At Home In The Woods

[clemsonfor]

That's pretty much what I try to do, but I skip some steps as I get lazy, like rakers every few sharpenings. Bar flip every few times or every time as I think I need it. Never mess with the bar but no problem on chains ever. I know the marks your talking about on stihl chains but you still have to hold the file level and I may not be perfect on that where the grinder is every time.

Never replace fulter in tank, check it if I suspect it. Should do it now that you say it. Have to check my carb settings and prolly get a new air filter. I also read that sprocket and chain should be replaced togeather??? I have not gone through a sprocket yet, it has wear on it though.

 

[Ted Summey]

Obed and others - the Habor Freight chain sharpener is okay. I broke mine because the device that adjusts the amount of the tooth that gets ground is PLASTIC. Something snagged the adjustment knob and snapped the thing right off! There has been no repair that has held.

So I bit the bullet and bought the TSC sharpener. I'm glad I did - it is a better machine and is mostly metal. It compares favorably with the Northern Tool brand that prices in the $130 range. It isn't an Oregon brand but it absolutely is better than the HF sharpener. Save your pennies and spring for the better model, I think you will be pleased you did.

The other really important thing to know is you need the correct thickness of grinding wheel for your chain pitch (just like the correct file dia.). The HF grinder comes with only one thickness wheel, the TSC brand comes with 3 different thickness grinding wheels. The Oregon brand wheels fit the TSC sharpener but not the HF sharpeners.

An upgraded sharpener will take a little while to pay for itself but 1. You will be more productive with a sharp chain on the saw and an extra in your tool box, 2. You will save time because the sharpener speeds up your sharpening 3. You will be less tired after working firewood because a sharp saw requires less physical effort and 4. YOU WILL be safer a sharp saw is safer than a dull saw. It will reduce wear and tear on your saw as well.

 

[clemsonfor]

Good review Ted.

I agree if you sharpen a LOT this will be a good investment.

But i have had mine over a year and more than paid for it. Also let me say i cut close to 4 cords last year with the saw, so i am more than just your normal guy who cuts a downed limb in my yard. I actually provide 100% of my homes heat with wood. I also only have one saw with one chain pitch which is the 3/8 or what "REAL" chain is.

 

[Ted Summey]

Thanks, clemsonfor - I did give the HF sharpener a good chance, it just didn't hold up for me. When it was working it made sharp chains.

I have a waterstove to heat my house and my domestic hot water. The system is coupled with the heat pump fan and uses a heat exchanger so I have forced air heat. We burn wood year round for hot water since my solar panels are down right now.

So I burn several cords of wood per year. Somehow I always manage to lose count of the number but I suppose it is somewhere in the 8 to 10 cords. My brother in law has a waterstove as well. He is heating a 100 year old homeplace so he burns at least what I do and I estimate more.

Between the two of us we have four chainsaws that we keep sharp chains on. That does work out to be alot of sharpening. But at $130 dollars or so that is only 26 chain sharpenings at $5 each to pay for it. Doesn't compare to the 6 sharpenings to pay for the HF tool assuming you get it on sale or with a coupon.

 

[clemsonfor]

Cutting that much wood i can see you probably sharpen a good bit and i agree if i did that much and maintained a brothers to i would get tired of buying a grinder every year or 3,as well.

i burn 1-2 cords a year for my heat.
But when i cut i also cut with a friend and i have in the past cut most of the wood for the both of us, so last year those 4 cords were mine, but we probably cut another 1+ for him as well.

 

[Obed]

Coyote

At 10 AM today I saw a coyote in my back yard walking along the edge of the grass traveling from E to W. I tried to get a picture but was unsuccessful. Finally, I opened the window and told the coyote to "git". It stopped to look for the source of the yell, then marginally increased it's pace to a slow trot. The coyote didn't seem overly concerned by my warning.

 

[clemsonfor]

I would have run to get my gun to shoot that "invasive" species that consumes our valuable wildlife, and serves as a threat to pets and small children.

I do feel sorry for the things as i like dogs and there basically wild dogs, yet they are out of thier natural areas and throw the biological succession for an area out of sync. Think of the zebra muscle in the great lakes, or kudzu here in the south, wild pigs here in the south, or those ceder trees those guys have in texas or any of the others that you can think of off the top of your head.

In thier own environment and where there naturally supose to be there fine but in a place not meant for them they reek havoic. Your Beloved turkeys you see, they eat those and prey on the young and helpless, they eat fawns and your pet cats.

 

[dave1949]

I would have run to get my gun to shoot that "invasive" species that consumes our valuable wildlife, and serves as a threat to pets and small children.

I do feel sorry for the things as i like dogs and there basically wild dogs, yet they are out of thier natural areas and throw the biological succession for an area out of sync. Think of the zebra muscle in the great lakes, or kudzu here in the south, wild pigs here in the south, or those ceder trees those guys have in texas or any of the others that you can think of off the top of your head.

In thier own environment and where there naturally supose to be there fine but in a place not meant for them they reek havoic. Your Beloved turkeys you see, they eat those and prey on the young and helpless, they eat fawns and your pet cats.

I'm not sure it is possible to have a rational discussion about coyotes on TBN. I will give it one shot.

The turkeys, for example: Maine just greatly expanded the turkey seasons because they are causing too much economic damage to crops.

Cats are not native species and deserve no special status. Like any domestic animal including dogs, the owner needs to look out for them and keep them safe and where they belong.

The deer herd is an out-of-control mess in many areas that is causing crop damage, passing Lyme disease to humans, and causing fatalities in car collisions.

I doubt you would favor the re-introduction of wolves, but they are a native species that was extirpated leaving a predator niche unoccupied which coyotes are now filling. There ought to be a stable population of mountain lions around too in the Eastern states. Hunting is not a replacement for predation in nature, and there are no long-term healthy prey populations absent predators.

It is wrong to place higher or lower human values on one species of wildlife or another. Wildlife exists within an ecosystem that humans understand poorly and have shown very little ability to successfully manage or manipulate. You are committing anthropomorphism by assigning scales of value to wildlife based upon how "cuddly" it seems to humans.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthropomorphism
Anthropomorphism or personification is any attribution of human characteristics (or characteristics assumed to belong only to humans) to other animals, non-living things, phenomena, material states, objects or abstract concepts, such as organizations, governments, spirits or deities. The term was coined in the mid-1700s.[1][2] Examples include animals and plants and forces of nature such as winds, rain or the sun depicted as creatures with human motivations, and/or the abilities to reason and converse. The term derives from the combination of the Greek ἄνθρωπος (ánthrōpos), "human" and μορφή (morphē), "shape" or "form".

 

[PAGUY]

dave1949 - A lot of what you say is true but we are not living in the wilderness like in Alaska or Canada. The eastern side of the country is highly developed and populated and the coyote has adapted to these conditions even though it is a wild animal. It is an omnivore of opportunity and does not have a prey animal of choice. When it is hungry everything is fair game and other than man has no natural predators after it. I really don't believe in reintroduction of a species because it once roamed the area. There was a reason Mother Nature chose to eliminate a species and by reintroduction you are messing with the balance of nature. Hunting and trapping are the tools to control overpopulation but intelligent biologist must work with the true people in the field who do their best to control the population of wild animals.

 

[jonnyc1999]

I think what Dave 1949 was saying was that "mother nature" had nothing to do with some animals becoming extinct in certain areas, yet human intervention certainly has. If you feel like some interesting research, look up the reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone and all of the positive effects it has has on everything from erosion to disease control!

 

[Obed]

I got to work on my round wood stack today. I am certainly liking using the splitter in the vertical position. The key is sitting on something while splitting. I split wood most of the day today. My back would have been worn out if I had been bending over the splitter in the horizontal position.



I laid three poles across the stack. They poles are supposed to help keep the stack from falling outward.



I encountered some varmits in the wood. I killed two or three queen ants from this nest.



I believe these to be powderpost beetle larvae. You can see the round holes that the larvae have created. The red oak in my pile is teaming with these fellows. These things are a concern with all the hardwood flooring we have in our house. I don't want these things living in our house.



My stack is coming right along.

 

[dstig1]

Most bugs don't eat wood that is kiln dried like flooring. It is when it is wet that you have problems. There are some exceptions, but not ants and powder post beetles in oak.

 

[Obed]

Dave, I hope you are right. However, I have read that powder post beetles will eat hardwood flooring and even furniture. But I have also read that properly dried hardwood is a deterent to getting infested.

Obed

 

[jinman]

Drying seems to be a big critter deterrent. I suspect that after your wood drys for a year, most critters will be gone except for maybe on the bottom two layers near the ground. Up on pallet supports with plenty of air around your pile, I'd bet it will be pretty much critter free by this time next year. I keep a deck box for firewood on my treated deck away from my house. I may see critters in my wood pile, but rarely in the wood I bring into the house except for a random beetle of some kind. In my area, you also have to check for scorpions, especially if your wood is kept outside near a lighted area. Scorpions are drawn into the light to feast on moths and crickets. If you keep your wood under an outside light here, you better wear gloves when you go to pick it up. I'd guess that scorpions are not a problem in your area.

BTW: Obed, has anyone ever told you that you look a lot like Gilbert Gottfried the comedian. If you take off your glasses and hat and screw your face into a pained smile, you could probably say "AFLAC" and make it believable. :laughing:

 

[Obed]

BTW: Obed, has anyone ever told you that you look a lot like Gilbert Gottfried the comedian. If you take off your glasses and hat and screw your face into a pained smile, you could probably say "AFLAC" and make it believable. :laughing:

Jim,
You shouldn't insult Gilbert like that! I do have lots of people say I remind them of someone. I just seem to have a "common" face. In high school, I had a look-alike. Unfortunately, the girls liked him more than me. In college, I apparently had a look-alike. Someone saw him outside of one of the women's dorms one night yelling "I love all the women in the world."
Obed

 

[clemsonfor]

powderpost will eat dried wood. Just don't leave the wood in your house or anywhere near it and you will be fine.

 

[Ted Summey]

I wouldn't worry too much about the insects unless you leave wood stacked close to the house for extended time. Sweep up periodically and keep your woodpile dry. If you do worry about the bugs, two products you can use that have few toxic worries are food grade diatomaceous earth and borax. Sprinkle a little of either in and around your wood pile and you will have fewer critters. Usually keeping the wood dry after splitting gets rid of the bugs. Mice are another thing. A good cat or a feist dog keeps the mice in check (we have both).

 

[clemsonfor]

Yep Borax is a good thing. Its (if i remember right from my pesticied license class, a rock or something that is ground up and is toxic or harmfull to insects) harmfull or leathal to insects yet harmless to humans. You can touch it and nothing will happen, im also pretty sure its harmless for you to injest it, but insects just walking through it will kill them. This is why its so common and used in pretty sensitive places like homes and kitchens and such. It also stays forever and can be blown in or injected through cracks so its easyier to get into wall cavities through like switch covers.

 

[Iowachild]

oint: Borax - What Is Borax? - Where Can I Get Borax? :checkmark:

 

[PhysAssist]

My mother has moved in with us due to some health issues. She has been here for about a month. She has trouble getting out of normal height chairs so I made a platform out of some scraps in order to raise her recliner 4 inches.

That is too funny, because we did the same thing when my M-I-L had her hip replaced and could no longer sit DOWN into her recliner, AND when she moved out, I inherited it and despite being a little worn, it has become my favorite place to sit.

It has a wooden frame though, so we just made a box of 2x6's and screwed it to the frame.
It no longer rocks but that also makes it more stable and easier to sit in and get out of

Great minds and all that....