Work Done 2023

[shortys7777]

Still having problems with my saw. Hopefully buying a second one this weekend. I had to cut some long pieces up to fit my stove. Got the sawzall out. got the job done just not as fast. At least the wood is nice and dry.

 

[Woody Stover]

Still having problems with my saw. Hopefully buying a second one this weekend. I had to cut some long pieces up to fit my stove. Got the sawzall out. got the job done just not as fast. At least the wood is nice and dry.

Did you search, or post in the Gear forum about the saw...maybe it's a relatively easy fix?

 

[Woody Stover]

I have to admit, I didn't get a ton done today. 😏 But at least I put together another Sassafras log/cattle panel stacking base at my nephew's (which is SIL3's as well, heated by my old Fireview.) On the right, where the pickeroon and hatchet are, there's some of that braced White Oak...stuff they cut previously from further up above the prop branch. That will be stacked on this new base, starting a high-output row; White Oak, Black Locust, and whatever else comes up...Hickory, Red Mulberry, Dogwood, Persimmon etc.
You can see he's been stacking the huge mountain of splits that he had built up over a number of different splitting days over the winter, when it was warm enough out. That's on the previous stack base I made over there. That's over 6' high. 😳 But in the background you see a really tall stack on pallets/concrete blocks. He cross-stacked the ends and it seems to be staying put so far. The ground there is pretty compacted and stable, not like in the woods. Most of the stacked wood im this pic is White Ash, soft Maple, Blackgum, Sweetgum, Sycamore, Sassafras, River Birch...medium-low to medium-high output varieties.
I'm leaving enough room for my quad and trailer between the stacking base rows, so re-stocking their on-deck racks from these rows will be easy.

 

[shortys7777]

Did you search, or post in the Gear forum about the saw...maybe it's a relatively easy fix?

I did and I searched arbositsite, and a chainsaw repair facebook group. Starts up on half choke and if I keep the trigger pulled. Dies when it drops down to idle. Need to check compression again. I checked for air leaks with the carb spray method. Checked the intake boot and fuel lines. Its a 290 I turned into a 390 last year. Cut 3 cords last year and maybe half a cord this year before it started acting up.

 

[Garbanzo62]

I did and I searched arbositsite, and a chainsaw repair facebook group. Starts up on half choke and if I keep the trigger pulled. Dies when it drops down to idle. Need to check compression again. I checked for air leaks with the carb spray method. Checked the intake boot and fuel lines. Its a 290 I turned into a 390 last year. Cut 3 cords last year and maybe half a cord this year before it started acting up.

I think if you had a compression issue it would not start at all. I would check your carb settings

 

[Woody Stover]

Got another stack base in at nephew's today before the weather moved in.
Splits next to the quad is a trailer load of Red Oak from branch that was torn off and lying near the prop branch White Oak we are working.



Here is the rest of the prop branch White Oak. Last fall, nephew and BIL cut the top back to the prop branch, and I hauled the wood to this stack, where it waits to be split and stacked.

 

[shortys7777]

I think if you had a compression issue it would not start at all. I would check your carb settings

Going to and put a little seafoam in the tank. I do need to run non ethanol fuel in it too.

 

[Dieselhead]

Dieselhead, what kind of wood is that? Ash?
Woody Stover, Siberian elm (~21 btu) is available. It has special properties that allow it to survive in low water areas. Russian Olive (~19 btu) is another tough one that can survive in low water conditions. Ironically, they are both invasives. Pine and fir types are available, but they are up in the mountains. Even poplar is better than no wood. I get excited when I get locust, ash, or oak, because it is uncommon.

So most local available trees come from people's properties - that is planted trees or the invasives. Cottonwood/poplar is another tree that can survive on little water. People plant them for wind blockage. The Dolmar has been a good saw, but I've upgraded to a new Makita 7900 (same saw w/bigger piston). I like the logger's mentality - every few years get a new saw so you'll have less hassles. I think I'll stretch this into 5 to 7 years.

Red oak.

 

[boomfire]

Good work everyone.

Personally, between work and traveling i have zero firewood collected. I am hoping to be done by end of May so i can enjoy summer. One last snowboarding trip, next week to Utah. Gotta take advantage of one of the best winters out in west.

Not related to firewood but related to trees, just finished processing maple syrup for this season.

