Scrounging Firewood (and other stuff)

Arborist Forum

Help Support Arborist Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Wasn't gonna litter this thread with pics of the table and even though wrote just one more when it gets delivered, here's the table wet sanded to P2000. OCD means I'll try P4000 after this arvo's tea break, and see if it's too glossy. Probably will be but it's just like me to take something too far.

On a side note, for anyone else with a random orbital sander, please, please stop using sandpaper and start using the mesh discs from Mirka. I'll never go back to paper now. The mesh is absolutely exceptional. Why did it take me so long to work this out? Why didn't any of you lot tell me!

P2000.jpg
 
Kiwi, that table looks amazing! I have no issues seeing it on here. Gotta admit though, I sure as hell don’t let my wife see pics of it. She’d ask why I can only turn trees into splits and not a work of art like that!
If it helps any, you can tell her that tree was about 250 years old (I counted) when it fell into a peat swamp about 15000-20,000 years ago (typical for swamp Kauri here). So when you find one just like it up there, you'll be sure to make something from it ;-)
 
Wasn't gonna litter this thread with pics of the table and even though wrote just one more when it gets delivered, here's the table wet sanded to P2000. OCD means I'll try P4000 after this arvo's tea break, and see if it's too glossy. Probably will be but it's just like me to take something too far.

On a side note, for anyone else with a random orbital sander, please, please stop using sandpaper and start using the mesh discs from Mirka. I'll never go back to paper now. The mesh is absolutely exceptional. Why did it take me so long to work this out? Why didn't any of you lot tell me!

View attachment 788878
Didn't know you had no idea of it. I use it to work oil into wood makes a slurry to seal the pores. I use it to finish sand car paint to20190719_103451.jpg
 
Didn't know you had no idea of it. I use it to work oil into wood makes a slurry to seal the pores. I use it to finish sand car paint toView attachment 788880
Good idea, thanks. I do the same on porous stuff but we don't get much - but have always done it with W&D paper and a sanding block. just think of the days i could get back if I had used mesh many years ago.
Do you know of a good, cheap supplier of the mesh discs please? It's pretty expensive here so i took a punt a few weeks ago and bought my first lot on Amazon. Also, is there any difference between the abranet and autonet that Mirka do? If none, it looks like autonet is cheaper.
 
Mesh pads are great 4000 then orbital buff 56 year old paintView attachment 788884 View attachment 788886 View attachment 788887
Wow! Mate wanted a satin finish but boy oh boy i doubt he'd complain if it turned up shining like a new penny. Until the first scratch anyway. That's the next question, if I do go glossy after all - can I use my random orbital sander and just get a velcro foam pad or two to apply a finishing compound and then if so what compound? Can i buff with the correct pad on it also? I don't want to be spending the $ on a proper orbital polisher. I don't do enough to justify it and couldn't give a rat's about my ute's paintwork.
 
My dream vacation is a case of beer and Uncle Mikes cabin. No noise and no work. It’s my “fortress of solitude”.....

Harold and I are leaving in the morning … for 2 days … with a few bottles of Red Wine, some shotguns (bird season is open) and some 22s. Also bringing the 223 ,,, just because!

My cabin is Mtn Top two miles in off the grid, so I also bring up a deep cycle battery and hook it up to the inverter for lights. Cabin is 20 X 24, two stories. Post and Beam with 6.5" Ash milled with the chainsaws.
 
3M sells a wide range of ScotchBrite products (non-woven fabric with embedded abrasive) in markets from janitorial (floor buffing) to optics (polishing lenses). A lot are sold through auto body and furniture finishing vendors.

Don't expect them to be inexpensive, but I sometimes find surplus products resold on eBay.

Philbert
 
Smoke is nothing major here. Got some nice sunsets down South around NYE and up here in the North about a week later but not much since. More chance of sunburn than smoke complications. Never really liked the cruises around NZ as they don't really give the best impression of NZ. They are far too touristy for my liking. Camper van, a month, and hanging with locals at every opportunity is the best option. But i guess that can be said of every country. Just gotta feel safe the locals aren't gonna have you (over) for dinner. Apparently, white people taste like pork when boiled up.

I believe that is true. The 'other' other white meat.

Hey Cowboy: My old boss's son got done in California and now is in Australia flying the big planes that drop fire retardant. In such a big area how do they decide where to dump their loads? There would be so many critical areas.

