# Hauling Wood As You Get Older...What Changes Have You Made?



## litefoot (Oct 2, 2011)

Let me preface by saying that I'm still strong enough to handle some good-sized rounds, but I have had hernia surgery related to hauling wood, so I have to be careful. Other than having your kids haul the wood for you, what have you done to facilitate the process? I'm planning on building a log arch, and I'd like to eventually buy a splitter and then modifying it with a log lift. I usually cut 48" pieces, carry them to the trailer (with or without help depending on the diameter) and haul them off the mountain. At home, I cut the 48" lengths in threes and split by with a maul. I do about 5-6 cords each year.

At home, I'm thinking about designing the splitter/lifter so I can lift the long pieces off the ground, cut them to length and continue to lift and then dump the three pieces one at a time onto the splitter.

Anyway, is it better to buy a splitter with a lift, or are there some out there that are easy to modify. As always, I'm trying to not sink too much money into this. I'd be interested in you thoughts. Thanks!


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## mikey517 (Oct 2, 2011)

I never cut, split, stacked or burned wood until November of last year one week before my 62nd birthday. 
Then I discovered and joined this forum. Then I scrounged wood, purchased logs, and burned 24/7.

Since I'm already "old", this whole lifestyle is a change - for the better.


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## KiwiBro (Oct 2, 2011)

mikey517 said:


> I never cut, split, stacked or burned wood until November of last year one week before my 62nd birthday.
> Then I discovered and joined this forum. Then I scrounged wood, purchased logs, and burned 24/7.
> 
> Since I'm already "old", this whole lifestyle is a change - for the better.


Good for you. I spent years having my 'natural' mojo sucked out of me by the computer screens I stared into 8-12 hrs per day 6-7 days per week. Nowadays, every exhausting day working in, sometimes against and sometimes with, nature reclaims a little of that lost mojo and some of the deepest, satisfied sleeps imaginable. 

For all the advancements the human race has made, whilst grateful for many, I can't help but feel getting so far removed from our evolutionary dependence upon and connection with our natural environment, has been more of a regression for us than a sign of progress.

Sometimes my younger self laughs at my current, older self's 'borderline hippyist' ways, while my current self also chuckles at how much my younger self had yet to learn.


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## RPrice (Oct 2, 2011)

litefoot said:


> Let me preface by saying that I'm still strong enough to handle some good-sized rounds, but I have had hernia surgery related to hauling wood, so I have to be careful. Other than having your kids haul the wood for you, what have you done to facilitate the process? I'm planning on building a log arch, and I'd like to eventually buy a splitter and then modifying it with a log lift. I usually cut 48" pieces, carry them to the trailer (with or without help depending on the diameter) and haul them off the mountain. At home, I cut the 48" lengths in threes and split by with a maul. I do about 5-6 cords each year.
> 
> At home, I'm thinking about designing the splitter/lifter so I can lift the long pieces off the ground, cut them to length and continue to lift and then dump the three pieces one at a time onto the splitter.
> 
> Anyway, is it better to buy a splitter with a lift, or are there some out there that are easy to modify. As always, I'm trying to not sink too much money into this. I'd be interested in you thoughts. Thanks!



Well, I'm 58 and have cut firewood to heat my houses since I was 25, but with a 5 year "hiatus" from 35 - 40. 

Here in Nevada and Utah I've primarily cut three species, Utah juniper, pinyon pine, and mountain mahogany. With a little Gambel's Oak thrown in for a few years.

I owned a splitter when I was cutting pinyon pine, as it was about impossible to split, but Utah juniper is real easy to split, and I sold the splitter years ago.

Anyway, I've almost always "bucked up" the wood into stove length chunks "in the field", and split them at home.

What I have purchased recently are a couple of 8" Timber Tongs which have been a godsend for saving my back when loading or otherwise handling firewood rounds. I have a holster for one tong which I carry while cutting which helps me handle logs, then I use the pair to transport stove length chunks to the truck. WOW, works good. I'd bet a pulp hook would really help too.

I like to go at a relatively slow pace, and I'm usually alone. I have about 7 cords of wood in my back yard. My wife and kids say, "Dad, we don't need anymore wood!!" I keep cutting though, because it keeps me healthy and in shape!!

Take care and keep cutting!


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## MNGuns (Oct 2, 2011)

I like to think I am still in my prime, but there are more often times where I would have perhaps tackled a tree with a truck and wheelbarrow and now I just go get a piece of equipment. The bending and lifting is good for you, but diesel and steel makes life a lot easier.


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## CWME (Oct 2, 2011)

I just added a Tractor to the tool box. My knees are gone at 32 and I needed to do something to help with the heavy lifting and moving. The tractor will help get the large chunks up on the splitter.


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## Blazin (Oct 2, 2011)

Built a splitter with a lift, and yard truck with a dump, and a dozer with a winch. Just gotta find a few youngin's that wanna work


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## jcl (Oct 2, 2011)

MNGuns said:


> I like to think I am still in my prime, but there are more often times where I would have perhaps tackled a tree with a truck and wheelbarrow and now I just go get a piece of equipment. The bending and lifting is good for you, but diesel and steel makes life a lot easier.


 
X2 tractor with grapple and processior. skip the hole chainsaw cutting and log splittler this will save alot on the body its what i did


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## Wood Doctor (Oct 2, 2011)

*Noodle Cut...*

I gave up trying to lift 150+ lb logs onto the tailgate. Best bet is to noodle cut them in half and save your back. I bought a 25" bar and chain for the big puppies, and my MS 361 chews them up nicely.

Crotchwood is a PITA anyway, and noodle cutting the crotch in half saves the splitter as well. I also stopped maul splitting a few years ago. Needless to say, my back troubles have subsided for awhile.

Aging is relentless. You cannot fight it, but you can ease the pain by reducing the load.


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## lon (Oct 2, 2011)

As I get older, turning 65 next year, I am thankful each year that I can still grab the saws, the tractor and splitter and go chase wood. Will not be a happy day when I need to stop. In view of this, I do whatever I can to keep these years of wood work/play coming. During the off season, I walk and hike to try and keep myself in some degree of good condition. To help with the wood processing, I updated my tractor to a larger size and last week traded in my splitter for one with a lift. With the cost of my saws, tractor and splitter, my wife says we could have spent the rest of our winters together in Hawaii. She is correct but I would much rather cut wood. I also try to find ways that make my cutting a little easier. This forum has been a great asset to me in finding these ideas. Thank you for this site. I also try to remind myself each day I cut to not get in a hurry, be safe, think, know when to stop for the day. Thanks for asking. Excellent question.


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## RPrice (Oct 2, 2011)

lon said:


> As I get older, turning 65 next year, I am thankful each year that I can still grab the saws, the tractor and splitter and go chase wood. Will not be a happy day when I need to stop. In view of this, I do whatever I can to keep these years of wood work/play coming. During the off season, I walk and hike to try and keep myself in some degree of good condition. To help with the wood processing, I updated my tractor to a larger size and last week traded in my splitter for one with a lift. With the cost of my saws, tractor and splitter, my wife says we could have spent the rest of our winters together in Hawaii. She is correct but I would much rather cut wood. I also try to find ways that make my cutting a little easier. This forum has been a great asset to me in finding these ideas. Thank you for this site. I also try to remind myself each day I cut to not get in a hurry, be safe, think, know when to stop for the day. Thanks for asking. Excellent question.



Excellent Post, Thanks!


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## Axe Man (Oct 2, 2011)

I'll be 58 in January and I gotta say I am slowing down. Was a time when I would/could stay in the bush all day with no break, not anymore.
I cut about 12 cord this year taking it pretty easy with breaks every couple of hours.
Easiest way for me to cut is to get my wheeler up as close to the targeted tree as possible and cutting, splitting and piling in the trailer, then pulling it out of the bush. One step and easy to handle small pieces.
Have fun and good luck!


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## cheeves (Oct 2, 2011)

litefoot said:


> Let me preface by saying that I'm still strong enough to handle some good-sized rounds, but I have had hernia surgery related to hauling wood, so I have to be careful. Other than having your kids haul the wood for you, what have you done to facilitate the process? I'm planning on building a log arch, and I'd like to eventually buy a splitter and then modifying it with a log lift. I usually cut 48" pieces, carry them to the trailer (with or without help depending on the diameter) and haul them off the mountain. At home, I cut the 48" lengths in threes and split by with a maul. I do about 5-6 cords each year.
> 
> At home, I'm thinking about designing the splitter/lifter so I can lift the long pieces off the ground, cut them to length and continue to lift and then dump the three pieces one at a time onto the splitter.
> 
> Anyway, is it better to buy a splitter with a lift, or are there some out there that are easy to modify. As always, I'm trying to not sink too much money into this. I'd be interested in you thoughts. Thanks!


 Great question and pt. During the oil embargo of the 70's my father said"Robert you'd better learn how to heat your butt with wood. You'll never be able to afford oil. He was right. I've been doing that ever since. Now I find myself in my 60's and say to myself " where the heck did all the time go!" It's amazing. I have a back that is missing 2 discs. Bone on bone. But I still keep going by the complete grace of God somehow. I just love it too much to quit. Always pretty much did it alone. But now it's different. I have you guys. Mahalo (thanks)


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## s219 (Oct 2, 2011)

Great thread; I am glad to read about all these experiences and tips. Thanks all.


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## Wood Doctor (Oct 2, 2011)

s219 said:


> Great thread; I am glad to read about all these experiences and tips. Thanks all.


So am I. This thread is a classic to me also.


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## Chris-PA (Oct 2, 2011)

I'm just turning 48, and I'm becoming protective of my back. I've been down with back injuries enough to know that if I get hurt I could be out of action for a long time, and I just cannot afford the down time. 

I can split with an axe for a long time, and I find it excellent exercise and I rarely get hurt doing it. But moving the wood is a different story. I'm lucky enough to be able to get all my wood from my own property, so now I've gone to splitting and stacking wherever I cut it - or at least close by. I just lay out some reasonably straight branches and make a temporary pile right there. This reduces the distance I have to move bigger pieces, and gets it drying ASAP. I often just let nasty crotches and stuff go, as it's not worth the trouble. The one year I borrowed a splitter I almost killed my back for real - just too much moving the wood around. 

Still, I spent quite a few hours yesterday splitting some large white oak, and I had to move some large pieces up onto the short butt log I used as a platform. I sure could feel it in my lower back after a bit.


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## ptabaka (Oct 2, 2011)

*wood*

the best thing i bought was a trailer no more tail gate lifts i roll the rounds in the trailer and on the tw6 with log lift the best thing you want when you get older good luck


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## cheeves (Oct 2, 2011)

WoodHeatWarrior said:


> I'm just turning 48, and I'm becoming protective of my back. I've been down with back injuries enough to know that if I get hurt I could be out of action for a long time, and I just cannot afford the down time.
> 
> I can split with an axe for a long time, and I find it excellent exercise and I rarely get hurt doing it. But moving the wood is a different story. I'm lucky enough to be able to get all my wood from my own property, so now I've gone to splitting and stacking wherever I cut it - or at least close by. I just lay out some reasonably straight branches and make a temporary pile right there. This reduces the distance I have to move bigger pieces, and gets it drying ASAP. I often just let nasty crotches and stuff go, as it's not worth the trouble. The one year I borrowed a splitter I almost killed my back for real - just too much moving the wood around.
> 
> Still, I spent quite a few hours yesterday splitting some large white oak, and I had to move some large pieces up onto the short butt log I used as a platform. I sure could feel it in my lower back after a bit.


