Scrounging Firewood (and other stuff)

[nomad_archer]

For real on the 70cc though. I dropped a large elm last year and I was working on it with a friend. He had my 50cc saw (albeit a poulan but with a muff mod and full chisel) while I ran the 70. I was at least twice as fast from limbing to moderate size up to say 12". Saw is heavier, yes but does so much work. I think back to what I was doing a couple years ago cutting 30" ash with that stock poulan and safety chain. Thank you arboristsite and CAD.
I remember running that 70cc husky and thinking "jeez, I'll never need more power than this". That was before I got my hands wrapped around the handles of the ms460! Lol.

That 460 is still a 70cc class saw. Now leave your wallet at home and go run a ms660 or 395xp. More power!!! I wont say it is more saw than you need because need is a sliding scale and with CAD there is always a need.

 

[kingOFgEEEks]

Yeah, I don't need 88 CC to cut firewood. But it's so much faster when I use the 2188 that it pays for itself in time.

Don't get me wrong, a good 50 CC saw will make a pile of firewood in a hurry, but when it's time to stop playing, the big saw is always the one I grab.

 

[LondonNeil]

Honestly don't know. Probably more of a dream than a reality. Living in the south we won't benefit much from it except during maybe January so I don't know that it would be very cost effective to add all that just for maybe a month every year, at night. We do have a half of a flat of bricks that the original owner had left over from building the house. I'm thinking I will probably just build a fire pit to get my firewood fix lol.

Hmm, sounds like you don't need to worry too much about how much of the house it heats then, as you really just want what i do, ambience and fill in warmth in a room or 2 that you/the family spend time relaxing. In which case don't fret on 'where, how and what is more efficient' just pick a stove you like the look of, select a spot that would look nice and adjust the location based on how easy it is to get a flue in. Triple wall stainless flue up the outside of the house would probably be easiest, if you can stand how it looks. It will be a lot of money for a luxury, nice to have, but once in you'll use it more than a month a year I'm sure. Have you got any stove shops in your area? Or any decent sweeps? if you can find one maybe get one to come and see your place and suggest a stove, location and how to install it? They will know your local building codes as well as what works and doesn't.

 

[farmer steve]

Yeah, I don't need 88 CC to cut firewood. But it's so much faster when I use the 2188 that it pays for itself in time.

Don't get me wrong, a good 50 CC saw will make a pile of firewood in a hurry, but when it's time to stop playing, the big saw is always the one I grab.

same here.

 

[kingOFgEEEks]

same here.

That's purty right there. I'd be finding excuses to run her too...

 

[svk]

Re 70 CC saws: You can get clean used 85/88 cc saws sometimes for the same price of a 70 cc saw. More power with not a lot more weight.

 

[muddstopper]

I don't cut for a living either but can tell you that people who do don't rarely hook cables winches or come-alongs o the trees. You can tip a tree quite will with just one wedge. Matter of fact, I can count one hand the number of trees that I've even used a rope on.

I have always believed you had to use what works best for you.

I don't cut for a living either but can tell you that people who do don't rarely hook cables winches or come-alongs o the trees. You can tip a tree quite will with just one wedge. Matter of fact, I can count one hand the number of trees that I've even used a rope on.

I have always believed you have to use the method that works for you. Smaller trees with a lean, I can usually pull one way or the other by holding a hinge when making the back cut. On smaller leaners, wedges are impractical simply because of the dia of the tree and the width of the saw bar. For those, I might cut myself a long pole and just push the tree the direction I wish for it to fall. Around a house or powerline, I aint taking any chances that a tree can break free with a small wind and go where I dont want it to. I'll rig a cable, make the face cut and put as much tension on the cable as I can before starting the back cut. I have been known to pull the tree completely over without even sawing, which isnt that hard to do if you can get the cable high enough in the tree. Of course every tree and ever circumstance is a little different. If I have a tree to fall, and I need it to go some direction other than the direction it wants to fall, and I cant get to it with my truck, I would probably use a wedge.

 

[benp]

Moving right along, my blue gum is starting to look a bit less like a deformed spider, a tank or two at a time.

