Which mill do you recommend for my 395?

[flht01]

Like chainsaws and bars, one size does not fit all applications, from the standpoint of cumbersome and weight, it would probably be a good idea to have 24" rails for the small stuff, and 48"+ rails for the bigger stuff.

For me, 24" and 60" would cover the bases for rail sizes, the 44" is going to force me to freehand the sides before milling from the top down, but logs over 40" are not too common to me, had 4 in one year.

Just my personal opinion which is worth not much on the open market, but I think the 36" is getting pretty close. Where I am, I find the logs tend to be in the 16"-36" category, with most being in the 16-24" area. With a 36" mill and a 42" bar using all 36", you could cant and cut about a 48" log. I've done a 44" and had some room to spare. The upside is that you can keep your 36" bar on "active reserve" for when you need it. I still have a 36" bar that gets used on smaller stuff, I just marked the adjustment area on the rails with a Sharpie marker so I know exactly where to put it for each bar.

If I run into a bigger log, I'll just have to quarter it first.

Mark

Thanks for the comments, I realize the question was subject to the user and environment. I've got a 36" now and it has covered most needs without being hard to handle. I think I'll try a new set of 48" rails to go along with the 36"er's after I've had a chance to run the 084 a little first. Will take a few pictures if I ever get thru this shutdown, got to work in the dark - come home in the dark.