Alaska Sawmill

[Porksboy]

I have 1 Oak and 1 Hickory tree on the ground with about 100 feet of clear trunk with no limbs lying on the ground. The smallest diameter is 15 inches. I cut them into about 15 foot lengths and stacked them with my tractor. They came down a year ago and in october so not fully dry yet. I want to cut them into lumber but dont know of any saw mills in my area and have no way to transport them even if there were. Years ago Dad and I would take logs to a nearby mill but it has since closed down.

I have been thinking about getting an Alaska saw mill to process them, anyone have any experience with one? Any other sugestions? I dont need perfection. I inherited my dads woodworking shop and can work them into finished lumber from rough cut. My tractor is a Ford Jubilee and I cant imagine it running a sawmill via the PTO. Nevermind the hydraulics lifting anything, Stacking them was a bitch.

 

[riverside jeep]

If you have a big saw (36") the Alaskan mills will work great , slow but gets the job done cheap.

 

[jbailey]

Absolutely, those chain saw jigs/Alaskan sawmills are good. A lot cheaper than buying a bandsaw or paying someone to do it, and you honestly don't have a lot of bdft there to justify a big expense. And the bdft you have isn't too valuable.

What are you looking to cut 4/4, 5/4, 8/4 or timbers? Also, what cut pattern: flat, radial, quarter sawn? The Alaskan will do flat sawn best but can manage the other two if you do your part.

Drying them right: make sure they are off ground, out of sun and have ends sealed (you are too late to end seal right now). You want to make sure you have either weight on top of these and/or strap clamps. And make sure they are drying on something level. Oak and hickory both are tough to successfully dry and mill: (1) they both move a lot, (2) they both check a lot and (3) they are tough on machines/blades. I would recommend getting those hearts out of the material ASAP. Radial or quarter sawn on the oak - SO much more stable. The hickory has some beautiful grain and can be down flat to get it.

 

[Angus Sloth]

I have an Alaskan Chain Saw mill and like it for my uses. I am turning white pine trees that fall in storms into usable lumber for a variety of projects. The more accurate the dimensions you require will increase your level of effort. I cut these very large pines into 8' sections and they are a beast for me (55) to move around in the littered woods.

To run it correctly you need a powerful chainsaw, longer bar than you might think, and multiple ripping chains.

The mill "eats up" a couple inches of the bar at each end due to how you attach it. So you need a longer bar. In order to run the saw fast enough around that longer bar you need a powerful motor.

• Also you will need a sharpener of some sort. I sharpen my chains everyday after I am done so I keep 3 or 4 chains ready at all times.
• I use an old ladder section as the guide for my first cut and it works very well.
• I bought some bright orange wedges to keep the cut open as I move along
• I use a garden cart or my truck as my mobile workbench for all the tools I use.
• Bring a square and get a few magic markers to aid in scribing the ends

If I have more thoughts I will come back and add them or feel free to ask away. the mill works very well for what I needed and has already paid for itself AND the new saw I told the wife I needed.... lol

 

[hollowoutadime]

Oak and Hickory - nice. See if the Oak is red or white. That's a lot of nice wood.

If it were me, I would have them kiln dried. I just did a walnut table top this summer, about 55"x114" (finished), seats 10. It was kiln dried, still flat, no checks. Kiln drying not that expensive.

The walnut 6x6 (not shown) that's underneath in the steel frame is checked and has a slight twist. It's air dried.+

I used a Woodpecker's extended slab flattening mill pro and a router to flatten it. Flattening this monster was easy, about 2 hours.
While you don't need a planer, I have a 20" w/spiral cutterhead one for most surfacing tasks.

 

[jbailey]

I have an Alaskan Chain Saw mill and like it for my uses. I am turning white pine trees that fall in storms into usable lumber for a variety of projects. The more accurate the dimensions you require will increase your level of effort. I cut these very large pines into 8' sections and they are a beast for me (55) to move around in the littered woods.

To run it correctly you need a powerful chainsaw, longer bar than you might think, and multiple ripping chains.

The mill "eats up" a couple inches of the bar at each end due to how you attach it. So you need a longer bar. In order to run the saw fast enough around that longer bar you need a powerful motor.

• Also you will need a sharpener of some sort. I sharpen my chains everyday after I am done so I keep 3 or 4 chains ready at all times.
• I use an old ladder section as the guide for my first cut and it works very well.
• I bought some bright orange wedges to keep the cut open as I move along
• I use a garden cart or my truck as my mobile workbench for all the tools I use.
• Bring a square and get a few magic markers to aid in scribing the ends

If I have more thoughts I will come back and add them or feel free to ask away. the mill works very well for what I needed and has already paid for itself AND the new saw I told the wife I needed.... lol

That is an excellent list of recommendations, especially on the sharpening. Using a chainsaw like this is way outside what it was designed for and you have got to have sharp chains, especially ripping chains, at all times. Otherwise you will burn out your machine. A 3-5 hp chainsaw vs a 30-50hp mill driving 4" band saw blade isn't a fair comparison.

RE moving logs. OP sounds like his tractor works well, but if you are looking for a tool to help Mr Sloth, check out a log arch. Here is mine in operation - this is a 30ft saw log, 25" diameter walnut at the base and 100% green, thousands of pounds to skid out over marsh wet ground. With a peavy pole, log arch and a 950lb-ft diesel truck, I skidded this beast over 2 miles back to my mill.

 

[c1steve]

I like that log arch. If you had a second one on the other end, it would move even easier.

 

[300zx_tt]

 

[300zx_tt]

I’ve milled my fair share of logs... a few above ^^^
What diameter logs are they? Anything bigger than 30” diameter I’d recommend an ms880 or 3120xp.
Someone above posted that buying a mill and saw is cheaper than having them cut... that’s absolutely wrong, I have well over $4k in saw, bar, mill, chains, cant hooks etc...