View attachment 537918

I'm loving those big split free rounds that I can shoehorn into the fire. Just. Or maybe not, I'll find out I guess.

View attachment 537919

Well, it's slightly less like a deformed spider. A tank even with a freshly sharpened chain doesn't go that far in dry blue gum. Lots of BTUs though per round and they're good to go.

View attachment 537920

Still solid!

View attachment 537922

I went to hook up the trailer today to find that one of the tyres was delaminating. Buggrit . Well there's the spare. Buggrit . It's so old that it's cracked and deformed. Lady farmer has a trailer, as well as the 4WD as well as the farm as well as the wood I've been cutting on it and turns out she's happy to let me go nuts. Picked up a coupla trailer loads and it was stinkin' hot and humid which made it less fun than usual but at least it wasn't raining like it did through most of October. I measured the dimensions of the trailer, loaded with the peppermint I cut last week that I thought was about 1/3 cord for 1 tank in the 460 and it turned out to be 1.25 cubic metres. Lucky guess.View attachment 537921

Awesome deal!!!!

I am always amazed by the below the equator scrounges.

Does anyone know of a BTU reference for firewood down under like Chimney Sweep online has? I'm really curious as I am sure that it is stellar firewood.

Yeah, I don't need 88 CC to cut firewood. But it's so much faster when I use the 2188 that it pays for itself in time.

Don't get me wrong, a good 50 CC saw will make a pile of firewood in a hurry, but when it's time to stop playing, the big saw is always the one I grab.

I have always felt a big saw should be in every scroungers arsenal if they can swing it. I believe a lot of good wood goes unscrounged, for the most part, because it is too big.

Re 70 CC saws: You can get clean used 85/88 cc saws sometimes for the same price of a 70 cc saw. More power with not a lot more weight.

I''ve heard something along those lines before.

 

[Marshy]

While I wont knock anyone for using a line to help fall a tree I will say its not very productive, and if you don't have the skill to drop the tree cleanly then by all means you should have a line on it. People who fall trees for production don't get paid to waste time with lines. It all depends on your skill level and your risk assessment.

 

[nomad_archer]

Re 70 CC saws: You can get clean used 85/88 cc saws sometimes for the same price of a 70 cc saw. More power with not a lot more weight.

If I find one in the 85+ cc range at or around the price I paid for my 70cc saw I will buy it, maybe even two. Heck a carcass would do as well. You know I need more projects for the winter now that I returned the very aggravating eager beaver to my dad.

 

[Toy4xchris]

Pulled these guys out of my woods between house moving loads.

sent from my electronic leash

 

[Cowboy254]

Awesome deal!!!!

I am always amazed by the below the equator scrounges.

Does anyone know of a BTU reference for firewood down under like Chimney Sweep online has? I'm really curious as I am sure that it is stellar firewood.

When I was reading through the thread for something to do after my knee surgery I saw the chart that @dancan (I think) posted. It had red gum (e. camaldulensis) in the mid to lower range for BTUs among the North American hardwoods, which was not remotely close to accurate, probably a misidentification. Obviously there's a lot of variation in density figures due to misidentification and also moisture content when tested where there's very little consistency. Over here though, we don't speak in BTUs, but more commonly in kg/cubic metre, which gives a figure easily converted to specific gravity (Southern blue gum at 12%MC is about 900kg/m while Sydney blue gum is 850kg/m or specific gravity of 0.85. Since all hardwoods produce similar BTUs per kilo, it's an easy way to compare species, provided the measurement is being done consistently and species identified accurately (a big IF). This chart was produced by the Victorian government and is probably as accurate as any other source. For reference, osage orange is 950kg/m and white oak 750kg/m (Bootle, 2010).

In my immediate vicinity, the dominant species are peppermint, blue gum, candlebark and manna gum. Fairly nearby are mountain ash, red gum, grey and yellow box.

 

[Cowboy254]

I second this opinion. I didnt think I needed a 70cc saw until I had one. If it needs a 20" bar or more I pick up the 70cc saw. Otherwise the 50cc or 40cc saws get the call. But I run the 365xt more than the others. You really do need to 70cc saw.




