This is a small chainsaw mill I made recently. A big Thank You to Izzy Swan's Video on making a saw mill that I took a lot of ideas from and used only Material that I had on hand. This is for small projects that I need custom wood for.

Supplies

Electric chainsaw Had in shop

Aluminum ladder Had on hand

Rope and pulley Recycled from old flag pole

Scrap plywood and recycled 2x4's

1 1/2 Dowel from old umbrella post.

electric drill

Misc. nuts and bolts

1/4 20 threaded rod

1/4 20 wing nut

Step 1:

I started by cutting some 5/8 plywood a couple inches wider than the ladder and about 18 inches long. added a couple 1x1 1/2 to outside bottom edge so the sled can slide smoothly but not slide off or sloppy Built a rectangular 2x4 frame ans added a smaller box inside that will slide smoothly up and down. Drilled down from the top and used 1/4 20 all thread rod and a wing nut cut into the underside of the smaller box. Added a 1/4 inch drill for the up and down. Added a piece of plywood for the saw to rest on.

Step 2:

I used some aluminum flat bar to make a motor holder and a bolt with nuts and washers to keep the saw steady.

Step 3:

I needed a way to slide the saw down the ladder so I used a dowel and fashioned a small winch. Found an old flag pole so I used the rope and pulley.

Step 4:

Had to do a little adjusting to get the blade perfectly level with the ladder. Now it gets a nice straight cut.

Step 5:

Built log holders out of 2x4's I just screwed the log to the holder for now. I might build some log dogs later.

Step 6:

A few practice cuts and adjusting the height.

Step 7:

The rope goes from the winch down through a eye bolt to a pulley at the end of the ladder and back to the sled. Just crank the handle and it slides down the ladder.