Scrounging Firewood (and other stuff)

[chipper1]

What's opti-2? I'll likely stick with some XP oil in the grey bottle. I want to buy a gallon on amazon...

It's just another one of the hundreds of 2-stroke oils out there. I've had very good results with it. I just mix it like it says on the bottle. They also have a bottle you just squeeze the oil into a little area based on what you need. I like that one because all you need to do is wipe the little cap off and your good to go, no funnel needed.
You do need to warm this one up though before using it in the crazy cold.

It's amazing how easy sheet metal pulls across snow. I might have to get another hood at the junk yard if they are cheap. My old status hood is about kicked.

I couldn't believe how easy the wood moved those big ole pieces of cherry I had. Guess the old school farmers had it right with the rock sleds.
Do you guys have craigslist there .
You should be able to score a hood easy for cheap on craigslist.

 

[KenJax Tree]

Nice wood sled. is that a hood or what.
I made one out of a half sheet of plywood, worked great behind a little Honda TRX90 pulling 24" cuts of a cherry in the middle of summer,
but a hood would work great.
Anyone got anything similar for skidding logs out of the woods with a winch.

Yes its a car hood. A friend of mine owns a collision shop so i had him get me a hood. It works great!

 

[JustJeff]

I usually keep about a weeks worth of firewood by the door but today the stack was gone. So I had to lug some up from where I stash it under the deck. Of course nobody at home but me and its minus a bunch outside. Waaa waaaa waaa.

 

[farmer steve]

out today scrounging tree tops at the neighbors. frozen ground.was pushing brush out of the way to get to a top and kept hitting something in the weeds. SCORE!!!!found a log that was left from the last logging operation 20 years ago.(NA you walked right by this on our one drive)
oops.don't know what happened to the log pic. who knows what the black spots in the log are?

 

[al-k]

looks like some metal stain.

 

[svk]

What kind of wood lasts 20 years on the ground?! Nothing in my woods except for old growth cedar!

 

[nomad_archer]

Steve towards the end of the month, my schedule is freeing up and I have a big saw and a small saw that I think are getting antsy. Let me know if you have room for an extra man with a saw for some scrounging.

 

[chipper1]

What kind of wood lasts 20 years on the ground?! Nothing in my woods except for old growth cedar!

My favorite last many more than that, good ole black locust. Can't tell what that is though.

out today scrounging tree tops at the neighbors. frozen ground.was pushing brush out of the way to get to a top and kept hitting something in the weeds. SCORE!!!!found a log that was left from the last logging operation 20 years ago.(NA you walked right by this on our one drive)
View attachment 476494 oops.don't know what happened to the log pic. who knows what the black spots in the log are?

The black spots, I wouldn't worry about those, they should burn just fine, go ahead put a semi chisel on and let her rip.

 

[Philbert]

If my bar and chain oil is too thick in colder weather (Minnesota) I thin it with kerosene, per the owner's manual.

After thinning what do you end up with, 10% kerosene, 20%?

I was sure that this was in every owner's manual I ever read. But when I went back, just to verify, I could not find the specific numbers anywhere for a while!!!

Finally, found '5% - 10% kerosene or diesel fuel' in a few Husqvarna manuals, and 'up to 25%' in an Oregon chain maintenance manual. Diesel fuel just stinks, so I bought a gallon of kerosene stove fuel at a home center for this purpose. Some guys turn their adjustable oilers up, when using thinner oil, and at least one manual noted that you may run out of bar oil before fuel, when using thinner grades, so keep that in mind.

As long as we are on 'cold weather scrounging', I guess it is good to remind guys that most pro saws have a 'winter/summer' shutter thing that lets them send extra heat to the carburetor. Different on every saw, so you need to check the owner's manual. Some guys re-tune their saws for the denser, cold air, and some guys change chain angles for cutting frozen wood.

No bar oil apparently needed for cutting blocks of ice from the lake.

