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I was getting pretty nervous that my firewood log-harvesting window had closed until fall, as I'm not really a fan of sweating into my eyes or getting attacked by deer flies and mosquitoes. But thankfully mother nature delivered me a nice cool memorial day weekend before the bugs have come out...

Don! How about some pics of the new machine and how you set it up to run.

Dang, you held on for a while to be honest. I gave up 2 weeks ago here in Michigan. If it doesn't stay below ~40° from the evening through morning, a fire is harder to keep drafting in my house and easily overheats the house to near 80°.

My splitter does go vertical but I tried it once and vowed never again. Wrestling 200lb round into place just to shave off one piece of firewood at a time, then bend over to pick everything up... no thanks. I like to keep everything up at working height.

Oh for sure. It's just so much work to chainsaw through giant logs to make rounds, and you have to use heavy equipment or have a lift on your splitter just to chunk through it. It's a lot less efficient processing than just staying in the ~20" and under range, in my experience. My retired...

Gosh that sounds like a whole lot of work just to get a firewood pole to your property. Why bother with such huge logs and rounds?

Wow, Don! nice work. So wait, did you buy a processor? I thought you were renting one periodically.

Having the proper stability and loader lifting capacity is the primary reason I upgraded tractors from my old Cub Cadet (now my neighbor buddy's machine) to my Kioti CK3510. It easily lifts a full IBC tote bin of green split wood up to 6 feet in the air. Will tip forward without any ballast on...

https://midweststeelcarports.com/free-standing-metal-lean-to/ Doesn't necessarily have to hook onto the shipping container, right? There's free-standing options - "lean-to metal carport"

They generally do hold up "ok" for stacking. But after 5-6 years of use, they are getting a little bent out of shape - primarily because I cut all the fronts out of them for easy unloading. And also due to my occasionally careless operation with the forks, doh. I am often moving full crates...

Well no, not planning to burn anything split fresh. Since we only need to burn about 2-3 full cords per year, I may just squeak by on the ~1.5-2 year old split wood already on hand, very nice and dry (mostly cherry and ash). And since a lot of what I was just splitting now is long-dead ash...

Well the unseasonably warm fall weather continues. Hard to complain about t-shirt weather in November, but also, the ground is turning to dust. Thankfully a nice soaking rain today, but it wont be enough. Had to keep the kiddos engaged to press forward on firewood production this weekend...

Since I asked for the house pics, I'll help get back on track also. Set up a new log-splitting arena for this season, more room to work and shuffle bins, and doesn't block anything in front of my garage like I used to. And finally got my some help from father-in-law and my kid. Aiming to...

Wow! Can we see a pic or two, or do you have a thread on your historic house? Because my house is small (1650 sq ft) and super tight, we actually kind of like medium-BTU firewood. A few hearty sticks of solid oak when it's not frigid outside, and our living room temperatures can soar into the...

I think you post images on photobucket, no? I can never see any of your pics (work firewall blocks them). I was wrong about any oak species being below black walnut though, I retract that one.

I have a limited amount of oaks on my property here in southern michigan, they are very robust and beautiful trees so I would never dare cut one down on purpose for firewood. The Walnuts on the other hand.... abundant and detrimental to my garden/planting areas (juglone poison). The obscene...

They're pretty tough buggers. Don't let the rest of it rot before the firewood value goes to nil, though!

Huh? Black walnut is terrific firewood. Most firewood BTU charts show it above 20 MBTU/cord, better than ash, cherry, most maples (edit: NOT any OAKS, retracted) I burn a lot of black walnut, as I have a large grove behind my house that keeps trying to encroach into the yard and garden areas...

The main reason my OCD forces me to stack the wood in two rows in my IBC totes is: 1) critters. In a haphazard pile, they have so much protected nooks and crannies to build a stellar little nest. With two even rows, there is a 4-5" air gap down the middle between them that isn't so safe for...

