Back for more locust, finally

[Mike Van]

My first day back in the woods since the big challenge oak last fall. There's over 60 locust trees marked here, most around 18", some 24". Last fall, in the first half of this job, I did all the dropping & skidding, then went back & hauled 33 loads on my F 350. I had this idea over the winter I thought I'd try. Picked up a real junker rust bucket 4 wheel wagon gear, turned out to be a JD 853. Went through the whole thing, stripped, painted, a few new parts. I built the log bunk out of locust I cut last year. Three trees came down & got hauled home this morning, all but the 'don't need to split stuff' that I'll get last.

Other than the first tree being covered in poisen ivy, it was a pretty good day. More to follow

The wagon -

In the rear of this job is a good size [24"] cherry thats twisted off about 20 ft up & hung in another tree. Also another half of a large oak thats down. This ones on level ground though, nothing like last falls. I'll try to remember the camera everyday.

 

[woodbooga]

Nice pics. Makes me almost wish I didn't have all of my 2009-10 supply split already. That big old pile in the yard is a constant reminder to my wife of the 'honey-do' list she'd been mentally compling while I've been out cutting.

No locust for me, though. Lots of ice storm birch and maple, and a good shot of red oak for deep winter.

 

[turnkey4099]

I'm itching to get back in the game myself. The spring in my pasture has finally begun to dry up so I can get in with a load again. Been working on splitting up the stuff I dumped just inside the gate back in early March. Got 18 trees firm for sure, 3 more nice ones that I probably lost at the owner is now in a care center.

Harry K

 

[savageactor7]

Real nice job on the 853 rebuild Mike.

I take it you must have to cross a public highway otherwise you'd just use the 3PH to haul the trimmed tree back to a staging area closer to the house.

 

[Laird]

Nice looking wagon. I've got an old one out behind the barn, but it may be too far gone to turn it into a log wagon. Been outside for 15 plus years and all the wood is rotted off it and its pretty rusty, tires rotted etc. I' have to look at it again.

 

[Mike Van]

Here's load #2 being put on today.

2 good logs here for my bandmill, the rest firewood. Nothing special today, hung one tree up, but thats where the 3 point hitch winch really shines. Cable on the butt, and pull it 'till it drops. I tried the Ax-Men notch for the 1st time today, it does leave a good flat cut on the butt log. I've got about a 1/4 mile ride down through some old fields, then 1/4 mile on Rt. 7. The wagon seems like it'll work fine. Last fall, I was skidding out tree length, pushing them into piles, until I was done. Then, 33 trips & loads on my F 350.

 

[Mike Van]

88 degrees today -

2 days ago we were feeding the stove? I made it a short day, went back for 1 load. Dropped 4 trees, pulled them out, cut to length [14 - 16 ft] loaded on the wagon and left before it got too hot. I took this one not so good pic. of the woods.

Most of the trees [besides the far R & L ] are locust. There was a small 8 or 10 inch crooked cherry that must have had a thing for locust, as every one I dropped today brushed it. Wasn't a limb left on it, so I took it down too. Looks better gone than it did being left there.

 

[ericjeeper]

good work..

I am trying to get my wood shed filled back up myself. I took the massey 300 to the woods today trying to get some logs dragged up for the GTG. I probably have 5 nice 12-16 inch sassyfrass trees in a pile and some ash,maple,and a nice hickory. These were all either heavy blow over/ leaners or dead standing.
That should keep super3 busy for a few minutes. LOL

 

[Wood Doctor]

Nice pics. Makes me almost wish I didn't have all of my 2009-10 supply split already. That big old pile in the yard is a constant reminder to my wife of the 'honey-do' list she'd been mentally compling while I've been out cutting.

No locust for me, though. Lots of ice storm birch and maple, and a good shot of red oak for deep winter.

That's one thing that New England tends to lack -- locust. It's a whale of a firewood and a good meat smokin' wood. I will never understand how locust can grow so fast and be almost as dense as oak. It also air dries faster than oak, which makes it just as good, if not better, in my book--right up there with ash.

Rather tough to split--perhaps its only drawback.

 

[coog]

Amazing how you have adapted that IH to the task at hand.It looks like a very productive machine.

 

[Beefie]

Running gear looks good

Lets see some pics of your tractor set up. How high can you lift with the front grapple. How much can you pull with your 3pt winch and do you have a skidder device made to. COOL set-up

Beefie

 

[Mike Van]

This thread from last fall http://www.arboristsite.com/showthread.php?t=81749&highlight=challenge pretty much covers the 3 pt. winch I made. It's an 8000 lb winch, given the chance it'll pull the tractor back pretty easilly. The front loader/grapple will pick just a little higher than what you see in the pictore, a little over 6 ft. I thought that up back in the early 90's when I first got into the bandmill thing. Since then, it's probably moved a thousand logs, rocks, machinery, even ripped out some monster multifloral rose bushes. Pushed up a bunch of burning brush piles too. Wood Doc - I agree on the locust, it's dry & hard when it's standing green. Dead standing will really test one's chain sharpening ability!