Philbert

 

[svk]

I was sure that this was in every owner's manual I ever read. But when I went back, just to verify, I could not find the specific numbers anywhere for a while!!!

Finally, found '5% - 10% kerosene or diesel fuel' in a few Husqvarna manuals, and 'up to 25%' in an Oregon chain maintenance manual. Diesel fuel just stinks, so I bought a gallon of kerosene stove fuel at a home center for this purpose. Some guys turn their adjustable oilers up, when using thinner oil, and at least one manual noted that you may run out of bar oil before fuel, when using thinner grades, so keep that in mind.

As long as we are on 'cold weather scrounging', I guess it is good to remind guys that most pro saws have a 'winter/summer' shutter thing that lets them send extra heat to the carburetor. Different on every saw, so you need to check the owner's manual. Some guys re-tune their saws for the denser, cold air, and some guys change chain angles for cutting frozen wood.

No bar oil apparently needed for cutting blocks of ice from the lake.

Philbert

I think it's prudent to run veggie oil when cutting ice to keep the pump lubricated.

Back when I used to cut spear holes we'd run out of reach in mid January with the 15" bar. Wouldn't be a problem now that I have CAD!

I've heard guys will take a mostly used chain and totally grind off the rakers to make it a dedicated ice chain.

 

[farmer steve]

Steve towards the end of the month, my schedule is freeing up and I have a big saw and a small saw that I think are getting antsy. Let me know if you have room for an extra man with a saw for some scrounging.

iv'e got a big log (or 2) with you name on it NA. i'll let ya know. it would probably be a sat. if it's good and cold.

 

[farmer steve]

What kind of wood lasts 20 years on the ground?! Nothing in my woods except for old growth cedar!

i'm thinking it's red oak but not sure. it was sitting on a rocky southern exposure so that may have helped to save it this long.

 

[nomad_archer]

iv'e got a big log (or 2) with you name on it NA. i'll let ya know. it would probably be a sat. if it's good and cold.

Sounds good I am sure we can find something that works. I also have every other Friday off work.. If we can catch one of those, even better.

 

[Oldmaple]

View attachment 476484 I usually keep about a weeks worth of firewood by the door but today the stack was gone. So I had to lug some up from where I stash it under the deck. Of course nobody at home but me and its minus a bunch outside. Waaa waaaa waaa.

 

[kingOFgEEEks]

out today scrounging tree tops at the neighbors. frozen ground.was pushing brush out of the way to get to a top and kept hitting something in the weeds. SCORE!!!!found a log that was left from the last logging operation 20 years ago.(NA you walked right by this on our one drive)
View attachment 476494 oops.don't know what happened to the log pic. who knows what the black spots in the log are?

That looks like "deadly black mold". You should definitely get rid of that dangerous material. I have an approved disposal site for it up here in Tioga county, but only if it's growing on red oak like that

 

[nomad_archer]

I'm a little closer, I can take care of it for him.

 

[nomad_archer]

I'm at it again. No deer yet just cold.

 

[crazywolf]

Although you guys in the east and south are spoiled....temps above freezing during a MN deer season are a blessing, other places its a norm. When I hunted in Texas in January one time the overnight low was 52. I could get used to that!!!

That is debatable LOL Sitting in the cold sucks but when it's 80 degree's outside and the deer are not moving it sucks too. I got skunked this year but not from lack of hunting. Only saw 3 deer all season.

I'm at it again. No deer yet just cold.
QUOTE]

They were taunting me last night though. Guess I need to hunt my land more next year. Excuse the bad pic it was taken through my kitchen window.

 

[nomad_archer]

Up at my hunting cabin, we chase them all day and don't see any. Then on the way back to camp we have to dodge them as they jump across the road.

 

[svk]

I see deer almost daily at my cabin, yet I can spend a week in the woods up at my hunting cabin and see none.

I do have 4 acres at the cabin so there is one spot for a stand as long as I shoot away from my neighbor's house.