More wood in a pickup bed, split or unsplit?

[Del_]

So to sum up this super old thread.
leave 80-90% in rounds
split some to fill any air gaps as you load rounds

Yes, that is the way to get the most wood in a truck bed.

Welcome to the site.

 

[Wood Doctor]

Here's another tip, similar to Jooky's. After cutting down a tree, buck everything to log length (say 16" to 18"). Now load the truck with the big rounds first. Pack all the voids (air gaps) that you can with branches that are also cut to length. That load will contain a lot more wood that anything already split. So, be careful that your truck is not overloaded. I did that with black locust and my truck never forgave me.

 

[mountainguyed67]

Nobody ever packs it as tight as Mother Nature my dad always said.

Egg zactly!

There‘s no way you’re competing with the mass in these rounds. And as far as the voids, you can put small stuff that just fits there.

 

[Sandhill Crane]

Wow! Curly Cherry, 2009.
I did an experiment based off his cut dowels in his shop.
In real life, I stacked two 1/3 cord racks side by side and several feet apart with two cord of 100" logs.
Basically 8' x 8' x 4' high.
I cut them into rounds and stacked them in 1/3 cord racks for a considerable loss, less than two cords.
I no longer have the numbers, but something like four and a half of the 1/3 cord racks of stacked rounds.
Then I split them and stacked again, for a gain over the stacked rounds, and if I remember right, about a 2/3rds loss in a 1/3 cord rack shy of two full cord.
From log to round, a loss.
From round to split, a gain.
From log to split, a loss.
Edit: added photos but I no longer have the numbers to go with them.