 
Just a thought..... Do you use a weight lifters belt? I ALWAYS have a magnet belt on, and when I have to mess with heavy stuff I put a weight lifters belt on over the magnet one! Have had a bad back since '85 from lifting locust when I lived in Ohio. Use my splitter in the vertical sitting on a big round. Pull logs over with a three pronged rake.


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## atlarge54 (Oct 2, 2011)

Just turned 60 last month. When the lady of the house asked if I had a nice birthday, I told her any day I get to run a TRACTOR AND A CHAINSAW is a GOOD DAY. 

Got to agree on the low trailer to reduce lifting and the bigger saw to noodle. 

I do seem to spend more time setting on the tailgate just resting and soaking up the great outdoors. Life is good.


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## Chris-PA (Oct 2, 2011)

atlarge54 said:


> I do seem to spend more time setting on the tailgate just resting and soaking up the great outdoors. Life is good.


Shh! You're not supposed to tell about that part - this is just darn hard work as far as anyone else is concerned. Gotta stick to the story or they might catch on.


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## gink595 (Oct 2, 2011)

I'm only 35 but I've had a surgery that cut my abdomen muscles and they put a mesh to hold my innards in, so I really don't have any strength in my stomach muscles which makes my lower back work twice as hard. I've had to learn how to do heavy work with new methods. I rely on the Bobcat for most of it. I will cut the logs and haul them home and then I put the up on some stands and buck them, the only time I really bend over is to put them in the log splitter. I'm looking at making a log splitter for the bobcat just to break the big rounds so I can manage them on the log splitter.


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## Chris-PA (Oct 2, 2011)

cheeves said:


> Just a thought..... Do you use a weight lifters belt? I ALWAYS have a magnet belt on, and when I have to mess with heavy stuff I put a weight lifters belt on over the magnet one! Have had a bad back since '85 from lifting locust when I lived in Ohio. Use my splitter in the vertical sitting on a big round. Pull logs over with a three pronged rake.


I probably should give that try. I've started using an elbow brace for my left arm, as I blew it out years ago with the digging bar setting fence posts and it's never fully recovered. That helps so I suppose some back support might too. It's not that my back is terribly weak, it's actually been holding up well and I've been working it hard, it's just that I'm a bit paranoid about it. I don't mind being sore, as long as I'm not injured.


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## litefoot (Oct 2, 2011)

RPrice said:


> Well, I'm 58 and have cut firewood to heat my houses since I was 25, but with a 5 year "hiatus" from 35 - 40.
> 
> Here in Nevada and Utah I've primarily cut three species, Utah juniper, pinyon pine, and mountain mahogany. With a little Gambel's Oak thrown in for a few years.
> 
> ...



RPrice,
Good to talk to another intermountain guy. I'm in Utah and my typical wood is lodgepole, ponderosa or doug fir. I like the tong idea. I'm hoping to pursue it with a log arch that I can break down for hauling up to the mountains. Thanks for you suggestions.



Blazin said:


> Built a splitter with a lift, and yard truck with a dump, and a dozer with a winch. Just gotta find a few youngin's that wanna work



Blazer, I'd love to see pictures of your stuff. Especially you splitter and lift.



Wood Doctor said:


> I gave up trying to lift 150+ lb logs onto the tailgate. Best bet is to noodle cut them in half and save your back. I bought a 25" bar and chain for the big puppies, and my MS 361 chews them up nicely.
> 
> Crotchwood is a PITA anyway, and noodle cutting the crotch in half saves the splitter as well. I also stopped maul splitting a few years ago. Needless to say, my back troubles have subsided for awhile.
> 
> Aging is relentless. You cannot fight it, but you can ease the pain by reducing the load.



Good suggestion on noodling. I don't usually cut anything that big, but I did help a neighbor cut up a 40" ash that I needed to noodle. Looks like the noodles will be good fire starter.



lon said:


> As I get older, turning 65 next year, I am thankful each year that I can still grab the saws, the tractor and splitter and go chase wood. Will not be a happy day when I need to stop. In view of this, I do whatever I can to keep these years of wood work/play coming. During the off season, I walk and hike to try and keep myself in some degree of good condition. To help with the wood processing, I updated my tractor to a larger size and last week traded in my splitter for one with a lift. With the cost of my saws, tractor and splitter, my wife says we could have spent the rest of our winters together in Hawaii. She is correct but I would much rather cut wood. I also try to find ways that make my cutting a little easier. This forum has been a great asset to me in finding these ideas. Thank you for this site. I also try to remind myself each day I cut to not get in a hurry, be safe, think, know when to stop for the day. Thanks for asking. Excellent question.


 
LOL! Some folks buy boats and others buy tractors and splitters. I guess you focus on what brings you the most pleasure!



ptabaka said:


> the best thing i bought was a trailer no more tail gate lifts i roll the rounds in the trailer and on the tw6 with log lift the best thing you want when you get older good luck



I pull a trailer behind a suburban. I can get about 2 cords in the trailer. And you're right, it's much easier to load. My ideal would be a splitter integrated into the front of the trailer. I could buck and split right there on the mountain and be done with it.



gink595 said:


> I'm only 35 but I've had a surgery that cut my abdomen muscles and they put a mesh to hold my innards in, so I really don't have any strength in my stomach muscles which makes my lower back work twice as hard. I've had to learn how to do heavy work with new methods. I rely on the Bobcat for most of it. I will cut the logs and haul them home and then I put the up on some stands and buck them, the only time I really bend over is to put them in the log splitter. I'm looking at making a log splitter for the bobcat just to break the big rounds so I can manage them on the log splitter.



Thanks for the pics, Gink. Nice set up you have there. I admire your resilience. Hang in there!


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## KiwiBro (Oct 2, 2011)

gink595 said:


> I'm looking at making a log splitter for the bobcat


Firewood Processor - HFP160 Firewood Pro

This one is only up to 18" though, but might give you a few ideas. I can't recall the AS member's username but he helped develop that one I think. There's a thread somewhere on AS about it.


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## bobt (Oct 2, 2011)

All you guys with the equipment make me very envious!

I have found that with all the gnarly knot infested stuff that I cut, I am well ahead by simply ripping the tree trunk down the middle before I block it into firewood lengths. I don't wrestle big rounds into the box of the pickup anymore, and it makes it much easier to split with the maul.

And Oh Yes, the rest time sitting on the tailgate with a cup a joe,,,,,,,,,priceless!!!

Bob


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## Doug Fir (Oct 3, 2011)

*Smaller diameter trees FTW!*

As I have gotten older (and wiser?) I have shifted to smaller diameter wood. The smaller rounds are easier to lift and toss, and I can easily split all of my wood with a lightweight splitting axe. The smaller diameter stuff is also easier to find, in part because the commercial guys like the big stuff. I cut trees up to 18" this year, but most of the wood in my shed came from trees that were 6-10" in diameter. 

Sure, it takes a bit longer to get a cord, but the body suffers less wear and tear. I no longer try to minimize the time per cord. Instead, I try to minimize "wear and tear" per cord, while still getting the exercise that comes from doing most of the work by hand. I suppose I could get a splitter and other machinery to help out, but I fear that would only accelerate the aging process. 

I'm just a firewood scavenger cutting for my own use. I enjoy it. Needless to say, my advice does not apply to those who are trying to make a living cutting firewood. 

Doug


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## unclemoustache (Oct 3, 2011)

litefoot said:


> Let me preface by saying that I'm still strong enough to handle some good-sized rounds, but I have had hernia surgery related to hauling wood, so I have to be careful. Other than having your kids haul the wood for you, what have you done to facilitate the process?


 

Darn - you said "Other than having your kids haul the wood..." That was going to be my answer.

I don't have any heavy equipment - just a lawn tractor which pulls a small trailer, then a larger trailer pulled by my truck. A buddy of mine uses a two-wheel cart to haul the medium size rounds onto the trailer- the bigger ones are noodled in half or quarters. Don't have the funds for heavy equipment, but maybe someday....


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## eric_271 (Oct 3, 2011)

We grew up with a wood stove for heat and i hated pulling brush for dad while he cut. He stopped burning when all of us kids moved away. I ended up buying property across the road from his a few years later and after a really harsh winter decided i was going to start burning wood. Dad loaned me his Chevy half ton and his saw and i never looked back. The next year Mom and Dad decided to start burning again. Dad bought a 53 Chevy wheat truck and i built him a new steel dump bed to replace the rotted out wood frame and deck. He also has a 23H.P. 4x4 Kubota. 

From that point on we left everything we cut a few feet longer than the bed of the wheat truck and used ramps for the little kubota to get high enough to dump the logs over the sides of the bed. He had built his bucket to be able to use forks which were great for hooking and pushing brush away and into piles. This was really beating the heck out of loading and unloading the wood by hand and eliminating the hand handling of brush.

About 11 years ago i ran across a good deal on a backhoe and added forks to the bucket on it. We've used it and his kubota and his and my wheat trucks ever since. His tractor is handy for pushing the brush and stacking the logs in piles and my backhoe for carrying whole trees and stacking the piles of logs high in the trucks. We hauled home over 40 heaping wheat truck loads last winter. I built 2 different log splitters with the second being a vertical and horizontal. It's worked out well for both of us and i enjoyed cutting wood with him. Two people and a little equipment can sure save on tons of labor.


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## turnkey4099 (Oct 3, 2011)

I'm closing in on 77. Still out there but my work day is down to around 4 hours anymore. Changes? Not many, I bust the rounds down smaller any more, about 100 lbs is all I want to "clean and jerk" onto the tailgate . Got both hips replaced about 10 years ago and that didn't slow me down. Doc didn't even object when I told him I was out there 'wooding'. 

Tools? 

1. Rider mower and small cart

2. Splitter but it only gets used on the knots/crotches, all others gets the wedge/sledge, maul, Fiskars treatment - I need all the exercise I can get. Took me a good month last spring to get back into some semblance of "shape" after sitting on my rear all winter.

3.Best tool and I wish I had gotten one years ago (finally did 2 years ago): *Hookeroon*. It is amazing how much 'work' one saves just moving rounds around. It really comes into play when unloading. I added a 7' homebuilt one so I can now unload the pickup without ever crawling up into the bed. On the ground or in the truck it is rare that I ever bend over to move a round. Those hookeroons have become a third arm for me. I saw that someone mentioned using a 3 tine rake. I did the same for years. The first time I used a real hookeroon I realized just how poor a substitute rakes are. I gaurantee that anyone who uses a hookeroon once will never, ever be without one again.

Headed out tomorrow to finish the last job of the year, fall a medium size, mostly dead locust. Figure I should have it down, brush piled and all cut up by noon.

Unfortunately I have not one tree lined up after tomorrow's. Gotta get on the phone and start calling around. I send out letters asking about trees that really need removing but hardly ever get an answer to them - I'll try the phone this winter.

Harry K


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## EXCALIBER (Oct 3, 2011)

Well I would suggest to keep the most $ in your pocket and for as little wood as you do each year to mount one of these on your truck or trailer to lift logs into place. I would then replace the hand winch with an electric one and you would be set for very little money. I think these are 150-300 $ at Northern Tool


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## Nosmo (Oct 3, 2011)

*Changes or Additions I Have Made*

I turned 70 in July and am still cutting , loading, splitting and stacking my own firewood. Used to do it all by hand except the cutting.