 

[Woody Stover]

I "saw" several things yesterday. The quad was bristling with saws and there was another in the background--Le Sabre saw. 😏
And I saw Big Red turning into a bunch of Little Reds. The saw next to the quad is the MS170, the bigger saws are further up the trunk. The limbs above the fork are 12" diameter.
Some fiddlehead ferns and Redbud trees are stirring to life. Hmmm, I just saw that the small fiddleheads are edible..
Won't be long, and it'll be a jungle out there. 😦

I'm trying to figure a way to get these 24" rounds up to a spot I can get the splitter to. Red Elm can be hard to split, especially dead for a while, though not as bad as American Elm. I could try wedge and sledge, but I'd rather not beat myself to death if I can avoid it. 😏
One idea was to tie onto the base of a tree close to where I can get the splitter, then loop the loose end of the rope around the round, then one person pull the loose end while one or two others push the round, rolling it up the slope.
I have two 15' nylon tow straps and a (50') 1/2" bull rope.
Log tongs might work, towing one round up at a time with the quad. Or just tie the bull rope directly to the round.
I don't want to tear up the soil, if I can avoid that, but the quad may be the easiest way. I'll look again to see if there's any possible way to get the splitter all the way down to the wood--that would be easier yet.

 

[Woody Stover]

Dieselhead, what kind of wood is that? Ash?

Red oak.

View attachment 311444

Yeah, Red Oak has those broad, flat, light-gray plates in the bark, the further up the tree you look. And that sapwood layer. Ash bark is more furrowed, no broad plates. And has no noticeable sapwood. They both split easy, though.

 

[Dieselhead]

Yeah, Red Oak has those broad, flat, light-gray plates in the bark, the further up the tree you look. And that sapwood layer. Ash bark is more furrowed, no broad plates. And has no noticeable sapwood. They both split easy, though.

This batch was free, loaded on my trailer with a machine, hard to say no. It was a lot larger than I prefer to deal with and also had a 1-2” punk all the way around the perimeter visible in the picture. I split and cast off the punk and still managed a couple cord out of it. there was a lot more than what was pictured. Probably 30 rounds at least. I just finished up stacking the last of it today.

 

[Woody Stover]

Got rained out today, and a cat snoozes under cover. 😸



Yesterday, along with some other piddling around, I skidded up a few of the biggest rounds off the bottom of the Big Red Elm, using a chain and log tongs. Worked great, tires didn't spin at all. 👍
The big log across this first pic is an uprooted Red Oak that is mostly off the ground so I may grab that too, as long as I've got the area cleaned up for access.


I've got several nice days now to put a dent in this stuff. SIL2 volunteered her and a friend's help (Vista guy,) to split some of the Red Elm for direct stacking into SIL1's shed, this Saturday.
I'm gambling that it can get dry enough by fall. It was dead for quite a few years, so I'm hoping the moisture will leave quickly. The biggest trunk wood will be stacked in the row with the best wind exposure, left-most row in the pic, and wood from further up, presumably drier, will be stacked in rows to the right of that outside row. Shed is roof-only, two rows on each side with an aisle down the middle. Holds almost three cords, I guess, but is already 1/4 full of wood left over from last year. 🤗

 

[Garbanzo62]

Got rained out today, and a cat snoozes under cover. 😸

View attachment 311785

Yesterday, along with some other piddling around, I skidded up a few of the biggest rounds off the bottom of the Big Red Elm, using a chain and log tongs. Worked great, tires didn't spin at all. 👍
The big log across this first pic is an uprooted Red Oak that is mostly off the ground so I may grab that too, as long as I've got the area cleaned up for access.
View attachment 311788 View attachment 311784View attachment 311786

I've got several nice days now to put a dent in this stuff. SIL2 volunteered her and a friend's help (Vista guy,) to split some of the Red Elm for direct stacking into SIL1's shed, this Saturday.
I'm gambling that it can get dry enough by fall. It was dead for quite a few years, so I'm hoping the moisture will leave quickly. The biggest trunk wood will be stacked in the row with the best wind exposure, left-most row in the pic, and wood from further up, presumably drier, will be stacked in rows to the right of that outside row. Shed is roof-only, two rows on each side with an aisle down the middle. Holds almost three cords, I guess, but is already 1/4 full of wood left over from last year. 🤗

View attachment 311787

I would meter check those splits before counting on it being ready for fall

 

