# Time-saving tips for wood collection?



## ADK_XJ (Feb 7, 2015)

I'm figuring there's some hard earned time saving tips to efficient wood collection that you pick up simply from doing it so long...so, as a relative newbie, let's hear 'em!

I've had my father in law lending me a hand recently and that has obviously doubled my productivity but today we finally hit the point in snow depth where I couldn't get my old Jeep Cherokee and trailer past the horse pasture and into the woods. So, instead we cut, split and stacked mini stacks by the dead falls we've been cleaning up and it was amazing how fast we tore through things. It was so obvious but not having to load and haul the wood allowed us to focus on getting the most from having the saw running hot and the shoulders warmed up for the splitting maul.

Anyway, what do all you wood'geniuses do to speed up or maximize the time you have to grow your stacks for the next year?


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## D8Chumley (Feb 7, 2015)

I'm far from a genius but as you have discovered, a helper is always nice. I would have to pay my son to help me haha but the family loves to be warm in the winter. I have a quad and an old Bantam military trailer that works great for in the woods around my house, and when I split I throw it right in the trailer and haul it to where I stack it. I try not to handle it any more than I already do


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## Firefighter938 (Feb 7, 2015)

I cut limbs and small trees into ~4ft sections. Then I stack them on too of a few bigger rounds and cut them into 3 sections. 

Some guys make a log rack but I don't mind doing it this way.


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## jeffesonm (Feb 7, 2015)

Skip the hard stuff.  Any super knotty pieces or crotches I either leave in the woods or pile up for one day in the future I might rent a splitter.

Also I cut everything to 16", and if there's 7" left over at the end, I leave it.  Some might say wasteful but I have more accessible trees than I do time to process it, and odd size pieces mess up my flow.


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## Applesister (Feb 8, 2015)

☆Dont get your truck stuck in the mud.(Majorly serious waste of time)
☆Dont get your tractor stuck in the mud.
☆Avoid getting trees hung up. (Snags)
☆Avoid getting your saw stuck(pinched)
☆Have extra chains or even extra saws.
☆Keep the saws in excellent running condition.
☆Have all supplies well stocked.
☆Keep water, food, toilet paper with you.
☆Take the time to safeguard sound footing.
☆Avoid personal injury.
These things are all the obvious elements that can set you back hours or days or weeks.
Better to avoid delays than taking shortcuts.


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## Knots (Feb 8, 2015)

It's useful for me to look back at how many times I moved and stacked the wood.  It's easy for me to add intermediate stages of handling that start to add up.

I remember my next door neighbor holding up a split and saying "I will have picked this piece of wood at least 10 times before it makes the stove."

So, no real time-saving tips, just a thought about not making it worse...


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## Apprentice_GM (Feb 8, 2015)

I too would love to hear experienced forum member's advice. I second the tip above about minimising the number of wood-handling steps.
Currently I:
1) Drop tree & de-limb, removing brush to bonfire seasoning pile.
2) Cut trunk & big branches into 2 foot rounds
3) Roll rounds to splitting area
4) Split rounds into splits and load barrow
5) Unload barrow and stack for seasoning
6) Load seasoned splits into barrow and move to porch before burning
7) Load woodstove from porch for burning
If cutting on another property I have to add a step of loading trailer with rounds after #2 or bring my splitter there and split / load trailer then carting home.
I could remove #6 but it allows a couple of weeks of wood to be under cover in case it rains and it's nice at night when it's cold to not have to walk to the woodpiles.
I have an 8 year old son who is getting good at dragging brush to bonfire, rolling rounds and operating the (hydraulic) splitter whilst I load / stack barrow. He drives my ride-on mower pretty well but that's relatively safe . . . How old before they can use a chainsaw do you think? 15? 16? It's such a dangerous tool.


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## Knots (Feb 8, 2015)

Apprentice_GM said:


> How old before they can use a chainsaw do you think? 15? 16? It's such a dangerous tool.



That's a judgement thing based on the individual's ability to understand risk and follow directions.  Some of the guys I grew up with _never_ got old enough to run a saw. 

