Marking wood for where to cut

[SpaceBus]

Awww... chit, guys. That log is only 30" diameter! There are some years where it feels like I never get anything under 40" diameter.

Here's a white oak that was 60" diameter at felling height, but unfortunately hollow down there. The largest rounds (like the one on the left) from this tree were 49" diameter, that's a 36" bar on the Stihl 064, for reference:

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Here's my cutting buddy dragging one of my catches out of the woods. I normally cut to 15' foot lengths (largest multiple of 18" that will fit on my 16' trailer with tailgate closed), but I had to cut this one to 7.5 feet to get it down to skidding weight.

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Here's the lower half of that one:

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This is back before I had the winch on the trailer, and I used to have to buck everything into rounds to load on the trailer by hand. Sometimes a round would be so heavy (> 1000 lb.) that I'd have to noodle the rounds into slabs it just to get them onto the trailer. Knowing I used to cut to 20" lengths, I'm guessing this round is close to 40" diameter:

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This stump wasn't standing up when I cut it, the tree had been up-rooted. I don't recall the diameter, but it's big enough to make that big 85cc saw with 28" bar sitting atop it look like a 50cc toy.

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Here's the small stuff I left behind for the property owner one day, after loading my trailer. I cut and he skids, I take the big and leave the small. So, this was about half of what I had cut on that day, which is why having a big fast saw matters!

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Can't find my favorite photo, one of my first big and challenging tree falls, will post it if I can find it. It's the reason I went out and bought a 36" bar, immediately after that project.

I think you've posted the skidding pic before. That's a lot of wood! A single tree that big would probably heat my house for most of the winter. Especially after we finish rebuilding the house with more modern insulation and stuff.

 

[Ashful]

How old are these larger oaks? Rare or common out in your parts?

You know, I’ve never had the patience to count rings on one of these. I know the one white oak that was 60” at felling height came from the yard of a church built in the 1730’s, and was large enough that they were already holding picnics in its shade 180 years ago, according to church records.

I would say 30” to 40” ash and oak are very common here. Much larger than 40” is getting pretty uncommon, but they’re around.

Thinking of this thread, I just snapped this photo on my way to drop the kids off at day camp this morning. I’ve been driving past dozens of scenes like this, since we had a little tornado activity at the end of May.

 

[MissMac]

I demand precision and efficiency (swiss engineer). I just bucket up two cords of doug fir logs this weekend and used the super awesome mingo marker for exactly 16" lengths (minus the kerf width). It is very fast and precise. These are 30" logs and with proper marks made by just walking the tool down the log I can get my bucking saw going and it barely even idles down between cuts.

Mingo mingo mingo.

Before the mingo, and if the tree, paint can, or weather makes it not work, I will cut a small whip of branch 16" long but small enough to hold in my right hand while running the saw. Measure each round (mark with eye ball) with the stick in my right hand and then bring the branch to the saw trigger handle in my palm and make the cut.

Any concerns about that paint coming out of the mingo mucking up your catalyst in your stove?

 

[Highbeam]

Any concerns about that paint coming out of the mingo mucking up your catalyst in your stove?

It makes a dot of paint. Then I blow a 3/8” wide slot through that with the saw. It’s a small amount of paint per round. I would worry more about the bar oil.

So no not worried about the paint dot mucking anything up.

 

[Bushels20]

Any concerns about that paint coming out of the mingo mucking up your catalyst in your stove?

Season that wood correctly and to standard and that bark with paint on it will just fall off

 

[MissMac]

It makes a dot of paint. Then I blow a 3/8” wide slot through that with the saw. It’s a small amount of paint per round. I would worry more about the bar oil.

So no not worried about the paint dot mucking anything up.

sounds good highbeam - i've heard some of the guys on the BK thread talk a lot about poisoning the cat, so wasn't sure how uptight people were actually being in real life

 

[SpaceBus]

It makes a dot of paint. Then I blow a 3/8” wide slot through that with the saw. It’s a small amount of paint per round. I would worry more about the bar oil.

So no not worried about the paint dot mucking anything up.

Bar and chain oil are pretty nasty so I switched to canola oil. It's probably better for the environment than conventional fossil fuel oil, but I really just prefer the smell. I also hate petrochemicals

 

[Ashful]

I also hate petrochemicals

That's damn near one of my four basic food groups! If you say you hate bourbon, we may never speak again.

 

[SpaceBus]

That's damn near one of my four basic food groups! If you say you hate bourbon, we may never speak again.

Why am I not surprised

You don't have to worry about the bourbon. In a different life I drank more bourbon than water.

