Scrounging Firewood (and other stuff)

[psuiewalsh]

Scrounging some more dead standing oaks for the farm. I keep the tops for firewood. Bounced a couple off the rocks.

 

[Be Stihl]

Found a dead standing Ash close to home. Managed to drop it safely and bring 10 good size rounds home. Couldn’t get it to split with the doublebit, had to take it home and use the long Fiskars. Very dry stuff, definitely be ready next season.

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[Lee192233]

Does the cold kill them? I know a couple years ago people were hoping the temperature would drop enough to kill the bark beetles.

I don't know. All I know is I've never seen or heard of anyone having trouble with them here.

 

[turnkey4099]

What I didn't mention is that I do not need firewood at the moment. Have enough to last me well into next year. What I need, though, is exercise.

Had knee surgery in August. My knee difficulties put me into full retirement a few months ahead of schedule. Limping around on my right knee during recovery threw my left hip into serious disarray (physical therapy got me out of that predicament), and only in recent days have I been able to walk like a normal human being. Which means I'm seriously out of shape. I'm no good at any kind of exercise regimen, have always gotten my exercise from work, so work like I've always done is what's called for. Lord, it feels good to be back at it.

I hear you!! Two years ago my kidneys quit (reaction from a medication). 2 weeks in hosital. Weak as a baby. I also don't like just exercise. First trip out wooding I had to have the farmer start my saws for me. Took a week in the house doing just one exercise, Kneel on a chair and lift buckets with 2 gallons of water - same motion as starting a saw. That cured that problem but it still took a couple months dinking around wooding before I was back in full battery.

 

[thill]

Coming back from injury sucks. And it gets worse the older you get.

 

[Cowboy254]

Count your blessings!!! Here in central Indiana roaches love to hide under bark!

We have snakes and drop bears under the bark. Gotta watch it!

Went next door to get the rest of yesterday's peppermint scrounge. Although there was a termite pipe up the guts it was very easy splitting off around it. It'll look a bit prettier once the moisture has dried off.



My estimation of how many loads were left was a bit off. I thought maybe 1.5 ute loads, ended up being 2.5. So 3.5 loose thrown including yesterday ... the ute holds 1.2 cubes filled level ... carry the 4 ... near 30 wheelbarrow loads I guess all up.

 

[Cowboy254]

I sold some wood this year for the first time and will probably have the same customer after more next winter. It makes a mess getting the ute and trailer up to the wood shed in winter so I have set aside some wood for her in the 'top shed' which had some spare space. With the exception of some pieces in the near corner that are a bit longer (by accident), I have cut the wood shorter to match a new smaller firebox she has had installed. Four pallets (4x4ft each), wood stacked 1.1m (3ft 8in) high.

Short splits don't stack in a very stable way so I thought a square stack would be better and I didn't want to make it too tall, seems solid as.





Purdy too, I think.

 

[bob kern]

I sold some wood this year for the first time and will probably have the same customer after more next winter. It makes a mess getting the ute and trailer up to the wood shed in winter so I have set aside some wood for her in the 'top shed' which had some spare space. With the exception of some pieces in the near corner that are a bit longer (by accident), I have cut the wood shorter to match a new smaller firebox she has had installed. Four pallets (4x4ft each), wood stacked 1.1m (3ft 8in) high.

Short splits don't stack in a very stable way so I thought a square stack would be better and I didn't want to make it too tall, seems solid as.

View attachment 944569

View attachment 944570

Purdy too, I think.

Nice job! I agree on the short stuff, it stinks. The worst thing in the world is having someone help cut who is inconsistent!
Sometimes if the stacks are a little shaky I will put a “ tie in “ piece or two between the stacks about 3/4 the way up. Two pieces that span both stacks and a piece across each end. Thought of that stacking hay one day.

 

[JustJeff]

According to the great and all knowing Google, we do have termites in Canada but ive never heard of anyone having problems with them. I stack my wood outside and just bring in what I need for a couple days. I stack off the ground on skids and in racks placed on patio stones elevated off the ground. This seems to help with ants in the wood. Even so we've had the odd surprise wasp or spider that comes back to life once thawed.

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[MustangMike]

In general, you need moisture for a wood infestation, so keeping your wood dry will deter it.

Powder post beetles may be an exception. Extreme changes in temperature seems to be the best way to get rid of them. (They seem to like Pig Nut Hickory, and I've had a problem with them with my hickory bench legs in the cabin).

 

[svk]

I always like the 35 Winchester and wanted to find one (they were only chambered in the Mdl 95). Seems the cartridge should have fared better than it did.

Then I got the 348, and ballistically, they are almost the same.