My father had me running this old, massive, blue-smoke-belching Homelite around that age.  I'm not sure I got enough safety instruction up front.  Definitely should have been wearing chaps.  Maybe you should have him attend a formal chainsaw safety course?  I sometimes think I should...

Chainsaws are unforgiving.


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## Dune (Feb 8, 2015)

Save lots of time; befriend an arborist.


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## Fifelaker (Feb 8, 2015)

I have an OWB so my methods may differ a bit. I cut the rounds to what I can handle. Bigger stuff is shorter. I leave nothing behind, shorts and ugly's burn just as good as longer pieces (uglys better). If I take the time to cut it I use it. I split nothing under 8". I take my splitter to the woods with me so I split and load there. My sil and I cut, split and loaded just under two cords in 5 hours the other day. It was kind of nice being able to work right next to the truck.


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## Dune (Feb 8, 2015)

Fifelaker said:


> View attachment 152939
> View attachment 152940
> View attachment 152939
> 
> ...


I think you have it down. 
2.5 hours per cord and you also eliminate a lot of handling? Yeah, that is the way.


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## Fifelaker (Feb 8, 2015)

Dune said:


> I think you have it down.
> 2.5 hours per cord and you also eliminate a lot of handling? Yeah, that is the way.


I wish it was that easy all of the time.


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## JustWood (Feb 8, 2015)

Dune said:


> I think you have it down.
> 2.5 hours per cord and you also eliminate a lot of handling? Yeah, that is the way.


I agree. I see too many people handle it multiple times.
2 things I see a lot of that could save time.
Split and then stack right off the scrounge vehicle. Too many people unload then come back another day to split into a heap then reload and carry across property to stack.
Another is a small shed. Wood in ,, in the fall and right back out that winter.
Build a shed big enough  to hold 3 years worth. Split and stack right out of scrounge vehicle.


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## byQ (Feb 8, 2015)

1) Use gravity to your advantage. Like if you are parked on a road and can cut rounds at 1) a distance of 30 feet on an uphill, or 2) at a distance of 5 feet downhill. Which is easier? The uphill is easier even though it is farther away.

2) Always take into account whether the wood is semi-dry or green (wet). You may have to work twice as hard to transport wet wood compared to  drier wood to get the same BTUs home (water is heavy). 

3) Usually it is easier to process trees/rounds that aren't too big or too small - that is you can move them.

4) Take into consideration the numbers of limbs a tree has and how leafy/full they are. If the tree has many limbs it will take time to de-limb it. Conversely, a fallen tree with few limbs means you can start cutting rounds right away.

5) Have wedges and/or a backup chainsaw to unstick pinched chains (it's going to happen). Try to use the wedges before the chains gets pinched.


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## Lumber-Jack (Feb 8, 2015)

We all do things a little different, but here are my biggest time savers:

* Cut only standing dead, beetle kill, lodgepole pine trees that are <20 % moisture content.
* Split and stack the wood directly from the truck to my woodshed that is literally only about 10 steps away from our wood stove.
* (It's a family ritual) I have two teenage sons and a wife that help with firewood collection.

Gathering enough firewood for a year can be a daunting, time consuming task, but by implementing the tips listed above we spend on average only about 4 days in the fall every year on the task of securing enough wood to heat the house for the season.


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## Dune (Feb 8, 2015)

Lumber-Jack said:


> We all do things a little different, but here are my biggest time savers:
> 
> * Cut only standing dead, beetle kill, lodgepole pine trees that are <20 % moisture content.
> * Split and stack the wood directly from the truck to my woodshed that is literally only about 10 steps away from our wood stove.
> ...


I remember having sons that would help. Never asked the woman to help, was grateful if she bothered to throw a log in the stove now and then. 
I highly suggest you waste some time stocking up an extra year or two worth of firewood in case of some kind of emergency.


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## Fred Wright (Feb 8, 2015)

Agreed. The fewer times you handle or move things, the better. One thing I've learned to speed up wood processing ~ the closer to the others every step is, the less time I'll spend working it.

Also agreed with the tractor getting stuck. Done that a few times, it ain't a pretty picture. If the woods is pigged up, don't even bother taking the tractor in there. It can wait 'til the ground dries.

