Chainsaw Mill: Small Logs

How small a log is practical milling with a chainsaw mill? I want to find out! In this video I take some small cedar tops that are left over from my logging operation and cut them into usable lumber with my alaskan chainsaw mill. The first top I set up my jigs and rails and cut off four slabs to make a uniform 4x4x8 beam with my chainsaw mill. The second top I try taking slabs off to make boards. You be the judge if it was worth my time and effort.
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[@ejsocci2630]

Great video and thanks for sharing and I will be doing this.

[@sisnow6066]

This videos are very useful to me, I watch every DIY videos to learn more practical skills, thanks Jason and waiting to see the next mission

[@SJForestProducts]

Awesome! Thanks for watching. Stay tuned for more adventures!

[@thekiltedsawyer]

Great video buddy, your much better than I would be on some of theses questions you get. It would be hard for me to be as polite as you are sir, thanks for being a great example

[@SJForestProducts]

:)

[@akirimau]

Good job mate. Just what I was looking for. I have lots of Teak logs of that size. Now I know how to mill them. Tq

[@ejsocci2630]

Awesome awesome, thank you

[@jeremymaas8464]

Very cool chainsaw mill, ive heard of them, but never seen one in action till now. Great video as always Jason, wishing you and yours a very merry Christmas!!!

[@SJForestProducts]

Thanks for watching!

[@RogueCove]

Yet another rabbit hole Joy

[@SJForestProducts]

Thanks for watching and commenting

[@jeremyrunciman241]

Would a different chainsaw make it easier and faster?

[@mariusmossum2923]

Thanks for a good and informative video! I believe I have watched 80-90% of the videos on KZbin, dealing with Alaskan Mills! :-D Shockingly, a significant portion of them are by people trying out their Alaskan Mill for the very first time! :-D And even fewer says anything about the time the process took them! You are also one of very few doing bottom cuts from a guide-rail on top. I have been trying to find more examples of this, as it seems like a very good idea. You are of course limited by the height of the Alaskan Mill at this point. So it only applies to smaller logs. All that said, I do have a couple of suggestions for improvements: With the 4x4, you could get by just fine with setting up the guide-rail for just two sides. Then for the opposing side, just use the already flat side a your guide. If what I mean is unclear, after the first cut, roll the the log 180, so that your first cut now faces up. Doing this would save you some significant setup-time. And as you would probably agree, setup often takes more time than actually cutting. At least for smaller logs. My second suggestion for the 4x4 would be to get the guide-rails as close to the log as possible, while still compensating for the taper of the logs. Reason being that a smaller distance between the Alaskan jig and the chainsaw-bar would (at least in theory) result in less vibrations, yielding prettier cuts. I guess it depends on what the lumber will be used for, if this matters or not.

[@chad1755]

I agree, I thought cutting from the bottom was a great idea

[@StevenMartin8000]

I am doing something similar to you. Except I use the tops as corner posts or fence posts. I also distill the leaves for oil.

[@SJForestProducts]

Great idea! The small tops aren't great for lumber, but fence posts is a great idea! I am intrigued about the oil idea. Can you send me an email at [e-mail] with more info on pressing cedar oil from the branches?

[@thekiltedsawyer]

Cedar's don't have leaves?? You mean needles??

[@StevenMartin8000]

@@thekiltedsawyer No I mean leaves

[@thekiltedsawyer]

Obviously failed botany

[@StevenMartin8000]

@@thekiltedsawyer I really don't care what you think about botanicals or anything at all.

[@mtozzy11]

Nothing milling your own timber, I've been using an Alaskan mill for 2 years now started with a MS381 with a 30" bar, two things I realized the saw was under powered and bar wasn't big enough, this time exactly last year I got a MS500i and GB forestry 48" bar with a carbide chain and wow what a difference, I mill Australian hardwoods and all come off my family farm I'm third generation here. Most of the trees are storm fallen old growth. Look forward to seeing where this journey takes you 🇦🇺

[@SJForestProducts]

Thanks for the comment! Sounds awesome what you have going on down there. Is there a big market for the wood where you live?

