Mark a log for firewood?

[turnkey4099]

Layed down my first tree of the season yesterday. Very p.o'd. Finished out the brushing, hit the tool box for the bar mounted cut off guide - not there. Had to resort to the 'turn the saw' and 'use a stick' (did both). Hadn't realized just how much time either of those techniques take over the bar mount guide.

Harry K

 

[Gark]

Gee whiz, stick sharp round toothpicks into the bark where cuts are to be made.
Carry a bunch with ya, they're cheap and won't hurt the chain. Measure with the 'biblical' method- using cubits. MY cubit measures 18 inches, adjust yours by closing your fist, or (if you have a shorter forearm) adding an inch or two. Cubits seem to be the length from outside your elbow to the end of your extended fingers. This cubit measurement may have worked to build an ARK long ago. Engineers back then were not exact.

 

[buzz sawyer]

Why such accuracy?

Can someone explain the need for such accuracy when cutting firewood? I've learned a great deal on this site already and I'm just curious about this. Seems like so many favor 6hp saws for speed, but then take time to mark the log. I've cut my own firewood over the past 35 years, maybe 8 - 10 cords over the summer. I make a cut, take about two short steps sideways, eyeball it, and make the next cut. I wind up with 16"-20" logs, maybe an occasional 14 or 22 due to crotches or limbs - or I ran out of log.

Is this done to assure even stacking and accurate cord measurements for consistent yield/profit? A 20" log is 20% more than an 16" log - that's a big increase over large volumes of wood, so I would understand this reasoning. Is there a standard length for commercial firewood?

 

[Newfie]

Accurracy is important to the customer whose stove will take 16" wood and nothing longer. Those same customers deserve to get what they pay for and won't want a bunch of 14" wood. The minimal amount of time spent marking a log is worth the return. I don't advertise, I sell out every year and command my asking price.

 

[Gypo Logger]

If 16" wood is cut to make a cord then every inch of wood represents 6% of that volume. Three face cords cut 16" is not 128 cu/ft., but rather about 140 cu/ft. This is why the facecord is such a confusing measurement.
But getting back on topic, if I had measured every stick I cut I'd still be back in 1993. I think 15- 17 inch wood is acceptable to most customers who are heating their homes with wood. If the wood is clean and well split and of good species your customers will not complain.
When selling wood I'll ask the customer what is the max size their stove will take and then go from there.
John

 

[buzz sawyer]

Newfie - Great answer and I agree - assuring customer satisfaction is tops!
So how do you measure the load? LxWxH?

By the way, I caught a mistake in my math in my previous post. A 20" log is 25% more than a 16" log. Luckily my English is more gooder than my ciphering.

Thanks!

 

[turnkey4099]

If 16" wood is cut to make a cord then every inch of wood represents 6% of that volume. Three face cords cut 16" is not 128 cu/ft., but rather about 140 cu/ft. This is why the facecord is such a confusing measurement.
John

I must be misunderstanding something. How is three face cords cut 16" more than a cord? I am assuming a 'face cord' is considered a pile 4'x8'x16" although there is no legal description of such a measure.

Harry K

 

[chowdozer]

You have to use Canadian math to make it come out more.It's kinda like their dollar.

I must be misunderstanding something. How is three face cords cut 16" more than a cord? I am assuming a 'face cord' is considered a pile 4'x8'x16" although there is no legal description of such a measure.

Harry K

 

[Crooked Horn]

I measure with a tape and cut the first block, then split off a stick and mark the whole log with a small axe or hatchet. With a little practice you can chop right down the end of your stick, but I don't worry about a half inch off. Fast, easy and nothing to buy or make. If the logs are stacked up and clean, I cut through just far enough to mark the one or two underneath at the same interval.

I have three stoves that all take different length wood. If cutting wood for sale, I always ask what length the customer wants.

Wood just stacks nicer when cut square and all the same length.

 

[LarryTheCableGuy]

I found a scrap of 1x2 laying around that just happened to be the correct length, took a minute to mark the logs with my saw. Didn't take long and the 1x2 was expendable. If I lost it or cut it, no biggie...I would just find another stick.

As Crooked Horn said, wood stacks nicer when the length is consistent.

 

[musher]

I must be misunderstanding something. How is three face cords cut 16" more than a cord? I am assuming a 'face cord' is considered a pile 4'x8'x16" although there is no legal description of such a measure.

Harry K

My understanding of a "face cord" is 4' x 8' x (whatever length it is). By my math, a 16" "face cord" is 42.67 cu. ft., so it does add up to 128 cf, which is a cord. I guess Gypo uses Canadian math as suggested by chowdozer.

 

[turnkey4099]

You have to use Canadian math to make it come out more.It's kinda like their dollar.

I'll pass if it involves metrics

Harry K