when you add up the cost of the saw, and saw repairs, and gas and chain oil, and like you said, you only get 4 or 5 cuts per chain, does it pay to mill your own lumber this way?
Valid question. Hard to factor the cost of the saw per milling if you're using it for more than just milling and getting more than one milling out of it, but the cost there isn't much. I haven't had to repair my saw at all and I've been using it for years. Gas and oil depends, but it isn't much. Depends on the wood for how many cuts, but I've had a ton of use per chain. Here's an example, a few months back I spent two days milling up roughly $6K (market price) in black cherry. All it cost (besides my time and labor) was a can of mixed gas and a chain/chainsaw cleaning afterwards. 100% worth it to me.
