The Advantages of Timber-frame Building

(Page 2 of 5)

August/September 2004
By Rob Roy 
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To learn more about timber framing, we recommend Timber Framing for the Rest of Us by Rob Roy, a Mother Earth News Book for Wiser Living from New Society Publishers.

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Make Your Own Lumber with a Chain Saw

There is an alternative timber procurement strategy for those with access to a stand of large, straight trees: Make the timbers yourself with a chain saw mill. Essentially, this type of mill is an attachment to a chain saw. There are several different styles and qualities, and costs vary. Here are some widely available choices (see “Tool Sources,” below, for contact information):

  • The Beam Machine. This is an inexpensive (about $40) bar attachment that slides along a 2-by-4 that is nailed to the log you want to make into a beam. “The dog-tooth pivoting action takes most of the strain out of sawing because it supports the weight of the saw and provides you with a smooth, leveraged sawing motion,” says Ted Mather, maker of the product.
  • The Granberg Mini-Mill. This is similar to the Beam Machine except that it comes with a 12-foot metal guide rail to fasten to a 2-by-6-inch plank (not provided), and an extra handle and guide assembly to help pull the vertically mounted chain saw along the rail. About $80.
  • Alaskan Small Log Mill. This is the smallest of the “Alaskan” series of chain saw mills, “perfect for the homeowner, woodworker or carpenter who owns a 3.8-cubic-inch saw with a 20-inch bar,” according to the manufacturer. The Alaskan mills employ a different sort of guide from the Beam Machine or the Mini-Mill. The saw runs horizontally along the log. The first cut is made using a plank guide, and additional cuts run along the first cut. About $130.
  • Basic Alaskan Mill. These medium-sized mills range from the 24-inch Alaskan Mill, which will make a 20-inch cut (about $185), to the 56-inch Alaskan Mill, which will cut a 54-inch swath through a log (about $245), although I can’t imagine why you would need any more than the 20-inch cut for making heavy timbers. Neither of the prices, of course, include the saw, special bar or the chain saw milling chain, also called a ripping chain. Running any Alaskan Mill with a saw of less than 3.8 cubic inches of displacement is not recommended.
  • Complete Alaskan Mills. These are big, heavy-duty items that will allow you to cut wide, thick slabs easily. You can hook up two chain saw power heads to one bar and chain, which more than doubles the effective power. These mills run from $530 to $800.
  • Logosol Timber Jig. Richard Freudenberger tested this chain saw attachment, which is similar to the Basic Alaskan Mill. He says, “At 5 1/2 pounds, the Timber Jig is light enough to be carried into the woods with the saw. Yet if you wanted to set up a permanent work site to cut timbers or planks for a building project, it would be a simple matter to make a timber log table to support your logs at a comfortable working height.” Using an aged Husqvarna saw with a displacement of about 5 cubic inches, and a narrow-kerf ripping chain supplied by Logosol, Freudenberger was able to cut through white pine at a rate of about 3.2 feet per minute. For the hobby woodcutter, he says, the Timber Jig is a $165 investment that will probably pay for itself in short order. In touting the tool as an economical lumber maker, the manufacturer may be missing the fact that it’s actually an excellent timber maker as well. Even limited by its 8 1/2-inch depth, ripping out your own 8-by-12 beams for a timber-frame project would save a bundle over buying them.” Both the Logosol and the various Alaskan Mills are a step up from the simple chain saw guides, like the Beam Machine and the Granberg Mini-Mill, and they are recommended for larger projects. Yet another step up — reflected in the cost — is the following mill:
  • Better-Built Ripsaw. This also is driven by a chain saw head, but the bar and chain are replaced with a mounted bandsaw mill. Sawmill expert Dave Boyt describes it as “a simple and economical chain saw-powered bandmill.” Although much less expensive (about $1,600 plus the chain saw) than full-sized portable sawmills, this mill may be a good investment for someone who anticipates multiple homesteading projects, or who simply wants to add value to trees on a woodlot that needs to be thinned.
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