My dad is getting an alaskan sawmill, for his MS391, and looking at the price of live edge boards, im thinking it might be a good idea to mill and sell boards? once we could afford to upgrade to a bandsaw mill then id probably go with a woodmizer, and decide then what i need, any thoughts? we have lots of oak and black walnut, and lots others im not thinking of right now
Chainsaw milling is a very slow affair, especially oak and similar hardwoods. I say this from experience. If a band mill is in your future, just hold out and use that. And I see slabs all over the place for sale near me. Can’t imagine they sell like hot cakes.
also i think there is a little more market out where i am, and i would like to hold out and buy a band mill, but im nto old enough to get a job to pay for it lol, so if i can make a bit with the chainsaw mill, then upgrade I think it would be good
You’ll be $600 further away from being able to buy a band mill if you use a 391 very often to make long milling cuts on wide boards. Keep the boards in the 4-8” range and you might be alright
I know running a chainsaw for milling will wear them out faster, but other than that, any reason it would be a very bad idea?
A 391 is a plastic-cased saw. They work fine for firewood, but the longer run-time at sustained wide open throttle will create more heat than what they’re designed for
ahh ok, thanks. Btw, what do you think of the MS261? Thats the one im looking at getting for myself, talking to a friend who works at a Stihl dealer, and he told me the price, thats gonna be hard to swallow.
They’re a 50cc pro saw. Metal case, not quite the power or torque of the 391. Not something you’d want to mill with though. For the same cost you could get into a used ms660 or husky 395 that will last several hundred hours on a mill
ok, i mainly want a small saw i (A small yet semi strong teenager) can run without getting super tired really fast, and occasionally milling with it
looking at it, someone (Dont know how much i believe them) is saying ALL stihl saws have a metal crankcase, and the homeowner ones sit in a plastic cradle, i need to do my research lol
It’s definitely not a horrible idea to CSM. Just need the right tools for the job. With what you will spend for that power head and mill and longer bar and chain... see where it’s headed? You could be on your way to the band. That being said, if it interests you, go for it. It’s very rewarding to walk out of the woods with planks. I have no means to move large wood (tractors etc) so for me, that’s the only way to make it happen. It’s awesome to open up each slice and see the beauty within. It is a smelly hard job though, so be prepared. I use a leaf blower strategically placed to disperse fumes.
great idea on the leaf blower, and on a good note, we already have the equipment, and all the saw milling i would do is to be able to buy a bandsaw mill, then the chainsaw would be for bucking and the odd job where i cant get a whole log out of the woods
