There's an old gent around town here whom is quoted as saying, "there's two types of wood...... Cherry, and firewood!"
Man, I almost bought some land (with residence) that had a mix of hardwoods/softwoods and a couple stands of red pine. The next step would have been a bandsaw mill. I pretty much had it narrowed down to this one. HM126 Portable Sawmill Sure wouldn't have broke the bank. Also looked at the wood mizer 10 and 15, then you start getting up there in price. Locally, someone had a norwood bandsaw mill and it was a very good price. Glad I didn't buy any of 'em because Things changed on the purchase intention. Still holds a dear spot in my heart. If you do get one, I also would go for the bandsaw mill and please, include lots of pics!
A bandmill is absolutely superior if you've got one available and can get the logs to the mill or the mill to the log. When I lived in Ohio I knew a guy near Dex who had a big Woodmizer and a small kiln next to his house. When I moved to Pgh he had long-since quit trying to make a living as a small-volume wood mill, probably because the housing crash wrecked the market. Anyhow, he could slice up a log very quickly and easily, and did so for me on a couple of occasions for very little money. Living in the city, I no longer have the bandmill option. I have no truck, and no trailer (though there's always renting), and while I'm sure there are a few Woodmizers around, they'd be so far from home that the drive wouldn't be worth it. So, a CSM becomes more attractive. I bought a 30" Alaskan attachment at a garage sale this past summer, and have only used it once, with that 1050 Super Automatic. I only had one chain for it -- an old Oregon semi-chisel with corner radii so large that it almost looks like chipper chain. I filed it to 5 degrees with the fg2 (that was a lot of fun :/ ), and sawed about 150 board-feet of 8/4 honeylocust in a suburban backyard on the other side of town. The setup and sawing took most of the day, and I had to make two trips to get the lumber and equipment back home. It's not something I have the time to do frequently, but it's fun and I'm glad I can make use of the occasional special log. Drying is a whole 'nother problem. As with firewood, you can get rid of most of the moisture by stacking in the breeze, under an improvised roof, with stickers carefully spaced, but that'll only get you down to 12-14% or so, which is fine for rustic work but will cause serious problems for more refined furniture and millwork projects. It's tough to get it much dryer than that without adding some heat. You could build a solar kiln, but that's a bigger commitment of time, space and cash. My plan is to just throw a few boards on top of the rafters of my garage, and hope the summer sun beating down on the roof does the job. Given all the time, labor, equipment maintenance and storage space, and the difficulty in producing a high-quality result at all, I'd say that CSMilling only makes sense if you enjoy the process and/or it allows you to make lumber that you simply can't buy at the lumberyard. I love having multiple boards from the same tree, so that color and grain match. I love being able to cut oddball species that would never be milled in a commercial operation because there's no market for them. But is it worth it in a purely economic sense? Not a chance. MasterMech, your advantage is that you already have a powerhead (or several) that is strong enough, and a bar that's long enough. You could pick up a used Alaskan setup for $150 or so, grind a few old chains to ripping angles, and you'd be in business. If you've got the time, why not satisfy your curiosity?
Well, there is that too, lol. I will be investigating a couple options this week and keep everyone updated on what happens.
Brian, I know you don't have a lot of room for storage, so you can tell your wife that if you purchase this I will store this for you and bring it to you whenever you need it. I will also keep it fully operational and well cared for in exchange for being able to "saw a few logs here and there". And anything else that would help you out . Now how often do you get an offer like that? AC-36 Hydraulic
Always gleaning an angle, eh Gas? Always gleaning an angle, eh MasterMech Y'all put up some funny stuff
I love the chainsaw mill, I'd recommend it to someone like you because you're a saw guy and frankly it's just nice to have it for whatever. But if your looking for quick, accurate cuts, a portable band mill is he way to go. I will own one someday.... I have a local guy that bandmills for whenever I need it done. And he's cheap and very good at it. Those are some beautiful logs and would make some amazing flooring!!!
My experience is very limited. I've only used one twice now but I would highly recommend a Granberg. A friend let me borrow his this weekend and I milled some apple. The orchard owner was totally blow away seeing those trees like that. Asked for some and I will gladly oblige. I personally have no way to get a large log to a band mill. I have a truck, trailer and a bunch of saws. That and the csm and viola. That's the best part of the alaskan. Walk into the woods with it and some mix, walk out with some beautiful boards. I will definitely be getting my own soon.
Before my connection to the csm, I have an arborist friend who gives me wood for his help on select removals. This day was a large walnut and I asked if i could cut out some slabs from the base. Ended up cutting 2 and the 3 of us struggled to manage these into my trailer and when I got them home the struggle was greater. I let them sit for about a year till another friend got a band mill. Then I loaded them up (with a lot of help) and took them to him. Ended up being the first wood he sawed with it, so he didn't want to charge me anything (later paid with a case of good beer). Super quick results and minimal waste + precision cuts. So as others have stated, if ya can get the wood to the band mill, best option. Here's the heavies: Point being, to have that ability to mill is worth every bit of the 2-300 buy in. Do it!!
I am a new member but have owned most types of mills over the last 10 to 12 years. If you only want to cut a little lumber and you want to do it yourself (not hire the job out) then a chainsaw mill is perfect if you already own a large saw and have other uses for said saw. The alaskan type mill is fun but it will beat you up pretty good. Cutting on the ground isn't that fun for me. The logosol m7 was by far my favorite mill to use and I intend to buy a new M8 some time this year, but i wont be cutting monster slabs........ I know a guy that has one of the harbor freight band mills.... it cuts fine (but only about 9 feet long logs) and was right at 2k. If your buying a 1k saw for your mill the little bandsaw looks pretty good An afternoon on the sawmill is a great stress reliever. Addictive though.
About 25 years ago, Hurricane Bob came through the area. A colleague of mine had some hardwood trees knocked down and wanted to know if I'd be willing to cut them up and haul the off for firewood; well, of course I would! When I got there, I found that the trees were 40' each of the straightest cherry trees I'd ever seen, 24" across. I told him that I couldn't take them; that someone would pay him for these for boards. At the time, my "equipment" consisted of a 1/2 ton shortbed truck, a chainsaw and my dad's old splitter. The guy told me that they were planning a Memorial day party and needed the trees GONE. If I didn't take them, one of his other friends burned wood.... I took it all in firewood length chunks and as I split them into 18" long, 3" thick perfectly straight-grained "boards" I just kept thinking that my older hunting mentor in Maine, a cabinet maker by trade, would be kicking me in the adze if he'd been there to see me do it.
I have an Alaskan mill and like the option of making boards on my own time. I don't have the need for a lot of milling so it works well for me. I got mine really cheap on Craigslist. Haven't used it a lot but have made some slabs for myself and a few bar tops for friends of mine. With what I want I prefer a rough sawn look so the Alaskan works well for me. If I get into really nice logs that I wanted better lumber made I would likely have them taken to a local mill.