Decided a couple years ago to try and make things easier. First thing I added was a Harbor Freight crane to my pickup to make loading the big ones easier. It is no problem to lift a 150 round into my pickup or set it onto my trailer.

Next addition was a Huskee 35 ton splitter. Sure do wish I'd gotten it a long time before waiting so long.

Latest addition was a Big Red 2-ton engine hoist from Tractor Supply. I modified the hoist by adding a hand operated winch. I can lift a 150 lb. round and set it right into the cradle of the splitter. 

Nosmo


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## spike60 (Oct 3, 2011)

Wood Doctor said:


> I gave up trying to lift 150+ lb logs onto the tailgate. Best bet is to noodle cut them in half and save your back. I bought a 25" bar and chain for the big puppies, and my MS 361 chews them up nicely.
> 
> Crotchwood is a PITA anyway, and noodle cutting the crotch in half saves the splitter as well. I also stopped maul splitting a few years ago. Needless to say, my back troubles have subsided for awhile.
> 
> Aging is relentless. You cannot fight it, but you can ease the pain by reducing the load.



Pretty much the same for me. Anything I don't feel like lifting gets halved or quartered. No reason to strain myself, plus it's a good excuse to run the bigger saws. :msp_thumbup:

Got a splitter about 10 years ago. I was only 45 then and still using a maul, but it was a super deal from a guy who was moving. ($500 like new MTD) But I'm sure that at some point between then and now it would have been a move that I would have had to make regardless of getting a great deal or not.

Also I've grown to love cutting tops. A lot less splitting and everything is easy to toss in the truck.


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## Chris-PA (Oct 3, 2011)

Doug Fir said:


> As I have gotten older (and wiser?) I have shifted to smaller diameter wood. The smaller rounds are easier to lift and toss, and I can easily split all of my wood with a lightweight splitting axe. The smaller diameter stuff is also easier to find, in part because the commercial guys like the big stuff. I cut trees up to 18" this year, but most of the wood in my shed came from trees that were 6-10" in diameter.
> 
> Sure, it takes a bit longer to get a cord, but the body suffers less wear and tear. I no longer try to minimize the time per cord. Instead, I try to minimize "wear and tear" per cord, while still getting the exercise that comes from doing most of the work by hand. I suppose I could get a splitter and other machinery to help out, but I fear that would only accelerate the aging process.
> 
> ...


Since I split by hand any piece that has big knots or is oversize or otherwise splits hard is a big time hit. I can knock apart decently straight 20" logs for hours, but if I have to drag some oversize thing around I lose a lot of time and expend a lot of energy. 

One of my wedges is still up in a big oak log by the treeline from Saturday. I don't know what's inside that log - there were no hints from either end or around the sides - but it won't let go. It kept popping the wedge part way out, and I said it's either gonna split or give me the wedge back. I was wrong. I got wedge half way through the darn thing and decided to call it a day. I coulda split a dozen smaller logs for all time and effort I put into that.


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## moose5180 (Oct 3, 2011)

I have learned that the only time a piece of wood should hit the ground is when the tree is cut down. 
I have a system that works well, fell tree, chunk up, load on trailer, roll from trailer directly to splitter, split, stack.
The less it is handled and kept off the ground the more efficient your firewood getting process will be. 

In the past i made the mistake of dumping chunked wood in a pile to split later. Well every piece of it will again need 
to be picked off the ground to the splitter. This will double your work and your back will not thank you.


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## litefoot (Oct 3, 2011)

bfunk13 said:


> I have learned that the only time a piece of wood should hit the ground is when the tree is cut down.
> I have a system that works well, fell tree, chunk up, load on trailer, roll from trailer directly to splitter, split, stack.
> The less it is handled and kept off the ground the more efficient your firewood getting process will be.
> 
> ...


 
Good thinking! The wood I haul this year is usually not going get used until next year or even the year after. And since it's not covered, it sits for 1 or 2 long winters out in the rain and snow, so to keep it protected, I don't split it until I need it. Maybe I'm over-thinking...or may I just need to build a shed


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## turnkey4099 (Oct 3, 2011)

litefoot said:


> Good thinking! The wood I haul this year is usually not going get used until next year or even the year after. And since it's not covered, it sits for 1 or 2 long winters out in the rain and snow, so to keep it protected, I don't split it until I need it. Maybe I'm over-thinking...or may I just need to build a shed


 
Same here, Iam about 10-12 years ahead on Black Locust. Every chunk that comes home gets dumped an piled "in the round" for splitting later when I need something to do, to work off some energy, to whale away at a chunk instead of the wife . 

I usually, on days I'm not doing anything staart it by splitting manually a garden trailer of rounds (4-6 big ones) to get the blood flowing, then bring another trailerload up to the split/pile area.

Harry K


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## ponyexpress976 (Oct 3, 2011)

This is only my third year of wood burning at my house. As a kid, my dad would bring home trailer loads of pallets on the weekends and let me "play" with the saw to my hart's content all summer long. Man. I hated running an old speaker magnet through the ask bin to get all the nails out!

Now that I'm cutting for myself, I'm not sure which utensil I love more, my fiskars or my tw-6. I have a nice area under a maple tree that stays shaded to work. Back up the truck and hit a button to unload. Once I cut a decent size pile to stove length, I'll spend some time with the fiskars getting warmed up. I'll whack away at all the easy pieces filling up the gator and saving my wallet from the gas man. Once Im down to the "harder" pieces like big stuff and crotches, I will fire up the tw. 

I have become much more coscientoius as to the size of my splits. Last year I acquired a nasty case of tenis elbow. Split everything big and picked it all up by the ends to toss into the gator...that was the most annoying injury I've ever had. My dominant hand was so weak that on the worst days I could barely hold a cup of coffee.


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## peterc38 (Oct 3, 2011)

I turned 50 last year and while I don't have the brute strength I had as a 210 .lb 25 year old, I probably have 85% of the strength as a 185 .lb 50 year old and am a lot smarter! I still can get it done physically, even with having spinal fusion 10 years ago. I have a tractor when needed and one handy gadget I got a couple months ago is a Logrite pickaroon. About the only thing that really slows me down is the really hot summer days. I don't know how my southern AS brethren can tolerate it, as I have lived in a cold climate all my life. Cuttin' in the heat is real tough, splittin' not quite as bad.


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## ponyexpress976 (Oct 3, 2011)

peterc38 said:


> I don't know how my southern AS brethren can tolerate it, as I have lived in a cold climate all my life. Cuttin' in the heat is real tough, splittin' not quite as bad.


 
You ain't kidding brother...cuting in the heat just plain sucks, no matter what your age is!


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## rmount (Oct 3, 2011)

I'll turn 60 while I'm cutting next spring. The best trick I've learned is to slow down a bit and don't go at it non-stop. Leaning on the maul and watching the chipmunks play, or sitting on a stump and listening to the birds occasionally doesn't change your output all that much but it sure leaves you feeling better at the end of the day.


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## logbutcher (Oct 3, 2011)

INSPIRING !!

Keep the telling. Damn inspiring in fact. :yourock:


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## Chris-PA (Oct 3, 2011)

ponyexpress976 said:


> You ain't kidding brother...cuting in the heat just plain sucks, no matter what your age is!


What do you mean - I love being bitten by bugs and having sweat pouring down my face and running down my glasses. What could be more fun?


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## litefoot (Oct 3, 2011)

rmount said:


> I'll turn 60 while I'm cutting next spring. The best trick I've learned is to slow down a bit and don't go at it non-stop. Leaning on the maul and watching the chipmunks play, or sitting on a stump and listening to the birds occasionally doesn't change your output all that much but it sure leaves you feeling better at the end of the day.


 
Nice. There's a lesson for all of us.


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## 046 (Oct 3, 2011)

working wood is good for ya... so long as you don't get hurt. 

figured out I'm no longer superman and cannot do the things I did younger. 
now you figure out how to work smarter. 

unless you've got a high $$$ budget and/or very good at fabricating a hydraulic lift. 
go with tilt splitters like Huskee 35ton ($1600 on sale)... large rounds can be easily maneuvered into position with a Peavy. which by the way is mandatory!!!! 

now everyone says... don't be straining yourself ... noodle it down to size. 
for me instead of wrestling 5ft diameter rounds into place.... screw it... noodle it is MUCH easier. 

get a motorized wheelbarrow like a DR Powerwagon or Muck truck... scored mine on Craigslist for $350. the Muck truck even less. but you've got to be patient, jump on it when it does come up for cheap.


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## JimmyT (Oct 4, 2011)

litefoot, I don't haul rounds. I cut the rounds and split them right in the woods using a vertical splitter. I sit on a milk crate and just roll the rounds up to the splitter and there is very little lifting involved. I chunk the billets on the truck as I split then bring them home and stack them on landscape timbers. I don't like double handling my firewood. You can work hard when you are young but you need to work smart when you are old.


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## turnkey4099 (Oct 4, 2011)

ponyexpress976 said:


> You ain't kidding brother...cuting in the heat just plain sucks, no matter what your age is!


 
Same here so I just don't do it. Leave early, come back early before the heat builds. When my sweat bands need changing every 10 minutes, I quit.

Harry k


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## clayman (Oct 4, 2011)

I was 73 years old as of last June, and I have been cutting firewood, mostly out of my own little 12 acre woods, for the last 40 years. I only cut standing dead trees, or blow downs. I realized some years ago if I wanted to keep doing this, and I do, I needed to stay in shape. So I go and work out at the Y twice a week (silver sneaker member). I designed a workout routine that would strengthen those muscles that I use to saw, lift, and split wood.

I don't lift heavy rounds anymore. I might roll them, or tumble them, but I don't lift them ( I could, but I don't). I saw the wood into rounds, split it, and stack it where I cut it down. I keep a year ahead on my wood cutting. Right now I am cutting for next year, so I am not in a hurry. This way I can stack the wood and cover it up right where I cut it, and come for it next year at my leisure.

I work until I get tired, and then I quit. Working tired will get you hurt. You make mistakes.

I don't have a splitter, and I don't intend to get one. If I had one I would need to bring the rounds to the splitter, and I don't lift rounds, and I don't build roads into the woods. I do clear narrow lanes for a garden tractor and small trailer to haul the wood out.

Also I have learned, if I run into wood that is hard to split, I will stand up the rounds and saw a starter split about about 4" deep into them (do them all at one time), put a wedge into that split
and crack it open. That is not a lot faster, but is much easier on the old body.

My property is hilly, and sometimes I want to cut up a tree that is down in a steep hollow. If a tractor can get near it I get one of my near neighbors, who has a tractor (three of them do), to snake them out for me. If the Tractor is not feasible I pull them out in short pieces with a heavy duty come-a-long. This takes longer of course, but is not that hard.

Finally, I don't burn wood for primary heat, but usually just on really cold nights as an auxiliary source of heat, and because I like to sit by a fire. So I don't need a lot of wood. I usually burn about +/- 3 cords a year, and mostly oak.

I fall trees in the direction that will be the safest, and will make the least work. A year or so ago I went to a wire rope store, and bought 75' of 5/16" good bright steel cable. and I had them put a loop on each end. I also bought a cable puller device to attach to the end of it (without this the wire rope is virtually useless). I also bought a Maasdam, heavy duty, come-a-long. I use this to pull trees in the direction I want them to go, and to snake them out of the woods, and there is no stretching or worry about it breaking. 

