bundle shop shaping up!

[Patrick62]

Well, I spent some quality time with the welder and created a far better brake for the bundle machine. friction on the cardboard tube just wasn't consistent enough. It would aggravate me some. The new setup is a disc of steel and a pair of bicycle pads with a homemade caliper and a spring tension. Worked like a charm. Much better control of tension.

not visible in pic, but the machine has it's own little cubby hole.

The deck outside is perfect for tossing splitys onto, then there is a rectangular hatch that I toss them in thru.

The first cubicle is good for getting a mess of splits in, and is opposite the bundler. I figure that when weather is better I will just fill the cube with bundles and wrap from the loose stuff on the deck directly.

There is a walkway thru the middle, and a few (100? ) bundles ready to go!

Fun stuff, and I can stay inside and wrap bundles while it is snowing like a B----.

 

[cre73]

Very nice setup.

 

[zogger]

Slickness! I'd love to have a machine. The few I do I wrap by hand, sorta slow and tedious.

 

[JeffGu]

That's a well thought out arrangement... very nice, indeed.

 

[Dogsout]

Just last week on Wednesday I purchased a Hudson manual bundler off of Craigs List out of New Mexico. It was shipped last Friday and the arrival time was Tuesday. (Don't think that is going to happen with the weather that is predicted for northern Iowa. Got a good price on the bundler and he threw in 4 rolls of shrink wrap to go with it. Couldn't believe how reasonable FedEx shipping from New Mexico was. Got plenty of seasoned wood cut and split for my OWB and got a new Fiskers X27 splitter for Christmas to split my bigger splits into smaller splits. Splitting mostly Ash, Cherry, Walnut and Silver Maple so it works like a charm but you guys would get a big chuckle out of watching me split wood. I do have a question for you Patrick62. When I was cutting and splitting for my OWB I have an average split length of about 18" but the splits range from 15" to 22". This summer the cutting I do strictly for bundling what is the best length to cut all of the rounds to? Looks like you have a very nice set up there.

 

[Patrick62]

Dogsout, get yourself a Mingo with the 16" wheel. Then to make it really precise, add two turns of electrical tape around the wheel to account for the saw kerf. Cut them square on, Make every effort to keep the ends neet. makes a nice bundle that-a-way. Wrap them suckers tight. Doesn't have to be at the limits of the stretch wrap, but a nice tight bundle is easier to carry, and again it looks nice. Keep the sizes consistent! I have a eye for it by now.

I saw some 18" bundles one time, they were not very big around and the length would be awkward to work with for a campfire. dropping to a 14" would look like "they shrunk the bundles..." plus it would be harder to get the wrap on it.

I did spend a lot of time thinkin' this project thru. Needed a way to have some on hand in the winter, but summer is when I am really cranking them out. Needed a way to store a bunch (500 or more?) to get thru a busy weekend,

I will time myself one of these days, but I think I am up to a bundle a minute without too much trouble.

 

[Dogsout]

Thanks for the reply. This was a spur of the moment deal when I seen this on Craigs List. I appreciate the advice about uniform splits but short of taking a chainsaw and evening up the bundle (Which I won't do.) there will be bundles that may very well have a 4" difference in splits. Also my expectations are so, so, so far under your operation that I am not even in the same state as your operation. But this summer when cutting wood for the bundler I will cut to 16" as you suggest to get a better neater bundle. I would be very happy if I only sold 20 to 40 bundles all year which would give me a great rate of return on my total investment in this whole operation. If I sell more fine if I sell less fine, I have a full time job and this would be for lack of a better term a hobby to make a few extra bucks off of the large amount of seasoned wood I have cut and split.

 

[Patrick62]

Go for it, 40 bundles is literally nothing. I did 400 bundles on the tailgate with a 5 gallon bucket and 4" stretch wrap.

 

[Dogsout]

I did 400 bundles on the tailgate with a 5 gallon bucket and 4" stretch wrap.

That sounds like a lot of work. I don't have to or am I even willing to work that hard.

 

[066blaster]

Who do you sell to?

 

[reddogrunner]

Very nice setup. I would think would work well for just splitting firewood too. Under roof, feed bins, so to speak and racks to stack under cover. Get yourself a good electric splitter and whala!

 

[Guswhit]

Do you put a carrying handle on yours as well?

 

[Patrick62]

nobody has ever asked me about a carry handle. probably not really worth it in the long run.
I sell to two gas stations, and the hardware store.

As for running the firewood thru there... I would need something the size of a walmart super center. 200 cords in 5 months would be tough to get thru a little shed.