I learned these things

For a powerhead, I would recommend at least a 70cc saw, like a Husqvarna 372XP, I don’t know Stihl’s so I won’t suggest which one to look at, but others will. Larger would be better, the Husqvarna 395XP, and Stihl 660 are well regarded for moderate milling

I would suggest that you look at the Granberg G555B edging mill, as an Excellent companion tool for your mill. The G555B will give you an initial straight edge, then if you have a tablesaw or bandsaw, to rip your slabs down to dimensional widths, would be much quicker

Doing dimensional lumber with a CSM, isn’t very efficient, and would have to be something that you do as much for Enjoyment as cost savings

Have Fun,
And stay SAFE

Doug
 
You need a saw that can oil enough, is designed to clear the woodfibers and in the mean time, doesn't overheat in the process.
The easiest way to see if a saw is made to do those things, is look in the specs if it is or was sold with very long bars.
On paper the 390 and the 395 are not that different. But the 395 is way better at not suffocating in it's chips.
I can tell for sure, the 372xp can't even clear the chips when cutting alder with a sharp chain on a 24" bar.
Older saws are often more durable.
Known milling saws are for instance
Husqvarna 394xp/395xp/3120xp
Stihl 070/088/660/661/880
Dolmar 9010/166
Anything with 100cc or more will probably work.
But when you get milling fever, check out actual mills.
Chainsaws are not meant to mill.
Two strokes are inefficient, the chain is mostly turning power in woodchips, the only upside is that they are portable.
We now have a 11kW electric mill, and being able to mill almost a meter wide oak in half an hour and not turned half the trunk to chips is terrific.
Way better for your back also.
 
I
Hey all, new to milling, I bought a 24" Alaskan mill recently and am in the process of tracking down the right saw to run in it. Trees from the property rarely are more that 16-18" diameter so I'm not looking at anything too wide, mostly softwood though I may occasionally want to do the odd maple. Planning on a 20-24" bar depending on what I can track down for a saw. What cc would you figure would be minimum for this type of milling?

I'm more of a hobbyist, might use it every other weekend or so. It will be strictly used in the mill so just looking for opinions on it. My biggest hurdle is budget, while I know bigger cc is better/faster, what's the minimum cc you all would suggest for my milling needs?
IF budget is the biggest hurdle for you might want to start frequenting your local saw shops and junk yards , trades come in often at saw shops which with a little elbow grease could yield a professional level saw at a discount price.
If your decent at maintenance and mechanical scrap yard or junk yards have the potential for gems , there could be a pro level saw with a bad ignition sitting there( happens all the time).
Granberg even stipulates that the minimum cc is 70cc for all their mills.
Older saws are very good to mill with also ,having a manual oiler botton as well as an automatic .
 
Came across a non running ms460 (says knock off so guessing Chinese clone saw) for $50 on kijiji today. Guy says it turns over but won't start. It's a couple hours away but might see about getting a family member to grab it for me if I can. $50 "if" I can get it going, 76cc should be a decent starting point.
 
I

IF budget is the biggest hurdle for you might want to start frequenting your local saw shops and junk yards , trades come in often at saw shops which with a little elbow grease could yield a professional level saw at a discount price.
If your decent at maintenance and mechanical scrap yard or junk yards have the potential for gems , there could be a pro level saw with a bad ignition sitting there( happens all the time).
Granberg even stipulates that the minimum cc is 70cc for all their mills.
Older saws are very good to mill with also ,having a manual oiler botton as well as an automatic .

While I agree that 70cc would be my minimum for most milling, Granberg’s recommendations from their website, for their mills:

G555B Edging mill. 50-70cc or more

Small log mill 50-70cc or more

G778-24 50cc or more

G778-30 60cc or more

G778-36 60cc or more

G778-48. 90cc or more

If I was just milling say, a 10” log into some 6x6 posts, and not a LOT of them, I could see using my 550 XP for a limited amount, to have a lighter milling set up, especially for milling smaller logs, that would be less stable with a heavier mill set up

Doing a LOT of milling at even the G778-24’s size capacity, I wouldn’t want to subject my 562XP to that kind of use

Another consideration would be WHERE I will be doing the milling, at home, I would likely use the 372XP’s or 395XP for lighter and more moderate milling, packed into a remote location, such as the Alaskan Mills were developed for, I would choose a lighter saw, still keeping in mind what I will be milling, but I sure wouldn’t be packing my 3120XP miles into the back country to mill a couple dozen 6x6 posts

The kind of wood being milled would also factor into what saw I choose the saw I choose for milling a given size Oak , would likely not be the same as the saw I would choose for a similar size Cedar

Larger is Usually better in saw selection for milling, but there ARE reasons for choosing a smaller saw sometimes

Of course that all feeds my CAD/CSMAD, Very Nicely (BIG Grin)

Doug
 
I also found it Interesting, that Granberg’s website Specifically Stated in RED type, that the G555B Edging Mill and G777 Small Log Mills, That you must use a Solid, NOT laminate bar with those mills.

