Tractors and wood! Show your pics

[John_Mc]

Thats good use for banana wood but sugar maple, around hear thats a sin.

Normally, I would agree. Vermont is known for it's maple syrup industry. However, in this case it was precisely because the Sugar Maple is so important to the area economy that we wanted to include a piece of it somewhere in this project. All of the logs were harvested with an eye toward furthering the silvicultural objectives for the stand. They were taken from areas in need of thinning, or to remove damaged, diseased or malformed trees. I was there when all of them were cut. The Sugar Maple was already leaning at about 20 degrees, having been partially tipped over in a storm a year or so previous to this.

This is in the middle of a 1000 acre conserved property. It's owned by a non-profit that was formed by a group of locals specifically to purchase and protect the property from development. Part of the forest is set aside for "re-wilding". There are no timber harvests in that area: trees are only taken down when they present a threat to the hiking trails or other public gathering areas. In other parts, they do occasional timber harvests. A major goal of these harvests is to serve as models for sustainable forestry, building resilient trail systems, etc. (The property also serves as the site for many of the Game of Logging training workshops that happen in our area.) Their work has served to educate a lot of folks that harvesting trees in a responsible manner is not necessarily bad for the forest, and done correctly can be a tool for improving wildlife habitat. Having the "wild" section right next to the actively managed sections has really served to open a lot of eyes to the possibilities: people see for themselves that an actively managed forest is not a "wasteland", and actually can be managed to the benefit of wildlife while still yielding good timber.

 

[Creamer]

I drive in 16's, there's not so many nails in one that I can't hammer them in. And yes I do have a nail gun...

Some of the parts in that box were from OLD broken boxes, and I no longer use a 4x4 on the sides, I've learned they don't need it.

As for backing up a 4 wheeled wagon, you could get a 4 wheel wagon out there, pay my way round trip and then bet me I couldn't do it in "one" try.

I'll warn you now, I'm a farm kid, so be prepared to loose! I've been backing up 4 wheel wagons since I was a kid!

SR

Agree! I was backing up silage wagons with an M, i.e. no power steering. After a while I got good and could back up two but then we quit using silage wagons and I'll bet I wouldn't have a chance doing that now.

 

[Oldpath05]

I was looking at that, and thinking that your sawhorses must be pretty solid.

Before I put the last of the beams on I set in two vertical 2x6's under the saw horse just in case. They went in loose and after I put the rest of beams on the two vertical 2x6's are still loose, but true test will be when ten more 6x6's are placed on, but I still feel safer with the two vertical post under saw horses.

 

[Oldpath05]

I like your jig. But what if the beams are bowed enough so the jig drilled holes don't line up ? I know they make it look easy on you-tube but at about 9:30 in on this video they build a bridge panel. Use a 7/8 drill for 3/4 bolt and mark the holes by driving rods thru previously drilled beams. Then roll the beam over to drill. They make the statement drilling vertical is easiest and they use a bit better suited for keeping hole straight. I have no idea if this is better method but they look like they have done it before.

Better Stream Crossings: Using Portable Skidder Bridges - YouTube

gg

The first thing I look for is which way the beam is bowed, I want to keep bowed side on top side. As far as low spots, high spots, in's and outs thats why I made the jig 14" long to compensate for that, the same idea as using a 2' square to make a square cut as appose to a small speed square on rough lumber with circular saw., Now if one has high spots and low spots more then 1", might want to change sawmill blade.

Your the one who sent me that same video two months ago that gave me the idea so this 6x6 bridge will have your name all over on it. Now as far as that video goes showing the drilling process, a couple things 6x6 bridge builders need to observe. 1>> They are utilizing 4 eyes, one set on drill, the other guy at ground level, you need to look at two different directions when trying to drill straight holes.

2>>They are building the 6x6 bridge on ground which requires bend over work, (I HATE BEND OVER WORK), they also have the right size tooling for the job, if one only has a battery drill then the holes have to drilled from both sides.

3>>When trying to drill straight holes, one must have 4 eyes or do jackrabbit drilling. I first had my son when I started and still ended up off on a couple holes, but but but if one wants to drill with just one set of eyes and be on target on every hole, a drill jig and or one of them $30.00 drill guides is needed and price can go up from there, and when drilling from two sides, one must drill horizontal, a sliding jig will work good for that at least it did on one 6x6....

