Work Done 2025

[Wisco Shepherd]

Got the last of the dead elm split up and into the totes before the cold started in yesterday. Then spent the evening in the heated shop doing the brakes and rotors on the truck. Not sure the last person who did that has ever heard of anti seize the rotors took some clanging and banging. Pads were a bit worn........

 

[thewoodlands]

With another 6 to 12 of snow forecast for our area, we'll be putting in two loads of firewood today. I better put some diesel in the tractor and grease it again, it's been getting a workout this winter.

Another soup will be started tonight or tomorrow, that will be good once the colder weather hits.

 

[Pinesmoke]

Got the last of the dead elm split up and into the totes before the cold started in yesterday. Then spent the evening in the heated shop doing the brakes and rotors on the truck. Not sure the last person who did that has ever heard of anti seize the rotors took some clanging and banging. Pads were a bit worn........

View attachment 335040

Looks like you got them in the nick of time.

Bolt out, anti seize on, bolt in. I could never understand causing more work for yourself down the line.

 

[Pinesmoke]

Just ran 2 tanks through the saw cutting up a bunch of downed pine. Headed back out for some more.

 

[Wisco Shepherd]

Looks like you got them in the nick of time.

Bolt out, anti seize on, bolt in. I could never understand causing more work for yourself down the line.

Bolts were easy peazy, the backside of that rotor not so much.

 

[Pinesmoke]

Bolts were easy peazy, the backside of that rotor not so much.

Yeah they just stick. I clean the hub and rotor bore and light AS and it's still ugly the next time.

 

[Dieselhead]

Went to work on my pile of Norway spruce this am. Cut it down in the summer of ‘23 and it sat in log form until thanksgiving ‘24. I then bucked it up and now I’m starting to split. The SP-170 is a terrible cold starter, always needs a visit from the either bunny. Along with that aggravation this happened. 🤷🏻‍♂️

Here’s what I started with.

Here’s what I ended with

First time using my new toy. I will say it’s a huge backsaver. I probably only bent down maybe 20 times today.

I have about another 6 hours of splitting left on the remaining pile that’s behind where I was taking pictures from (no pic). I’ll probably have 6 cord all said and done.

 

[thewoodlands]

We did get our two loads of wood in, ash, beech and some of the maples. After a ride to town, once I returned home, it was time I made the soup, that tasted pretty good.

We had some chicken that needed to be used before a certain date, that problem was taken care of.

 

[all night moe]

Let’s see some pics! Even better!

Even if I had enough intelligence to figure out how to link my phone to my laptop, I'm not stupid enough to be worried about taking selfies 80-90' in the air. LOL

 

[all night moe]

Alright, work done today. All removals..... 1st tree was an ash. Looked like it died out. If not, it wasn't far from it. About 50-60'tall, single pick, and cut at the base. I love single picks. Either a full day of them or when they're first. I don't have to wear my gaffs. 2nd was a box elder of 4 leaders and all were joined at the base. Not very tall, and more single picks.

Gaffs on and on to the next trees. 2 huge cottonwoods. 36'', or better, in diameter at the base. Easily 90'tall with sprawling canopies. Crane was still parked in the driveway and these were out back. Averaged 80-90' away from the turret. Left the stalks standing and one horizontal-ish leader. Stalks are still 60-70' standing. Had to relocate crane in the back yard to keep going.

This is were the rest of the day went sour. Once out back the crane got stuck, on a grade, one tire in a big divot, and an inch of snow to make things slick. Jacked the crane up with it's outriggers and slid mats under the tires. Continued backing up and got it in position, set up, and stabilized with the outriggers. Took a chunk of big wood leader out of the closest to crane. Needed room to swing the boom for the rest of job. Horizontal leader in the same tree was next.

Things went south again. For those who don't know, I have a bad hip that I favor. Balance can be hard at times. Rode the ball out near the end of leader. About 20' shy of dangling over the neighborhood's primary power lines. Choked with two straps and headed back to the stalk. @Dieselhead , next time LOL, I'll snap a pic for you of the next scenario. As I'm heading back, and trying to keep my balance, snow flurries kick in. A minute later, it's a snow squall with some gusty winds..... 🤬. Thankfully they ended halfway back but, not before making things slick. Meanwhile my climbing line had gotten tangled in some brush, making it more of a PITA. So now, as I'm inching my way backwards, I finally get back to the stalk. Now I need to get my flip line, (waist tied lanyard), around this big wood. Probably 28-30''dia. What a PITA again. Still holding onto my climbing rope, I get my flip line around the branch's base. I finally get situated after I had someone tie on my spare lanyard. I pull it up to me and get it around the big wood, still holding on to my climbing line. Make a good cut and everything went away sooth as silk. Crane OP sent the ball back to me to bring me back to earth.

Tomorrow we finish up the two cotton woods, and there's a red maple with about 5 picks total to do also. Crane will leave from there to set an AC unit on a building while the rest of us start the next job. crane will catchup to us after. I have no clue what this job entails. What a day. Trying to get caught up here at home now at 20 to 12am. The laundry room was finally free and I'm doing mine. I've been tending the wood furnace since I got home, and catching up here on Hearth.

