Buck into stove length or leave as logs, for splitting later?

[sksmass]

I took down a bunch of trees, Norway maple mostly, and will use them as firewood. Problem is I know I will not get around to splitting them (by hand) until spring/summer and I want the splitting to go as easy as possible. So, am I better off bucking them into stove length now and leaving them stacked in the forest as rounds or should I just leave them log-length and do all the bucking and splitting at roughly the same time? I guess the question is, which is easier to split by hand, a 16" maple round that has seasoned 3-6 months, or one that has just been liberated from a log that was cut 3-6 months ago?

And on the same topic, do different wood species behave differently in their preference for splitting green vs. splitting dry(er)?

 

[smokinj]

I would think your going to season better buck into rounds

 

[LLigetfa]

I always found that wood split easier when struck on the fresh cut side so I would buck my wood to double length and make the last cut when I was ready to split it.

 

[wendell]

If you are planning on burning that wood next fall, splitting isn't the issue, having it ready to burn is so I would cut it now and deal with some possibly more difficult splitting.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Rule of thumb says if you live in a deep snow area (say a couple feet deep or more in winter) then you cut into log lenght, haul them out and when the snow gets too deep to work in woods, then you cut into stove length. Otherwise, always cut to stove length and get split ASAP. Get it stacked into the wind and then let Mother Nature do her work of drying the wood.

 

[gzecc]

Buck into stove length now. Norway takes a long time to season. Make them small. I think they need at least a year of seasoning after split.

 

[LLigetfa]

The OP made no mention of when it will be burned nor was seasoning time the question.

 

[derecskey]

And I always found wood to be wettest, heaviest, and stringiest when fresh cut. Seems like the wood POPs more when it's dry. Easier splitting?

 

[LLigetfa]

I challenge anyone that has a pile of logs that have sat for a while to go cut some rounds off the ends so that you have an old cut on one side and a fresh cut on the other, then see what side splits easier. Come back and report your findings.

 

[rathmir]

I can vouch for that. By the way, don't ever leave silver maple bucked to firewood length for a year before you split it. Especially if you are experiencing the wettest year that you can ever remember. Definitely a good amount of spalting, and about impossible to split.

 

[JustWood]

I challenge anyone that has a pile of logs that have sat for a while to go cut some rounds off the ends so that you have an old cut on one side and a fresh cut on the other, then see what side splits easier. Come back and report your findings.

I can say from my experience that this prolly rings true with 90% of species. But I have split dry cherry,ash, soft maple and hemlock rounds that fell apart by just dropping the maul on them.
My first year or 2 in the firewood biz I split by hand more wood than most people burn in a life time and to this day I prefer fresh cut and frozen for ease of splitting.


Eye also have heard from old timers that wood splits best at midnite during a blue moon. Better get those mauls sharpened up. ;-)

 

[quads]

Even though you aren't asking a seasoning question, it's always best to buck and split as soon as possible, like Dennis said.

 

[sksmass]

Thanks guys for the great feedback. I really like the suggestion to cut it to double-length, let it sit in the woods, then, when I have time, cut them in half and split the fresh cut surface. That is like the best of both worlds!

I'm not too concerned with speeding the seasoning. I have plenty of wood to burn for next year.

 

[Flatbedford]

Eye also have heard from old timers that wood splits best at midnite during a blue moon. Better get those mauls sharpened up. ;-)

That will happen tonight! 12/31/09. Happy Blue Moon New Year!!

 

[firefighterjake]

My vote is to cut, split and stack whatever you can as soon as you can . . . next best thing is to buck up to stove length and stack . . . after that the best option is to get to double length and leave stacked . . . the closer you can get to the final product the better off you will be in my own opinion.