Is 272xp enough saw for milling

[Diabel]

My g660 has a 7 tooth.

 

[EbS-P]

My g660 has a 7 tooth.

My quick searching I did not come across any 6T drivers. 7 T was fine with a 36” bar moving up to a full house 52” bar I think I could use the extra torque. Probably a switch to full skip chain will have more impact than a sprocket change.

 

[Nealm66]

I think a 660 is kinda small for a 52. Not having the outer clutch wouldn’t help either. I’d say for milling a 42 would be tops . At least for me

 

[EbS-P]

I think a 660 is kinda small for a 52. Not having the outer clutch wouldn’t help either. I’d say for milling a 42 would be tops . At least for me

For tulip poplar, keeping the chain sharp, and being carful I was able to mill up a crotch that was 42” wide at the wide end. 25” at the narrow. It’s not ideal but I can get by. In total I have milled only 8 cuts and feel that I go my money’s worth out of it.
I agree for any hardwood or or heavy use 42” is a good limit.

 

[Nealm66]

I’m not sure if they make a 52 for the bar studs either.

 

[Nealm66]

I took some pics of the farm trailers my neighbors re planked this am. Was in a hurry so.. some of these boards I’m guessing 16-18 wide. Surprised they never cupped

 

[Nealm66]

I wanted to get some pics of the old wood furnace with the mechanical thermostat from the 60’s. They said you can fit 6’ lengths of firewood into it

 

[Nealm66]

It was 4 trailers and a couple were super old

 

[Diabel]

I am so excited. Looks like I will not be able to start milling til beginning of May.

 

[Nealm66]

It will be fun for us as well. My neighbors originally only wanted to cut 2 beams that were longer than the normal portable mills. I brought the mill stuff down and after they saw how well it worked they re did all the trailers and some other stuff. I know they milled up a big cedar but I was too busy to check it out. Hard to find good hemlock around here this far away from the coast. There’s a ton of big cottonwoods though that dry white and have really cool grain. Nobody wants them for anything.I’ve had some milled up before for a guy that needed them for lowboy planks for a huge dozer and was surprised how it turned out . I guess the huge grousers will chop through anything hard. The softer cotton wood was one of the few woods that would hold up.

 

[EbS-P]

I am so excited. Looks like I will not be able to start milling til beginning of May.

I feel for you not being able to get the new tool out. Can you at least get the saw out and run a few tanks through it? Added up and in total I have made only 12 milling cuts but that is about 15 tanks of fuel. Granted the smallest cut started at 22” and the biggest ended at 42”. I guess that I have about 25-30 tanks through it in total. I ran the first tank through it and never revved it up with out a load and then never wide open under load for more than 5-10 seconds. I can’t turn it over with out using the decomp button. You have to be way more manly than I am to to delete those.

In the mean time here’s what I got done yesterday. Will be bookshelves and porch swings by the end of the month. Staying super flat is not as important to me as getting it done soon. I did use paste wax as a finish last time and I really like that as a sealer to slow down drying butjust As important I don’t have to wait for it to dry. As for the greenness all around remember it was a hurricane took down this tree and made all of this possible for me. So you don’t need to be jealous.

Evan

 

[Nealm66]

I feel for you not being able to get the new tool out. Can you at least get the saw out and run a few tanks through it? Added up and in total I have made only 12 milling cuts but that is about 15 tanks of fuel. Granted the smallest cut started at 22” and the biggest ended at 42”. I guess that I have about 25-30 tanks through it in total. I ran the first tank through it and never revved it up with out a load and then never wide open under load for more than 5-10 seconds. I can’t turn it over with out using the decomp button. You have to be way more manly than I am to to delete those.

In the mean time here’s what I got done yesterday. Will be bookshelves and porch swings by the end of the month. Staying super flat is not as important to me as getting it done soon. I did use paste wax as a finish last time and I really like that as a sealer to slow down drying butjust As important I don’t have to wait for it to dry. As for the greenness all around remember it was a hurricane took down this tree and made all of this possible for me. So you don’t need to be jealous.