Now watch this video and see why drilling straight is hard especially when doing over a 100 holes, drilling straight sounds simple but at 0:25-ish this is the same problem I have, a drilling guide block helps with that, at least in my world.......... YouTube

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Or did they not do it right? There are a lot of changes you have to make to get it to work, and yes it is not the same things in different climates, soils, crops, etc but from what I have seen yields will improve almost everywhere if you know how to read the soil. Try this one on for size - dryland corn five years in a row with NO herbicides, pesticides, fungicides, or fertilizer that outperformed the conventionally tilled fields around. The experiment is only into its sixth year so we will see how it goes but total up the cost of input savings and it is huge.

It is a total change in thinking but it is being proven in many parts of the world. Out in the Dakotas there are still many farmers who farm conventionally but there are a lot of who have converted very successfully. My nephews will tell you their wheat yields will fall back to almost half what they are now if they started conventionally tilling again. Their basis is when they takeover renting land that has been conventionally tilled and see the yields and then see where the yields get to in a few years as they get the ground converted - it doesn't happen overnight and takes about ten years when you know exactly what to do in that soil, climate, etc.

3rd and 4th generation farms these days growing thousands of acres of corn and beans, so do you REALLY think they didn't do their research and give it an honest go???

Fact is, it just doesn't work every place!

SR

 

[Jstpssng]

The first thing I look for is which way the beam is bowed, I want to keep bowed side on top side. As far as low spots, high spots, in's and outs thats why I made the jig 14" long to compensate for that, the same idea as using a 2' square to make a square cut as appose to a small speed square on rough lumber with circular saw., Now if one has high spots and low spots more then 1", might want to change sawmill blade.

Your the one who sent me that same video two months ago that gave me the idea so this 6x6 bridge will have your name all over on it. Now as far as that video goes showing the drilling process, a couple things 6x6 bridge builders need to observe. 1>> They are utilizing 4 eyes, one set on drill, the other guy at ground level, you need to look at two different directions when trying to drill straight holes.

2>>They are building the 6x6 bridge on ground which requires bend over work, (I HATE BEND OVER WORK), they also have the right size tooling for the job, if one only has a battery drill then the holes have to drilled from both sides.

3>>When trying to drill straight holes, one must have 4 eyes or do jackrabbit drilling. I first had my son when I started and still ended up off on a couple holes, but but but if one wants to drill with just one set of eyes and be on target on every hole, a drill jig and or one of them $30.00 drill guides is needed and price can go up from there, and when drilling from two sides, one must drill horizontal, a sliding jig will work good for that at least it did on one 6x6....

Now watch this video and see why drilling straight is hard especially when doing over a 100 holes, drilling straight sounds simple but at 0:25-ish this is the same problem I have, a drilling guide block helps with that, at least in my world.......... YouTube

This is better than watching rounded off drain plugs or mysterious holes in barn floors. At least we continuously see forward progress, and know that eventually there will be a bridge. :thumbsup:

I don't know if the barn floor hole saga ever got resolved.

 

[John_Mc]

Try this one on for size - dryland corn five years in a row with NO herbicides, pesticides, fungicides, or fertilizer that outperformed the conventionally tilled fields around. The experiment is only into its sixth year so we will see how it goes but total up the cost of input savings and it is huge.

Someone is planting corn 6 years in a row in the same field?

 

[Oldpath05]

This is better than watching rounded off drain plugs or mysterious holes in barn floors. At least we continuously see forward progress, and know that eventually there will be a bridge. :thumbsup:

I don't know if the barn floor hole saga ever got resolved.

My barn floor was fixed 7 years ago.

 

[Oldpath05]

I probably could get more done on my bridge if these little pet peeves wouldn't keep bothering me like helmet placement on tractor. I solved chainsaw placement years ago but a good place for helmet besides the head was is hard to solve at least for those of us that needs to wear a helmet when using a chainsaw. So heres my prototype, tried to keep it small but sturdy with a simple bungee cord to hold in place it's place, without out the cord the darn things swings and bounces, very distracting let alone annoying......

 

[Loaderman22]

This is better than watching rounded off drain plugs or mysterious holes in barn floors. At least we continuously see forward progress, and know that eventually there will be a bridge. :thumbsup:

I don't know if the barn floor hole saga ever got resolved.

Last time I checked in, the thread had gone cold. No additional input from the OP either.