I don't know how much longer I can do this, but I will do all I can to keep the end of it years away. 

Be safe out there.


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## litefoot (Oct 4, 2011)

Thank you clayman. You're an inspiration to us all...and Eastern TN is a very nice place to be.


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## s219 (Oct 4, 2011)

Way to go clayman -- keep it up. I cut wood with an active 70-something year old a few weeks back, and he was a real inspiration to be around. I sure hope I can be that active and fit when I am in my 70s.

I brought home a trailer-full of rounds Sunday, intending to break them down right on the trailer and stack on my pile. However, I discovered that it's too muddy to back down to my wood pile (it's been raining in biblical proportions here -- I might just build an ark). So what I really should do is pick up a load of gravel to put down, and maybe a couple bales of straw. Unfortunately, that means offloading the wood somewhere first, since I need the trailer to get the gravel. And these were big rounds too -- about 24 to 30" in diameter, and some left 6 feet long (I cranked them into the trailer with a come-along). Basically, I think I have screwed myself with this trailer-full of big rounds -- no way to get out of handling them several times now. I am going to give it a few days to see if the ground dries out before dealing with it.

Regarding splitting, I don't think I have seen anyone mention noodling the wood with a saw, but that is another option to keep in mind if you don't want to run a splitter or swing an axe/maul. I stack cut rounds in a pile and then start by sawing the top ones in half, then quarters, and smaller if possible. So the majority of the "splitting" is done with the saw. This also produces some nice straw-like chips that you can use for a variety of uses -- animal bedding, tinder, or mulch. I mainly do this because it's faster for a one-man operation, plus I like running a saw a lot more than an axe/maul. But I do think it's a lot easier on a person -- you're letting the saw and fuel do the work.


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## RPrice (Oct 4, 2011)

WoodHeatWarrior said:


> What do you mean - I love being bitten by bugs and having sweat pouring down my face and running down my glasses. What could be more fun?


 
That's exactly how I was last weekend, I especially love the sweat pouring down inside my glasses and mixing with sawdust. This week.............Winter Storm Warning. Gotta love the south west!


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## Hank Chinaski (Oct 4, 2011)

one of my best wood cutting buddies is 78, and while I'm 45 and a little gimpy, he usually runs circles around me... you know one of those tough old stringy types that the cannibals will save for last... :hmm3grin2orange:

He's a great guy and just last year bought his first splitter. We use it vertically and just roll the rounds up to it. He's a firewood monster, having prob 10x more wood than he'll ever burn, but still getting more when the gettin's good. Prob has over 20 chords stored, and only uses 2-3/yr.

we usually load rounds on a 16' utility trailer (drive up to where the wood is) and he hauls the splitter on a 5x8 to split on location. 

So, from his point of view, one of the adjustments he's made is to find someone younger, dumber, and uglier to run circles around and occasionally lift heavy crap, but mostly to fall back on if there's any trouble.


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## clayman (Oct 4, 2011)

That was funny number 37. :biggrin: I needed a laugh, Thanks.

Another thing I ought to say: God has blessed me. I am in good health, and pretty fit for my age. My will tells me I can do anything I once did, but my will doesn't have any brains and doesn't understand I am not the man I used to be. That's the danger. When you are older don't assume you can do all you once did just because you feel like you can. I learned you can't: not without paying a price. :msp_ohmy:


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## Chris-PA (Oct 4, 2011)

RPrice said:


> That's exactly how I was last weekend, I especially love the sweat pouring down inside my glasses and mixing with sawdust. This week.............Winter Storm Warning. Gotta love the south west!


And after a couple of hours you can't find any places on your shirt dry or clean enough to wipe them off with! Every couple of minutes you gotta put down your tools, take off your gloves and wipe the sweat off your glasses - it gets really old.


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## turnkey4099 (Oct 4, 2011)

WoodHeatWarrior said:


> And after a couple of hours you can't find any places on your shirt dry or clean enough to wipe them off with! Every couple of minutes you gotta put down your tools, take off your gloves and wipe the sweat off your glasses - it gets really old.


 
That's what sweatbands are for. I use these since my SIL keeps me in stock from Canada. They don't look like much but they soak up a whole lotta sweat before it begins running. Take off, squeeze out, hang on a bush to dry and put on a dry one. I have had as many as 4 at a time going in rotation but I don't work that hard any more.

Harry K


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## RPrice (Oct 4, 2011)

turnkey4099 said:


> That's what sweatbands are for. I use these since my SIL keeps me in stock from Canada. They don't look like much but they soak up a whole lotta sweat before it begins running. Take off, squeeze out, hang on a bush to dry and put on a dry one. I have had as many as 4 at a time going in rotation but I don't work that hard any more.
> 
> Harry K



This is scary, I actually...............no really I did............. think that a sweatband could help, but the last time I used or saw one was back in the 70's. Guess I've been out of touch!!


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## Chris-PA (Oct 4, 2011)

RPrice said:


> This is scary, I actually...............no really I did............. think that a sweatband could help, but the last time I used or saw one was back in the 70's. Guess I've been out of touch!!


Wait, are you allowed to cut wood in a polyester jogging suit? I'm just too cool for a sweat band (well, maybe I'll give that a try).


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## gallegosmike (Oct 4, 2011)

RPrice said:


> Well, I'm 58 and have cut firewood to heat my houses since I was 25, but with a 5 year "hiatus" from 35 - 40.
> 
> Here in Nevada and Utah I've primarily cut three species, Utah juniper, pinyon pine, and mountain mahogany. With a little Gambel's Oak thrown in for a few years.
> 
> ...



I am a young buck at 37, but sit on my arse all day. So I am a wee bit out of shape! I cut green pinon pine(pinyon pine in my neck of the woods), 3 seed juniper(we just call it juniper) and what ever else I can scrounge up. I will never try to hand split green pinon because it is to stringy and tough! I split it green and stack it to season for the following years firewood. Juniper seasons up pretty fast and splits super easy, but tough on chains. 

I am in the process of buying some husky 8" and 12" log tongs to speed up the loading process. 

Mike


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## litefoot (Oct 4, 2011)

Well, I asked the question, so let me tell you what I'm going to do...for now. I think I'm going to start cutting my firewood into 16" rounds there on the mountain. I think I'll purchase some timber tongs to pick up and load the rounds into one of those lawn cart/wagons (which I'll also need to purchase. I hope this will be less fatiguing and will require less bending over. I also think I'm going to buy some kind of timber jack as well. I'm not quite ready for a splitter, but I think I'm going to try one of those Fiskers I hear so much about. Oh, and a longer bar for the chainsaw for less bending.

Thanks for all the great inspiring ideas and suggestions.


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## J.W Younger (Oct 4, 2011)

What changes as you get older is you're sure you have enough wood for the winter after this one is you git sum more up jest to be sure.


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## Wife'nHubby (Oct 4, 2011)

Well, hubby & I are on the other side of 60 so I guess that makes both of us a little older. Hubby was in construction all his life and strong as an ox until he had his chest opened up 3 times. Me? Office worker, sales, etc. - nothing much physical. Due to medical bills we had to find ways to cut costs and wood heat entered our lives.

Triptester, a member here, did a fantastic re-do of our splitter which included a log lift - that lift is a wonderful back saver for me as hubby can't help much with the rounds. I have found we don't call "Union Break" as often now that we have the log lift. 

We don't have any heavy equipment here other than maybe the splitter. Keep in mind we are small peanuts firewood processors compared to most of you.

If I could setup splitting wood like this every time I would feel like I was in heaven:








Suburban firewood processing: 

Drop the gate on the trailer to near level.
Lower splitter lift to just below gate level.
Use the pickeroon to roll rounds onto the lift.
Lift & split.
Push off to (in this case) a wagon or another trailer.
Pull wagon or trailer (with the riding mower) over to stacking area.
Stack.

Ideally I should be splitting right next to my stacks - but I've got too much wood right now and can't get the equipment in the backyard right now. This will be corrected by the end of this heating season.

The above photo/steps means nothing touches the ground until it is stacked. Bending is something my back likes less and less as I get older. 

Shari


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## J.W Younger (Oct 4, 2011)

Wife'nHubby said:


> Well, hubby & I are on the other side of 60 so I guess that makes both of us a little older. Hubby was in construction all his life and strong as an ox until he had his chest opened up 3 times. Me? Office worker, sales, etc. - nothing much physical. Due to medical bills we had to find ways to cut costs and wood heat entered our lives.
> 
> Triptester, a member here, did a fantastic re-do of ousplitterer which included a log lift - that lift is a wonderful back saver for me as hubby can't help much with the rounds. I have found we don't call "Union Break" as often now that we have the splitter.
> 
> ...


You've come long way Sherry, thats for sure. I don't have a log lift but can still move a 150 lb round from the tailgate to the splitter. Sometimes I will use crotches as ramps to get em up to knee height before lifting. Any stuff bigger I have to saw in half or more times in order to load.


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## sawinredneck (Oct 4, 2011)

43, I cut with my dad, he's 72 and in much better shape than I! Now that I have a broken back I mechanize every thing I can! I bought a mini skid steer with a log grapple three years ago, some of the best money I ever spent! It's my back! I can cut, load, and haul home two cords of wood in two hours by myself (being baby sat now of course!) and be on my way! Small, light, nimble, and carries a LOT more wood than you would think it can!


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## bowtechmadman (Oct 5, 2011)

Two best things for me was an ATV and log splitter that will split vertically. After getting an OWB only took 2 yrs of throwing as big of rounds as I could fit through the door in for me to require a hernia surgery. Now at 41 I split on location and have stopped trying to move big rounds.


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## turnkey4099 (Oct 5, 2011)

turnkey4099 said:


> That's what sweatbands are for. I use these since my SIL keeps me in stock from Canada. They don't look like much but they soak up a whole lotta sweat before it begins running. Take off, squeeze out, hang on a bush to dry and put on a dry one. I have had as many as 4 at a time going in rotation but I don't work that hard any more.
> 
> Harry K



Nuts, photo didn't post:






Harry K


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## Miles86 (Oct 5, 2011)

I'm trying to design a welded mounting plate for a Warn electric winch (smaller model say 1500 lbs?) and a rotating davit mounted near the front of my trailer.

I then can get the larger rounds to the side of the trailer and using a log tong on the winch cable, use the davit to lift & swing the rounds onto the trailer, then I can reposition them on the flat bed. 

I would rather noodle these large rounds at home than in the forest to save daylight for cutting in the woods.


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## RPrice (Oct 5, 2011)

gallegosmike said:


> I am a young buck at 37, but sit on my arse all day. So I am a wee bit out of shape! I cut green pinon pine(pinyon pine in my neck of the woods), 3 seed juniper(we just call it juniper) and what ever else I can scrounge up. I will never try to hand split green pinon because it is to stringy and tough! I split it green and stack it to season for the following years firewood. Juniper seasons up pretty fast and splits super easy, but tough on chains.
> 
> I am in the process of buying some husky 8" and 12" log tongs to speed up the loading process.
> 
> Mike


 
Mike,
Yes, when I would cut pinyon, I'd cut it green, and I'd typically start cutting as soon as the snow melted enough in the spring. I'd bring it home and split it with my log splitter and stack to hopefully dry enough during those short summers when I lived in east central NV. I like Utah Juniper, which has the real shaggy bark that seems to collect dirt and often dulls chains pretty quick. I touch up my cutters at each refueling "break", and that fixes the "hard on chains" issue for me.

The log tongs I have are the Husky brand, they work great!!

Take care,


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## RPrice (Oct 5, 2011)

turnkey4099 said:


> Nuts, photo didn't post:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 

I love the elastic "strap"! Very stylish. I'm gonna do a search for them right now.

Thanks!!


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## Somesawguy (Oct 5, 2011)

What ever happened to a good old fashioned bandana? A sponge with a rubber band? Seriously? :msp_unsure: Whatever works I guess :hmm3grin2orange:


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## turnkey4099 (Oct 5, 2011)

Somesawguy said:


> What ever happened to a good old fashioned bandana? A sponge with a rubber band? Seriously? :msp_unsure: Whatever works I guess :hmm3grin2orange:



That sponge with rubber band will do a 100% better job than any bandana you have ever used. 

You should try something before knocking it.

Harry K


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## cheeves (Oct 5, 2011)

Wife'nHubby said:


> Well, hubby & I are on the other side of 60 so I guess that makes both of us a little older. Hubby was in construction all his life and strong as an ox until he had his chest opened up 3 times. Me? Office worker, sales, etc. - nothing much physical. Due to medical bills we had to find ways to cut costs and wood heat entered our lives.
> 
> Triptester, a member here, did a fantastic re-do of our splitter which included a log lift - that lift is a wonderful back saver for me as hubby can't help much with the rounds. I have found we don't call "Union Break" as often now that we have the log lift.
> 
> ...


Shari, My heart goes out to you!

i had a slight heart attack in the early 90's. I'm 61 now and been thru the mill health wise. But am fine now sxcept the back, but deal with it. Shari, I don't know what is wrong with your husband, but it sounds like heart. #### Quinn wrote a book called "Left For Dead" about a messed up by pass surgery. He healed himself with essentially cayenne pepper, garlic, hawthorn, and CoQ10. Hippocrates used it to strengthen the heart. You can get these all at Wal-Mart. I've done this regimen and it does work! Anyway felt I must try and help somehow. All the best. Bob


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## olyman (Oct 5, 2011)

Wood Doctor said:


> I gave up trying to lift 150+ lb logs onto the tailgate. Best bet is to noodle cut them in half and save your back. I bought a 25" bar and chain for the big puppies, and my MS 361 chews them up nicely.
> 
> Crotchwood is a PITA anyway, and noodle cutting the crotch in half saves the splitter as well. I also stopped maul splitting a few years ago. Needless to say, my back troubles have subsided for awhile.
> 
> Aging is relentless. You cannot fight it, but you can ease the pain by reducing the load.


 
you know the ramps for a pickup,,to load a atv or the like? well, i used two treated 2x8's..6 foot long,,and had a guy bend 2, 1/4" thick pieces of metal 8" wide x 12 in long,,with a ??23?? degree bend in them, at the middle..they are bolted to the 2x8..youd be surprised how big a rounds you can roll up onto the truck!!! set them 2X8's about 10 inches apart... just enough to step thru on the way to log roll to top..


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## dhopkins55 (Oct 8, 2011)

I'm 56 (57 in April) and in pretty good shape for my age. Career military guy, I now teach high school, but can still put my jogging shoes on and do three miles at the track in 27 minutes. To that end I heat my home in the Upper Peninsula of MI with coal and wood. I actually enjoy humping 40# bags of anthracite, as well as splitting & stacking wood. I have 6 chords split & stacked for this winter, with another 11 chords of uncut logs that were just delivered for cutting up and use during subsequent winters. The one modification I'm going to make is to put a chute or rolling ramp (like you see at the post office) from outside through a basement window not far from my coal/wood furnace. That way I can haul the wood or bags of coal to the chute and load directly into my basement without having to carry it all in. I think that will save me a lot of work and frustration as I get into my 70s down the road. Until then, all the manual labor is good for me and I enjoy it!!


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## XTROOPER (Oct 8, 2011)

*Pickup truck crane*

I am thinking about getting a pickup truck crane from Harbor Freight for about $130 and mounting it on my small wood trailer that I haul with my Kubota RTV 1100 side by side RTV. I lifted some really big black walnut this year and have to do something different.

XTROOPER


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## Photog95 (Oct 8, 2011)

I should still be going crazy at 41 but I beat my body up in my younger years in the motocross lifestyle. These days I have slowed down a lot. I built a splitter a few years ago, bought a smaller saw for a firewood saw, and am now looking into a tractor. Today I went out with the intention of getting a couple small trees on the ground. It was pretty windy here today so extra time and caution were needed. I got a couple down, bucked them up, and went over and sat on the tailgate for about a half hour listening to the birds and squirrels. I sat there long enough that a group of deer walked up on me and didn't even notice me. I sat and watched them for a few minutes before I decided to sneak to the cab for the camera. I made one step and they were gone. I may have to do that more often.


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## cjnspecial (Oct 8, 2011)

A tractor with FEL and grapple really helps. I bring 6 foot logs to a table next to the splitter that is the same height. I buck the log into 4 rounds while on the table and then easily roll them onto my splitter. Once split, I just toss them into a pile and later push them in front of the wood shed or dump some in the back of the truck. Most of the wood I split is 15-20 inch diameter green pecan or oak and my back thanked me immensely after buying that tractor.


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## moose5180 (Oct 8, 2011)

I consider myself a pretty good welder/fabricator and have built my own splitter and my own wood trailer.
I always thought a splitter station built on a trailer would be cool. I would rather do all of my firewood work in the mountains. 
Its cooler and prettier. You could save another step in the handling process with this. You could come home with a load of split firewood ready for stacking. 
I would really like to build one someday.


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## Photog95 (Oct 8, 2011)

bfunk13 said:


> I consider myself a pretty good welder/fabricator and have built my own splitter and my own wood trailer.
> I always thought a splitter station built on a trailer would be cool. I would rather do all of my firewood work in the mountains.
> Its cooler and prettier. You could save another step in the handling process with this. You could come home with a load of split firewood ready for stacking.
> I would really like to build one someday.



I always had a dream of doing this with a dump truck. I though it would be cool to have it function as a rear bumper. When needed just pull a pin and swing it out.


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## rwoods (Oct 9, 2011)

I'm sure that I am just fooling myself but I still consider myself to be young at 55. Biggest thing I have done is try to learn more, primarily by paying more attention to what others do and what tools work and what doesn't. I also joined AS. Hand splitting for example: knocking off small chunks is usually less work than trying to split a round in half first; some wedges aren't ground correctly and tend to bounce instead of driving in; same thing with mauls; and a good light maul is better than a bad heavy maul. Just because you have always done something a certain way and your father before you doesn't always mean it is the best way. 

Best tool decisions of mine: buying a bigger saw, buying a bigger cant hook (4' although I still use my short handle the most), building a 3 point hitch lift using old fork lift arms for my small utility tractor (tractor is for mowing - I couldn't justify it for my cutting alone), and keeping a new chain for each primary saw for emergencies.

Best advice I can give: Take your time. Be extra careful if you are injuried, and especially if you are hurried or tired (is either possible?). Always take extra sharp chains and change them when dull instead of simply powering through. Know your limitations and be a Boy Scout - always prepared.

Best bad example I can personally give: Last Thanksgiving before the big meal I rushed out to try my then new to me SP125C on a downed 4 foot plus red oak (just a warm up for my extra day off - Friday). The SP125C is a good 10# heavier than I was accustomed to using. I was in a hurry and ended up straining by neck and left shoulder. I couldn't work at all on Friday due to the pain. I felt well enough to try again on Saturday but had other appointments so once again I was rushed. I cut an 18" or so thick round (52" in diameter) which slid down the bank in to the narrow county road. I had to go but I couldn't leave it in the road - near a blind curve. Due to my previous injuries, I tried to move it with the cant hook using only my right arm. After many attempts I was only able to get it to the edge of the shoulder. Ended up quartering it. About an hour later, I have the worst headache I have ever had. Couple more hours later I am vomiting unexplainably. Wife and kids tell me there is a bug going around and of course, there are no doctor's offices open on the weekend so I don't go to the ER. Fast forward to the next Thursday, I am in an ambulance being transported to another city for possibly neurosurgery - I had shredded the lining of my cartoid artery while trying to move that round one-handed. The injury was found to be inoperatable due to it location. The best news the doctors could give me was "You're survived the weekend and you are still alive." I missed about six weeks of work and the entire wood cutting season. I went to my first GTG and couldn't even carry my saw much less run it. All because I was working with an existing injury and while in a hurry. In hindsight, if I were in that situation again I should have chained the round to my Landcruiser and just dug it down the road to a safe spot. But my point is I should not have gotten in that situation to begin with, the cutting could have waited until I was healed and I had more time.

I need to use my head more and my body less. 

:bang:

Ron


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## tomtrees58 (Oct 9, 2011)

this saves my back


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## s219 (Oct 9, 2011)

Ron, I hurt just reading your post! I've been in the same kind of situation before, trying to do too much by myself, and it is a great way to get hurt as you noted. To this day, I still flirt with trouble like that, and I am sure I am headed for a hernia or some other sort of pressure/strain injury one of these days. I need to slow down and think rather than throw my body at problems sometimes.


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## turnkey4099 (Oct 9, 2011)

tomtrees58 said:


> this saves my back


 
Those logs look pretty junky. You can drop them in my lot and I won't charge you a dump fee.

Harry K


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## cheeves (Oct 9, 2011)

s219 said:


> Ron, I hurt just reading your post! I've been in the same kind of situation before, trying to do too much by myself, and it is a great way to get hurt as you noted. To this day, I still flirt with trouble like that, and I am sure I am headed for a hernia or some other sort of pressure/strain injury one of these days. I need to slow down and think rather than throw my body at problems sometimes.


 
Start wearing a weight lifters belt. I wish I had years ago!


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## rwoods (Oct 9, 2011)

s219 said:


> Ron, I hurt just reading your post! I've been in the same kind of situation before, trying to do too much by myself, and it is a great way to get hurt as you noted. To this day, I still flirt with trouble like that, and I am sure I am headed for a hernia or some other sort of pressure/strain injury one of these days. I need to slow down and think rather than throw my body at problems sometimes.


 
Thanks for relating. The LORD was merciful - I didn't die and I didn't have a stroke. I have been released to go back to cutting but warned not to get too carried away. I have just one more month of precautionary blood thinners and I must have periodic MRAs. Now if I could just lose that 16 or so pounds I gained laying around. Ron


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## litefoot (Oct 10, 2011)

rwoods said:


> Thanks for relating. The LORD was merciful - I didn't die and I didn't have a stroke. I have been released to go back to cutting but warned not to get too carried away. I have just one more month of precautionary blood thinners and I must have periodic MRAs. Now if I could just lose that 16 or so pounds I gained laying around. Ron



Thanks for sharing that story. I was upset by my hernia and labeled that as the most expensive firewood I ever brought home. You, however, helped me see that something so "major" is in reality not so big a deal compared to your ordeal and, of course, compared to the grand scheme of things.


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## rwoods (Oct 10, 2011)

litefoot said:


> Thanks for sharing that story. I was upset by my hernia and labeled that as the most expensive firewood I ever brought home. You, however, helped me see that something so "major" is in reality not so big a deal compared to your ordeal and, of course, compared to the grand scheme of things.