When I was working the woodlot I'd try to drop trees where I could get to them easily with the little tractor and cart. Limb first, move brush then buck. Load rounds in cart, tow to the yard.

Rounds are stacked beside the splitter. That's adding a handling step (out of dump cart to stack then off stack to splitter) but it's much faster than splitting rounds out of the cart piecemeal. Splitter is parked next to the woodpile. Split and toss to the pile. Arrange neatly and split some more.


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## Lumber-Jack (Feb 8, 2015)

Dune said:


> I remember having sons that would help. Never asked the woman to help, was grateful if she bothered to throw a log in the stove now and then.
> I highly suggest you waste some time stocking up an extra year or two worth of firewood in case of some kind of emergency.


I've never asked my wife to help, like me, she really enjoys our wood gathering outings, although she rarely helps with the stacking and splitting when we get home. Likewise she rarely brings the wood in the house, but she does maintain the fire. She was raised in a tropical country and likes it warm in the house. 
As for preparing for some kind of an emergency, I don't have much extra room on my city sized lot to hoard much extra wood, however I always have a couple extra cords on hand that get carried through to the next year, and failing that I have a last resort emergency plan,,,,, turn up the temp on the heat pump controller. 

Actually I consider the whole wood heating thing more of a hobby than a necessity, when I do the math and take into consideration the money we could make as a family if we were to all work at our day jobs for those 4 days a year instead of getting wood, I'm pretty sure if we were to just take that income and apply it to our electric heating (heat pump) bill, we would actually come out further ahead (money left over), but of course that wouldn't be nearly as fun, nor would it likely be as warm in the house as my wife likes it.


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## ADK_XJ (Feb 8, 2015)

Lumber-Jack said:


> We all do things a little different, but here are my biggest time savers:
> 
> * Cut only standing dead, beetle kill, lodgepole pine trees that are <20 % moisture content.
> * Split and stack the wood directly from the truck to my woodshed that is literally only about 10 steps away from our wood stove.
> ...



You haul your whole load for the year in 4 days? That's pretty impressive. I have to work on Saturdays mostly and its limited light but my wife, FIL and I can usually pull in about a cord from WAY back in our woods in a 4 hour session.

Anyway, good points! A wood shed is high on my Spring build list.


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## ADK_XJ (Feb 8, 2015)

Dune said:


> I remember having sons that would help. Never asked the woman to help, was grateful if she bothered to throw a log in the stove now and then.
> I highly suggest you waste some time stocking up an extra year or two worth of firewood in case of some kind of emergency.


That's my big focus right now - I'm probably just about good for next years actual burn supply but I have a rough idea to build a 12' wide lean-to the whole length of our pole barn and fill it to the gills by summer. I calculate about 18 cord if we pull that off.


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## ADK_XJ (Feb 8, 2015)

Lumber-Jack said:


> I'm pretty sure if we were to just take that income and apply it to our electric heating (heat pump) bill, we would actually come out further ahead (money left over), but of course that wouldn't be nearly as fun, nor would it likely be as warm in the house as my wife likes it.


Well said, I agree. My wife is starting to understand this is somewhere between saving money and a very wholesome hobby.


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## ADK_XJ (Feb 8, 2015)

byQ said:


> 1) Use gravity to your advantage. Like if you are parked on a road and can cut rounds at 1) a distance of 30 feet on an uphill, or 2) at a distance of 5 feet downhill. Which is easier? The uphill is easier even though it is farther away.
> 
> 2) Always take into account whether the wood is semi-dry or green (wet). You may have to work twice as hard to transport wet wood compared to  drier wood to get the same BTUs home (water is heavy).
> 
> ...


Interesting, so you feel it's easier to transport wood (rounds or split?) from 30 feet up a hill than 5 feet down a bank? Is this assuming your just huckin' those chunks down the hill to your vehicle?

The green vs dry weight ratio is a great point. It's very noticeable hoe much more energy goes into breaking down even a fresh fallen pine vs some of the 3-4 years deadfall maples around here that we have.


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## ADK_XJ (Feb 8, 2015)

JustWood said:


> build a shed big enough  to hold 3 years worth. Split and stack right out of scrounge vehicle.


