Whats an Alaskan mill ??

[jac]

Been reading the old posts.. only joined recently so a lot of reading to do.. I saw a mention of An Alaskan Mill… or was it saw.. is it chainsaw based and if so could I make one. I priced a Wood Miser !! not an option.
John

[lancek]

Hey Jac
an Alaskan mill is a chain saw with a jig attached that will allow you to cut lumber! It dose a good job but is slow the cost for one is around $300.00 american and can be bought at Baileys supply they are on the web ! there are some plans out there to build your own one comes to mind is on U tube. The biggest thing is getting the specialty chain for ripping it makes a better cut and smother to you can also order this from Baileys! depending on the size of your saw you can cut up to a 20 inch log but bigger than that tends to take a lot of time and energy

[Scott G]

I built a barn with one and milled a lot of specialty stuff like mantles, etc.. They are painfully slow and can be hard on you and your saw. The exhaust is my favorite part…

You don’t need to buy specially ground ripping chain, necessarily. Using semi-skip chisel with the first two cutters filed at a sharp angle and then the third cutter filed back at a square ninety. Basically the first two cutters score each side of the kerf and then the third comes along and cleans it out.

I got a book over 20 years ago titled “chainsaw lumbermaking” by Will Mallof. Will is a logger from B.C. who did all kinds of crazy things with chainsaw mills.

Pretty good book if you can find it.

[vthorselogger]

I believe that they definitely have there place. If you have something to big to mill on a band mill they are the way to go. Try procut portable chainsaw mills on your internet browser and see what they have to offer. I am ordering from them in a few weeks. Their product looks really good and you can build it yourself. They are like a band mill but the saw and bar, chain are mounted to a carriage and you run it like a band mill. I agree that the woodmizers are way out there in price. Goodluck and happy hunting

[lancek]

your right Scott that is a good book I had it and throughly enjoyed it we also made our own chains for ripping but I wasn’t sure how chain saw savvy our frind jac was

[jac]

Hi guys.
Thanks for so many replies.. I do a bit with a saw, have my tickets for felling and climbing and a bit of tree surgery. We need all sorts of tickets over here to even pick a saw up.. Im well impressed you guys file up your own chains. The reason I asked was I got a small woodlot we can take firewood out of and take the odd mature ash.. I build my own wagons and stuff so thought I could get a mill kinda cheap !!. soon found out different though. This sounds like an option for a poor boy in Scotland. thanks again guys
John

[Scott G]

Another option for chainsaw milling is Rip-Saw

http://www.rip-saw.net/

I know of a fellow that used one exclusively to mill urban trees and then sell the lumber.

Pretty cool story. He had a small machine shop when I first started visiting with him and devoted a corner to wood turning supplies and the lumber he milled. I visited about once a month for about 1 1/2 years and each time I stopped by the wood corner kept expanding and he was developing quite an inventory of lumber in racks. As time went on the machine shop occupied a small corner and the wood working and lumber inventory took up the rest of the shop. Last time I was there he was having a close out sale on his very limited machine shop inventory. He built a very sucessful small business literally ” one stick at a time” all based on his rip-saw and urban trees that otherwise would have been destined for firewood or the dump.

[jac]

Hey Scott that looks a real cool system there. I know if I could get the timber milled I could sell it ok, especialy the ash. thanks for that info
John

[OldKat]

@jac 15174 wrote:

Hi guys.
Thanks for so many replies.. I do a bit with a saw, have my tickets for felling and climbing and a bit of tree surgery. We need all sorts of tickets over here to even pick a saw up.. Im well impressed you guys file up your own chains. The reason I asked was I got a small woodlot we can take firewood out of and take the odd mature ash.. I build my own wagons and stuff so thought I could get a mill kinda cheap !!. soon found out different though. This sounds like an option for a poor boy in Scotland. thanks again guys
John

John,
Just curious; when you say “ticket” is that some sort of permit or license you are talking about? If so, does that indicate that the person with the ticket has demonstrated some degree of proficiency in that particular area or perhaps has attended some required training in that area or specialty? Also, if you are doing only work for yourself do you need these tickets?

Interesting how different countries have a different approach to these things. BTW: I am glad you are posting your experiences from Scotland, that is an interesting country. One which I hope to visit at some point in time, along with England and Ireland, Germany, France, Argentina, South Africa, Australia …. Oh well, so far I have been to Mexico and Canada!:)

[jac]

Hi Oldkat.. Yes its a licence effectivly. I do a few night shifts on the railway doing scrub clearance so needed the proficiencies on paper so to speak. As with our driving licences the authaurities are constantly upgrading things and chainsaws are no different. Simon could tell you exactly what the latest spec is.. and if you ever find your way to this coast you wont need to worry bout any hotels. You will be welcome at our place as would any visiting DAPER:)

[PhilG]

If you are cuting timbers, you might be better off with a sharp broad ax

[Author]

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