Making Lumber with Oregon CS1500 Electric Chain Saw

Make your own lumber from fallen trees for less than $150 using this inexpensive electric chain saw and a simple wooden jig.

[@bakerbrian41]

Got this saw a few days ago. Cut down 4 trees today and cut them up. It works quite well!

[@capefear3297]

Just ordered one from Amazon for 108 bucks. Will use it for timber framing. Oregon replacement chains and bars are available from my local farm supply store, as well as online. The saw will accept a 3/8 chain as well, but will need to be sharpened with my Dremel or rat tail file, which does not take more than a few minutes. Good video. I appreciate your innovation and ingenuity. Nice work. I have subscribed.

[@jackofallissue6661]

Thanks for subscribing! There is a lot more ingenuity to come on the channel. I wish I could show all the crazy stuff I do with work but unfortunately I'm usually bound by customer confidentiality agreements. One of the coolest things I did was design a software for mine dewatering that could predict water flow direction in the ground, drastically reduce power consumption of pumps and saved my customer millions of dollars each year on their dewatering program. Lol I sold the software to my customer for $75k.

[@conservativekiwis6775]

Thanks really good clip. I just bought one in nz as I got tired of breathing all thot hot fumes from my husky! while milling.

[@jackofallissue6661]

Make sure to check out my version 3.0 video where I upgraded the vertical mill.

[@stephenmccurdy239]

Yes. Mine cuts like a boss! Very impressed. (my son moved to nz)

[@willdwyer6782]

Get a heavier gauge extension cord and you won't blow the breaker.

[@jackofallissue6661]

Yeah that video was when I first got the saw several years ago. I now use a 12awg extension cord and a 20A breaker instead of 15A. Same saw and it's still working great.

[@oliverburke]

I bought the CS250 battery-powered 14” and it’s great for cutting trees down, but for making lumber, the battery(ies) need to be swapped too often (that’s why I bought a 2nd). So to make lumber, I’m looking to get this one. It’s 18” instead of 14” and with constant electric power, I’ll be better off than swapping batts and still having to wait. Thanks for the demo - it’s just what I needed to see. Anyone have good plans for a small bandsaw mill?

[@jackofallissue6661]

Thanks! I've since upgraded this mill see kzbin.info/www/bejne/pZakhIVqrsh2pMU I also have plans for another upgrade (now that I have a TIG Welder) and a much faster method for sawing with the CS1500. I'll share it on my channel when I build it some time this spring. As for Bandsaw mills it's not something I would not try and build one myself and I actually have built a circular saw mill lol. Although a bandsaw mill might seem like a simple thing it's actually quite complex and much design refinement is required to make it reliable. I would rank by complexity easiest as chainsaw mill, circular saw mill, and bandsaw as hardest. Cheers!

[@jimolson7001]

had 2 and burned both motors out cutting logs into boards

[@jackofallissue6661]

Really...sorry to hear that, I'm still running on the original one I bought at the time of this video.

[@maxdefranker]

Do you use the original chain? I have one and I am trying to order a ripcut chain for splitting lumber.

[@jackofallissue6661]

Yes, there is another more recent video on my channel showing this saw using a string and two nails to make lumber. kzbin.info/www/bejne/laW4g5uahJ55rqM I will also be posting a video soon of a new mill concept I am working on that uses only the nose part of the saw and multiple passes to cut lumber much faster. In my tests so far I have found that this method is 2 to 5 times faster than trying to cut all the way through a log in one shot. It will take me a bit of time to complete this mill but in the end I hope to have a sawmill that can handle 14ft long logs up to 30" diameter and cut them twice as fast as other chainsaw mills using a 120V 15A household circuit. I would like to be able to bring that sawmill to a fallen tree and handle the tree where it fell. Cheers!

[@1miltond]

Well my concerned is on a 12 foot log how hot the motor will get?

[@jackofallissue6661]

I have several other more recent videos on my channel using this saw and for $150 it is one tough little saw, my new sawmill cuts 12ft long logs no problem using this saw. I'll share video of that in the future. Cheers

[@danielroden9424]

do longer 20/24 + inch oregon bars fit that saw?

[@jackofallissue6661]

Hi Daniel, I have not tried this yet but I might just order one. Oregon make both a 20 and a 24" bar that should fit this saw. Here is the part number for the 24" bar. 240SFHD025. Lol never know this might be featured in a future video.... Cheers.