[@mtozzy11]

@@SJForestProducts there is I live 40 minutes from the city of Wollongong and 2 hours south of Sydney, alot people want to use native timber in there homes as accent pieces, deck, flooring etc and the furniture makers are always on the lookout for timber they just can't go to a store and buy. We have strict native vegetation laws that restrict the felling of trees and alot of the forests are now protected on our own property if want to fell a tree we need to get permission from the local government council to do so. So guys like me that recover fallen trees can make abit of money out of them. As alot land owners just push them up and burn them or cut them for firewood, the timber is hard heavy and can be hard to work. Look up Australian red cedar, Australian blackwood, Iron bark, Sydney blue gum, stringy bark and coachwood. It's Beautiful timber.

[@SJForestProducts]

Awesome stuff! Glad you found an outlet for your wood. Too bad to hear about all the regulations though

[@charliebrady3751]

@@mtozzy11 Back when I used to live in Glebe in Sydney, they were renovating a house a few doors up. The idiots were taking 16'+ long studs of rock hard old growth and chopping it up with a circular saw and throwing it in a garbage skip.

[@shawndmiles6747]

Logosol has the best mill for working small logs. You could have made that 4x4 in under 10 minutes on there mill.

[@SJForestProducts]

Cool! I will check them out. Thanks

[@markj284]

Thays 100 percent better than homedepot wood...

[@colebarnett199]

Awesome video. Where did you find a rail system with a plate for narrow logs?

[@SJForestProducts]

Thanks! The rails are just 2x2 tube and the plates I made with my plasma cutter and a drill. If I was to do it again I would get tube that is 1.5x2 or 1.5x3, something rectangle so its stronger in one direction.

[@joesinakandid528]

He copied the design from "Surviving Ringworm" on KZbin. The only difference is the size of the square tubing. These mills are intended to have only one guide setup and then use the newly cut flat plane for subsequent cuts. With this salvage operation the third cut DID need the metal rails but the second and forth did not.

[@SJForestProducts]

Here is a bracket that would work also: Chainsaw Mill Brackets: amzn.to/3q4808V

[@dougdixon4587]

Why did you use the rails for the 2nd (opposing) slab when you could more accurately run it parallel to the first cut????

[@SJForestProducts]

Hmm, good question. Not sure😂

[@BillMulholland1]

🍻👍

[@trevoroakes5105]

You might want to check into the price difference on sending your fir & cedar to the mill compared to selling them for poles.

[@SJForestProducts]

Thanks for the suggestion. Pole grade here is really particular and I dont think many of mine would pass. They are worth quite a bit more money though, thanks for the suggestion!

[@trevoroakes5105]

Talk to Matt at Oeser, he’s the timber buyer. If you ever send a load in I’ll be the one scaling it.

[@SJForestProducts]

Haha, nice! I didnt know you were at Oeser! Yeah, Matt has actually been out to my place and took a look at my trees. Says there might be a load of fir poles, but most of my cedar is too small or not good enough. Maybe I will run into you there some day.

[@trevoroakes5105]

Saw Matt today, didn’t realize you used to work there. Keep up the interesting videos.

[@myhermitlife]

Is the plate homemade?

[@SJForestProducts]

Mine are, but you can find them here if you want to buy them: Chainsaw Mill Brackets: amzn.to/3q4808V

[@ghostpatriot2370]

Why would you mill a 6-8” round that is a perfect post. Stronger if it isn’t cut

[@SJForestProducts]

Just to see what happens 😂 I was curious if it could be done

[@ghostpatriot2370]

@@SJForestProducts loved the vid bud and great job running the equipment

[@silenceondort1314]

Once you ad your first cut done, why reuse your tubes set-up, instead of beaming with your? Are you not losing time and energy

[@SJForestProducts]

Good point