Next time (hopefully never) find the corresponding connector for the hydraulic circuit on the loader (where you would unplug to remove the loader), unplug, and you can stop the leak completely. I had a branch snap over my bucket once in the woods, blew a bucket curl hose right off the fitting...

I don't think it offers any good flavors. But yeah you can see the squiggly trails of the emerald ash borer beetle on the trunk of the tree under the bark that fell off.

Yeah, definitely looks like Ash to me. Great firewood!

^ correct. However, Pine does spit and pop some sparks, and has relatively low BTU content per log compared to good hardwoods (species dependent of course). Hardwood also creates plenty of creosote if your burn it before fully dry. Millions of folks all across the western states have no...

Definitely on a downward trend here. What I notice most distinctly is that we never get long stretches of true deep winter anymore, where multiple snowfalls can pile up and stay. Instead we're lucky to get any decent snowstorm, and then it typically melts within a week every time. The worst...

Our annual snowfall average is around 50-60", but its very rare to get over ~8-10" at one time. I have no idea what the snow rating is on the carport, but if we got slammed with a blizzard, I might buy a roof snow rake

No problems here with the top band being cut. I can't imagine reaching logs out of the bottom of the tote with that top bar in the way! no thank you. The only thing I will note, is that if you are stacking a FULL tote of wet wood atop another one that is cut out, yeah it can spread a bit. So...

Yeah not so fun to split, definitely no quick pops for easy separation. But it burns well and my family likes how all the strings on it is like "built in kindling". Nice to start a fire with once it's well dried out.

Nice truck! I've always wanted a 350/3500 dump truck, to support my personal landscaping projects and open up the possibility for side-hustle income. But I'm not ready to go there yet. How is the market and pricing for 1/3 cord/facecords in "Near Johannesburg MI but in the middle of nowhere"...

Burned through about 3.5 face cords here in southern Michigan so far this winter. Really only had about 10 days of actual deep winter, during late January. I normally toss my logs into a pile and cut away at them over time (see behind the tractor). But I had a bigger diameter maple log my...

Agreed. Of course it has water in it... it's a tree, that's how they work. Only big dead ones left here in southern michigan. They do dry out quite a bit when standing dead and proud in the woods for years after the borer's been through.

First time I'm hearing someone who dislikes burning ash that much. If you think Ash leaves a lot of woodstove ashes behind, try some thick-barked walnut! Leaves a poofy mess behind (good BTUs int he meantime though, and one can always pull the bark off before burning). When we built our house...

Agreed, the idea of hanging a tool off the side of the chainsaw bar, or meticulously measuring and painting logs, seems pretty ridiculous to me. But different strokes, and whatnot. You have a nice barn/shed/wood setup! Where's your approx location, to calibrate that "3-1/4 face cords"...

Not much of a "pile" if you ask me! haha. Looks more like layout for grading a timber sale. Do you cut on the ground, then? And then you have an SSQA Splitter? Or does the SSQA splitter also have the saw built in? And your tractor has enough GPM of hydraulic flow to run it well?

I've never found it difficult to eyeball the firewood length when cutting. If I'm way out of practice, I just turn my saw 90° a few times when getting started to quickly re-train my eyeball. I really don't care if many pieces end up 13, 14 or 15" long (I try to aim for 15-16", which is ideal...

Fair point. When I first got my land, I did a fair amount of bush-pulling using a brush-grubber off a long chain, in hilly areas myself. It's a two man-job if you don't want to constantly get on/off the tractor/ATV, but it can go pretty quick as well.

Wait, you guys are burning, and/or cutting up autumn olive? No offense but that sounds like a huge waste of time. The rootballs are super weak. Just bulldoze it with your front loader! Get the whole thing out of the ground, push smash it all into a pile somewhere, and it dies quickly. I...

Looks like a tornado came through the background to me! yikes.