[Woody Stover]

I would meter check those splits before counting on it being ready for fall

I'll definitely be checking its progress over the summer and into fall. That's why I referred to it as "gambling." These biggest rounds that I'm pulling up now are probably 30% but as I said, this tree was dead for years so I'm hoping that the moisture isn't locked in like it is with fresh, live wood, and that this wood will dry quicker. If my bet doesn't pan out, I can always supply her with dry wood from my stacks, but that would be moving wood another time, which you always hate to do. The least moves, of course, happen when you split, then stack directly into the shed.
Or I can get additional smaller dead, dry trees out there, ready to burn, but it takes longer to amass appreciable quantities of that stuff.
My goal for the "splitting party" this Saturday afternoon, with several people working, is to get that windward rack filled with the wettest lower-trunk wood and get that drying in these spring breezes...then hope for a hot summer. 😏
I had a chance to check the "dead wood dries faster" theory with some White Ash I had over there a couple years ago, another dead-stander that I had been looking at for at least five years, maybe seven. It was still poking at over 30% when I dropped the tree 🤔 but I put that wood in a two-year stack and kinda forgot to check it after the first summer of drying (pretty breezy over there.) I seem to recall hefting several, and thinking it was doing OK, but that's no substitute for checking several big splits with a meter. I mean, I expect dead-standing Oak to still take more than one summer to dry, but I'm hoping that dead Ash, or this Red Elm, will be quicker. I'll make sure that whoever's running the splitter is keeping the split size down to around 4" per side.
As I cut further up the trunk, that should test drier, so the plan is to put the wetter, lower-trunk wood on the bottom of the windward rack, then drier stuff above the wet, or behind it it the second rack, where it will get less air movement through it.
Actually, the third rack from the left, on the wide aisle, should get decent breeze as well, just not as good as the first row that's facing the prevailing wind.
So if I've got her shed filled, that should be enough for next year depending how cold it turns out to be. Plus I have another covered rack outside her shed full of dry Red Maple, visible in the shed pic. Each rack is 1/2-2/3 cord.

 

[Woody Stover]

Another late start today but I got eleven of the biggest Big Red butt-end rounds up to the splitter access area. Also worked more on clearing the area around the rest of the tree. Doing that, I bucked a pretty big dead and dry Assafras, that I'll give to Vista guy, who's trying to get ahead on dry wood for next year. There are a few more rounds that I couldn't get because I ran out of light. I didn't make it up with the load you see in the pic, since it was too heavy--had to take a couple rounds off the top.
I also cut a little wood off one of the broken branches from the top of Big Red. It's dry enough to burn now. 👍
Need to get an early start tomorrow and get the wood lined up for the Saturday "splitting party," for which I've now got four other people on board. 👌

 

[Garbanzo62]

I'll definitely be checking its progress over the summer and into fall. That's why I referred to it as "gambling." These biggest rounds that I'm pulling up now are probably 30% but as I said, this tree was dead for years so I'm hoping that the moisture isn't locked in like it is with fresh, live wood, and that this wood will dry quicker. If my bet doesn't pan out, I can always supply her with dry wood from my stacks, but that would be moving wood another time, which you always hate to do. The least moves, of course, happen when you split, then stack directly into the shed.
Or I can get additional smaller dead, dry trees out there, ready to burn, but it takes longer to amass appreciable quantities of that stuff.
My goal for the "splitting party" this Saturday afternoon, with several people working, is to get that windward rack filled with the wettest lower-trunk wood and get that drying in these spring breezes...then hope for a hot summer. 😏
I had a chance to check the "dead wood dries faster" theory with some White Ash I had over there a couple years ago, another dead-stander that I had been looking at for at least five years, maybe seven. It was still poking at over 30% when I dropped the tree 🤔 but I put that wood in a two-year stack and kinda forgot to check it after the first summer of drying (pretty breezy over there.) I seem to recall hefting several, and thinking it was doing OK, but that's no substitute for checking several big splits with a meter. I mean, I expect dead-standing Oak to still take more than one summer to dry, but I'm hoping that dead Ash, or this Red Elm, will be quicker. I'll make sure that whoever's running the splitter is keeping the split size down to around 4" per side.
As I cut further up the trunk, that should test drier, so the plan is to put the wetter, lower-trunk wood on the bottom of the windward rack, then drier stuff above the wet, or behind it it the second rack, where it will get less air movement through it.
Actually, the third rack from the left, on the wide aisle, should get decent breeze as well, just not as good as the first row that's facing the prevailing wind.
So if I've got her shed filled, that should be enough for next year depending how cold it turns out to be. Plus I have another covered rack outside her shed full of dry Red Maple, visible in the shed pic. Each rack is 1/2-2/3 cord.