 
Thanks. I have had two business associates have stokes recently. Me missing a little work and a cutting season, being more careful and taking a little medication for life are pretty mild compared to what they are going through right now. Ron


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## Woodomaker (Oct 10, 2011)

I use logging tongs, welded to a chain that hangs on the front hook of my tractor bucket.
I use a piece of angle iron to keep tongs in position and a rope to pull tongs apart after setting log on ground.
Keeps from getting off and on tractor seat!


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## Oliver1655 (Nov 1, 2011)

I built a horizontal splitter with the wedge welded to the beam that stands waist high. I added a log lift which also works as a staging table for smaller unsplit pieces & my lunch table. There are out feed tables over the tongue which put the split wood right at the back of my truck or a trailer which ever I am loading into. Once the wood leaves the ground it doesn't hit it again until it is stacked. 

I use a hand cart to move the heavy chunks to the log lift. (A pickaroon is handy to help hold the round in place while tipping the dolly back.)

Since I have my own splitter, & most of the wood I cut here in Missouri is where I can get the splitter close to it, I have found I can cut, split, & load in one session. It puts it into easier to handle pieces & for me I have found this to be faster than loading up the rounds or logs, hauling them home & having to cut them/split them there where I have a tendency to procrastinate.

This year I have done something new for me. I built a rolling wood shed on a 16' x 8' flat bed trailer. One side is 8' high & the other is 10' high with a slanted roof to shed the snow. The floor is the thicker treated deck boards & the sidewalls are cattle panels. They come in 16 lengths which work out great. The gaps in the floor boards & the cattle panels allow for good air movement. I did close the front with plywood to help rack the walls. I cut my wood in the early spring before the sap comes up & split everything 2" or bigger to speed up the drying process. Between the wood being out in a sunny area & the hot summer we had this year, it should be dry enough to burn this winter. If not, I have 12 cords in my regular wood shed ready that have had over 2 years to cure. My hope is to just back the trailer up close to the back door & minimize steps & snow shoveling. (My wood shed is 70' from the house to help keep the insects from visiting.) If this works out like I hope, I will build on other on a 20' flat bed trailer. This way I can alternate trailers & can give the wood close to 2 years to cure. (These 2 trailers were built from an old mobile home frame I got in exchange for dismantling & removing the trailer.)

I will cover the sides for winter with tarps made from billboard flexes.


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## SierraWoodsman (Nov 6, 2011)

*Powered Wheelbarrow- with out a doubt a worth while purchase.*

This Wheelbarrow is Awsome Hauling loads out of the forest up-hill.

View attachment 205890


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## mikereynolds (Nov 6, 2011)

Great thread indeed! I'm 53 but the older I get, I try to work smarter and not harder. For equipment I like a skid steer with a grapple a portable log splitter (a super split is next on the list) a yard truck with a dump, a conveyor and a young man with a strong back is money well spent. My rule of thumb is..."The more you handle the wood the more you have to work and the more it cost to produce!" 

Buck the logs into rounds in the field, split the rounds into firewood straight from the wood hauler (whenever possible) or the pile you dump it in. Use the conveyor to load the firewood into the dump truck, dump it in a final pile for delivery. 

When I haul logs to the yard I use the skid steer stack them and again to line the logs up for bucking. Use a timber jack and Peavey to save your back. Lift the logs and split them. bring the portable splitter and conveyor to the rounds, while splitting, use conveyor to load the dump truck and repeat. I guess a processor is easier but I'll have to save my money a little longer for that!

This theory is good but doesn't always happen this way...that's when we revert back to doing things the hard way with Motrin and the spa tub and a back rub from by lovely bride at the day's end.


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## Wife'nHubby (Nov 6, 2011)

Well....... it's not really about 'hauling' wood but if you want to talk about 'working' with wood.....

Danged if I can un-do those clips on my chaps! I must have "old-age-weak-thumbs". I gave up and use something like carabiners hooked through both loops on the leg areas. I still have to do something about the clip on waist belt...

Shari


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## Wood Doctor (Nov 7, 2011)

I still haul wood in a wheel barrow for short trips. I could use a gas-powered mule, but I let the young punks run that toy. They like to show off and let me know exactly how weak they are. Just MHO.


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## Ronaldo (Nov 7, 2011)

*Changes*

Am 43 now and still able to work very well-but not like when I was 20 or even 30.The biggest change I have made is to just slow down a bit,like many others have mentioned.ACCIDENTS are more likely to happen when pushing to hard.Taking a break every so often helps to appreciate my surroundings and enjoy Gods great creation! Love to read about all these ideas.

Ron


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## litefoot (Nov 8, 2011)

SierraWoodsman said:


> This Wheelbarrow is Awsome Hauling loads out of the forest up-hill.
> 
> View attachment 205890



Nice setup there...and good-looking wood pile. Where's you find the wheelbarrow?


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## zogger (Nov 8, 2011)

*that's just slick*



SierraWoodsman said:


> This Wheelbarrow is Awsome Hauling loads out of the forest up-hill.
> 
> View attachment 205890



...really, cool. Depends on the terrain and season, but for some places and times, a neat tool. Even slicker would be if it had tracks! Is that little engine underneath a two stroke?

I used a powered wheelbarrow one summer working a high rise construction job. We couldn't quite get the concrete hose to all the nooks and crannies we needed to on our floor by floor pour jobs, so we used one to haul a big quantity of wet mud to where it needed to go. The engine sat up front on the top. Loong time ago now, I don't recall the actual brand name or anything.


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## Agnes (Nov 8, 2011)

Love this thread and all the great ideas. It is all about not getting hurt and protecting the back from getting hurt.

Poor Man's log lift





Humble setup that keeps me going


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## SierraWoodsman (Nov 9, 2011)

*Tha Gas Powered WheelBarrow-Curb King Rules!*



litefoot said:


> Nice setup there...and good-looking wood pile. Where's you find the wheelbarrow?




Thanks For the Comment on the Wheelbarrow and the pile of wood. 

This year I Decided to really hit the firewood with everything I could muster. My partner and decided to that we would each get the maximum allowed (6-Cords each) enough for both our households and then some. We both are loaded for bear when it comes to chainsaws. I'm a husky fan with a 372xp/395xp/346xp/Makita dcs 6401, and he's a Stihl fan with 460/441/361 and we both have good splitters. We are also "Wood-Snobs" and want only the best, which in the high Sierra can offer, and that is "lodge-pole Pine" Several times in past years we have had to pack the wood out, as anything close to the road is no longer available. Each year seems to get more difficult to find Quality wood and here in Nevada the forest service frowns greatly if any vehicle goes off any of the main roads. On most occasions we take a conventional Wheelbarrow and have found that it is a definite work saver, this year we found ourselves trying to wheelbarrow out our wood up a fairly steep slope and about 300 ft was as close as we could get to the cutting area with the truck. We quickly realized that within 2 hours of cutting we had enough cut to fill his 1.25 cord truck and my 1-cord trailer and that the "fun" part was over for the day, and began transporting the large rounds to the truck. It literally took us the next 3 hours "working our ass off" to actually get all that wood up to the truck and trailer and both of us were completely exhausted in doing so. That’s when I decided to do my homework and find a better way. I went home a googled "powered wheelbarrow" and low and behold there it was. I ordered one right away from Curb-King. I have only got to use it three times but this thing makes a world of difference, and is very well built. Now with the engine providing all the power to climb up the slopes we were both Much less exhausted, and off the mountain much sooner in the day and with a better load than ever before. We both wish we thought of it before. I would highly recommend this Tool the Serious woodcutter, and personally Rank its Value right up there with a Pro-Saw or Powered log splitter. I Guarantee You will be the envy of the rest of you buddies in the wood cutting party, especially if it calls for UP-Hill Hauling. They also have battery powered units they swear by, but gas made better sense for me. Now all I Need is an “automatic gas powered wood stacker” (LoL)


Specs: 
-	Manufacture Curb-King 
-	Website: Powered Curbing Wheelbarrow | Curb-King)
- Video: Wheelbarrow Video| Curb-King 
7.5 Cu/Ft Heavy Gauge steel Welded Construction Tub / Handles
Heavy duty axle & Drive train (geared pretty low for climbing steeper grades)
1.6 Hp Honda GX-35 four stroke. (sips gas-works hard all day on 1 tiny tank of fuel) and also very reliable, and like a two stroke will run in any position.

Also check out: MOTOBARROW: HOME
It Looks like the same Tough Drive Train as the curb-king but with other engine options, and a lot less money if you want to use your existing Wheelbarrow.


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## cheeves (Nov 9, 2011)

*Little helper!*



Agnes said:


> Love this thread and all the great ideas. It is all about not getting hurt and protecting the back from getting hurt.
> 
> Poor Man's log lift
> 
> ...


Looks like your son is able to help already! You're a lucky man.


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## Whitespider (Nov 9, 2011)

I’ll turn 54 in a few weeks, I guess the biggest change I’ve made is to “_work smarter, not harder_.” In my younger past I believed myself to be bullet-proof… as I’ve aged (an gotten wiser) I’ve learned that those “bullets” hurt a lot more, and a lot longer, than I remember from my 20’s.

I’ve cut wood since my teens, but just started burning wood for heat again last fall after a 10-12 year hiatus. I hadn’t quit cutting for those years, as we have a fire pit used several months of the year… but a leisurely cord or two a year ain’t much. Now understand, I’ve never worked a job that put me in a desk chair 7 days a week, but at the same time, I wasn’t sweating every day either. The first thing I learned last winter is that I’d become rather soft and fat over those 10-12 years (5’9” and 215 lbs)… swollen joints and sore muscles that took several days to heal, and, at first, there was no possible way I could put in a 6-10 hour day working the wood. Around mid-December something let loose in my back and I fought that until April (I didn’t think it would ever heal-up). And even now, after a year of hard work, I’m still not as fast as I was back-in-the-day… and probably never will be either.

With what I burned last season and what I have put up for this one… probably cut and split ‘round 25 cord, maybe more, in the last 12 months. I still weigh 215 lbs, but my cloths don’t fit properly any more; my jeans are loose around the waist (I’ve sucked the belt in two notches) and my shirts pull uncomfortably tight across the chest and shoulders. Using the “_work smarter, not harder_” mentality doesn’t mean you won’t hard… and the work has surely been good for me.

What I do is try not to handle the wood any more than I have to. After I fall a tree, I start at the top and cut as much as I can standing up, and then cut the trunk and stuff closer to the ground. I don’t move any of it (other than maybe to roll it a few inches to make the next cut). Once the tree is completely bucked I bring in the splitter and trailer, splittin’ the rounds from where they lay. My splitter weighs 200 lbs and I can easily roll it and reposition it with one hand… loading the trailer as I split. The trailer is pulled right up next to the stacks, or if the wood is from a standing dead the trailer is backed right up to the basement coal shoot. I only have to handle the “rounds” one time this way, and the splits a minimal amount of times. I don’t cut standing-dead or blow-downs until I’m ready to toss ‘em in the basement… no handling to stack that way.

Back-in-the-day, when I thought I was bullet-proof, I’d muscle those rounds and splits several times… Buck-up the tree and muscle the rounds into a pile, later load the rounds and haul them up to the old concrete feed lot, unload the rounds, later split the rounds and toss the splits into a pile, sometime later load the splits and haul them to the stacks, and then again later load the splits from the stacks and haul them to the house……. WHAT WAS I THINKING?!?! Yep, as I’ve aged, I’ve learned to “_*work smarter, not harder!*_”


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## mama (Nov 9, 2011)

I'll be 64 in one month and the only change is I use a splitter instead of a maul. I love cutting wood and getting in the woods.


