Why I did not upgrade to a better splitter

[bullbreaker]

If you quit, it's not long until you can't. Use it or lose it.

I"ll remember that I'am not too far behind him .

 

[shooterdon]

I DID sell the log off the red oak I had to take down year before last, it was 18' long and 30" at the SMALL end, what the mill goes by here. That stump at the cut is almost 46". The one largest limb on that tree was 22" diameter and buried almost 3' into the ground when it was cut off and fell. By the way, I loaded that 18' log onto my carhauler gooseneck with my 40 hp Mahindra and some ingenuity.

Smart man!!

Red Oak is not light and green wood will be even worse. I admire guys like you that can handle stuff like that.

I was a citiot for too many years so lack a lot of experience. My saws have 20" bars and anything bigger is way beyond my equipment and abilities. The engineer in me can figure out a lot of things and also sends a "Danger Will Robinson" alert when I am getting over my head.

 

[John Skull]

Re: the original pic... WOW that's a lot of firewood

 

[arizona98tj]

shooterdon,

Thank you for a well-written accounting of your new wood processing adventure. It was very interesting to read and the facts and figures were great! I've seen a few local ads for wood processor rentals but didn't pay much attention to them. Having learned more about it thanks to you, I'll have to see what they are renting and the daily rate.

At 65, I'm still cutting my own wood and splitting it. Here in northern Minnesota, we currently do all of our heating with wood. I have 80 acres of farmland and woods and have adjacent access to 200 more acres of just woods so I'm fortunate in that I don't have to buy. Fortunately, we built a new house just 5 years ago and with the better energy efficiency that a new house can bring, we only burn 2 cords of wood each heating season. I primarily use red oak during the colder months and poplar at the beginning and end of the season. I bought a simple gas-engine powered hydraulic splitter 5 years ago when I retired and have enjoyed using it. It has paid for itself many, many time over. For when I get too old to do the wood, I will make use of what's already installed....an air-source heat pump, an off-peak electric plenum heater, and a propane furnace.

I keep 3 years of wood in the shed so when I quit, I'll be good for a few more years.

 

[shooterdon]

shooterdon,

Thank you for a well-written accounting of your new wood processing adventure. It was very interesting to read and the facts and figures were great! I've seen a few local ads for wood processor rentals but didn't pay much attention to them. Having learned more about it thanks to you, I'll have to see what they are renting and the daily rate.

At 65, I'm still cutting my own wood and splitting it. Here in northern Minnesota, we currently do all of our heating with wood. I have 80 acres of farmland and woods and have adjacent access to 200 more acres of just woods so I'm fortunate in that I don't have to buy. Fortunately, we built a new house just 5 years ago and with the better energy efficiency that a new house can bring, we only burn 2 cords of wood each heating season. I primarily use red oak during the colder months and poplar at the beginning and end of the season. I bought a simple gas-engine powered hydraulic splitter 5 years ago when I retired and have enjoyed using it. It has paid for itself many, many time over. For when I get too old to do the wood, I will make use of what's already installed....an air-source heat pump, an off-peak electric plenum heater, and a propane furnace.

I keep 3 years of wood in the shed so when I quit, I'll be good for a few more years.

View attachment 661614View attachment 661615

Thank you for the kind words.

My method works for me very well. It may offer ideas that others can incorporate to meet their needs more efficiently. There is a trade off between cost, productivity and total effort that is balanced against quantity needed. There is no single right way to heat with wood. Simple changes can have a significant impact.

For example...as in my post, log diameter. Another factor we changed was cut length. Our logs are 100” long. By changing from just under 17” to 20” we improved productivity by 20%. This impacted both the number of cuts per log as well as how many times we have to bend over and pick up a piece for stacking. Also we get 20% more chain life. All due to 3 silly inches.

For those who sell by the traditional face cord 20” cuts are a problem....normal is 16”. A smart change for us is a non starter for anyone selling wood...at least in my area.

If my insert would take 25” pieces, i would not have been able to do that as 25” is not efficient for stacking in my totes. My gain in processing productivity would have seriously reduced storage capacity.

One size never fits all...LOL

 

[skipmarcy]

Smart man!!

Red Oak is not light and green wood will be even worse. I admire guys like you that can handle stuff like that.

I was a citiot for too many years so lack a lot of experience. My saws have 20" bars and anything bigger is way beyond my equipment and abilities. The engineer in me can figure out a lot of things and also sends a "Danger Will Robinson" alert when I am getting over my head.

I didn't take this big red oak down, I hired a local guy to climb the tree and take the big stuff out before felling it - he had a huge saw, don't remember what size. This tree was right at 90' tall. All I have is a 20" saw too. I used some of the large rounds under it to roll it and used my tractor to push that big boy onto my trailer with the ramps up to keep it guided into the middle of the trailer. I had to start with the smaller rounds and increase to larger diameter to get it high enough to start up the dovetail. I had large 8x8 blocks screwed to the trailer deck on the downhill side to catch it from rolling off once it cleared the ramps. I got 1, 12' log that was 24" dia. out of the one biggest limb he cut off up there. My gooseneck is a 24' carhauler type, 14k. My 4110 Mahindra is a mini bulldozer at times.