Evan

View attachment 275165View attachment 275166

Is that a 52” bar? If so,I didn’t know they made one that would fit the bar studs. It looks nice with no taper. My 72” cannon makes it hard to choke up on the mill without the chain making contact

 

[Diabel]

The 660 arrived sometime mid Jan. The idea was to run several tanks of gas through it bucking. Then tons of snow came and the bucking idea was out. I decided not to put any gas in it. Also, i have been out of the country since more less mid Jan and no idea when I will be back (damn covid). Hopefully mid April.

 

[EbS-P]

Is that a 52” bar? If so,I didn’t know they made one that would fit the bar studs. It looks nice with no taper. My 72” cannon makes it hard to choke up on the mill without the chain making contact

It is a 52”. its worked well so far. Chain tensioner is a weakness for the 660 at this length of bar. eBay with chain shipped for 230$. Mill was extended with t-slot aluminum. It would be nice to be make a shorter one for my 28” bar if I ever do dimensional lumber.

 

[Nealm66]

The 660 arrived sometime mid Jan. The idea was to run several tanks of gas through it bucking. Then tons of snow came and the bucking idea was out. I decided not to put any gas in it. Also, i have been out of the country since more less mid Jan and no idea when I will be back (damn covid). Hopefully mid April.

Dang, that sucks

 

[Nealm66]

It is a 52”. its worked well so far. Chain tensioner is a weakness for the 660 at this length of bar. eBay with chain shipped for 230$. Mill was extended with t-slot aluminum. It would be nice to be make a shorter one for my 28” bar if I ever do dimensional lumber.

Huh, well, that’s good to know. I should probably get a smaller mill too. I had to replace a couple of the cheap adjustment studs after a while but not a big deal. Hard to get used to not sinching these down tight

 

[SpaceBus]

I'm not really sure I understand the hard starting larger saws. My 395xp starts very easy and I ALWAYS use the decomp valve, even on my little 460. The first pull with the choke out gets a bark or stumble, then the next pull with the choke in gets the saw to start right up. When the saw is already hot it starts even easier.

 

[salecker]

And i never use the decompression,my personal saws get them plugged
Oh and i drop start most saws,another controversial proceedure

 

[brenndatomu]

And i never use the decompression,my personal saws get them plugged
Oh and i drop start most saws,another controversial proceedure

When I built my MS660 clone I left the base gasket out to bump compression up a bit...it will break the starter rope all too often without the compression release being used...or just cough and rip the handle out of your hand in a way that makes you want to cuss a blue streak!
Starts pretty easily using the decomp, so no reason not to.

 

[SpaceBus]

When I built my MS660 clone I left the base gasket out to bump compression up a bit...it will break the starter rope all too often without the compression release being used...or just cough and rip the handle out of your hand in a way that makes you want to cuss a blue streak!
Starts pretty easily using the decomp, so no reason not to.

I've been slapped by the rope on my 395, not fun.

 

[Nealm66]

They’ve plugged all the modified saws I’ve owned. I definitely have even my medium size saws either already running or warmed up good before I have them raised when I’m piecing a tree down. I think it’s kind of funny that something like this would be a macho thing. I have a friend that could qualify for a gorilla at a zoo and watching him start a large high compression saw is comical. It’s mostly technique

 

[Diabel]

If there is one, use it. Even my 261 has one and I use it.

 

[Diabel]

Getting closer to my complete setup. With lumber prices going through the roof....I am even more excited about milling.

 

[Nealm66]

Does that thing work off batteries? Might be nice for sharpening while it’s on the mill vs changing chains like I do

 

[EbS-P]

Good call on the powered one. I’m kinda kicking myself for thinking the hand filing jig would be ok. I got a couple crummy files. And I’m going to change the angle of on a loop to 10 degrees so the powered stones are looking better than ever.