Sorry for the long post. I wanted to paint a picture in your minds ..... since I didn't take any selfies.
See you all here tomorrow. Same bat time. Same bat channel.

 

[clancey]

You old fool--you should not being that type of work----just too hard---What you really should be doing is "writing a little book...enjoyed the story and you write well as well as --you like to write and maybe should rest over the winter time...Thanks--enjoyed--clancey

 

[all night moe]

You old fool--you should not being that type of work----just too hard---What you really should be doing is "writing a little book...enjoyed the story and you write well as well as --you like to write and maybe should rest over the winter time...Thanks--enjoyed--clancey

Hahahaha, when book writing pays me 350/day plus, I'll grab my pen and set down my saw.

 

[thewoodlands]

Alright, work done today. All removals..... 1st tree was an ash. Looked like it died out. If not, it wasn't far from it. About 50-60'tall, single pick, and cut at the base. I love single picks. Either a full day of them or when they're first. I don't have to wear my gaffs. 2nd was a box elder of 4 leaders and all were joined at the base. Not very tall, and more single picks.

Gaffs on and on to the next trees. 2 huge cottonwoods. 36'', or better, in diameter at the base. Easily 90'tall with sprawling canopies. Crane was still parked in the driveway and these were out back. Averaged 80-90' away from the turret. Left the stalks standing and one horizontal-ish leader. Stalks are still 60-70' standing. Had to relocate crane in the back yard to keep going.

This is were the rest of the day went sour. Once out back the crane got stuck, on a grade, one tire in a big divot, and an inch of snow to make things slick. Jacked the crane up with it's outriggers and slid mats under the tires. Continued backing up and got it in position, set up, and stabilized with the outriggers. Took a chunk of big wood leader out of the closest to crane. Needed room to swing the boom for the rest of job. Horizontal leader in the same tree was next.

Things went south again. For those who don't know, I have a bad hip that I favor. Balance can be hard at times. Rode the ball out near the end of leader. About 20' shy of dangling over the neighborhood's primary power lines. Choked with two straps and headed back to the stalk. @Dieselhead , next time LOL, I'll snap a pic for you of the next scenario. As I'm heading back, and trying to keep my balance, snow flurries kick in. A minute later, it's a snow squall with some gusty winds..... 🤬. Thankfully they ended halfway back but, not before making things slick. Meanwhile my climbing line had gotten tangled in some brush, making it more of a PITA. So now, as I'm inching my way backwards, I finally get back to the stalk. Now I need to get my flip line, (waist tied lanyard), around this big wood. Probably 28-30''dia. What a PITA again. Still holding onto my climbing rope, I get my flip line around the branch's base. I finally get situated after I had someone tie on my spare lanyard. I pull it up to me and get it around the big wood, still holding on to my climbing line. Make a good cut and everything went away sooth as silk. Crane OP sent the ball back to me to bring me back to earth.

Tomorrow we finish up the two cotton woods, and there's a red maple with about 5 picks total to do also. Crane will leave from there to set an AC unit on a building while the rest of us start the next job. crane will catchup to us after. I have no clue what this job entails. What a day. Trying to get caught up here at home now at 20 to 12am. The laundry room was finally free and I'm doing mine. I've been tending the wood furnace since I got home, and catching up here on Hearth.

Sorry for the long post. I wanted to paint a picture in your minds ..... since I didn't take any selfies.
See you all here tomorrow. Same bat time. Same bat channel.

Should we call you Bat Moe?

 

[Wisco Shepherd]

Went to work on my pile of Norway spruce this am. Cut it down in the summer of ‘23 and it sat in log form until thanksgiving ‘24. I then bucked it up and now I’m starting to split. The SP-170 is a terrible cold starter, always needs a visit from the either bunny. Along with that aggravation this happened. 🤷🏻‍♂️





View attachment 335060





Here’s what I started with.



View attachment 335061






View attachment 335063




Here’s what I ended with




View attachment 335064




First time using my new toy. I will say it’s a huge backsaver. I probably only bent down maybe 20 times today.



View attachment 335062




I have about another 6 hours of splitting left on the remaining pile that’s behind where I was taking pictures from (no pic). I’ll probably have 6 cord all said and done.

My pickaroonnwas a game changed as well.

 

[Dieselhead]

Alright, work done today. All removals..... 1st tree was an ash. Looked like it died out. If not, it wasn't far from it. About 50-60'tall, single pick, and cut at the base. I love single picks. Either a full day of them or when they're first. I don't have to wear my gaffs. 2nd was a box elder of 4 leaders and all were joined at the base. Not very tall, and more single picks.

Gaffs on and on to the next trees. 2 huge cottonwoods. 36'', or better, in diameter at the base. Easily 90'tall with sprawling canopies. Crane was still parked in the driveway and these were out back. Averaged 80-90' away from the turret. Left the stalks standing and one horizontal-ish leader. Stalks are still 60-70' standing. Had to relocate crane in the back yard to keep going.