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## Wood Doctor (Nov 9, 2011)

*Terrific!*



mama said:


> I'll be 64 in one month and the only change is I use a splitter instead of a maul. I love cutting wood and getting in the woods.



Best exercise that there is. Fresh air, productive, and good for you.


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## andydodgegeek (Nov 9, 2011)

Excellent thread. I am 38 years old and have been cutting /splitting wood since I was a very young kid helping my dad. I have seen a few people mention picaroons/hookaroons, I have to say to those who dont have one, GET ONE. An extremely handy tool. When I was growing up my dad had one and he always referred to it as his peckerdoodler, I didnt know what it was really called till a while back when I wanted to get one for myself and looked around on computer for picaroons, you wont find them if you type in peckerdoodler, I found a manufacturer right here in my home state of Minnesota at a sight called pickaroon.com. I ordered 2 of them a 48" handeled one and a 36" one. I would strongly recommend any one who works with wood to get themselves a 48" "peckerdoodler" you will wonder how you got along without one. No I dont work for the company, I am just a guy who really enjoys his peckerdoodler. Any way I cut-split-burn 8-10 cords a year and enjoy the work. My dad (74yrs old) burns 12-14 cords a year and enjoys cutting but doesnt split hardly any, just noodles. My grandpa (passed on) cut and split up till he was in his mid 80s. I hope I will be able to cut as long as they have. I am already slowing down alittle, enjoying a few more breaks, watchin the squirrells/birds. This is making me want to go out and cut something, dang it, its dark outside.


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## jhoff310 (Nov 10, 2011)

I'll be 34 on the 22nd. I have been splitting wood longer than I can remember <used to help dad in my younger years>. As I grew up I thought I was bullet proof. Well I have learned I am not. My body has been to hell and back, but you cant keep a good man down. 
I have learned not to try and muscle the nutbusters by myself, its not that hard to swallow your pride and ask for a hand lifting it.
Just because there is a huge round worth 20 splits sitting there doesnt mean you have to take it, grab the smaller stuff < less labor intensive>
Cant hook is a MUST
Water, Water, Water during your breaks. Oh yeah a cold pop or beer tastes great, save that for when you are done.
I usually work 45 minutes and take a 15 minute breather, stretch out the old muscles while Im on break
Stretch before you start splitting or cutting, sure beats a cramp or stitch in the middle
If you have the machinery <bobcat, tractor, whatever> use it, thats why you have it.

Our bodies can only take so much abuse, and you are only as good as your body allows you to be....Be safe out there

Jeff


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## avason (Nov 26, 2011)

SierraWoodsman said:


> This Wheelbarrow is Awsome Hauling loads out of the forest up-hill.
> 
> View attachment 205890



You must piss your neighbors off with both of those pistons running!!:msp_thumbsup:


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## Ayatollah (Nov 26, 2011)

olyman said:


> you know the ramps for a pickup,,to load a atv or the like? well, i used two treated 2x8's..6 foot long,,and had a guy bend 2, 1/4" thick pieces of metal 8" wide x 12 in long,,with a ??23?? degree bend in them, at the middle..they are bolted to the 2x8..youd be surprised how big a rounds you can roll up onto the truck!!! set them 2X8's about 10 inches apart... just enough to step thru on the way to log roll to top..



Yes and no. I use a set of conveyor rollers, or "skate track" about the same length to either push up the smaller ones, or in combination with a come-along to winch up the monsters. I caution you about standing between the timbers you're using because you've a possibility of becoming trapped when you slip suddenly, and the monster rolls back on you. But generally I've been using the egyptian techniques like you for...shall we just say...over half a century now. I move stuff for a living...hauling...at least I used to anyway...and larger items are the staple 'cause I don't have to fight over the pick-up load stuff that any craigslist hack will do (present company excepted). Anyway; Safes, balers, commercial refers, etc..This year I moved some sizeable boulders into a guys backyard for a fountain that nobody else would quote him. 600 pounders and a few smaller ones that had to go uphill driveway, across a walkway, alongside a house (narrow), and across a lawn. Needless to say, no power equipment fit. Then, had to stack some on top of the other. I'm no muscleman, and barely weigh in at 140 after gaining 15 lbs in the past few years. My advice, as has been that of others is to plan, scheme, and let equipment and leverage work for you.

I like the low trailer thing as previously mentioned, however lower trailers generally don't carry as much weight as deck-over wheels trailers. That said, I have always wanted one of those trailers like they use to haul scissor lifts that drop and raise the whole deck. I used to rent a small one for some safe moving jobs, and I saw a company that makes them longer. Really cool trailer.

I'm often removing cut wood or stumps from peoples back yards after they get their fill of wood cutting. They get the smaller stuff done, and then the scope of the work overcomes their ability or equipment, and I step in. For the money involved, you cannot be hauling out power equipment for one tree stump, so you've got to make your hand tools work. The hot days will hurt you as mentioned here before. It's over 100 here in the summer all the time. I'm always dousing my head with water to increase evaporation.



tomtrees58 said:


> this saves my back




This is magnificent! If I had this I'd probably gain another 30 pounds in less than a year, and would have a small chimnea mounted next to the seat:tongue2:
And....is that a nice boat I see partially sticking out in the back? With both of those, I'd be in heaven already, and dying would be a mere formality


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## Sagetown (Nov 26, 2011)

WoodHeatWarrior said:


> And after a couple of hours you can't find any places on your shirt dry or clean enough to wipe them off with! Every couple of minutes you gotta put down your tools, take off your gloves and wipe the sweat off your glasses - it gets really old.



At age 68 I sweat like a stuck hog. The best thing I've found to keep the sweat out of my face is a large cowboy (pure silk) bandana. I usually cut wood alone, so who cares how it looks.
Only thing I've changed in 40 years of firewooding is exchanging the sledge hammer and maul for a hydraulic splitter, and the days shortened to 2-4 hours. Considering a busted sternum, lung, a few heart attacks, 3 hernia patches, and a broken leg, I still love cutting wood.


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## olyman (Nov 26, 2011)

I like to go at a relatively slow pace, and I'm usually alone. I have about 7 cords of wood in my back yard. My wife and kids say, "Dad, we don't need anymore wood!!" I keep cutting though, because it keeps me healthy and in shape!!

Take care and keep cutting![/QUOTE]

They wouldnt say that,if you ran out of wood,,and started to get cold!!!!!


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## olyman (Nov 26, 2011)

With the cost of my saws, tractor and splitter, my wife says we could have spent the rest of our winters together in Hawaii.


> not necessarily.. ng,propane,,and fuel oil,,just keep climbing!!!! and you already own the tools necessary to go get the wood....


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## Wood Doctor (Nov 26, 2011)

*She's Wrong*



olyman said:


> With the cost of my saws, tractor and splitter, my wife says we could have spent the rest of our winters together in Hawaii.
> 
> not necessarily.. ng,propane,,and fuel oil,,just keep climbing!!!! and you already own the tools necessary to go get the wood....



Your wife needs to do the math on that. Forget a move to Hawaii or a season-long vacation unless you have over 100 grand a year salted away for it that you don't need.


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## Chris-PA (Nov 27, 2011)

Sagetown said:


> Only thing I've changed in 40 years of firewooding is exchanging the sledge hammer and maul for a hydraulic splitter, and the days shortened to 2-4 hours. Considering a busted sternum, lung, a few heart attacks, 3 hernia patches, and a broken leg, I still love cutting wood.


Well, maybe after 40 years I'll put down the hand tools too, but I love swinging and axe. It's great exercise. I hope you didn't accumulate that list of issues from wood heating, or I may have to consider other options! I give you a lot of credit that you're still at it and haven't let that stop you.


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## Pleasant Ridge (Nov 27, 2011)

I'm 41 and in the best shape of my life, but the best tool I've tried to make getting wood out of the woods and on the stack is a high school football player. Talk to your youth pastor. There are young men out there that need your time more than you need their help.

One tip it to tell them that you're not sure if they are $8 or $10 per hour help. It's amazing how they will bust their humps for 4 hours for another $8.


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## Sagetown (Nov 27, 2011)

WoodHeatWarrior said:


> Well, maybe after 40 years I'll put down the hand tools too, but I love swinging and axe. It's great exercise. I hope you didn't accumulate that list of issues from wood heating, or I may have to consider other options! I give you a lot of credit that you're still at it and haven't let that stop you.



Actually; my work habits have been A-1. But in my prime (mid 40's) I couldn't turn around for having accidents of sorts. The heart has been a crop out from an arithmea issue. I ain't supposed to be here these last 11 years.


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## Tazfreak (Aug 22, 2012)

bfunk13 said:


> I consider myself a pretty good welder/fabricator and have built my own splitter and my own wood trailer.
> I always thought a splitter station built on a trailer would be cool. I would rather do all of my firewood work in the mountains.
> Its cooler and prettier. You could save another step in the handling process with this. You could come home with a load of split firewood ready for stacking.
> I would really like to build one someday.



Hi,I mounted splitter across the A frame of my 2.5 cub metre trailer,built it myself,21 inch stroke,6 sec cycle time.log lift off pulley on outward stroke of ram.whole thing is on a slide,closed is same width as trailer,slides out to work it.catching tray for splits,no bending down.Handling wood at chest height is comfortable.:chainsawguy:I had 2 hips replaced,am 54,been sawing most of my life but need to work smarter not harder.this way only bend to saw wood,the log lift also adjusts to load rounds direct into trailer bin .Cut,split,loaded at the stump,use log hook to empty when home or delivering.THIS WORKS FOR ME,just my 2 cents


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## blades (Aug 22, 2012)

Gee Shari your starting to look like a firewood factory. 
I'm just a whipper snapper at 61, over 80% of the bone in this body have been broken (60% at one crack,That was fun) but they put me back together pretty well. I process some 10-12 cord a year, I do not sell, just like to be warm in winter, so I am a couple years ahead. I have slowed down speed wise, but not quantity. I have tools to deal with the massive stuff, skid steer , fork lift,powered lift for back of truck, Moto barrow( powered wheelbarrow) ( somehow the good stuff is always down hill behind whatever, 50yards from the closest access point with the bigger equipment and even if you could get it down there you"d need something bigger to get it out.) Just recently I transgressed bought a used Englander pellet stove - for the basement,( jeeze I can hear the smirks already) but I am going to make my own pellets to make use of all the splitter leavings and whatever. This is a project that perhaps might prove out,or not time will tell. Processing the wood keeps me in decent shape as long as I do not push it. Don"t swing a maul much anymore,tough on the back. Like Shari I try to arrange stuff to reduce lifting, actually the bending over part is good for me as it stretches out all the parts that tighten up if I am not active.


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## Butch(OH) (Aug 22, 2012)

I suffered a triple whammy as not only am I getting older but we doubled our wood usage and both of my sons grew up and have their own lives. It didnt take long to figgure out I needed help with forewood production or a means to pay a larger gas bill. I can still run a saw all day long and enjoy it and truthfully swinging a maul or ax I can deal with by pacing my work but picking up wood from the ground is no longer fun no matter how I do it. I have "fixed" that problem by building a processor and by adopting a technique that I had previously not thought much of, that is leaving the smaller branch wood in long lengths to process later with the buzz saw. Now when I cut a tree for fire wood a very small portion is cut firewood length with the chainsaw, just that which is too small for the processor and too large to lift when left long, I have managed to stay two years ahead, dry wood is important, no way I could ever keep up tossing green wood in the OWB.