 

[Beefie]

I looked at that thread from last fall. very impressive oak tree you moved up that hill. you must of gotten at least 3-4 cords out of it. I am very interested in that front grapple you made up, do you have any more pics of that. From what I can see it looks like you got two lift cylinders, but I can't figure out how the grapple opens up. Also how long is that arm as pics make it look longer than it probably is.

Thanks Beefie

 

[sloth9669]

looks good to me... Drop some off at my place

 

[Mike Van]

Here's a few more pics of the log loader - The first is the grapple, an 8" stroke hyd. cyl. opens & closes it. It'll open a good 2 ft.

The extra pair of hyd. hose is for the Fisher power angle plow I put on in the winter. The boom raises & lowers the plow, this set of hoses angles it. Next is the boom, about 6 ft long. It'll lift more log than you can move, the rear wheels's lose traction. I have a 3 pt hitch forklift I made for those.

This was the best set-up I could think up some 18 years ago. I knew I wanted to more logs to the mill, etc. without dragging them. Been good so far. I pulled another wagon load of locust out today, nothing spectacular - Except an ant farm in one butt that'd make any kid smile. The big oak from last fall, I just started splitting up a few days ago. 2 log's will get saved for the mill. Oh, I made the stake pockets on the wagon too light, ripped one off today & had to rebuild it this afternoon. Welding when it's in the upper 80's ain't fun.

 

[ericjeeper]

I love your setup.

I need to design some sort of saw holder for my dozer..I generally put a scabbard on the bar and put the saw on the floorboard behind my feet. But it is really in the way of the decelerator pedals.
I got my old dozer in a pickle today, I was pushing the old pond muck over the old dam.. I got a little toooooo far off to the side and could not get backed up. I was forced to ride it over the dam into the woods..Well it would have been ok except for one maple tree, So here I sit pointed down hill at a 45° degree angle to earth and to the hill. left hand corner of the blade at the base of this tree.. I can't push it over.I can not backup far enough to turn away from it. I am belly deep in gray mucky mud. Use the blade to help push me back up and away.. Finally after ten minutes I wiggled the blade around past the tree and was able to push the pile of small trees that I had pushed out when adding to the pond.I thought I was screwed as my 30 horse 4x4 tractor had a flat tire.( I have been waiting a couple of weeks for my tire guy to get out to pump it out and change the tube,He did make it this afternoon finally)

 

[Mike Van]

Eric, if I told you how many years I took that tractor out with a saw balanced on the fender or behind the seat you'd think I was nuts - The saw holder I finally put on there took less than a hour start to end. Two pieces of 1/2 plywood, with some 1/2 strips for spacers on the edges. Make one side wider, you have a place to drill through & put a few bolts to something. This one will take a 20" bar, the one on my winch is open on both ends, a 3 footer could slide in there. Your dozer story reminds me of pushing up a burning brush pile one day with the loader/grapple on the front of my rig - It was a greasy wet snow, no frost in the ground, and I'm pushing downhill - Got it to roaring, as I'm trying to back up & can't, tires just spinning. I've got my foot on the diff lock, finally with enough spinning, the rear end comes sideways just enough that I can go forward out of the edge of the pile - One of those moments you know? Oh, black flag day today - 90F, too hot for me - I split a half cord of the big oak early & called it a day. Back in the woods tomorrow, sopposed to be mid 60's.

 

[Mike Van]

Pretty routine down here today.

I drop 4 or 5 trees, some come out full length, the bigger ones get 32 ft cut off from the butt up. Then it's what combination of pulling what in what order gets it all out to where I can load it with the least number of trips back in. No woods tomorrow, a bunch of us are honor guard for a local guy we lost last week. Elmer was a WW2 vet, POW. We'll miss him.

 

[Mike Van]

Haven't been back in the woods for 2 weeks - Time flies. I spent a few days fighting off something like swine flu? Or who knows what - Had some sawmill orders to fill, and finish up the oak pile too. Second tree I dropped today was pretty bad inside, no hinge left, and it went about 25' the wrong way & hung up. :censored: I said.

I hitched onto the top from the first tree & dragged it to where I buck them up so it'd be out of the way. I get back and find this -

It had dropped the rest of the way on it's own. Maybe in the space of 20 minutes. By noon I was home. A guy had called earlier in the day about pine logs, did I want any? They'd had 6 big white pine taken down, 4 miles from me, brush & limbs all chipped. I grabbed the first log I came to, 16 footer, 22 inches on the small end. After cutting locust, get into pine & you'd think your old saw turned into an 066 on steroids.

 

[Wood Doctor]

Mike said, "After cutting locust, get into pine & you'd think your old saw turned into an 066 on steroids."
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+1! Locust is dense and almost rot free. Overall, I rate it above oak as firewood and about the same as ash, and perhaps better. It dries faster than oak and equals its density. It's a little tougher to split than oak, but that's about it. So is ash.

Locust grows much faster than oak, so it is a wood that our nation could be harvesting as a major fuelwood. It also smokes very good meat. :greenchainsaw: