Tractors and wood! Show your pics

[Sawyer Rob]

What are we cutting halfway down now Sawyer Rob, White Oak maybe?

We cut those "leaners",

8' 6" up and then cut the bottom log off after we got them safe...

They are some NICE Red Oak...

SR

 

[BrokenTrack]

Your logs go to Robins Lumber? My trailer paid for itself in one month, a log loader made it as far as the wish list and still there.

I sent about 20,000 board feet to Robbins this year, but most of my Non-White Pine logs goes into Canada because they pay more money. I did ship a load of Spruce Logs to them this year and was really happy with the return. They never deducted a board foot out of that load, and paid $10 more per thousand board feet. They do not send a lot of Spruce their sawmill mill, but will on occasion, so you have to catch it just right, but worth it I guess if you do. The problem is I have to send my truck driver 15 more miles to get that extra $10, all the while driving by E.D. Bessey's log yard (now owned by Sappi Paper).

The problem with log yards is that they double scale...your wood is scaled when it is dropped off at the concentration yard, then again when it gets to the mill in Canada. Knowing it is going to get scaled again, at the concentration yard they are pretty conservative so you get nailed for every crook, rot, and other variance there is. Sometimes it is almost downright thievery. They also will not take short softwood logs which sucks, and as we all know trees do not always grow straight, long and cylindrical. They do take mixed loads though which is nice, and often take garbage logs, and that has merit. It is always better to sell wood for logs and take a cut, then sell the same wood for pulp. Just part of playing the game and trying to get the most out of the wood grown.

But Jim Robbins is a great guy for sure. We both own considerable land here, and my daughter and his Granddaughter are friends, so we talk a lot about tree farming, logging and sawmills. I got 3 sawmills myself, planers, jointers, etc, but sawing lumber is about as boring as watching paint dry, so I typically pay someone else to come in and do that for me. But I have done enough of that stuff so I can talk to Jim about it.

 

[ultrarunner]

Love learning more about the logging business... the good and the bad.

In Washington State I am always getting unsolicited offers to log my property... neighbors that know more than I have said not to do it... too much to go wrong on the homestead where you live with too little return.

I've had some really nice timber topple in a big windstorm but so did everyone else which meant there was logs everywhere and that depressed prices and kept the crews busy.... so I cut and used for firewood... Doug Fir and Cedar...

The story is all the Doug Fir and Cedar used to build my home was harvested and milled on the property... back in 1977...

 

[Jstpssng]

I'm not brand loyal but my Husky is back in the shop so I'm running the $100 "Poulan" which I bought for a truck saw. The last time the 545 got a new top end with only 8 hours on it, and still runs like crap.

We can argue semantics all that we want but when I need to start a saw a half dozen times to limb one softwood tree it's a problem. Combine that with each time I need to set the brake, hold the throttle open and drop start; this winter while standing in knee deep snow; it then becomes a safety issue.
If older Huskies had problems then the company should have fixed them instead of keeping them on the shelf and selling them. In a survey which was posted a few months ago Husky didn't score very big in dealer support.

I buy a tool to use it, not keep running it to the shop. If it isn't right this time then my next saw will be a Stihl, or maybe even another Echo.

I got the saw back with a new carb, and what a difference! I need to learn to run it all over again, because I had gotten accustomed to it dieing every time I let it idle. I prefer to set the brake when walking with it, but there was no need if the saw wasn't running.

 

[BrokenTrack]

I prefer to set the brake when walking with it, but there was no need if the saw wasn't running.

Some say this is the safest method, but I am not so sure. I am not very worried about an idling saw, and snapping that hand brake on and off cannot be good for the mechanism, and it is nothing but mechanical parts. So I just leave it off, that way when it does come into us in a truly required fashion, it is in optimum shape. When that saw rears its ugly head...literally...I want that thing to work.

But unlike some videos I watch of logging, must say, if I am not cutting wood with the saw, I shut it off. It has nothing to do with safety; I am cheap and hate burning up gas for no reason.

I have been cut (3) times, and every time it was because I had the saw wide open. (Shin, Upper Thigh, and Forehead for those that care about such things).

 

[Jstpssng]

Some say this is the safest method, but I am not so sure. I am not very worried about an idling saw, and snapping that hand brake on and off cannot be good for the mechanism, and it is nothing but mechanical parts. So I just leave it off, that way when it does come into us in a truly required fashion, it is in optimum shape. When that saw rears its ugly head...literally...I want that thing to work.

But unlike some videos I watch of logging, must say, if I am not cutting wood with the saw, I shut it off. It has nothing to do with safety; I am cheap and hate burning up gas for no reason.

I have been cut (3) times, and every time it was because I had the saw wide open. (Shin, Upper Thigh, and Forehead for those that care about such things).

I don't leave it running unnecessarily, but go by the standard to set it if you take more than two steps. Especially when limbing softwood in 2 feet of snow.

I've had one very serious near miss, if not for the chaps I probably would have taken my leg off at the knee. This was brushing power lines down in New Hampshire on a Monday morning after working too late at my weekend job in Bangor. There are days when you really shouldn't be running a saw; this was one of them.

 

[KenB2920]

I don't leave it running unnecessarily, but go by the standard to set it if you take more than two steps. Especially when limbing softwood in 2 feet of snow.

I've had one very serious near miss, if not for the chaps I probably would have taken my leg off at the knee. This was brushing power lines down in New Hampshire on a Monday morning after working too late at my weekend job in Bangor. There are days when you really shouldn't be running a saw; this was one of them.

For every major movement (walking to repositioning somewhere), I click on the hand brake. The chain is stopped so I don’t think it’s much wear on it. Even so, I lock it and figure if I have to replace the brake one day it’s just insurance, (cheap insurance). I also wear chaps and a helmet (face shield and ears). Again it’s cheap insurance and I’ve gotten comfortable wearing them.

 

[Creamer]

Some say this is the safest method, but I am not so sure. I am not very worried about an idling saw, and snapping that hand brake on and off cannot be good for the mechanism, and it is nothing but mechanical parts. So I just leave it off, that way when it does come into us in a truly required fashion, it is in optimum shape. When that saw rears its ugly head...literally...I want that thing to work.

But unlike some videos I watch of logging, must say, if I am not cutting wood with the saw, I shut it off. It has nothing to do with safety; I am cheap and hate burning up gas for no reason.

I have been cut (3) times, and every time it was because I had the saw wide open. (Shin, Upper Thigh, and Forehead for those that care about such things).

I have to agree with others - the brake is cheap insurance. When you are working around trees rarely do you have a nice clean even walkspace and one misstep with your hand anywhere near the trigger is not worth the risk. I have had my 029 25 years and use the brake every time I break for anything including the two step rule and have had to replace the spring which was almost $7. Pretty cheap insurance.

 

[Oldpath05]

I had another afternoon of doing a 1/2 hour job that turned into 4 hours. My new cable sliders had too much gap between it and the key slot, like a good 1/4", enough the cable kept wanting to jamb inbetween it somehow or skidding chain, (I know no one else would ever have problems like that, Murphy helps me more than others)

So with the bolts runned out of threads, thought it would be quick and easy just to add some more, 45 min at the most, so I measured and marked and added 1/4" more threads, put the first slider on and those expensive cheap alluminum/steel slider keyhole threaded bolts striped right out with just barely putting a squeeze on the slider, tred another one and same thing, 2 down 3 more bolts to go.

Plan B> Before trying it again I'll squish them a little with the vice, first slider going hard, I grab a short piece of pipe, not short enough, broke my old vice. Plan C> I'll put a vice grip on it and hit it with a hammer, hammer not big enough, the slider ricocheted off the bench, grab bigger hammer, the slider went flying further hit the wall and bounced around behind the woodstove.

Plan C>> Put vice grip back on and this time I'll use something with more pressure, wood splitter, with 2 attempts and 2 times flying and getting frustingstrayted, I gave up, those things must be spring steel, we'll there goes a good two hr.

Plan D>>I went to the tractor place and the first thing I looked at was a new shiny Fransgaurd V3004 winch, those sliders had very little gap between the slider and keyhole chain slot which is what I thought they was supposed to be, not over 1/4".
So there I bought $30.00 worth of 1/2" x 2" bolts, 5> of grade 5 fine threaded bolts and nuts, wanted case hard bolts because things was going hard but only had them in coarse thread so I bought them to, with lock washers locking nuts. I got back home, tried the fine threaded ones first and with a little never seize I wound them blanking things on there with an impact wrench, with 4 hours gone DONE DONE DONE and DONE, Hallelujah........


Now the next little thing I wanted to do 3 hours ago, adjust the the winch engagement pressure and put something on the pull cord rope for a handle, grabbing that rope to engage the clutch has always been something for the young and full of Wheaties to use. I sawed out a small piece of wood on table saw, smooth it out with a sander and drilled a hole in it, with some duct tape around the rope and a couple hose clamps I now have a rope handle, I yanked on it a few times, seems to hold, until the next time I use the winch.

 

[BrokenTrack]

I don't leave it running unnecessarily, but go by the standard to set it if you take more than two steps. Especially when limbing softwood in 2 feet of snow.

I've had one very serious near miss, if not for the chaps I probably would have taken my leg off at the knee. This was brushing power lines down in New Hampshire on a Monday morning after working too late at my weekend job in Bangor. There are days when you really shouldn't be running a saw; this was one of them.

I did that when I cut into my thigh...waist deep snow, threading through it to cut the top of my tree off when I brought my saw downward through the cut the same time I was going upwards with my thigh in getting through the snow. The saw chewed through my jeans, my Union Suit, then into my thigh, but not all that deep after jamming with cloth from the other clothes. Luckily I was drinking coffee and had packet of sugar with me which clotted up the blood.

I disagree with putting the chain brake on every two steps though, but my chainsaws all have a throttle lock on the handle so when toting a saw the chainsaw cannot rev up unless a second hand is on the back handle as well.