I think they work it out based on where the fire currently is relative to towns, the direction of the forecast winds on really bad days and obviously the visibility. I guess there is also a calculation done on the size of the town likelihood of success based on forest fuel load and its proximity to the houses. Sites of particular significance also get dumped on.

Gotta burn the midnight oil to get all these rounds cleared to make room for the new wood

Very nice looking stack. Ash does make attractive firewood, looks so neat and clean.

My dream vacation is a case of beer and Uncle Mikes cabin. No noise and no work. It’s my “fortress of solitude”.....

I fully appreciate that. The 'no noise' part though is going to be history once Uncle Mike rolls up with guns and saws sticking out of every orifice of the Mustang :chainsaw:.
 
Hey Cowboy we are getting a foreign international student from this obscure place called New South Wales. We are hoping to show her what cold really is since she is slated to arrive Feb 1.

Sent from my CLT-L04 using Tapatalk
Rings a bell here too, but then again I could be getting it mixed up with Old North Wales.
 
Wow! Mate wanted a satin finish but boy oh boy i doubt he'd complain if it turned up shining like a new penny. Until the first scratch anyway. That's the next question, if I do go glossy after all - can I use my random orbital sander and just get a velcro foam pad or two to apply a finishing compound and then if so what compound? Can i buff with the correct pad on it also? I don't want to be spending the $ on a proper orbital polisher. I don't do enough to justify it and couldn't give a rat's about my ute's paintwork.
3m makes some of the best polishing compounds. You need a true buffer (looks like an overgrown right angle grinder) and multiple pads and foam polishing deals...we did cars in three steps if they were bad: hard cutting compound to get the worst out, a fine cut to remove the swirls, and a polish to make them glossy.

A guy on each side took about 30 minutes to get one done that took all three steps. If you already have a decent finish you can go right to polishing...remember, each step is removing paint and you only have so much.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 
As Steve says, random orbital polisher, foam pads of varying hardness and various 'grit' of cutting compound/polish, then finish with last stage protection (a sealant or wax). I picked up all the bits I needed to do my car for about £100 bit including the polish/LSP. That said, I don't see why you couldn't use your sander with a foam pad and polish.
 
Wow! Mate wanted a satin finish but boy oh boy i doubt he'd complain if it turned up shining like a new penny. Until the first scratch anyway. That's the next question, if I do go glossy after all - can I use my random orbital sander and just get a velcro foam pad or two to apply a finishing compound and then if so what compound? Can i buff with the correct pad on it also? I don't want to be spending the $ on a proper orbital polisher. I don't do enough to justify it and couldn't give a rat's about my ute's paintwork.
Yes you can buff with an orbital sander . I use it on tight areas.

I use both . A rotory for new paints and the orbital for detail . It's a process on new paint to get it glass like finish sand up to 3000 then rotory with a good compound I like wizards brand . Then to get that deep luster I use the orbital with a polish /swirl remover.

The Black Studebaker has the original factory paint. It has some blemishes but is in overall great shape
 
Got up at 4.30am and drove 2.5 hours through lake-effect snow in the dark to meet a guy selling a Stihl 036 Pro and 038AV Super before he left for work. $650 CAD for the pair. They're grimy, but I think they'll make great firewood saws once cleaned up. 036 looks to be in particularly good shape under the dirt.
 
Broke the cherry on the new splitter, Black Diamond 25 ton.

I fooled around for the lasst two days with the snowblower making haul roads to get the chunks to the splitter. Then woke up today with temps going into the 40s. Had I waited a few days the snow would have been gone.

I am a bit dubious about it supposedly being a 2-stage but the dealer said it was. Didn't hit anything to need that today

Much faster (smaller cylinder) than my old Troybilt. Kept me hopping to keep up with it.

One tuff SOB to get started this morning. Briggs engine. Pull untill I had to stop to rest then back to it. Just get a pop or two. Play with choke. About a 1/2 hour before it decided to play. Probably a matter of learning what it wants. It does fire on the first pull warm
 
P4000 seems between devil and deep blue sea.
Satin enough to not be a full gloss but glossy enough to show every swirl and imperfection and scratch. So, do I try buffing to a gloss to get rid of swirls and light scratches or take it back to p2000?

Part of me wants to scuff it, flood coat epoxy, and start the sanding again.

I like learning new things but it costs time and money
 

Latest posts

Back
Top