Bucking - 30" to 36". Splitting - 12" to 14". Lifting/stacking - 4" to 6". 
Ron
Ron
Big wood or little wood?
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forestryworks
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8-12". One split and go home.
I see guys around here go after the 2-4' stuff and screw around all week trying to bust it by hand.
One guy cut a 4' Post Oak, green, mind you, and only took half of it. :bang:
What a waste. That thing was older than the hills and wasn't in anyone's way. He must have watched Ax Men :monkey:
I say cut the skinny #### that doesn't provide much shade. Leave the big fellas standing. Shade is second to water here in the summers.
I see guys around here go after the 2-4' stuff and screw around all week trying to bust it by hand.
One guy cut a 4' Post Oak, green, mind you, and only took half of it. :bang:
What a waste. That thing was older than the hills and wasn't in anyone's way. He must have watched Ax Men :monkey:
I say cut the skinny #### that doesn't provide much shade. Leave the big fellas standing. Shade is second to water here in the summers.
I'll take big trees/big wood any day... but I do all my cuttin' right here on the homestead. Drop a three or four, or even a five cord tree and you can make a lot of firewood, never having to clear another work area, move equipment, make a new trail, and whatnot. I clear a trail in/out, clear a felling area, clear a work area and start cuttin'. Once it's all bucked I bring in the splitter and trailer... splits coming off the splitter get tossed directly into the trailer. Each full trailer load gets pulled right up to, and unloaded onto, the stacks. Cutting smaller stuff I'm continuously picking up, packing up and moving tools and equipment... waste of time in my mind. The more roads and trails I make in the woodlot the shorter and easier the next one is.
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zogger
Tree Freak
All of it! I milk out trees down to the small branches, but now that I have some larger saws I can tackle the monstah trees a lot easier.
I just like WOOD, size/species doesn't matter, just lots of it! I like running like three different size saws on the tree, and I like the quick grabs of smalls, ready to go when seasoned, I like the mediums when splitting, two or three whacks for three or four splits, then the mambos, when you can get multiple whellbarrows from one round. I even like all the crotches and uglies, I don't care at all, eventually I get them whittled down to size one way or the other. I like cutting/splitting/noodling/stacking, all of it. To me, going out "wooding" is like..going on safari, going hunting or something. Go out in the field or into the woodlots, got all this "wooding" gear with me, some dogs, good clean fun and exercise and plenty of trophies to haul home and great sport.
I'm getting into felling more now too, really analysing the cuts, etc. I practice just by picking trees at random while out walking and thinking how I would do this or that on weird situations. Looking at the physics of it with more wide open eyes since I started reading on this site more.
I just like WOOD, size/species doesn't matter, just lots of it! I like running like three different size saws on the tree, and I like the quick grabs of smalls, ready to go when seasoned, I like the mediums when splitting, two or three whacks for three or four splits, then the mambos, when you can get multiple whellbarrows from one round. I even like all the crotches and uglies, I don't care at all, eventually I get them whittled down to size one way or the other. I like cutting/splitting/noodling/stacking, all of it. To me, going out "wooding" is like..going on safari, going hunting or something. Go out in the field or into the woodlots, got all this "wooding" gear with me, some dogs, good clean fun and exercise and plenty of trophies to haul home and great sport.
I'm getting into felling more now too, really analysing the cuts, etc. I practice just by picking trees at random while out walking and thinking how I would do this or that on weird situations. Looking at the physics of it with more wide open eyes since I started reading on this site more.
ponyexpress976
nipple fritters
Right there with ya!
I have a smaller wood stove / insert, so big things need a lot of extra work to fit. I don't have a powered splitter, so I am also less interested in wood that will take a lot of work with steel wedges or noodling to get down to size.
In the past, I have been happy to 'mine' slash piles or tree tops left over by loggers, and when tree services are in the area, am happy to take wood from 2 to 16 inches in diameter - some stuff that they would chip. Will take some smaller stuff for kindling, and a few larger rounds to use a chopping block, or for a challenge, but stuff over 24 inches in diameter starts to feel like work to me.
I have seen guys with outdoor wood burners (OWB) leave things in big chunks that would simply not fit in my stove, let alone burn efficiently. I would want a tractor or skid steer loader, and a larger saw, if I had to handle the larger stuff on a regular basis.
Philbert
In the past, I have been happy to 'mine' slash piles or tree tops left over by loggers, and when tree services are in the area, am happy to take wood from 2 to 16 inches in diameter - some stuff that they would chip. Will take some smaller stuff for kindling, and a few larger rounds to use a chopping block, or for a challenge, but stuff over 24 inches in diameter starts to feel like work to me.
I have seen guys with outdoor wood burners (OWB) leave things in big chunks that would simply not fit in my stove, let alone burn efficiently. I would want a tractor or skid steer loader, and a larger saw, if I had to handle the larger stuff on a regular basis.
Philbert
The bigger the better. Helps to have equipment to move and split the big rounds. I don't handle the wood till its split. Plus not many people want the big stuff. I have had people call wanting to give me big trunks. Its great I don't even have to clean up the mess or cut the tree down. Just haul the monster trunk into the trailer and go. I don't like the bark from small pieces. It makes a mess. I love to run the 36 inch bar on my 395xp. Might have to get a longer bar and bigger saw someday.
