I'm very happy with it!ĭecided since I was not building this mill for any kind of big production I could do away with the remote throttle and keep it a little more simple It also ended up light enough that I couldn't tell I was towing anything. It tracked great around sharp corners and it's long enough to see when backing. Took it out on a little 30 mile roadtrip to see how it towed and handled behind my small truck. Still have to build the log bunks, fences and dogs Put the first coat of paint on and bolted the saw on the carriage just to see how it looks. Put the carriage up on the tracks and pushed it back and forth to make sure the tracks were the right distance apartĪll welded up and ready for a light coat of paint to keep it from rusting I decided to place it inverted, like a upside down V because I think it will be less likely to get bent that way The angle iron track is in place, ready to weld. The trailer is a small boat trailer that I removed the runners that the boat sat onįinished welding in all the cross pieces and tacked the frame to the trailer, it's getting close to being finishedĪbout to weld on the angle iron that the carriage will ride on Put the bed up on the trailer to find where the balance point is. It is 14 feet long so I will be able to cut a 10 foot log Slide the keeper pin through the chain and it locks everything in place so the saw can't move Chuck sliced the top off of a 1 inch piece of thin tubing and drilled a hole through it so I could weld it on the bar that I adjust the chains tension with Had a problem with the vibration from the saw making the height control start unwinding and the saw start dropping lower. I didnt like how much of the all thread was sticking up above the nuts so I trimmed it off and lowered the handle a inch. It should end up being 4 turns to move the saw 1 inchīuilt a handle and installed it, the height control is finished I will attach a handle to the 50 tooth sprocket to turn the 20 tooth which will turn the 36 tooth below it. Thought about using a small sprocket but used a piece of polypropylene that a friend that owns a machine shop gave me. This is the side I will be loading the logs on and turning them when I'm millingĪdded a flat piece of metal with a groove cut in it to the center of the frame so I can tighten the chain to prevent it from sagging Not really liking how it's turning out and starting to think of the first changesīolted the chainsaw on for the first time and decided the frame is not wide enough for what I want to doįrame is now 38 inchs wide, moved the hardware that lifts the saw to the inside and added the sprockets and chainsĭecided to mount the height control on the end away from the saw head, I will also mount a remote throttle control on this side. Thinking once again that the frame is almost finished Making the first cut on the inch and a half tubing that will be used for the frameĪdding the 2X4 tubing that the wheels bolt to A portable bandsaw or circular mill might saw through a log about a zillion times faster than a chainsaw mill, but I bet you can't mill quality lumber any better than I can.Ĭlick here for higher quality, full size image I will put the quality of the lumber cut on a good homebuilt chainsaw mill up against any bandsaw or circular mill, commercial or homebuilt. I have milled and helped others mill using some of the big name commercial band sawmills and circular mills and I have also milled on some home built chainsaw mills. Other than that you are not going to change my mind about the bandsaw or circular being any better. Now if you just can't stand the thought of someone using a chainsaw mill and you want to give me a portable bandsaw or circular mill, Great! I would love to have it and use it. I'm the one who will be using it and I built it to suit my needs. All have their advantages and disadvantages, but I guess it comes down to this for me. On a side note, there is a big debate among people that own sawmills about which is better, a chainsaw mill, bandsaw mill or a circular mill. Truth be told, I bet we have less than 40 hours in the build time. I only worked on it a half day here and a couple of hours there every week or two. I can't describe what a great feeling it was to cut the first log on it.ĭon't let the 3 month build time discourage you if you are thinking of building a mill. Now that it's finished I have to say it was worth all the time and trouble to get the mill built the way I wanted. It took me over 18 months of looking at other people's mills, planning, daydreaming and gathering the parts and then 3 months for me and my friend to build it, because I kept making changes and adding what I thought of as improvements. It's powered by a modified 066 Stihl chainsaw with a 32 inch bar. This page shows the step by step photos of a portable chainsaw sawmill that my friend Chuck and I built and my reasons for the changes we made. Reprinted with permission from TJ Brown of TJ's Woodshop.
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