Scrounging Firewood (and other stuff)

[Cowboy254]

About 80% efficient is the norm for our decent stoves, although since they all use secondary burn and are made so they simply can't be shut down to smolder they all roar and eat wood. They throw heat, burn clean, but eat wood. The very best stove I've seen is a make called Burley, 89% efficient!

Aha, I've found out that efficiency is measured differently here. 60% here equals 76% euro. I didn't think our norseman was that bad and it has a secondary burn system as well. Since the long flue goes straight up through the top level (our bedroom) and you can feel heat radiating off it, it may be a bit more effective than nameplate too.

 

[dancan]

I dunno what all the hubbub is about oak , sugar maple and yellow birch is ?

That chit wouldn't even slide out of the dump trailer like some nice spruce .
Well , I guess I'll give it a second chance lol

Drug home a cord and a half and not one stick of spruce

 

[Cowboy254]

I dunno what all the hubbub is about oak , sugar maple and yellow birch is ?

That chit wouldn't even slide out of the dump trailer like some nice spruce .
Well , I guess I'll give it a second chance lol

Drug home a cord and a half and not one stick of spruce

No spruce? Why'd you bother?

 

[dancan]

Personal challenge I guess .... Bahahahahahahaha Ha !

I'll be at least 2 years before I find out if this stuff is any good lol
It took a tank and a half in the 241 to drop and delimb this stuff then it tool two and a half tanks to block it all up and polly 30$ in fuel for the truck for the 3 trips .

 

[LondonNeil]

2 if yo split it small, but if you leave it big then leave Oak 3 to be sure. Nice score btw

 

[Logger nate]

Cut a nice red fir here earlier this year and saw this tree, wasn’t sure about cutting it because was afraid of limbs on tree in front of it pushing it on to road sign (maybe that’s why it was still there) but thankfully the hinge held and limbs broke... and it missed could only get about half of it, guess I’ll see what’s left when I go back next week

 

[chipper1]

the average guy who just wants to heat his house and is immune to CAD can do just fine with a 50cc and an 18-20" bar.

Blasphemy .

 

[chipper1]

My 261 is MMWS ported, so I'm running 18" 3/8 RS, pulled it real well, and now I'm converting the RS to square.

Seems like it should do just fine with a 3/8x20 also. The one I had was the newest version and ran right with the 550 with an 18, both had 325, but I wouldn't thing twice about running 3/8x 18 on either as both are strong running saws. I prefer the feel of the husky, and I like the almost all orange(wish it was all orange), too bad I have an abundance of 18"x325 stihl bars lol.

 

[chipper1]

Personal challenge I guess .... Bahahahahahahaha Ha !

I'll be at least 2 years before I find out if this stuff is any good lol
It took a tank and a half in the 241 to drop and delimb this stuff then it tool two and a half tanks to block it all up and polly 30$ in fuel for the truck for the 3 trips .

Great looking loads Dan.
I sure hope you have enough wood to get you buy until that maple dries out lol.
It's funny, I have the same dislike about hardwood, especially red oak, it takes so much time to dry which means lots of storing it and rotating it/handling it. The black locust is great as the water content it so low you can cut/split it in the spring and by that fall it will burn great, and even better if you let it season longer. The BTU's on black locust are right between red oak and whit oak and it takes red oak so long to dry .
I'm glad I've been able to stockpile a lot of wood and I have enough room so it's not a big deal to store it, yet lol.
How long do you season the spruce before burning it normally, what's the shortest/what's best.

 

[KiwiBro]

Seems like it should do just fine with a 3/8x20 also. The one I had was the newest version and ran right with the 550 with an 18, both had 325, but I wouldn't thing twice about running 3/8x 18 on either as both are strong running saws. I prefer the feel of the husky, and I like the almost all orange(wish it was all orange), too bad I have an abundance of 18"x325 stihl bars lol.

