I was very pleased today to drop a tree in the wooded section of the property just so that it would fall on another, standing dead, and get them both. They took down a smaller third tree on the way, which I wasn't planning to cut, but it'll do for firewood since it's down.
Now to buck them into logs and split them up, so they can season over the summer.
This precision guarantees it wasn't an elm.
ReplyDeleteTrue. It was an oak.
ReplyDeleteIs any of it worth milling for your own woodworking projects?
ReplyDeleteThe three trees I took down today are not, but there is one very large oak back there that has died recently. If I had the equipment to cut it down and remove it, which I do not, it would be worth the trouble.
ReplyDeleteYou have no idea how much I hate cutting down elm.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on your trifecta. It must have been a deep-breath moment.
I love the sound of a chainsaw and the smell of wood chips in the morning! Means it's going to be a fine day.
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I love splitting firewood, but to be honest, I don't love chainsawing it at all. It invariably means hours of crouching in odd positions, holding a heavy object in strange positions for long periods of time. It'd be torture if we made GitMo prisoners do it. :)
ReplyDeleteBut I do enjoy swinging the axe to split the logs once they're bucked. And of course I greatly enjoy a wood fire in the winter time, as well as a cookout in the summer. So, it's in my interest to take care of business.
"It invariably means hours of crouching in odd positions, holding a heavy object in strange positions for long periods of time."
ReplyDeleteI'm hesitating a guess that perhaps your chain isn't as sharp as it could/should be. Because to drop any tree shouldn't require more than approximately 5 min. of actual cutting time with the saw. The rest is watching that big thing fall exactly where you wanted it to, and then bucking it into fireplace lengths. I usually keep 2-3 chains pre-sharpened for a day's worth of firewood collecting and will sharpen each one at least 2-3 times before switching to one of the *extras*.
Fwiw, I love doing it all, sawing, bucking, splitting, kindling and then lighting it all on fire and watching it burn.
heh
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What do you consider a day's worth of cutting? If you're using 4-9 chains' worth, I'd think you'd be cutting for hours too! But maybe you sharpen them a lot more than I do. I was taught that a chain needs to be sharpened when the saw stops self-feeding, or when it is producing dust instead of clean chips. If you keep it out of the dirt, you can often cut for quite a while without sharpening.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure what kind of wood you're cutting has an effect on the rate of dulling as well. Hardwood is going to cut slower and hotter, and that makes it easier to dull your chain faster.
ReplyDeleteDo you use a sawbuck when you buck the logs down to firewood lengths?
Sometimes a makeshift one, but I don't carry anything down into the forest for the purpose.
ReplyDeleteChecking the stats: I spent an hour this morning working on these oaks. I sharpened the chain before I started, and it cut wonderfully for about an hour, by which time it was dull. I was careful to keep it out of the dirt, but as Douglas says, it's a hard oak.
ReplyDeleteI figure by the time I've cut up all three trees, I'll have spent between three and four hours cutting -- not counting the sharpening times, etc. However, that half-day of cutting should provide wood for a good month and a half, perhaps even two months this winter. Of course, I'll still have another half-day's work in splitting and stacking it, but all told, it's a good bargain.
Well, these days, work is generally 5-6 hrs here on the Dark Side. (Remember, we're *retired* now.) So, that'd be about 2-3 chains worth of bucking...give or take.
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As a general rule of thumb, no matter the type of wood I'm cutting, I will sharpen my chain while I wait for the saw to cool between gas and oil fill-ups. I'll usually change chains after the third sharpening, just to speed the day along. Then I'll spend an hour or so in the evening drinking a beer while cleaning and sharpening everything back to specs in preparation for the next day.
It's good hard work that pays off in the best of ways - with heat for the family during the long cold winter.
Well, now we do have a disparity. If it takes you an hour to drink that first beer, you're inefficient. :)
ReplyDeleteI try not to guzzle the first one when I've been working in the sun...tends to make the rest of the case go quicker than a cautious budget can cover.
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The chain type will make a difference in longevity also- it has been my experience that a square top chipper chain will cut like a bandit but dull much quicker than a round top chain when exposed to dirt.
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