Big Score? Can i do it?

[fabsroman]

Wood has been hard to come by for me. Unless it's 50 miles away. I don't know what this spring will be like but i'm thinking i'll get it.

I just concerned if i can't process it how do i get rid of it? If this guy is have trouble getting people to pick it up, i would have an even harder time since i'm further east.

I was wading through this to see if I could figure out whether you should or should not. With this answer, my advice would be get it, and buy a bigger saw if you really, really have to. The larger rounds will be tough to handle for splitting if you are by yourself and have nobody to help, but you can always noodle them (i.e., cut them in half). A neighbor down the road had me come over and grab some poplar. He had a few pieces of huge oak trunk laying around from last year that he and his buddy did not want to mess with. He offered them to me and I told him I would be right back with the bigger saw. One was a log that I was able to cut 3 rounds out of. The other was the base of the trunk that was already cut into a round, but it was so big it was impossible to move. I quartered it with the saw and it still took he and I together to put it in the truck. Well over two days worth of heat, maybe even a week, in that base of the trunk.

Seriously, kill the Craftsman saw and then figure out you need a Stihl, Huskie, etc. $20 delivered and you are not sure you will be able to find the wood later, there would be no question in my mind. My wife gave me grief in 2011 when I had firewood stacked all over the place. I still have firewood stacked all over the place but now she is giving me grief about when am I going to go get more. Completely different tune after heating the house with it for a couple years.

 

[blades]

Check around at your local HD stores they sell their used Makita/Dolmar 64cc units every so often for around 300 or less, takes a little work to clean up and maybe a bit of repair but they are pro saws added bonus the 64 can big bored into just shy of 80cc for short dollars later on. Oh and the 64 will pull and oil a 24" bar no problem.

 

[ailanthus]

I would jump on that deal in a second- especially if you have trouble finding wood as you've said. Easy way to justify spending a few hundred on a nice saw, too

 

[Standingdead]

Nice load of wood right there for virtually free (heck $20 barely fills my 5 gallon gas can). Good advice from these fellas on stepping up the saw. Your back will thank you. Find a friend who needs boiler wood and have him take those uglies. OWB and larger IWB can take ugly chunks 15" -18" diameter. Usually guys with big boilers got some big saws too some help would go a long way on this load. Plus afterwards you don't have to quench your "thirst" alone .

 

[Ashful]

the BEST thing Ive found to stop it dead in its tracks is Clorox spray. Not pure bleach, the water/bleach mix stuff. Spray it on, let it sit a bit, and wash it off. It'll dry up the patch and it won't grow any worse

After that bad case I photo'd above, I landed on a new treatment, which is the best I've tried.

1. Wash with Tecnu Extreme. Do this twice a day, for at least the first 2 days after rash shows up.
2. After you're confident you've removed the oils, apply steroid cream. This will knock down the inflammation almost immediately. I recommend the 1 lb. tub of 0.1% triamcinolone acetonide (prescription synthetic corticosteroid), smeared on liberally.

By day 2, you won't even know you ever had it. I've had a few contacts with PI, and this method has cleared every one up within a day or two. I often find myself cutting wood with large (3" - 4") PI vines wrapped around it, such that I have to buck the wood to pull the PI off. Occasionally I'll knick the PI with the chain, and have some of those nasty chips fly at me (or down my shirt collar!).

Despite it's known side-effects, many doctors will want to prescribe prednisone for bad case of PI. I think it's much less effective than the topical triamcinolone, so I don't see why you'd want to go that route for an external rash.

 

[BEConklin]

Like I said - poison ivy is no big deal for some people, but for others it can be a very big deal.

I once made the mistake of allowing the back of my right hand to brush against a PI leaf...I was walking along a narrow path in a marsh carrying a bucket of crabs back to the car when I had to move aside to let someone pass that was coming the other way. I saw the PI but I couldn't avoid it. One lousy leaf touched the back of my pinky and ring finger.... I washed my hands thoroughly afterwards but within 5 days my entire right hand and forearm was covered with blisters. The skin running up the inside of each pair of fingers from my index finger to my pinky became one solid, fluid filled blister and I had limited use of my hand and very little sleep for more than a week afterwards.

If I had as much skin affected as those pictures Joful showed, I'd be in very bad shape indeed.

Thankfully - I'm better off than my nephew who once caught a whiff of smoke from someone burning some brush with PI in it as he went past. He ended up in the hospital nearly losing his kidneys after his body mounted a huge allergic response to the PI smoke he'd inhaled.

Since I have the luxury of picking and choosing the wood I take, I don't screw around with trees that have PI growing on them. It ain't worth the risk.

 

[Ashful]

I'll second/third/fourth the advice to use this as an excuse to buy a real saw. With the money you're saving over buying wood, it's easy justification. Since you already have something 50 cc, I'd be looking for a mate around 75 cc. No sense buying 60 - 65 cc, unless you plan to unload the Craftsman and have just one saw.

 

[ironspider]

I'll second/third/fourth the advice to use this as an excuse to buy a real saw. With the money you're saving over buying wood, it's easy justification. Since you already have something 50 cc, I'd be looking for a mate around 75 cc. No sense buying 60 - 65 cc, unless you plan to unload the Craftsman and have just one saw.

Funny you mention "excuse". I've used the excuse to buy a splitter, extra chains, and upgraded tires on my trailer. Another 400 bucks on a good stihl or husqvarna is a tough sell to the old lady.

When i was searching for a saw, I thought an 18 in would be plenty and that 42cc would be ok, but I bought this before i was serious about doing my own wood. At the time i couldn't justify a Stihl or something for occasional home use.

