A chainsaw mill clamps to your saw’s bar and rides a straight reference edge to cut logs into boards, one slab per pass.
For the full breakdown, see our best Chainsaw Mill guide.
Every slab you cut copies the first cut. If that first reference face is slightly off, every board below it inherits the error. Here’s how to use a chainsaw mill properly: clamp the mill to the bar, set the depth, cut a straight reference face, then reset the mill for each slab after it.
A chainsaw mill is a clamping frame that turns a regular chainsaw into a portable sawmill. It won’t replace a stationary mill for high-volume work, but for slabbing a few logs on your own property, it’s the difference between firewood and usable boards.