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Bring on the biggun's. No noodling required
Bring on the biggun's. No noodling required
Now that’s what I need. I saw a youtube vid of a similar set up. I mostly split red and post oak, both split easily compared to other wood.
My splitter does split big wood but I’m not man enough to put it on there.
I have rolled a few 40” rounds into it a few times when I had it in the vertical and it split them just fine.
If I could get enough wood noodeld and stored up and let it dry, it takes half the weight or more off of it.
My problem is if I’m going to lift a round to stack it, I might as well set it on the splitter.
Picking them up and stacking rounds, then picking them up again to split is making work.
Pick it up once and be done with it.lol
I have noodled wood laying all over the place.lol
The problem with leaving them on the ground is rot and wicking water from the ground.
Here’s the vid I saw.
Big Wood Splitter part 3 of 4 - YouTube
Jules083
ArboristSite Operative
At least I'm not the only one. I hauled a load out Sunday that I cut and noodled last winter. It's soaking wet, guess ill burn it next winter.
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BrokenToys
ArboristSite Operative
24" and up ... few tree people I got to get rounds from all take the smaller stuff and leave me the bigger pieces and like a bunch have said here; one round yields a lot of pieces and [to me] makes for neater stacking.
It also works out well now after work i try to get at least one big round split before it gets too late.
It also works out well now after work i try to get at least one big round split before it gets too late.
I've never been a wood snob. We use it all, this splitter just makes it a LOT easy to do. The vid you linked shows some of the pluses of having the hook lift. I went a step further and put it all together as one unit. It also has a cordless remote winch which will drag them up to 30 feet away to the splitter. We split where it's cut so we just back down the trees length and split, throwing off to the sides, When done splitting, we back the trucks into the "slot" and load off each side. Just the best option for speed and ease for us as we don't stage.
I have the wedge on the ram so that eliminates the big chunk moving every time. This makes it a little safer to me as the "big" piece that is left is not swinging around as the vid shows. I made the 2 tables lockable and swingable so anything not completely split to size doesn't hit the ground, no bending over again. We do split a big chunk off and swing the remainder away. Work the chunk up and swing the main back in for another big chunk off the other side, etc. Works even better than I had hoped and surprising no drops yet on the hook. Trust me, I keep in my mind every piece could.
I never cared for noodling so this works best for us. If your interested, here is a link to the build to show the details more on the splitter.
http://www.arboristsite.com/firewood-heating-wood-burning-equipment/206143.htm
EXCALIBER
ArboristSite Guru
Just like she says, give me the big wood! 
Way faster to load, more per truckload once split, and you don't have to keep looking for the next round to split. Rather just rotate the one your on for the next slice. Now, I did a huge elm a couple years ago that was over 4ft diameter and it was kinda a pain getting all those big rounds split up, but was good exercise. I guess some guys are used to using big wood, and yet others are more accostomed to using, lets say, "economy sized" wood.
Way faster to load, more per truckload once split, and you don't have to keep looking for the next round to split. Rather just rotate the one your on for the next slice. Now, I did a huge elm a couple years ago that was over 4ft diameter and it was kinda a pain getting all those big rounds split up, but was good exercise. I guess some guys are used to using big wood, and yet others are more accostomed to using, lets say, "economy sized" wood.
Constrictor
ArboristSite Operative
here is a nice log someone cleaned all the limbs and crap away for me, i just love people with little wal mart saws!
I'm a 24" and smaller type of guy I'm by myself in the wood's 90% of the time so it makes it much easier on me
When there are people with me I'll take larger tree's and bigger saw's
This weekend I'm helping a log truck driver cutting up a log truck load of fire wood and the smallest log is 32" (he says) I kinda like that I will be running a 70 cc saw again it doesn't get much use; I just hope his house hasn't floated away up in Hamlington by the Skagit River
When there are people with me I'll take larger tree's and bigger saw's
This weekend I'm helping a log truck driver cutting up a log truck load of fire wood and the smallest log is 32" (he says) I kinda like that I will be running a 70 cc saw again it doesn't get much use; I just hope his house hasn't floated away up in Hamlington by the Skagit River
Very impressive build, and very nice of you to share the details in those linked threads.
Do you know of anybody who makes things remotely similar (e.g - self loading splitter) for folks that do not do their own welding? I like that you only need to tow one piece of equipment instead of 2.
Thanks.
Philbert
Arbonaut
Go Climb It
I specialize in laying down big wood. So far so good. But I'm also not 19 no more.
P & J Commercial Products is who I dealt with for some parts and James builds custom splitters for a living. If you want it built, he can do it. He is a super nice, HONEST guy. I do not know of anyone making one with a lot of the features mine has, that's why I built it as it doesn't fit the mold of what most think works best. I grew tired of dragging back chunks all the time with the standard push through design. We run too much knotty wood for the single stroke 20 way split big boys and the extreme fuel usage made the choice easy.
Check out his Big Boy splitter on his site. Very impressive power and cycle times.
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