This is were the rest of the day went sour. Once out back the crane got stuck, on a grade, one tire in a big divot, and an inch of snow to make things slick. Jacked the crane up with it's outriggers and slid mats under the tires. Continued backing up and got it in position, set up, and stabilized with the outriggers. Took a chunk of big wood leader out of the closest to crane. Needed room to swing the boom for the rest of job. Horizontal leader in the same tree was next.

Things went south again. For those who don't know, I have a bad hip that I favor. Balance can be hard at times. Rode the ball out near the end of leader. About 20' shy of dangling over the neighborhood's primary power lines. Choked with two straps and headed back to the stalk. @Dieselhead , next time LOL, I'll snap a pic for you of the next scenario. As I'm heading back, and trying to keep my balance, snow flurries kick in. A minute later, it's a snow squall with some gusty winds..... 🤬. Thankfully they ended halfway back but, not before making things slick. Meanwhile my climbing line had gotten tangled in some brush, making it more of a PITA. So now, as I'm inching my way backwards, I finally get back to the stalk. Now I need to get my flip line, (waist tied lanyard), around this big wood. Probably 28-30''dia. What a PITA again. Still holding onto my climbing rope, I get my flip line around the branch's base. I finally get situated after I had someone tie on my spare lanyard. I pull it up to me and get it around the big wood, still holding on to my climbing line. Make a good cut and everything went away sooth as silk. Crane OP sent the ball back to me to bring me back to earth.

Tomorrow we finish up the two cotton woods, and there's a red maple with about 5 picks total to do also. Crane will leave from there to set an AC unit on a building while the rest of us start the next job. crane will catchup to us after. I have no clue what this job entails. What a day. Trying to get caught up here at home now at 20 to 12am. The laundry room was finally free and I'm doing mine. I've been tending the wood furnace since I got home, and catching up here on Hearth.

Sorry for the long post. I wanted to paint a picture in your minds ..... since I didn't take any selfies.
See you all here tomorrow. Same bat time. Same bat channel.

sounds like a good job for the ground crew. “Hey guys snap some pics for the hearth forum, would ya?”

I was outdoors today at the spruce pile. Knocked out another 2ish cord. It was cold and windy in the shade but at least I wasnt sweating 🤷🏻‍♂️

 

[all night moe]

sounds like a good job for the ground crew. “Hey guys snap some pics for the hearth forum, would ya?”

I'm still to stupid to link my stupid smart phone.

I have one pic shared to me from last summer. It was the last pick of a huge red oak. Old as dirt and 5' in dia. It had seen over a century of sun. I forget how tall the pic was....say 30'. It weighed 29,900lbs.

 

[all night moe]

Today was just a half day finishing up yesterdays job. All went smooth. A bit colder today at 25* not including wind chills.
Finished the cotton woods first, then tackled the red maple. Four leaders out of the ground shoulder height. I forget how many total picks. 2 were cut at the ground, others were a couple picks each. The canopy was sprawling with primary power wires bordering 2 sides. They took a turn at the maple and continued through the neighborhood. One pick, I saw a tear out from an old leader that was missing on the backside. I investigated to make sure it was safe to cut below or, we would come up with a different plan. I grabbed the edge of the hole to pull myself around, as I was a bit above. I looked down and peered in to see a racoon staring back at me. LOL

We continued and when the pick landed, the coon ran off. Easy half day.

 

[Dieselhead]

I'm still to stupid to link my stupid smart phone.

I have one pic shared to me from last summer. It was the last pick of a huge red oak. Old as dirt and 5' in dia. It had seen over a century of sun. I forget how tall the pic was....say 30'. It weighed 29,900lbs.

If you read and post to hearth from your phone you can direct load right from your photo album. I know it’s tough with the little keyboard etc but it is an option. I take pics on my phone and they upload through the cloud onto my iPad which is all I use to Internet. I don’t have a laptop or PC anymore.

 

[all night moe]

If you read and post to hearth from your phone you can direct load right from your photo album. I know it’s tough with the little keyboard etc but it is an option. I take pics on my phone and they upload through the cloud onto my iPad which is all I use to Internet. I don’t have a laptop or PC anymore.

I don't do the phone thing. I hate them. They're annoying to me. I honestly liked life better pre cell phones. I use mine for calls and text messages. Not text conversations. I see so many married to their cell phones. 🙄

I don't want the cloud thing either. Call me old school, behind he times, or whatever. I'm good with it.

 

[Dieselhead]

I don't do the phone thing. I hate them. They're annoying to me. I honestly liked life better pre cell phones. I use mine for calls and text messages. Not text conversations. I see so many married to their cell phones. 🙄

I don't want the cloud thing either. Call me old school, behind he times, or whatever. I'm good with it.

I held out the longest of most people I know with a “dumb” phone. I will say having the internet in your pocket sure is handy at times though.

 

[stoveliker]

I got my smart phone in 2017...
Flip phone that could text and call before that.

Good times.

 

[all night moe]

Flip phone that could text

That may be one of the things that made me despise texting. When you wanted a ''C'' you had to push 1 three times. Drove me nuts.

 

[stoveliker]

Yup. Hence in the "work done" thread 🤣