Yes, this. I'm really hoping to be in a position to do that soon. This is our first 6 months in the "new" place.


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## ADK_XJ (Feb 8, 2015)

Dune said:


> Save lots of time; befriend an arborist.


Now, there's a seriously good suggestion. I have a friend who's on a logging crew but I think they're typically clearing old white pines that drop on people's houses. I'll have to put a bug in his ear about good wood.


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## Valhalla (Feb 8, 2015)

Safety first on the use and operation of all tools for felling, including saws, splitters, axes, transport, etc. 
Eye and hearing protection should not be overlooked and ever taken for granted.


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## Poindexter (Feb 8, 2015)

I suppose I am blessed, but I have a couple.  

I burn seven to ten cords each year.  In October I have a truckload of logs delivered.  I get billed for five cords, looks like it is going to split and stack out to almost seven cords again this year.  I am about 3/4 of the way through my pile of rounds now and am loading up to scrounge starting in the morning- looking for just enough to finish filling my seasoning racks.  I have rack space to season ten cords each summer for next winter.

I will be driving my truck all day everyday until I am done scrounging about three cords.
I have my saw, my saw box, chaps and helmet in the truck, 1 gallon gas can in the truck bed.
When I find a log worth scrounging I pull over and scrounge it.
Once it is home I just buck it and put it with the other rounds.
I split on the nights after work there is no bucking to do.


It works for me to go stepwise.  In October when the logs come I just buck and buck and buck on my tiny lot until my wife can park in the garage again and then keep on bucking until the buckling is done.  Then rest a couple weeks, usually get on with splitting long about Thanksgiving or so working on splitting the wood  that will season over the coming summer and burn next year.


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## Fifelaker (Feb 9, 2015)

ADK_XJ said:


> Now, there's a seriously good suggestion. I have a friend who's on a logging crew but I think they're typically clearing old white pines that drop on people's houses. I'll have to put a bug in his ear about good wood.


Don't discount white pine, It burns better for me than some of the hardwoods.


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## j7art2 (Feb 9, 2015)

My biggest time savers are using wedges to keep your cut open. I cut some massive 3' diameter rounds (I have the saw to do it) and then sometimes have to even cross cut those as they are all over 200lbs, and anything over 200-250 I can't lift into the truck. Always keep a backup saw. Sometimes wedges aren't enough. 99% of the time they are, but you always get that one.

I only cut dead wood, and if I'm not cutting huge diameter rounds, I cut them the length of my truck bed, typically 6 foot. Once I get home, instead of bucking them all to length in the field and killing my back by bending over, I throw them all up on a firewood jig (it holds probably 20 4" diameter logs) and then buck off one side, buck off the other, and buck down the middle all in one swoop. It literally rains firewood, and saves on bending with a heavy saw, prevents you from hitting dirt and rocks, etc.


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## ClintonH (Feb 9, 2015)

Lots of these.  If you only have 1 saw, consider having just another backup bar/chain combo.  In the event I get pinched, I can unbolt bar/chain, re-assemble with backup bar/chain and cut myself out.  It's also a good reason to grab another bar if you're looking to .


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## Oldman47 (Feb 9, 2015)

ClintonH said:


> Lots of these.  If you only have 1 saw, consider having just another backup bar/chain combo.  In the event I get pinched, I can unbolt bar/chain, re-assemble with backup bar/chain and cut myself out.  It's also a good reason to grab another bar if you're looking to .


If you get stuck bucking, why not just drive in a falling wedge to free it up?


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## chris5150 (Feb 9, 2015)

Like someone else mentioned, pull up with trailer, split and then stack directly off the splitter. That is the final resting place before going into my stove room prior to being burned.


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## Poindexter (Feb 9, 2015)

Lots of folks use felling wedges rather than splitting wedges to keep the bar from getting pinched when bucking big rounds.  Plastic, significantly more gentle taper than a splitting wedge, lots cheaper, won't hurt the chain if you bump it with the saw.   

Stout enough to take  hammer hits, the more expensive ones have a metal cap   Worth a look if you are getting pinched a lot.


