Post pictures of your woodpile/splitting area

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Load #2 for 2016. I thought I was going to my dad's to get some crap wood he cut down to clear an RV site at his resort. Turns out it is almost all oak and ash, a little maple and one tiny basswood. So my pool heat will have to wait, this will go on the chicken barricade for the winter. The big oak dropped right into a swamp when I felled it, made the biggest splash I have ever seen, wish I have video.

Brian
 
Nope. Much of these last two loads seems a bit too small for a processor, although I've never run one. Still using my cut table where I load 1/3 to 1/2 cord at a time. Roll the log forward, pull it to the side stop, by hand or with a peavy, to index to the cut markings on the front edge of the table, make six cuts and stage them for splitting. Small stuff I can cut two logs at a time if they are straight enough. I have two other loads to process before I'll get to these.
One of my obstacles has been seasoning. Another is to get away from stacking. So that has been my focus. No processor, as yet, to do more wood, although more volume is what pays for equipment. I believe I'm headed towards green wood sales only, seasoning a limited amount and try bundles. Then the question is will people buy green wood a year ahead and season themselves.
 
are you shooting it in .177 or .22 caliber. I like that scope. I assume that is the scope it comes with? sighted in accurately and keeps accuracy?... am thinking prob .22. can u tell us more? what pellets do u use?...
It is .177 cal. The scope did come with it, it's alright, has a lil glare sometimes but works. It seems to hold target fine but can be off target depending on the pellet shot. Same with any gun pick out what you like and sight it in with that style and grain. As far as pellets I bought a selection to try different ones out. It's more accurate with the better pellets for sure, Gamo platinum's shoot nice out of it but do break sound barrier.
 
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Poplar logs loaded from the back with forks. The logs are lifted over two uprights and the forks are backed up, not tilted.
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Log rolled to front edge of table with a peavy.
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Pulling log to side stop with peavy to index log with 16" cut marks on front of table.IMG_2108.jpg
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The cut table has pros and cons. It is great for working at a comfortable cutting height, uniform lengths, and easy on lifting rounds. It can be dangerous. If logs are piled too high they can roll/skid off the front when moving them.
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The cut table has pros and cons.
Just getting a better view on my desktop computer (too small to see clearly on the phone). Looks like a nice, practical design. Is it designed to skid around to different places, or do you have to lift it to move?

Do you manually move the cut rounds to the trailer or rack seen in the photos, or have some way to roll them off or collect them without a lot of lifting?

If logs are piled too high they can roll/skid off the front when moving them.
Looks like you could add a couple of removeable posts / pipes to act as stops, between the pile and the active log?

Philbert
 
It is .177 cal. The scope did come with it, it's alright, has a lil glare sometimes but works. It seems to hold target fine but can be off target depending on the pellet shot. Same with any gun pick out what you like and sight it in with that style and grain. As far as pellets I bought a selection to try different ones out. It's more accurate with the better pellets for sure, Gamo platinum's shoot nice out of it but do break sound barrier.

thanks for post. I have a gamo night varmit hunter 177. scope was ok at first... groups in bottle caps no prob at 80'... then just dint seem to be accurate of reset well. I took it off and shoot it iron sights. much better... now I don't shoot it too much. kinda feel sorry for the victims, even if varmints. o_O
 
1.) I pick the whole unit up with forks by strapping side to side, to move it, or clean out bark from under it. I started with a couple I-beam saw horses with a sacrificial cut table laid across them, then built this when I got the fork lift.

2.) I have a medium size pet crate which is just the right height that I set my saw on between cutting logs. Then move the six cut rounds by hand. Yep. 5,800 lbs. per cord. However, the round is at mid thigh height, not on the ground, and the trailer is the same, mid to low thigh, stacking two rows deep, 2 1/2' high x 8' long, about shoulder height, or a 1/2 cord. The splitter is on the opposite side of the trailer, and the real beauty of the SuperSplit it the mid thigh height beam and table.