My Browning Repro 95 is chambered in 30-06. I was going to have it re barreled in either 338-06 or 35 Whalen, but it shot so well I could not bring myself to do it. Nothing wrong with having an 06 lever gun either!

If I hadn’t mentioned before the .348 is a bucket list item for me. Also want a gun chambered in .35 whelen.

Im hunting in a logging slash that will be open for 5 or so years. And they are doing one more 100 acre cut in my deer area. Then every single bit of woods in my area will have been logged in my lifetime and once that last slash grows up, I can go back to deep woods, short range rifles. I much prefer shooting deer at 5 yards than 150. When you’ve outsmarted a deer and you are so close that you can see the veins pumping in his neck, that to me is hunting.

 

[svk]

According to the great and all knowing Google, we do have termites in Canada but ive never heard of anyone having problems with them. I stack my wood outside and just bring in what I need for a couple days. I stack off the ground on skids and in racks placed on patio stones elevated off the ground. This seems to help with ants in the wood. Even so we've had the odd surprise wasp or spider that comes back to life once thawed.

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“Great and all knowing”. Love it lol!

 

[Cricket]

No insect problems? If I remember correctly someone on this site brought termites into his house doing that.

Not that I ever heard of. It's a poured wall basement under a modular, no wood in sight of where it lays, so maybe that makes the difference?

Also I almost never find termites in my wood - maybe the climate? I know we have them, people get them in their houses, but I think I've found them in wood maybe a dozen times in sixty years.

 

[svk]

We went to the Iron Bowl yesterday. Great game. Roll Tide!

 

[old CB]

I hear you!! Two years ago my kidneys quit (reaction from a medication). 2 weeks in hosital. Weak as a baby. I also don't like just exercise. First trip out wooding I had to have the farmer start my saws for me. Took a week in the house doing just one exercise, Kneel on a chair and lift buckets with 2 gallons of water - same motion as starting a saw. That cured that problem but it still took a couple months dinking around wooding before I was back in full battery.

You, Harry, are my hero, and I keep your example in mind. Still out there doing it at 86 (if I recall right)--that's what I hope to do until I drop in my tracks. I am able to do a little bit of indoor exercise like your thing, just enough to get me on my feet again (which I did recently), and then I like to be out in fresh air working.

 

[manomet]

https://www.rockler.com/polyethylene-glycol-peg-green-wood-stabilizer

 

[Lionsfan]

Between working 60 hrs. a week, my daughter totaling my pickup, my mother-in-law falling and breaking her hip and my brother-in-law camping out in his tree stand I haven't spent any time in the woods lately. Sure was nice to get out and start on next years wood pile and dial in a nice old saw my buddy Brett sold me awhile back.

 

[user 181829]

I get request for cherry all the time. To bad it's not a common local verity around here. The only slabs I have gotten to hold together are pecan slabs/stumps. Oak has a flaw and 90% of them split in half as they shrink. It does help to make them very thick but then you run into a weight issue and they are hard to work when they are so large and heavy. I have been successful with a few oak stumps but it's hard to put in the work only to have it fall apart.

My father who was not only a timber-man, but became a woodcarver in later years. His remedy for splitting/checking of wood as it dried was to coat the endgrain with paraffin (usually dissolved in mineral spirits for easy paintbrush application, but sometimes heated/melted). The natural consequence of this is that the wood dries *much* more slowly but more evenly, even though it would seem that it would naturally dry "outside-in".

 

[turnkey4099]

You, Harry, are my hero, and I keep your example in mind. Still out there doing it at 86 (if I recall right)--that's what I hope to do until I drop in my tracks. I am able to do a little bit of indoor exercise like your thing, just enough to get me on my feet again (which I did recently), and then I like to be out in fresh air working.

I had a wake up call yessterday. I'm working on the split/pile of around 6 cord so willow - my years harvest other than about 2 cord B Locust I cut off the 'small locust' find. First day out I hauled, split and piled 2 good size loads on a large garden trailer (4'x4'). cam back in the house dog tired. I've cut it down to H/S/P 2 loads and S/P one of them, Next day is pile the prior day's last load and then H/S/P another load. Takes about 2 hours. Then I realized it wasn't very many years ago I was jsut getting warmed up after 2 hours, now I',m quitting after two.

Sure does cut down on production!!

 

[rarefish383]

That’s cool.

I’d like to collect more of the old chamberings. Have my great grandpa’s 30 Remington. My great uncles both hunted with a .25-35. And then delve into the 32’s and 35’s.

There’s a 351 Win Self Loading at my local gun shop. I had read somewhere that a 351WSL was used to take down Bonnie and Clyde but other sources contradict that.

I seem to remember there was a 351 SL in the mix. Don't know if they can prove which guns did them in.