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## ADK_XJ (Feb 9, 2015)

ClintonH said:


> Lots of these.  If you only have 1 saw, consider having just another backup bar/chain combo.  In the event I get pinched, I can unbolt bar/chain, re-assemble with backup bar/chain and cut myself out.  It's also a good reason to grab another bar if you're looking to .


I was actually forced to do this two weekends ago and, you're right, huge time saver to have a second bar/chain set. Unfortunately it was not a time saver when I had to drive the jeep out of the woods and across town to the Stihl shop for a new 20" Forrester bar! But, hey, least I've got it now!


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## ADK_XJ (Feb 9, 2015)

j7art2 said:


> My biggest time savers are using wedges to keep your cut open. I cut some massive 3' diameter rounds (I have the saw to do it) and then sometimes have to even cross cut those as they are all over 200lbs, and anything over 200-250 I can't lift into the truck. Always keep a backup saw. Sometimes wedges aren't enough. 99% of the time they are, but you always get that one.
> 
> I only cut dead wood, and if I'm not cutting huge diameter rounds, I cut them the length of my truck bed, typically 6 foot. Once I get home, instead of bucking them all to length in the field and killing my back by bending over, I throw them all up on a firewood jig (it holds probably 20 4" diameter logs) and then buck off one side, buck off the other, and buck down the middle all in one swoop. It literally rains firewood, and saves on bending with a heavy saw, prevents you from hitting dirt and rocks, etc.


Interesting, I like your approach. I do something sort of like this with a three legged saw buck I knocked together with PT 2x4s but I tend to focus on things too small to split. Hadn't thought of going even bigger on the jig/buck and doing while lengths of rounds at a time.

How do you move the thicker 6 foot lengths into the bed of your truck in the woods or are they all just the 4" diameter ones? Helper or just bend at the knees?


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## ADK_XJ (Feb 9, 2015)

j7art2 said:


> instead of bucking them all to length in the field and killing my back by bending over, I throw them all up on a firewood jig (it holds probably 20 4" diameter logs) and then buck off one side, buck off the other, and buck down the middle all in one swoop. It literally rains firewood, and saves on bending with a heavy saw, prevents you from hitting dirt and rocks, etc.


Do you have a picture of this jig? The more I think about it, I might just have to copy that idea.


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## ADK_XJ (Feb 9, 2015)

Poindexter said:


> I suppose I am blessed, but I have a couple.
> 
> I burn seven to ten cords each year.  In October I have a truckload of logs delivered.  I get billed for five cords, looks like it is going to split and stack out to almost seven cords again this year.  I am about 3/4 of the way through my pile of rounds now and am loading up to scrounge starting in the morning- looking for just enough to finish filling my seasoning racks.  I have rack space to season ten cords each summer for next winter.
> 
> ...


So, you're getting 7 cords of wood delivery in log form for how much? That would probably break the wood bank for me. My aim is to cut and carry wood that is zero cost at least in terms of the wood itself. Ancillary expenses to get to it, maintain equipment and add year to the stockpile are write-offs as far as I'm concerned.

That's an awesome haul at anyone time, though. I'll admit I'm jealous.


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## ADK_XJ (Feb 9, 2015)

Oldman47 said:


> If you get stuck bucking, why not just drive in a falling wedge to free it up?


I have a couple good wedges and I've had a friend's small Husqvarna (14" blade) get so jammed in a piece of ash we just simply couldn't get the pressure off without cutting another piece. I think that's the exception not the rule but it's nice to be able to remove the bar/chain as he's suggesting and fire back up with another at hand.


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## ADK_XJ (Feb 9, 2015)

Poindexter said:


> Lots of folks use felling wedges rather than splitting wedges to keep the bar from getting pinched when bucking big rounds.  Plastic, significantly more gentle taper than a splitting wedge, lots cheaper, won't hurt the chain if you bump it with the saw.
> 
> Stout enough to take  hammer hits, the more expensive ones have a metal cap   Worth a look if you are getting pinched a lot.


Yup, I've seen these by the box full at the local Stihl guy's shop across town - definitely need to snag a few the next time I'm there.