Granberg did not have the same warning with any of the G778-xx mills, my only thought on that, is that the G555 and G777 mills don’t clamp at the nose end of the bar, like the G778-xx mills do, and that they are concerned about separating the nose on laminated bars with those mills, just my GUESS, but that is the only reason I can think of

Doug
 
For a 24 inch bar, I'd say 365 is the smallest I'd go (not 562, a/t on a mill doesn't sound good to me), but a Husky 372, Stihl 044, 046, 460, 461, etc sounds good. The 460 clone will probably do just fine for you. A neighbor milled a 24 inch dia log with a 461 Stihl wearing a 28 and it did just fine. Don't push it too hard, clean your a/f often, turn your oiler to the max and you should be good to go. Also, make sure your chain is sharp and keep it sharp.
 
Lots of good advice so far, I'd suggest
long term you aim to have a couple of bar/chain setups. One that maxes out the mill & one for milling smaller logs. Just keep an eye out & go with whatever you can pick up at a reasonable price. 22"/24" & a 30"/32" would be my pick depending on what power head you end up with. Plan on loosing 6" of bar to the mill. You can get an inch or so back by removing the dogs & a couple of inches by drilling the sprocket.
 
Since not running Chinesium is on the table, what is the opinion on Newish copies versus very old originals?
I hate that we in Europe lost our industry for a huge part, and that is what is holding me back (and the big scale slavery and worse stories are not making it easier).
But sometimes you do what you need to do.
A Stihl auger costs almost a thousand euro, a Chinesium a tenth. Both get the pole in the earth (but the Stihl has the safety stick, which would be worth at least 200 euro, but no 900).
So we have the cheap one, and it is holding up amazingly after glueing all screws.
Same with the 3" waterpump.
And buying a woodchipper isn't even possible without sending legal tender to the east.
These also hold up quite good. Better than expected.
No experience with the copycat chainsaws.
 
There is a ton of milling info in this milling thread. You may be able to mill 18" lumber with a 24" Mill and bar. You can't do it with a 20" bar. A lot of people are milling with the Chinese ms660 clones.

Sent from my moto g(7) power using Tapatalk
I`d love to mill a down tree in my yard but cant justify a $1200 saw. Does anyone have any reviews on these clone saws?
 
No luck lining up things for family to pick it up. Might see about making the trip up myself if I can find the time. For $50 I'm thinking if nothing else it will be worth learning on. Run saws for 20 years or more but never done much more than basic maintenance on them. Only thing I'm not sure of is parts availability. No where on the saw gives brand, just ms 460, "guessing" its a Huztl but not sure, how accurate are these clones for replacement parts?

Here's the pictures of the saw as he has it posted
 

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No luck lining up things for family to pick it up. Might see about making the trip up myself if I can find the time. For $50 I'm thinking if nothing else it will be worth learning on. Run saws for 20 years or more but never done much more than basic maintenance on them. Only thing I'm not sure of is parts availability. No where on the saw gives brand, just ms 460, "guessing" its a Huztl but not sure, how accurate are these clones for replacement parts?

Here's the pictures of the saw as he has it posted
That is NOT a Stihl 460 clone saw , I believe that its an old redmax saw design (basically not very good) .
But hey you can always buy a kit saw and put one together yourself (tree murdering puzzle) for probably 230.00 with shipping.
 
Thanks, without any other markings other than the ms460 on the top cover I wasn't sure what it was. Figured if I uploaded the pics you guys would know right away. I've looked at the kit saws and complete huztl saws but with Canadian currency, shipping and duty it puts it more than I want to spend.

There are a couple old 266's (1se/1sg) I've seen around that really push my budget but if I absolutely can't find something I may stretch up to that. Still not as big as I'd like but budget dictates
 

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