Holy….. carps, dude. Are those 50+ foot logs, being easily trailered around behind a kubota tractor? Thats just for your own personal firewood?!? You must have an uninsulated clapboard house, or feed an outdoor burner for a mansion eh? 🤪

So the tip is 15' off the ground? The part in your pic looks very accessible from standing on the ground. I would start near the tip and just cut sections away until it felt safe to peck away at the branches under the trunk. If you want to mill it, you mean in 12' sections or shorter...

indeed! I love helping other folks here spend theirs too. So now my question is, what is the difference between the DCCS670B and the DCCS670x1 ? I presume the "B" is the older model...

Whoa, that DeWalt saw rips. You did not help cool my jets on wanting to buy one of these bad boys one bit! lol.

Well the narrow chain is obviously on purpose, to reduce cutting force and extend the battery life. I don't have any experience with them, only have 3/8 for my bigger stihl gas saws. Are the narrow ones harder to sharpen?

I want a battery saw pretty bad. My buddy likes his dewalt 20v 12", but that feels too small. So if I want a 16" bar, sounds like the deWalt cant use my existing 20v batteries. If I have to get new batteries and charger, should I just go with stihl? Tough call.

Yep, 1/3 or “face” cord per tote if stacked to the very top - 2 rows of 4x4’ stack. So I’m probably just a tad under in most of mine. Still probably ~1200-1400 lbs (fresh cut/split wood) to hold out in front of the loader on forks. The kioti 4030 loader is rated over 1800 lbs to “59 inches”...

Double stacked, finally! Ever since I upgraded tractors last year, this capability was on my mind. I wasn't sure the 4030 loader was up for lifting a wet face cord up 4 feet in the air - especially without loaded rear tires or my heaviest implement (backhoe) on the rear of the machine. But it...

Beautiful property, that looks like it was a ton of very hard work. But if I may, why are you so intent on forest habitat removal? Don't get me wrong, I'm engaged in a similar pattern of clearing on my property here in Michigan, but I'm trying to keep my total around an acre or so. Animals...

With the crane? I thought it would be double that. It's still a lot of cash, but if you need/use it every week.... worth it.

Yeah, what do you think the load capacity is on that trailer? 20k lbs ish?

Finally got my buddies to come over and run the splitter for a while with me. In exchange for a trunk-load or two apiece, they help me split several face cords every fall. Win-win. I've got 14 IBC totes full. At just a hair under a face cord apiece, that should be plenty enough for a full...

^ good vid, indeed. That trailer is pretty amazing, but I don't want to know what it costs either.

? Don, I'm pretty sure you have a couple dozen of the perfect firewood holders already. Just use your IBC tote crates! You want to build a wood frame on a pallet to hold a limp sack instead?!? You're losing it, man. :ROFLMAO:

Yeah! A table like that, that only slopes one way, with some stops at the bottom to keep any logs from rolling off. Crooked logs are maybe good, they wont want to roll on you. So grapple/fork drop a few logs on the table, cut them up, and they easily roll themselves down. NEXT, maybe get a...

Hey, that works! Yeah having a helper is... ideal. If not, a loader bucket of rounds at a time makes sense to me. I'm not saying that my own methods are any more advanced. I toss logs into a row/pile, and then cut them up. Then have to pick up all the rounds, too. I toss my rounds into...

15 here in southern Michigan this morning. I cut a bunch of rounds on Sunday myself, but looking at your pile makes my back hurt, haha. If you're going to hold the logs up in the air with a grapple to cut, why not hold it over a trailer, tote, or rack of some kind? Like Sawyer Rob is...

Dang, this thread moves fast some times. I was out of town for a couple days snowboarding, and then at home on weekends I don't tend to get online (mental health reset lol!). Thanks for the replies, learned a good bit about raker filing and timberjacks.

Thank you for this comment, Helo. Gives me some bit of hope. Of course, if 2 million Unkrainians have fled, that still leaves 40 million of them at home under duress. The madness has to end ASAP. To not derail this thread, I am excited to get back to some firewood production with spring's...

Nice old tree! Did you count the rings? I'm too lazy. Hope you guys in Latvia aren't too worried about the current aggressions of your eastern neighbor.