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## Poindexter (Feb 10, 2015)

ADK_XJ said:


> So, you're getting 7 cords of wood delivery in log form for how much? That would probably break the wood bank for me. My aim is to cut and carry wood that is zero cost at least in terms of the wood itself. Ancillary expenses to get to it, maintain equipment and add year to the stockpile are write-offs as far as I'm concerned.
> 
> That's an awesome haul at anyone time, though. I'll admit I'm jealous.



I paid $975 for "five cords" of delivered birch.  Vendor has great word of mouth rep, and published warranty on his website that if you aren't satisfied he will bring you more.  The trouble with birch is it starts rotting from the center out whole the tree still looks healthy on the outside.  The vendor clear cuts under contract, if you want a lot cleared call him, he fells everything, loads everything and delivers it.  

I got pretty lucky with this load, a few logs with some punk but only one with the center rotted away.  I think if I had gotten typical luck of the forest birch I would have between five and six cords out of that truckload.

It comes down to what your time is worth and what else you got going on.  I got four kids in college, plenty of opportunity to work all the overtime I want. 

I coulda bought stumpage at $10 per cord, but I would have had to go fell it and drag it home.  Weeks of free time, like 6 to 8 weeks.  Instead I worked  a bunch of overtime for two weeks to cover the price difference between stumpage and delivered logs, spent 9 days bucking up the log load and got to having a bunch of rounds in three weeks instead of six or eight.

Having three to five weeks of free time after work every night was worth it to me.


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## Poindexter (Feb 10, 2015)

I put some pics of my sawbuck in here: https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/first-scrounge-ever.137485/#post-1852802


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## Fifelaker (Feb 10, 2015)

When bucking, I "try" to get the wedges in before it closes the gap. I stuff wedges quite often, but still get stuck once in awhile.


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## Oldman47 (Feb 10, 2015)

I am sure some of it is just on-line video editing but I have seen pictures showing a pinched saw actually being freed by driving a wedge and having the top of a kerf open back up. The whole top of the log was raised by that wedge's action.


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## j7art2 (Feb 10, 2015)

ADK_XJ said:


> Do you have a picture of this jig? The more I think about it, I might just have to copy that idea.




I do. In fact, I even have a video on how well it works. I had a very similar situation earlier this season. I will be shortening the legs of the jig to be closer to the ground so I can lob 12" diameter ones in there (I can't lift them over my head to get them up onto it LOL) but it's the exact same principal. If they're too big around, I just cut them into 4 foot lengths, or lengths I can handle. The less bending at the back with a 14-16lb saw in my hands the better. 

Check out this thread for pics and video.

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/my-bucking-back.137262/page-2#post-1856006


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## Wood Duck (Feb 10, 2015)

Lately I am cutting in a place where I have to carry the wood 50 to 100 ft to my trailer. I save time by cutting to four foot lengths and carrying them to the trailer, rather than cutting to stove length and carrying. Each trip with a four footer saves three trips with a 16 incher. Sometimes I have to cut to 32 inches or 16 inches with the largest trees, but the point is I save time by carrying larger pieces.

This probably adds total time because I have to cut again at home, but it allows me to get wood out of the woods faster. If you count all the times I have an hour or two at home, I have plenty of time in a year to process wood, but the number of times I can take a few hours and get to the woods (which are not adjacent to my yard) are limited.

By the way, I let my kids make simple chainsaw cuts, with a small log in a stable rack on a solid, dry yard, when they were about 12 or 13. Now that the oldest is 18 he can use the chainsaw in the woods.


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## ADK_XJ (Feb 10, 2015)

j7art2 said:


> I do. In fact, I even have a video on how well it works. I had a very similar situation earlier this season. I will be shortening the legs of the jig to be closer to the ground so I can lob 12" diameter ones in there (I can't lift them over my head to get them up onto it LOL) but it's the exact same principal. If they're too big around, I just cut them into 4 foot lengths, or lengths I can handle. The less bending at the back with a 14-16lb saw in my hands the better.
> 
> Check out this thread for pics and video.
> 
> https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/my-bucking-back.137262/page-2#post-1856006


Oh wow, nice! Well, I have to agree that you're raining firewood out of that thing but I also think you're right that it's pretty high to be lifting that saw up to over and over. I can commiserate because my Farm Boss weighs close to 20 lbs WITHOUT a the bar and chain.