The draw back is that the process is slow. The deck has to be loaded with 1/2 cord of logs. Easy, but slow. Each log has to be rolled forward and slid sideways to the end stop. Might go quick, might take several minutes to move logs and make safe, if the deck is full and logs bound on each other. Sometimes logs roll off the front of the deck, in which case they are cut on the ground. Starting the saw and making five cuts, six if the end needs trimmed, goes quick even if placing a plastic wedge in the saw curf. Shut the saw off, set it on the pet crate, stage the rounds. Very little time is spent cutting six 16" pieces. I refuel every 1/3 cord, sharpen every cord.

I think adding pipe stops would be safer. I also think the logs would bind against them and cause some headaches themselves. My solution has been to put less on the deck in the first place. Hydraulic log decks do have stops, which also aid in straightening the log parallel to, and prior to entering the log trough.

I would love a processor. They are now available to rent, about sixty miles from me. It is simply unaffordable to buy at this time, and renting is not cost effective when I calculate cost per day/cords per hour and cost of logs. But that is not the real reason for not renting a processor.

If I process and pile splits up off the conveyor, I'll end up with a pile of unsellable, moldy, wood. I've been down that road...
 
It's finding something that works for you. You certainly have a better start than a lot of firewood guys!

As long as I am arm chair designing for you . . . .a pair of hydraulic cylinders at the rear of the table could be used to jog the logs forward to a stop, then, tilt back to take the pressure off them. Then some type of cross rollers, or HDPE surface at the cutting spot, to make sliding the cut rounds easier. Lot simpler than a $20K processor.

Philbert
 
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These two pictures from last year show the staging table, or wagon, and SuperSplit (with fork lift tubes added for moving). It flows quite well, but no match for the ease and speed of a processor.
If you sell firewood there seems to be four stages to processing once you have the logs on site. 1.) Cutting logs into rounds; 2.) splitting; 3.) stacking or stock piling, (possibly including air seasoning, or kiln drying); and 4.) delivering, (which for some might include bundling). Each of those steps has its own obstacles.
I've found this set-up to be hard on my knees after hours of turning 180 degrees with a load. When I start splitting again I will try staging rounds on both sides of the splitter for equal time, or turning the splitter 90 degrees to the table and take more steps.
 
thanks for post. I have a gamo night varmit hunter 177. scope was ok at first... groups in bottle caps no prob at 80'... then just dint seem to be accurate of reset well. I took it off and shoot it iron sights. much better... now I don't shoot it too much. kinda feel sorry for the victims, even if varmints. o_O
I have the newer version I think varmit stalker? its 177 too and i have flat dropped tree rats at 60 to 70 yards, just like shot with a 22 rimfire! These ain't no typical pellet gun for sure, I bought mine when i watched a you tube of a guy dropping a hog with one shot :surprised3:
 
I am jealous of the super split. But in reality last year was my 1st year with a splitter and that's a big help. I am never one to stack wood in nice neat piles so I never know how many cord I have. This year I added a 10' -20' gazebo to my splitting area, we added an OWB last year so our old 8' -16' wood lean to just isn't enough. We got a dump truck full of firewood ends last week so I am splitting that now , we have a few 3' stump ends in there to split but it's wood and the price was right.firewood ends 002.JPG wood processing gazebo 003.JPG
 
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These pictures make me smile. This is baby helped keep us warm for almost thirty years. The photos show a couple things.

Larger tires and pipe axle to raise it up to a more comfortable work height. It is easier to see when towing and backing up as well. You can get axles, hubs, and wheels at the junk yard off the rear of front wheel drive cars/vans.

The work table, which in this case, the splitter sits on. It can also be used on either side. We had a rise in theft near us, so with this bench set-up I pulled one wheel off.

Also, notice the cylinder rod has 'stroke reducing collars' on it. You can get them at TSC, or farm supply stores. They are split, with spring clips, so are easily added or removed by slipping them over the cylinder rod, and often come as a kit with various length. There are three collars on this machine, an old SpeeCo. with up graded detent valve, and repowered with the Honda GX200. The collars aren't necessary, but I'm pretty sure you'l like them. Most everything I split was 16" , so I added 6" of collars for an 18" stroke, vs 24". If I got a 19" piece, slip the collar off, split, replace collar. I think the kit was around $30.-34.
 

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