When I built my house with only a woodstove and no furnace, one of my good buddies asked me "so how many acres of trees do you need to clear each winter to heat it?". It was hard to wrap my head around his perception of firewood scale. Uh.... one big tree ought to do it, bud. In reality I am...

With big rounds on an open splitter beam like that, I often do the first split at more like 1/3 and 2/3 - let the 1/3 part fall to the ground and then you don't have to lift as much to get to back up on the splitter to finish it. I am trying to imagine your workflow the way you describe it...

Lol, agreed. Firewood storage, man. In the metal crates, not the plastic liner. I pulled the plastic liners out as soon as i got them home today.

Well thats why I didn't hesitate. Still pretty foul, haha. Loading them up on my trailer in a couple hours here to get them home. I will have 20 total now, should be set for life.

Just scored 8 more IBC totes for free; saw them on craigslist last night, in the same business park as my job. Went to pick up the first pair in my pickup, and noticed a certain pungent aroma. "yeah, these held manure". The business is called "digested organics". Had a co worker help me lift...

Haha yep. Or you could say, more like the cost of this whole lifestyle that i chose. It does take a lot of investment, tools and supplies to live deep in the woods! Could have bought a townhouse condo instead. But then i would be so bored.

Haha, I upgraded tractors pretty much just to be able to fill by IBCs up to the top and carry confidently. (800 lbs more loader capacity and SSQA to keep the forks close, far better now). So I guess you could say that IBC's cost me more like $25 grand lol.

Welcome Dado! Nice setup, well thought out. I also used wood pallets like that for my first few years.... most of mine didn't last long. When frozen to the ground, often my tractor loader would still lift them up, ripping the bottom boards off the pallet. Then as the wood started to rot, my...

Maybe i missed it, but can you show what your mini-x does to help split firewood? Was it the cleaver and plate setup in lieu of a bucket? I’m having a hard time picturing how that could be efficient for mass production

At the local fancier grocery stores, bundles of firewood are now $7 apiece. For like 5 or 6 good pieces of split firewood. I'm pretty sure I could make some money at a dollar a stick. Been trying to convince my son to get into wrapping bundles that we could sell out by the road frontage with...

Haha! That was fun. But I do have to acknowledge starting from a place of privilege. I have a free chainsaw and splitter, thats not too common. I already live on 10 acres of woods. Wasn't going to live in a city, but of course this isn't feasible for everyone. BTW my first few years after...

My firewood is nearly free. I enjoy the time spent making it. Inherited Stihl MS310 will hopefully run forever. Borrow my dad's splitter semi-permanently. Obviously would already have a tractor on hand for all the other reasons. I did buy a dozen IBC cages at $25 apiece some years ago...

Well said. I have some suburban buddies who like to cosplay as lumberjacks on the weekends sometimes. So they enthusiastically come over to help run my log splitter a few times per year. I let them take all that they want for campfires and their drafty fireplaces, which is really just a trunk...

^ yeah for sure. What I don't understand is what is really any better about a proper "full cord" of 4x4x8 feet. It's still going to be comprised of cut and split firewood pieces of varying lengths. And no one stacks their wood in 4x4x8 cubes anyway. So essentially anyone selling a full cord...

Face cord (rick) is a perfectly legitimate quantity measurement, IMO. Of course it might not be a perfect 1/3 cord with nice 16" long pieces, but good enough, and it's the most amount that most people want to deal with at one time. People get around $100 a face cord around here. Makes me want...

Yeah hopefully he knows all this, but I just wanted to second how important this sequence is for most 2 strokes. Well described. If my Stihl MS310 has been sitting for a few months or more, it will take 10-15 pulls on full choke to get gas pulled into the carb. Then it goes BRAaammmmp and...

I have the harbor freight grinder. Figured it was worth a shot for $35. It... sucks. But it does grind a sharp edge onto each chain tooth, and gets me cutting again. Problem is, with a poor sharpen job (inconsistent angles, and incomplete tooth cutting), the blades dull faster again. I have...