Thanks for sharing!


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## ADK_XJ (Feb 10, 2015)

Poindexter said:


> I put some pics of my sawbuck in here: https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/first-scrounge-ever.137485/#post-1852802


Good stuff, I like that you have the slots on center to cut down.


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## osagebow (Feb 10, 2015)

Getting pickier with my trees. No more giant yard soft maples with 20 crotches. Time per btus is not good.
Scrounge bucked stuff, easy oaks, mulberry,locust, ANY hedge available. 
From my tract, mostly declining oaks before the punk but with mostly dead and gone tops. Bushy 20" black gum is a leaner near the the road, but isn't a hazard.  I'm pretending it doesn't exist.


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## Maxgussam (Feb 10, 2015)

I use the firewood grippers to carry rounds. One in each hand for balance. They will handle a lot more weight than you think they could. I've found that I can use a sort of wrist flicking motion to release the rounds, it saves having to set them down. I just kind of throw them into the truck. 
Also, I carry a farm jack to lift the end of the log in case a plastic wedge won't work. 
Just jack the log up slightly and kick a small round ahead of the bind, lower, and you are free. 
As you gain experience, this happens less and less.


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## Wood Duck (Feb 12, 2015)

If you have options, select wood you can drive up to. Carrying wood takes a lot of time.


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## stefan66 (Feb 13, 2015)

I like to cut, buck, split, pile and cover what I cut down where I drop it.  A lot of the weight (water) has evaporated before I need to move it.
Then ideally it gets stacked next to your wood burner dry and ready to go. That way handling wet wood is kept to a minimum.
I've even peeled the first 3 feet of bark off of poplars to kill them. 3 years later most of the bark had fallen off the top half of the tree.
The top (down to about an 8 inch round) could be burned when it was cut down. The bottom needed another 6 months after being split, piled, and covered.
  Things mostly dry pretty quick here though.


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## wardk (Mar 4, 2015)

ADK_XJ said:


> So, you're getting 7 cords of wood delivery in log form for how much? That would probably break the wood bank for me. My aim is to cut and carry wood that is zero cost at least in terms of the wood itself. Ancillary expenses to get to it, maintain equipment and add year to the stockpile are write-offs as far as I'm concerned.
> 
> That's an awesome haul at anyone time, though. I'll admit I'm jealous.


I had a logging truck load delivered for $1800 just about finished about 20 cords or 40 pickup loads.I think It would have cost me more in gas never mind falling limbing and loading.


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## jaoneill (Mar 4, 2015)

Poindexter said:


> Lots of folks use felling wedges rather than splitting wedges to keep the bar from getting pinched when bucking big rounds.  Plastic, significantly more gentle taper than a splitting wedge, lots cheaper, won't hurt the chain if you bump it with the saw.
> 
> Stout enough to take  hammer hits, the more expensive ones have a metal cap   Worth a look if you are getting pinched a lot.



I keep a half dozen of these plastic wedges in my "woods" toolbox. I always stick one in each back pocket when I get off the tractor and grab the saw. They are a real timesaver when bucking 30" and larger stuff; I will typically start 6 cuts about 2/3 of the way through the log, shut down the saw, pop a plastic wedge in each kerf, finish the cuts and start the next set. As someone here noted, experience is a great teacher, and with time pinched bars are a rarity.


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## ADK_XJ (Mar 5, 2015)

jaoneill said:


> I keep a half dozen of these plastic wedges in my "woods" toolbox. I always stick one in each back pocket when I get off the tractor and grab the saw. They are a real timesaver when bucking 30" and larger stuff; I will typically start 6 cuts about 2/3 of the way through the log, shut down the saw, pop a plastic wedge in each kerf, finish the cuts and start the next set. As someone here noted, experience is a great teacher, and with time pinched bars are a rarity.


Bought my first set of those at the local dealer last week. Came in very handy on a couple awkward cuts in a huge downed ash I was working on.


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