Cutting larger Pine logs

[Sandhill Crane]

Have you tried replacing the bar?

 

[NSMaple1]

Only thing I have encountered like this, was old sugar maple windfalls, that had been laying there up off the ground for quite a while. They were brutal to cut - it was like trying to cut through concrete. I don't know what makes petrified wood petrified (I should go Google that), but that's what that stuff made me think of. Chain only made fine sawdust, not chips, no matter how sharp i got it. I had to take a break & cut something else to make sure it wasn't the chain - and it wasn't.

I haven't cut much pine here especially anything that looks like that - but it might be that your chain isn't dulling right away, it's just doing the best it can with what it's hitting.

 

[Hinerman]

Well, I'm outta here. My neoprene waders have a hole on the bottom near the ankle so my feet get wet quick.

BINGO....

 

[Ted Jenkins]

25,000 cords, eh? That's impressive.

As I was rereading all the suggestions I noticed the 25,000 cord life time achievement statement. That is misleading because although I have processed more wood than most by far, but I did not go through 25,000 cords by myself. Sometimes just one person was helping and sometimes more. Sorry for anything misleading. There have been many years where as I cut, split, delivered and stacked close to 500 cords in a year with just me, but nearly killed me. It appears that conditions have to be nearly perfect for a person to process close to 300 cords. About 35 years ago when working in NE Oregon several logging companies were conducting normal old growth business. but had to thin and clear Lodge Pole Pine so they just decked the stuff and moved on. So there were hundreds of cords just sitting around drying out. It was pretty easy to cut 10 or 15 cords a day of 12'' to 14'' rounds that were dry. From my experience these conditions are rare. Thanks

 

[Ted Jenkins]

Only thing I have encountered like this, was old sugar maple windfalls, that had been laying there up off the ground for quite a while. They were brutal to cut - it was like trying to cut through concrete. I don't know what makes petrified wood petrified (I should go Google that), but that's what that stuff made me think of. Chain only made fine sawdust, not chips, no matter how sharp i got it. I had to take a break & cut something else to make sure it wasn't the chain - and it wasn't.

I haven't cut much pine here especially anything that looks like that - but it might be that your chain isn't dulling right away, it's just doing the best it can with what it's hitting.

It sounds like you have encountered similar hardened wood like myself. Several times I have set up a new chain and started cutting a log and zipped through several inches and suddenly just very fine sawdust. Being of sound mind I kept on cutting until no sawdust only to find the teeth were being deformed and curled to the point of not restorable condition. Thanks

 

[PSUplowboy]

As I was rereading all the suggestions I noticed the 25,000 cord life time achievement statement. That is misleading because although I have processed more wood than most by far, but I did not go through 25,000 cords by myself. Sometimes just one person was helping and sometimes more. Sorry for anything misleading. There have been many years where as I cut, split, delivered and stacked close to 500 cords in a year with just me, but nearly killed me. It appears that conditions have to be nearly perfect for a person to process close to 300 cords. About 35 years ago when working in NE Oregon several logging companies were conducting normal old growth business. but had to thin and clear Lodge Pole Pine so they just decked the stuff and moved on. So there were hundreds of cords just sitting around drying out. It was pretty easy to cut 10 or 15 cords a day of 12'' to 14'' rounds that were dry. From my experience these conditions are rare. Thanks

Our 1500 where we worked was two processors, a fellow running a loader to put logs on feed table, and a delivery worker. Logs came in on trucks. I doubt I cut more than 25 cord in a year on my own with just a saw.

 

[p61 western]

To the op have you tried a ripping chain to see what happens?At this point it might be worth a try,or say to hell with it.

 

[djones]

I ran into a similar problem with some free pine from a neighbor. The trees had been down for a few years and I was the third person to try cutting them up. I did get a few logs cut and hauled away but not before I resharpened my fairly new 28" full chisel chain several times. I also tried one of my other saws with a semi chisel chain and got the same results. These trees had been dragged through the mud on this neighbors property and they chewed up my chains. I said thank you and left, never to return again.

 

[zogger]

Had the same problem with oakzilla in my yard. the frass, bug crap, under the bark was insane. Sometimes I had to sharpen three times to make one cut. Did the same, tried different chains, full chisel and semi..eventually it was cut, but man...Every ant and termite poop has a grain of silica in it, just..insta dull.

Good luck man..might be better to just find different trees to cut. I wound up pressure washing the trunk and axing off the cambium layer, that helped a lot. the good wood inside was much easier to cut, but to get there, you had to cut through the bugcrap layer..dullsville.