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## blades (Aug 22, 2012)

Yep, I use the band saw for the small kindling size stuff, I even rip it in half to promote faster drying.


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## Blackbruin (Aug 22, 2012)

Was told by my grandfather, you only go so many bends in your knees, back elbows, etc...He used to keep his marking hatchet on his belt, and had wedges in a pouch, and a tapemeasure, he never sat anything on the ground. He tried his best to teach me but of course being young know it alls we didn't . Know i look back and wish i had continued that thrpughout my teensa nd twenty and my arly 30-s


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## Fred Wright (Aug 22, 2012)

When I lived in Virginia, back in the '90s I cut and split firewood with a $99.00 HomeLite and a maul. I was younger then, too. Started cutting and burning again last year. I'm 54 and already have made some changes in how it's done. 

No more cheap, Harry Homeowner saws. Those things will work and worry you to death. A $550.00 saw is well worth the investment, trust me on this one.

Got an orphaned garden tractor and fixed it up for work in the woodlot. Ag tires, wheel weights and no mower deck. Started with the JD lawn tractor last year, it wasn't fit for the muddy conditions out there. Got a larger dump trailer on order, the first one was too small and required more trips in and out.

Never considered noodling large rounds until I started reading the comments here at AS. That sure saved my back many a strain. Was rolling 'em onto the dump cart with a makeshift ramp. If they'd roll at all, that was. Big rounds near the stump can be lumpy and egg-shaped. What a PITA that was.

I quit cutting up smaller branches in the woods and gathering 'em up. That's a lot of bending and stooping. Now I pile that stuff, chain it and drag it to the yard near the wood stacks where it's easier to cut up and it's all in one place. The brush is broken up for kindling.

I've learned to clear the bed or fall area before felling trees. It's easy to drop a tree ~ not so easy to get to it with the tractor when the area is overgrown with crap, there's widowmakers and springpoles in the road.

And I pace myself. Buck a little bit, sit on the trunk and rest a little bit. Load rounds in the cart, take a break on the tractor seat. There's no rush, ain't like it's on a timeline or nothin'.

For folks our age, safe lifting techniques are a must. Lift with your legs, not with your back. If it feels too heavy to lift, it *is* too heavy to lift. Get help or noodle it into manageable pieces.

And don't even mention axes or mauls... this old dog ain't going there. Hydro splitters are available for a reason.


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## blades (Aug 22, 2012)

Don't worry, when you get to the 60's and beyond the ground gets a lot closer. It just gets a lot tougher to get off of it.


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## Chris-PA (Aug 22, 2012)

Well, my axes keep me fit. The 8lb maul, not so much - it doesn't hurt me to swing it some, but it's a little heavier than I can swing for an extended time. I can feel my energy dropping with every hit, and often muscle damage results when I don't quit in time. I have to pace myself with it. And lifting big rounds is the worst danger to my back.

The key is that working the muscles to a point is great, but pushing them past that point is causing damage. I will not exercise for exercise sake, I get my workout doing work. The problem is that unlike a controlled workout in some sterile exercise environment, this is real work and there aren't any inherent limits - some of it _*is *_beyond the injury point. You have to be able to judge what those limits are for you, but then the work still needs to be done so you must find another method that won't injure you. To me, I'm in this partially to reduce energy use, so throwing equipment at it is not the answer I'm looking for - I will noodle some of the nasty pieces in order to get stackable wood, but that big pile of noodles represents wasted wood and wasted fossil fuels. 

I'm wondering what they did with the crotches and stuff in the old days before chainsaws and splitters - I'm betting they didn't "noodle" them with a misery whip. I suspect they left them lay, which is one of the things I do with them now too. It's just not worth it to spend so much time an energy on a cranky round that won't split.


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## blades (Aug 22, 2012)

Nasty crotches and such, if the 30 tonner don't split it it just plain gets sheared in two, beauty of a long thin sharp wedge with a spreader behind it. ( provided your beam is of sufficient strength to withstand the forces.)


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## stihl023/5 (Aug 22, 2012)

Bribe my kids to help.:msp_rolleyes:


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## zogger (Aug 22, 2012)

WoodHeatWarrior said:


> Well, my axes keep me fit. The 8lb maul, not so much - it doesn't hurt me to swing it some, but it's a little heavier than I can swing for an extended time. I can feel my energy dropping with every hit, and often muscle damage results when I don't quit in time. I have to pace myself with it. And lifting big rounds is the worst danger to my back.
> 
> The key is that working the muscles to a point is great, but pushing them past that point is causing damage. I will not exercise for exercise sake, I get my workout doing work. The problem is that unlike a controlled workout in some sterile exercise environment, this is real work and there aren't any inherent limits - some of it _*is *_beyond the injury point. You have to be able to judge what those limits are for you, but then the work still needs to be done so you must find another method that won't injure you. To me, I'm in this partially to reduce energy use, so throwing equipment at it is not the answer I'm looking for - I will noodle some of the nasty pieces in order to get stackable wood, but that big pile of noodles represents wasted wood and wasted fossil fuels.
> 
> I'm wondering what they did with the crotches and stuff in the old days before chainsaws and splitters - I'm betting they didn't "noodle" them with a misery whip. I suspect they left them lay, which is one of the things I do with them now too. It's just not worth it to spend so much time an energy on a cranky round that won't split.



Axes, sledge hammers and wedges, plural. At least that is what I used when encountering nasty pieces when I was doing all my firewood with hand tools. Of course I tried to avoid really big stuff, wasn't energy/time efective to mess with it. You only have roughly 1/3rd horsepower to use. Even for straight clear wood, if it was too big, it was too big. I did some with a big crosscut, but really, the smaller bowsaw-the more modern and more effective man powered firewood saw, was much better and being limited to the distance to the top bar for your log diameter (unless you like rolling over big logs all the time), it kept the size of your wood within easy human movable sizes and it was easier to split, etc. Once you start crosscutting big stuff, you start to need big draft animal power or motorized power to deal with it. Sucks to cut sucks to move sucks to split.

Anyway, big crotches. yep, you noodle down into the wood, let it sit up some time, then axe it, cut the fibers or just stick the wedges in it.

It's easier to split up on edge though, prop it up, so you get butterfly/mirror image splits, if you are doing wedges only. But axing it, lay it flat and have at it down the middle of the crotch, left and right chops to take max wood out. About exactly like you see the speed chopping event in those lumberdood race vids. Except you don't have to stand on top of the wood.

Either way it sucks but it is doable. But ya, in the olden days they proly used those big chunks for some other purpose, outside big fire to scald hogs or something, maybe for a forge, etc. or let it rot. They had so much, not much need for milking out the bummer wood.


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## H 2 H (Aug 22, 2012)

I only go for a few hours at a time now; after 4 surgeries on each knee and being told I need a replacement knee I just go till I can't go any more then rest for a while

Cut the trees down then skid them out to a opening and buck them up and split them and haul them and stack them in the wood shed; I am not the fastest but I get it done that's all that matters

Like what has been said here many times running a saw is so relaxing just to be able to do it


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## Dieselbreath (Aug 23, 2012)

As a soon to be 70 yr old, I am constantly trying to make things easier. A few years ago I bought a splitter, boy that helped a lot. Then lifting the rounds was getting to be difficult, so I was thinking about getting a log lift for the splitter. Then I got to thinking, I've already got a tractor with loader, so now I roll the rounds into the bucket and when full I lift it up and move it over to the splitter so all I have to do is roll them off onto the splitter. I think its also faster than lifting each round by itself.
Works well for me.


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## uglydukwling (Sep 1, 2012)

I've been using a hydraulic splitter for years, but it's getting harder to lift the big rounds onto it, or wrestle them into position to split vertically. So last winter i finally bought an inverted splitter to mount on the skid-steer. Now the machine does all the manovering and I can split the big pieces on the ground, down to a size I can easily lift.

I'm lucky, I don't have to haul wood very far. I can get all I need on my own property, either wood that lived and died here, or wood that contractors dump here because it's too ugly to sell, or just because they're not in the firewood business. Since it's close, I can switch from using a truck to move it, to using a tractor bucket, when the mud gets too bad. I try to do my cutting in the summer. I don't like working in the heat either, but at least when it's hot around here it's dry. I like working knee-deep in slush even less.

Btw, I'm 68 today.

If you feel the need for inspiration, Google "Jackrabbit Johannsen". He's credited with introducing cross-country skiing to North America, but what makes him even more interesting to me is that he was still cutting his own firewood when he was over 100 years old. I hope to match his record. He lived to 111.


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## rwoods (Sep 1, 2012)

Happy Birthday, uglydukwling. I hope you make your goal. Ron


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## Zeus103363 (Sep 1, 2012)

Reading all these stories makes me very excited to know that there are good folks that still don't mind to roll up the sleeves and get dirty! Cutting firewood is hard work! My dad had me out cutting wood since I was old enough to go. I remember those days. He watched me carefully to make sure I worked safe and didn't cut my leg off. He took good care of me, and though sometimes we both probably over did it sometimes in that summer heat, it was some of the best experiences I shared with my Dad! Oh, we still go cut firewood, but now that he is soon to be 80, and that old stihl 026 pro doesnt run as good as it did, I try to keep him from running a saw. He always wants to helps load up what was cut. I have to keep my eye on him these days, kinda like the way he did when I was a kid. I consider my self very lucky to have learned from the best!


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## Mac88 (Sep 1, 2012)

Zeus103363 said:


> Reading all these stories makes me very excited to know that there are good folks that still don't mind to roll up the sleeves and get dirty! Cutting firewood is hard work! My dad had me out cutting wood since I was old enough to go. I remember those days. He watched me carefully to make sure I worked safe and didn't cut my leg off. He took good care of me, and though sometimes we both probably over did it sometimes in that summer heat, it was some of the best experiences I shared with my Dad! Oh, we still go cut firewood, but now that he is soon to be 80, and that old stihl 026 pro doesnt run as good as it did, I try to keep him from running a saw. He always wants to helps load up what was cut. I have to keep my eye on him these days, kinda like the way he did when I was a kid. I consider my self very lucky to have learned from the best!



The Mrs. dad cuts a helluva lot of firewood every year, all with an electric chain saw. His doc won't let him run a gas saw, says the ignition system will interfere with his pacemaker. That doesn't seem to be an issue with the gas engine on his splitter.


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## dave_026 (Sep 2, 2012)

I am 34 and my dad is 68. When we cut together, I usually let him do a lot of the cutting and I make sure I lift and carry all the big rounds before he has a chance to. He is a strong man, but the extra wear and tear on his knee is more than I think he should endure. So it is always kind of a race for me, to carry all the big ones, so he does not get a chance to.

My boy just turned 8. I think he will be a good helper when he gets a bit stronger. I am very thankful for the time we get to spend together in the woods. I think it builds great character, connection with the environment, and work ethic. The last time we went out, we spent a long time talking to my son about finishing a job once you start it, even if it is late, you are tired. I hope he learned well.

I hope my method for hauling wood when I get older is equal to Son+ Grandson!


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