Same, I used to use forks to carry 8-ft logs out of the woods, and now I have a grapple. Bucking and carrying clean logs up to my firewood processing area just always made so much more sense to me than dragging one big log at a time and wrecking my trails, scraping other tree bark off, filling...

Dang. You put a lot of thought into this trailer, Ed. Frickin awesome.

It's hiding in that last pic! Is that a dresser, Gord? Beautiful woods and trails. Do you seed them with shade-grass or anything?

Yeah, well they're never going to be old growth, if you cut them down. 🤪 Yeah sorry I didn't mean to say those were old growth trees, I have no idea. Why are they dying?

Skeans, do you ever feel like those trees are too majestic to cut down? Why not take the 2-3'ers and leave the big boys to grow forever? Not enough old growth forest left on this earth, IMO. Impressive work, no doubt. Just kinda sad, too.

All I see is a cardboard box.... :P

Since you guys are still talking about mountains, here is a video of my casual drive up the tallest mountain in New England from the other day: J/K obviously that is Travis Pastrana in an 800HP Subaru, with zero fear. You can't tell me that THIS one isn't a mountain, lol.

C'mon, Mt Marcy ain't no hill. Thats a true mountain. Whiteface would like a word too.

Good eye! It is a Cub Cadet 7305. MTD (owner of cub) simply bought them from Mitsubishi; though I'm not entirely clear who made the front loader. Mahindra did the exact same thing with some of their models, which appear to have slightly stronger loaders. Mine is equivalent to the Mahindra...

Finally got my tractor front axle repaired (outer bearing failure) so that I could clean up the deadfall from last week's storms. This dead ash tree wood has stood vertical, but dead, for at least 10 years. "dry storage" as a co-worker of mine calls it. It makes terrific firewood, only a...

In my case describing the "grabby" DeWalt 20v pole saw, I am talking from brand new. I've only cut a dozen branches with it so far. The chain is nice and sharp, as received out of the box. I was actually wondering if the saw might smooth out a bit once it dulls up a little. But generally...

I'm fully invested in the DeWalt 20V architecture. The brushless tools are all really great, for the most part. Thinking about getting the 20v chainsaw so that my wife can use something in an emergency if I'm not home. But I have to say, I'm not real impressed with the 20v pole saw. It's...

Only if you hold the saw upside down! Not very ergonomic to run that way, but you gotta do whats necessary to keep the bar wear even. ;)

Not strange at all. A burn pile sitting and waiting always feels like a liability to me. I took down 20-some trees last weekend. Buried the stumps, stacked the logs, and now need to burn off the pile of tops. Wish I could let them dry out for a month or more, but the pile is in the way!!

^ WOW! Wow #1, at those truly massive logs getting loaded. Some impressive trees (rip). Wow #2 at how much good cedar wood you extracted from... telephone poles?!? How could you be sure all the metal was out of them? Sorta surprised the sawyers wanted to do that job given how much metal...

Yeeeeahhh, I wouldn't. I find nests in about 1 out of 4 totes of mine. I actually pack 16" firewood in my totes in two rows with as MUCH gap between the rows as I can. I don't try to pack it tight (theres always a terrific little snug hole for a mouse nest). My thinking is that having a 3-6"...

Don, doesn't you wood still always get wet with the tote liners tucked inside the tote frame like that? I would think all the water will just trickle down the sides, over the wood ends, and run through all the wood still. I always make sure to get a half sheet of plywood sitting out over the...

Foot start for a cold saw (mine takes 5-8 pulls especially if I ran the tank dry previously). Drop start when it's warm or hot, its just so much easier.

This! My personal preference is for 10-12" logs/rounds that I can quickly split into 4 pieces. Split once, rotate 90°, split both halves again at the same time. Easy to handle a 12" round. Sometimes you don't get to choose what size wood you have for firewood production, but if you're going...