Have tried 20" picco with 8t rim. That's fun, provided I don't drop the rakers below about 6.5-7 degrees (BobL's method of using raker angles rather than depths is the ducks nuts). When it becomes extra fun is the last 1/3 of the chain life when there is a bit more room between cutters. Can drop the rakers a bit more, especially in softwood, and that set-up is the best I have come up with for my MMWS261. But the first two thirds of the chain's life, I can find no clear edge between it and .325 (7T) other than the latter lasts longer between sharpenings.

Will keep experimenting and definitely give 3/8 a try.

 

[KiwiBro]

I bet if Dancan filled a shipping container with green firewood, it would be ready to burn by the time it got to Cowboy's place.

 

[Cowboy254]

I bet if Dancan filled a shipping container with green firewood, it would be ready to burn by the time it got to Cowboy's place.

I am sad because I ain't got no spruce .










I do, however, have aging neighbours who have some treed small acreage and are saying things like "We are getting older and if there's a strong young lad who can swing a saw and needs some wood, I'm sure we can help each other out". Strong and young are obviously relative terms.

 

[Cowboy254]

Cut a nice red fir here earlier this year and saw this tree, wasn’t sure about cutting it because was afraid of limbs on tree in front of it pushing it on to road sign (maybe that’s why it was still there) but thankfully the hinge held and limbs broke... and it missedView attachment 604848 View attachment 604850could only get about half of it, guess I’ll see what’s left when I go back next weekView attachment 604851

I love a horse trailer full of fir, such nice looking wood.

If you'd taken out the sign, just say it wasn't you.

 

[Cowboy254]

I went down to the big fat manna gum this arvo. Being right in town it has attracted attention. I left a couple of crappy cut off nubs and 3 inch limb bits lying around the other day and they were gone this afternoon. The big stuff was untouched, as I had thought. This tree is also a pain in the @rse because rather than having a nice long trunk, it had branches coming out 6' above the ground so it's not so wonderful to cut. Then again, it's all heartwood with big BTUs and very little ash (which of course is my pet hate). And of course it is all too hard for those without FAD.



The first couple of rounds were easy. Then had to noodle off an attached bit or two.



After that it got more time consuming.



I had to wrestle with big bits attached to branches buried in the ground without cutting dirt and it was slow going but I won in the end.



Dammit, Limby's out of fuel and the container is empty. I don't want to leave cut wood around since the scavengers are out. Fortunately, another, somewhat neglected saw still had some fuel in him.



Eat my noodles, Limby!



Ended up with enough to fill the trailer with a little over a cube. The discolouration of some of the pieces was from the debris that accumulated in branch forks over time.



For a fair bit of time and effort, I didn't seem to make much of an impression on the tree but I don't mind the time and physical exertion.



To be continued...

 

[KiwiBro]

Worth leaving a calling card or two, in case someone scrounging the small stuff, has or knows of big stuff they can't deal with?

 

[Cowboy254]

Worth leaving a calling card or two, in case someone scrounging the small stuff, has or knows of big stuff they can't deal with?

If it's the guy I suspect came around, he'd have no clue. I've been considering placing an ad in the local newsletter or more likely in the window at work, something along the lines of "Have trees but no wood"? I'd have to word it carefully to prevent responses from those who have a crappy technical willow or something in their backyard in town wanting it taken down on the cheap - which I can't do. Maybe specify farm trees. In any case, I have a couple of years to think about it.

 

[dancan]

Spruce is good to go in the fall if cut in the spring .

 

[farmer steve]

I dunno what all the hubbub is about oak , sugar maple and yellow birch is ?

That chit wouldn't even slide out of the dump trailer like some nice spruce .
Well , I guess I'll give it a second chance lol

Drug home a cord and a half and not one stick of spruce

good score Dan. what kind of oak? looks foreign to me.

 

[Jeffkrib]

I think logger Nate wins the award for lifting the biggest chunks. I think he better own up to being an ex Olympic weight lifter.
Nice pics cowboy.

 

[woodchip rookie]

I think logger Nate wins the award for lifting the biggest chunks. I think he better own up to being an ex Olympic weight lifter

Its pine. Not ash. Or oak.