Id say if you have interest in milling lumber more than just this once, buy a mill... if not... hire it out.

 

[hollowoutadime]

Flatten that slab 300, it's make a really nice table.

 

[Maggot]

That is an excellent list of recommendations, especially on the sharpening. Using a chainsaw like this is way outside what it was designed for and you have got to have sharp chains, especially ripping chains, at all times. Otherwise you will burn out your machine. A 3-5 hp chainsaw vs a 30-50hp mill driving 4" band saw blade isn't a fair comparison.

RE moving logs. OP sounds like his tractor works well, but if you are looking for a tool to help Mr Sloth, check out a log arch. Here is mine in operation - this is a 30ft saw log, 25" diameter walnut at the base and 100% green, thousands of pounds to skid out over marsh wet ground. With a peavy pole, log arch and a 950lb-ft diesel truck, I skidded this beast over 2 miles back to my mill.

View attachment 7582951

Ive been to James's place, he knows what he's talking about. Building a huge timber frame home...lots of sore backs in that one.

 

[Maggot]

View attachment 7584703View attachment 7584705View attachment 7584708

Is that what we used to call 'Swamp Maple'? Beautiful figuring and color once it dries if you can keep it from cracking.

Whats the chain saw in the photo. First Stihl I ever ran was an .090 but I dont think they make them any longer. It was about like picking up a small motorcycle.

 

[300zx_tt]

Is that what we used to call 'Swamp Maple'? Beautiful figuring and color once it dries if you can keep it from cracking.

Whats the chain saw in the photo. First Stihl I ever ran was an .090 but I dont think they make them any longer. It was about like picking up a small motorcycle.

We call it Ambrosia Maple in PA.
Saw in the first pic is an ms880. 122cc of 2 stroke power... it’s like holding a Honda cr125 in your hands... people don’t realize how big it really is until I show them this picture...

 

[Maggot]

We call it Ambrosia Maple in PA.
Saw in the first pic is an ms880. 122cc of 2 stroke power... it’s like holding a Honda cr125 in your hands... people don’t realize how big it really is until I show them this picture...

View attachment 7584871

Theyre beasts alright. LOL. The .090 had a decompression valve so you wouldnt break your wrist starting it.

 

[oneshot86]

We call it Ambrosia Maple in PA.
Saw in the first pic is an ms880. 122cc of 2 stroke power... it’s like holding a Honda cr125 in your hands... people don’t realize how big it really is until I show them this picture...

View attachment 7584871

SCHWIIIING

 

[oneshot86]

View attachment 7584703View attachment 7584705View attachment 7584708

REAL COOL

 

[Maggot]

This is the one we used to run, you can see the decompression button in the front left. I never re member dogging it no matter how big the tree. That might change cutting slabs in a mill set up.

Model: 090 AV​

---

MANUFACTURED BY:​	STIHL ANDREAS MASCHINENFABRIK
	STUTTGART, GERMANY
SERIES OR ASSEMBLY NUMBER:​		1109
YEAR INTRODUCED:​
YEAR DISCONTINUED:​
ENGINE DISPLACEMENT:​	137ccm (8.36 cu. in.)
NUMBER OF CYLINDERS:​	1
CYLINDER BORE:​	66mm (2.6 in.)
PISTON STROKE:​	40mm (1.57mm)
PISTON RING THICKNESS:​
CYLINDER TYPE:​	Aluminum with chrome plated bore
INTAKE METHOD:​		Piston ported
MANUFACTURER ADVERTISED H.P.:​
WEIGHT:​		14.7kg with 53cm bar & chain 32.4 lbs. with 21 in. bar & chain

 

[jbailey]

One of the things you have to deal with when ripping with a chain saw is the waste removal. Ripping creates long fiber waste and lots of heat, especially oak like the OP is looking to mill. As recommended above, ripping chains are the way to go as they deal with this long fiber waste better and not as much heat is created. I'm sure these big 120+cc saws can handle ripping better than farm and ranch models, but still its hard on the machine, especially since you have a lot of $'s invested in these fancy machines.

I agree with 300 - if you can find someone with a bandsaw mill, pay him the money. 30 horses and a blade meant to deal with the heat makes the job so much easier.

 

[Jscb1b]

Buy the biggest saw you can. Then get a bigger one. And don't be cheap with bar oil.

 

[jbailey]

As a follow-up, here is that walnut that I skidded with my log arch. We bucked it in two and created two 7x11"x16' boxed heart timbers from it. These are two of the king posts for my timber frame. Unfortunately this walnut had a lot of sap wood in it - it was down by the river, getting a lot of water; however the two saw logs were clear of any knots for the full run. That is a 40hp bandsaw with a 4" blade on it. Note the knee high pile of sawdust next to the deck and the 2nd timber in the on-deck circle... Doing this with a chain saw, even one of those big 120cc's would be really hard work, on both the machine and you.

Fun stuff and its cool that we have a logging/timber community here on the Hide! Loved seeing that ambrosia maple slab.

 

[Angus Sloth]

Wow. My work is very small "hobby" sort of stuff.

That right there is impressive.

 

[346ci]

I have worked on a woodmizer bandsaw, very nice cuts.

The Alaskan chainsaw route is great for small ops, go for at least a 90cc saw, Stihl 660/661 or Husky 395. The bigger ones as mentioned would be best, Stihl 880 or 3120. The 880 is being replaced by the 881, might be able to find a deal on a 880 sitting on the shelf now. Both the 880 and 3120 are pigs stock, they wake up nicely when ported. You can find a new 090 but it will have to be imported, I might know a guy.