 

[mar13]

Bar and chain oil are pretty nasty so I switched to canola oil. It's probably better for the environment than conventional fossil fuel oil, but I really just prefer the smell. I also hate petrochemicals

So then does your vehicle run on biodiesel? The exhaust has a hint of French fries.

 

[neverbilly]

Lots of different methods out there. Hatchet & tape measure, Mingo firewood marker, measuring stick, etc.

Tried just about all of them. I'm currently using something similar to this:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07H12YL6K/?tag=hearthamazon-20

That fiberglass stick lasted about three days for me, got broken.

I just measure what 16 inches is on the bar of my chainsaws and note where it is. You could even paint a dot or line on the saw. I then manually measure by turning the saw sideways to determine 16 inches length.

 

[SpaceBus]

So then does your vehicle run on biodiesel? The exhaust has a hint of French fries.

I wish! Unfortunately I'm still a slave to the gulf man.

 

[three feathers]

The older I get, the smaller my saw get. Funny how a 066 gets heavier as we get older.

 

[Ashful]

The older I get, the smaller my saw get. Funny how a 066 gets heavier as we get older.

An 066 ain’t a small saw! What were you running before, 084?!?

I love my 064, it’s the perfect power to weight ratio for me, but I’m still in my 40’s. It is fun watching some of my older buddies try to start the thing, they tell me it’s going to tear their shoulder out, you gotta pull those things like you want to hurt ‘em!

 

[Matt78]

Any tricks out there for how to best mark wood to the right length? I have a lot of rounds that are 19-22 inches and also 3-4 ft rounds that I would like to cut down to 16 inches. I have a 16 inch measuring stick, but I don't want to keep fumbling between that and the saw after each cut, so I would like to do a bunch of measuring at once. Chalk?

I use a piece of small diameter pvc pipe cut to 18" long and spray paint. Done this the last two years. It does make stacking easier. I would like to get the mingo, but $50 is steep for a piece of plastic!

 

[Woody Stover]

I use a piece of small diameter pvc pipe cut to 18" long and spray paint.

I would be hesitant to get paint into my cat stove for fear of poisoning the combustor..

 

[SpaceBus]

I would be hesitant to get paint into my cat stove for fear of poisoning the combustor..

They make water soluble and other types of spray markers that *shouldn't* cause issues

 

[Woody Stover]

I know where 16" is on all my bars, so I sometimes measure as I go if the trunk is gonna roll. If it's gonna stay put, I use a tape measure and mark with a hatchet or chalk.

 

[SpaceBus]

I know where 16" is on all my bars, so I sometimes measure as I go if the trunk is gonna roll. If it's gonna stay put, I use a tape measure and mark with a hatchet or chalk.

I was using a hatchet, but that felt like more work than just turning the saw every so often.

 

[Montanalocal]

I carry a small short hand pruning saw and use it with my measuring stick to make a quick back and forth cut as I walk down the log. Takes just a few min, and feels to me like much less work that lifting and turning my saw every cut, especially if I am using my big saw on larger wood. It is also a permanent mark, if I have to come back and it has rained. Markers and chalk gum up when things are wet.

 

[Matt78]

I would be hesitant to get paint into my cat stove for fear of poisoning the combustor..

By the time it gets burned it minimal. I'd say 90% is gone. If bark falls off %100. I use the marker paint.

 

[Simonkenton]

I have a 20 inch bar on my saw. So, for your wood, I would measure 19 inches on the bar and scratch the bar with a screwdriver. Scratch the entire width of the bar with a screwdriver or a file, make a mark 1/4 inch wide.
Then make another mark at 16 inches. Scratches won't hurt the bar and it won't rust as it is always coated with oil.

I tried making a mark with a majic marker and it wore off in an hour.

 

[Grizzerbear]

I have a 20 inch bar on my saw. So, for your wood, I would measure 19 inches on the bar and scratch the bar with a screwdriver. Scratch the entire width of the bar with a screwdriver or a file, make a mark 1/4 inch wide.
Then make another mark at 16 inches. Scratches won't hurt the bar and it won't rust as it is always coated with oil.

I tried making a mark with a majic marker and it wore off in an hour.

This is exactly what i do. All steps in one tool.

 

[byQ]

I use a piece of 18" cord on the first couple of cuts. After this, I just go by guesstimating. When the wood gets big, I pull the cord out again because as the wood gets bigger an optical illusion occurs and if guesstimating you will end up with longer rounds - so I recalibrate myself with the bigger stuff - then back to guesstimating.

 

[Woody Stover]

I use a piece of 18" cord on the first couple of cuts. After this, I just go by guesstimating.

Do you have to cut to 18" for it to fit your masonry rig?