 

[Ashful]

In that case, I'd keep working with the Craftsman, and start watching C-list for a good deal on a Stihl. Many deals can be had, if you can get on them fast enough. Chainsaws priced low can go REAL fast on C-list. Might take a year, but you'll find something at some point.

Some advice:

60 - 65 cc: a good one-saw plan. If you can only own one saw, make it a Stihl 036 or 360.
75 - 85 cc: a good mate to your 50 cc saw. You won't use it all day long, but it'll make tackling the big stuff more practical.
35 cc top-handle: the best limbing saw you'll ever own. Some days I use my 35 cc top handle saw more than the other two combined.

 

[fabsroman]

Funny you mention "excuse". I've used the excuse to buy a splitter, extra chains, and upgraded tires on my trailer. Another 400 bucks on a good stihl or husqvarna is a tough sell to the old lady.

When i was searching for a saw, I thought an 18 in would be plenty and that 42cc would be ok, but I bought this before i was serious about doing my own wood. At the time i couldn't justify a Stihl or something for occasional home use.

When we bought the furnace, I spent $1,600 on saws. My wife did not bat an eye. I get to spend whatever I want on tools because she knows I save us thousands in the long run with them. Spent $200 for a brake line flaring tool to do the lines on my Taurus. Then, had to do the lines on my truck the next year. It paid for itself.

I hear you though because I need permission for guns, hunting gear, and fishing stuff, etc. Don't get me wrong, I needed permission for the saws too since they were over $100, but I didn't have to do much justification for them.

So, use the Craftsman until it doesn't run anymore. If you continue using it like you are, you will save plenty of money on the heating bill and kill that saw sooner rather than later. Once you buy a Stihl, you will smack yourself on the forehead and say "I should have got a V-8". I'm not kidding though. Use that Craftsman and get that wood cut up. It would cost you more than $20 in fuel to haul that wood and then you are saving time by not having to travel to the wood or look for wood. Do an odd job here and there with the saved time and buy yourself a Stihl, if that is possible.

 

[BEConklin]

Funny you mention "excuse". I've used the excuse to buy a splitter, extra chains, and upgraded tires on my trailer. Another 400 bucks on a good stihl or husqvarna is a tough sell to the old lady.

When i was searching for a saw, I thought an 18 in would be plenty and that 42cc would be ok, but I bought this before i was serious about doing my own wood. At the time i couldn't justify a Stihl or something for occasional home use.

If you don't think you can sell the wife on the idea of buying a bigger saw now, think how much easier it will be after the Craftsman $#!7S the bed halfway through cutting up this wicked huge pile of wood yer buying

 

[ironspider]

In that case, I'd keep working with the Craftsman, and start watching C-list for a good deal on a Stihl. Many deals can be had, if you can get on them fast enough. Chainsaws priced low can go REAL fast on C-list. Might take a year, but you'll find something at some point.

Some advice:

60 - 65 cc: a good one-saw plan. If you can only own one saw, make it a Stihl 036 or 360.
75 - 85 cc: a good mate to your 50 cc saw. You won't use it all day long, but it'll make tackling the big stuff more practical.
35 cc top-handle: the best limbing saw you'll ever own. Some days I use my 35 cc top handle saw more than the other two combined.

even used a stihl 360 is 400. A new stihl 270 with the 50cc and 20" bar is over 400, these are expensive saws.

 

[Ashful]

even used a stihl 360 is 400. A new stihl 270 with the 50cc and 20" bar is over 400, these are expensive saws.

Yes, but you're quoting ebay and local dealer prices. Many cheaper deals have been reported here over the last two years... by the select few quick enough to grab them when they come along.

BTW... I also included the 036, probably the most popular saw on this site. Most here pay under $300 for an 036 in good shape.

 

[ironspider]

I think my problem would be knowing if I'm getting a good deal. Unlike cars (which is an area I'm well versed) I really know nothing about saws. I wouldn't be able to tell if one is good for the price.

 

[Ashful]

When the time comes to look at a saw, we can give you some basic guidelines. Doing a search for completed listings on ebay will give you a real quick idea of what the high-side pricing is. Then it's just a matter of inspecting for condition. The only tools needed are your ear and a torx tool to remove the muffler and inspect the piston. That's about all you can easily inspect at point of sale... the rest is a little bit of a gamble.

Buying a used saw from a reputable member here or on arboristsite is usually the safest way to go. You won't get a steal, but you'll usually get a fair price. There are a few buys at arboristsite, past or present members here, who are well known to the group, and have sold many good / refurbished saws to our members.

If money is tight right now, though... I'd just use the C'man until it shits the bed. New (to me) and bigger saws make the job a lot more fun, but you can get by with what you have.

 

[ironspider]

Btw this guy never came through. I'm kinda glad though.

 

[Woody Stover]

Btw this guy never came through. I'm kinda glad though.

OK, but you can't leave us hangin'....you're gonna need to score pretty soon!

 

[kennyp2339]

I would take the wood, try to get as much cut with the craftsman say, what every you cant get cut up put off to the side and rent a larger saw for the day, If you get a rental saw and you like it, the rental company maybe willing to sell it at discounted price

 

[Osagebndr]

Take it. Good wood like that sells for $55-65 a face cord here. It'll be worth it when your done and don't have to worry bout this years wood and maybe into next

 

[ironspider]

No the guy never came through, he didn't bring me the wood.

 

[Woody Stover]

No the guy never came through, he didn't bring me the wood.

A deal is a deal...go grab it. Take a phone or camera, too, in case a kerfuffle erupts; We like pics.