Tractors and wood! Show your pics

[Jstpssng]

In the State of Maine, it is against the law to sell wood by the cord. It either has to be by the Load, or by Weight.

This presents a problem because most people want to buy x-amount of cords of wood. We cannot sell wood like that, so we load on what the person wants for "cords" and then sell them the load of wood. We move so much wood though, that when we say it is...say...6 cords...it really is 6 cords. You just know how much wood is on the truck by how far up the stakes the wood sits.

Myself, I always thought buying or selling wood by weight was way off, so one time I cut and measured a load of 8 foot hemlock pulp. It measured up by the stick at 13.4 cords. After it rolled into the mill, the scale slip by weight said; 13.2 cords...2/10ths of a cord off what I measured...that was pretty darn accurate I thought, so I never complained after wood by weight after that.

On mixed loads, it gets a lot more variable, but it all equals out. If I cut a pure beech for a load, it will weigh up as if it is 11.2 cords, but if a load of pure popil goes in, it might only be 8.5 cords. Along the way, I have got paid an average of the two.

The only time it gets unfair, and that is; unfair to the paper mill, is in the Spring when loads of wood are teeming with mud. That really adds up, but then again, its nice to get a little more money for slogging through the mud. I really, really, really hate logging in the mud. But the paper mills know this, and could stop taking wood in the spring, but they need wood, so they buy it.

Weight is a lot easier way to scale when you have tractor trailers coming in every day but with all due respect I have never heard that selling by the cord is illegal, and most firewood is sold that way.
You are right about weight being variable... if it's a mechanical job in June and the limbing crew is 2 weeks behind the harvester, the trees will lose some weight because the leaves are still sucking the moisture out. Back when contractors were chipping in the woods and selling it as pulpwood the scaler would take a sample, then they would calculate the amount of usable chips and moisture content; then pay based on those numbers.

I cut a load of tree length fir pulp a few years ago, by the time that I got it trucked the stems were coated with ice. I got an extra 10% for that load just because of the ice... the trucker was lucky that he didn't meet the weigh wagon.

 

[Loaderman22]

^^^^
Actually mine starts quite easily. I had forgotten that I even owned it and it set in back of the wood shed for a year and a half; I dumped gas in it and it started right up. Luckily I had drained the gas before leaving it there.

A co-worker had one that was his father's from down South, it had been sitting in the shed for 4-5 years, I took it, cleaned all the green powder out of the carb from the ethanol, changed the fuel lines since they were dry rotted. (Possibly also from the ethanol) and put in a new primer bulb (also cracked). But with fresh nonethanol gas, she started right up 2 pulls. I was surprised.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Well, it was another beautiful day here today, so we were back at it! I pulled my wagon out to where I had some logs skidded out, and started bringing them to my helper,

and he sawed them to length,

We was using a Husky 562xp with a 20" bar, and many of the logs were 20" or bigger,

so we ended up with quite a few that size,

until we had a decent load cut,

So, we hooked the tractor to the load and headed home,

There's still plenty more to load/cut,

but that will be "another days" work!

SR

 

[Skeans1]

Weight is a lot easier way to scale when you have tractor trailers coming in every day but with all due respect I have never heard that selling by the cord is illegal, and most firewood is sold that way.
You are right about weight being variable... if it's a mechanical job in June and the limbing crew is 2 weeks behind the harvester, the trees will lose some weight because the leaves are still sucking the moisture out. Back when contractors were chipping in the woods and selling it as pulpwood the scaler would take a sample, then they would calculate the amount of usable chips and moisture content; then pay based on those numbers.

I cut a load of tree length fir pulp a few years ago, by the time that I got it trucked the stems were coated with ice. I got an extra 10% for that load just because of the ice... the trucker was lucky that he didn't meet the weigh wagon.

What scale are you guys using in Maine? International, Doyle, Cord, or Scribner?

 

[hunt4570]

Wood measurement makes sense that it is by whatever is used locally so comparisons can be made. If one person sells it by face cord*, another by rick*, another by full cord it would confuse the public.

*even though generally the same

I'm 65 and can count the number of times I've bought firewood on one hand!

Never bought Rick though... or Bob, or Sally....

 

[hunt4570]

A co-worker had one that was his father's from down South, it had been sitting in the shed for 4-5 years, I took it, cleaned all the green powder out of the carb from the ethanol, changed the fuel lines since they were dry rotted. (Possibly also from the ethanol) and put in a new primer bulb (also cracked). But with fresh nonethanol gas, she started right up 2 pulls. I was surprised.

I bought half a dozen Poulan saws back when I was running a deer ranch down in Texas, I don't think any of them lasted much more than a year, changed to Stihl and haven't looked back! Never to buy anything Poulan again.

 

[wassup8687]

Well, it was another beautiful day here today, so we were back at it! I pulled my wagon out to where I had some logs skidded out, and started bringing them to my helper,

and he sawed them to length,

We was using a Husky 562xp with a 20" bar, and many of the logs were 20" or bigger,

so we ended up with quite a few that size,

until we had a decent load cut,

So, we hooked the tractor to the load and headed home,

There's still plenty more to load/cut,

but that will be "another days" work!

SR

Rob, your trailer is bursting at the seams. You really give it a workout.

 

[Oldpath05]

Actually, it was a little over 3/4 cord...

I think we are going to cut another load tomorrow, so I'll have some more to split later...

It's been quite a while since I cut down a tree that wasn't damaged, but this one WAS still alive,

SR

YEA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! finally a live tree. But looks like you forgot how to cut down a tree, rule No.1 stump should be lower then 3', that is if you really are cutting it down, from here the tree is still standing, oh no FAKE NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Oldpath05]

The legal definition of a thrown cord is 180 cubic feet. I don't know how you're supposed to measure that though, after it's been dumped onto your driveway out of 4570Man's ton truck.

Never knew that, guess measure it before dumped.

 

[Oldpath05]

Not really. The first question everyone is going to ask is how many cord or 途ick is that. And firewood weight changes quite a bit plus the hassle of weighing it.

Oh no there goes that Rick guy again...........