I burned a lot of dead ash that wasn't cut down until Sept this past year. Most of that was the upper parts of the tree. Some is still not below 20 though. Was a real PIA, because this was my first year burning and I had to test almost every piece. Some was 18 some was 29. I should be in good shape for next year , have a lot of ash split and stacked.

 

[Wildflush]

Had a cord delivered this week. Resplit some of the load smaller to have varied sizes. Stacked 2/3 of a cord on a couple pallets that were raised with patio bricks. Will top cover. Stacked remaining 1/3 on PT 2x4’s along concrete driveway retaining wall. Replenishing from what I used this season.

 

[thewoodlands]

Two dead pine were felled today and then c & s , I did put a cable on the second tree but the top came through some other pine so it wasn't needed. The trails are cleaned up so we can use them if need be.

Hopefully another two dead pine come down tomorrow.

 

[stoveliker]

Felled a dead pitch pine and a crooked little white oak today. Bucked, but not yet split.

 

[Gearhead660]

Haven't done much firewood processing this winter compared to past couple. Was working to get 3 years worth ready. Had 5 years before this winter, so goal accomplished!
Split up some oak and got it stacked in a row while waiting for shed to get empty(2 full cord). Now refilling the shed, almost half full.

 

[thewoodlands]

I left the two dead pine standing that I had planned on felling today and stacked the pine I had already split. The stacking I did today holds two face cord, I'll finish it off with some smaller stuff in picture #3572.

What I stacked today was from 3 1/2 trees, I still have the tops of 3 trees left that I'll see if they're worth a chit.

 

[Woody Stover]

So I got about 16 of the biggest Big Red rounds split down to a size the women at our little splitting party could handle. I kept hauling wood over there for a while after they started running the splitter. I had them splitting to 4" on a side, or if they were wider, then less thick.
Then after a while my nephew came over and started stacking the growing pile of splits into the windward outer row of the shed.
The bottom rounds had some slightly punked wood. No big deal, it passes the thumbnail test OK...not denting much, if at all. Not sure how long the tree was standing dead before I saw it a couple years ago. Sure, mighta lost some BTU but it'll be good fall/spring wood. The further up the trunk we got, the more we saw of the 100% Red Elm look, and less of the white color.


The party poopers started to fizzle, or had other stuff to attend to, but me and nephew went down and got another load of five rounds, progressing up the trunk. These were a little smaller and maybe a bit drier. Either of us was able to pick them up. When my nephew would grab one, I'd say "Let's double-team this one." He blew me off a couple times, then started talking about some strong-man show on TV where they were picking up 500# weights with handles on 'em. I said "OK, strong man, snatch these yourself then..they're probably not even 100#." 😆
Anyway, you can see that the last load of rounds we got, stacked in these aisle rows, were the cleanest wood of any load, punk-wise. You can see the other, older wood I had in there before, that we stacked this Red Elm on top of.

Got a lot of kindling too, with the sometimes stringy Red Elm. 😏

See the "before" pic of the shed in post #338. Just about got this shed full, maybe one more rack row to go, out of four in the shed. C'mon dry heat, work your magic! 😏
If all of the dry top wood off the tree doesn't fit in the shed, I'll make another stack outside, where we can get to in case the stuff in the shed doesn't get dry enough over the summer..but I'm thinking it has a good chance.

 

[Garbanzo62]

Finally got the Dead Ash that fell Split and Stacked. Still have some pieces that the Maul and wedge couldn't get to a reasonable size. Will need to hit those with a Saw. Still have some more Dead standing to Drop, Cut Split and Stack.

 

[Woody Stover]

Among other things today, I brought up three more Red Elm rounds to SIL1's shed. I looked at the stuff that will be coming up next, below where the trunk forks. These were cut about a week ago, and there's already quite a bit of checking on the ends. I'm thinking that this may indicate that the splits will dry pretty quickly. 🤞