[@jackfrosty79ify]

Cooking oil as bar oil

[@stephenmccurdy239]

Thanks for the great ideas! I just ordered one. I was wondering if you think it could be upgraded to a 20-22" bar? theoretically, since you know its anatomy? :)

[@jackofallissue6661]

Hi Stephen, I theory yes but in practice the longer bars have larger chains and chains with longer gaps between the teeth so it may be hard to find a longer chain/bar replacement to fit this sprocket. I could probably custom make one though...might make for a cool video lol. The 18" in the longest one made by Oragon with the powersharp system. As you get longer you run into too many teeth touching the wood at one time so it cuts much slower. This is why for a ripping blade on a table saw for example has fewer teeth. I made a prototype saw mill and it used a 24" 6 tooth blade. Cheers!

[@oo0Spyder0oo]

Are the chains for this standard or special purpose due to the sharpening setup? Considering one but not if I can't get a replaceable chain for it. cheers

[@jackofallissue6661]

I have bought a replacement chain. It comes as a set, bar, chain and charpning jig and stone. You need to replace the stone every time you change the chain. The chain last much longer than a standard one though so it's overall a pretty good value. And if you want you can put a standard chain on it however the automatic sharpening system will not work for that type of chain so you will need to hand file it. It's still the best electric saw for the money I have seen yet!

[@oo0Spyder0oo]

@@jackofallissue6661 Thanks for the info. So replacing the bar as well, how much more than a standard chain does this all cost? Got to compare the replacement of a new chain vs that system I guess. Cheers

[@jackofallissue6661]

@@oo0Spyder0oo It's about $65 in Canada for the new bar and chain. However I think you can get just the chain and replacement stone from Oregon for about half that price. In my opinion it's about the same cost for chains in the end but this style chain is far superior and faster for cutting. Take a look at my video "My ash bench part 2" and you'll see how well it works on some hardwood. I also have another video I made a month ago that I'll post as soon as I have free time showing my latest vertical sawmill jig.

[@oo0Spyder0oo]

@@jackofallissue6661 Looking forward to the videos. I'm in Aus and it's all hardwood, I can't even get my 4 ton log spliiter to crack some of my logs, they are like steel. Chainsaw chain avg $50 and they don't last long between sharpening. Thanks

[@oliverburke]

oo0Spyder0oo The extra chain for my Oregon CS250 (14”) costed $30 US, and this one’s an 18” so round up a bit?

[@Splash111]

what attachment are you using to cut boards. Nice review too BTW.

[@jackofallissue6661]

The attachment is a home made bracket that slides between two oak boards. I've since upgraded the saw mill, see kzbin.info/www/bejne/pZakhIVqrsh2pMU Cheers!

[@citic101]

how much noise does it make ?

[@jackofallissue6661]

It's pretty quiet, I only wear ear plugs if I'm cutting lumber. I love the saw best saw for the money period.

[@TheMammutvideo]

Still happy with your CS1500 saw? still working?

[@jackofallissue6661]

Yup still works great...best saw for the money I ever bought! I the video I used a 16awg extension cord but now I used a 12awg and there is quite a bit more power and almost no breaker trips.

[@HWoodCreations]

What case is that?

[@jackofallissue6661]

Not sure what you mean by case...can you be more specific?

[@HWoodCreations]

@@jackofallissue6661 lol. I thought that was a case in the shed, but it's another saw. My bad

[@jeremymcclanahan2389]

For when a prius owners move out of the city.

[@jackofallissue6661]

Lol that's funny... I use electric because of serious allergies to chemicals developed from working in a paper mill and because it's really cheap to run at about $0.12/hour. I used to run a husqvarna. Cheers!

[@jackfrosty79ify]

Cooking oil huh

[@greaves52]

Can you fell a tree with it?

[@jackofallissue6661]

Off course, all the logs I use for lumber are from tree I fell myself with the saw. Also, it's much harder to make lumber with a saw as the normal chain that comes with a saw is designed for cross cutting not ripping. Ripping wood requires a ripping chain which I plan to get in the future and test in a comparison video. Probably something coming in 2020 as I need to focus on building our house right now. I'm building an energy-efficient home and will upload all the steps on my channel. Cheer!

[@muratbasarir6046]

İt need sharpen