I dont plan on keeping it on my hip. Just to help carry it to where I am working. I dont like any handled tools on my belt when I am working wood because they catch on everything. Also I use my wedges mostly for bucking so the x15 is sufficient. When felling I have a 5lb maul, mini sledge, x27 all available if needed. I dont do much felling, I prefer that the tree already be on the ground if possible.

I didn't think I needed a 90cc saw until I had a 70cc saw and could see how much better it was than the 50cc saw. I absolutely, definitely need my 90cc saw, but can cope with using the 460 and never use the MS310. Our wood is different here though, and generally harder, denser and more abrasive than almost all North American wood so the extra oomph is useful. The 310 has a 20 inch bar which is too long and it can't cope in 20 inch dry eucalypt. It takes one tank in the 460 per trailer load but the same amount of wood was almost 3 tanks in the 310! Sure the tank is a bit smaller but I'd be cut, split and home with the 460 while the 310 was still cutting. I could put a smaller bar on the 310 and it'd do better but why bother when I can happily use the 460 on the same wood?

Re. the wedges, I always carry one in my pocket and knock it in with the back of the maul. I don't have chaps, I wear full Kevlar chainsaw pants which are heavy and also hot in warm weather but are also quite loose around the lower leg which gives some protection from snakebite. The pockets are deep and I can't even feel that the wedge is there so it's not in the way.

 

[Marshy]

IDK about you guys but I've always known I would need one saw for ever class. So far I have 60, 70, 85, 98 cc saws. I need a pisser 50cc saw and then a big kahuna 3120xp.

 

[Tenderfoot]

Got a major score today. I brought home 3 cords of dry (I mean under 20% moisture by my meter) wood, about 5/8ths of a cord already split and cut to length. I got a lead on a few more cords of dry sugar maple I will go cut up tomorrow and drag home. I normally do not go fetch my wood, I normally have it brought to me (tree service) but I have sold so much and have so much demand I will go drive myself to haul home anything dry.

Also, I was throwing some pretty impressive chips with some Carlton Semi chisel I filed up today. Quite pleased with how that sharpens if you are careful. Good chain. Played with some trilink safety chain. That stuff cuts surprisingly well. It never took quite the edge that the Carlton did and threw smaller chips, but it still cut pretty fast for what it is.

 

[nomad_archer]

IDK about you guys but I've always known I would need one saw for ever class. So far I have 60, 70, 85, 98 cc saws. I need a pisser 50cc saw and then a big kahuna 3120xp.

I am with you Marshy except I have the other end of the spectrum covered. I have 30cc, 40cc, 50cc, and 70cc covered. I will probably just skip the 60cc saw and jump into the 80, 90+ classes next. I know I could always borrow a 60cc class saw from @farmer steve he may have a few.

Where will I put all those saws..... well I am in negotiations with the wife to have at least a 24x30 or maybe larger two car pole barn/shop built in the back of our lot which is a long way from the house but who cares. The current one car garage and and breeze way would turn into living space. Sounds like a great plan. I think she is going to get plans drawn up.

 

[Tenderfoot]

I am with you Marshy except I have the other end of the spectrum covered. I have 30cc, 40cc, 50cc, and 70cc covered. I will probably just skip the 60cc saw and jump into the 80, 90+ classes next. I know I could always borrow a 60cc class saw from @farmer steve he may have a few.

Where will I put all those saws..... well I am in negotiations with the wife to have at least a 24x30 or maybe larger two car pole barn/shop built in the back of our lot which is a long way from the house but who cares. The current one car garage and and breeze way would turn into living space. Sounds like a great plan. I think she is going to get plans drawn up.

This is just my opinion, but for a one man show if it cannot be cut reasonably with a 70cc saw it is too large to split and handle on your own without far to expensive equipment for average Joe. I was thinking I wanted a big (90cc) saw for a long time, but I just suddenly had filing 'click' with me and feel like my saw picked up another horsepower. And frankly, every dollar you don't spend on tools and equipment is another dollar in your pocket and another dollar you may need for an emergency later.

 

[benp]

When I was reading through the thread for something to do after my knee surgery I saw the chart that @dancan (I think) posted. It had red gum (e. camaldulensis) in the mid to lower range for BTUs among the North American hardwoods, which was not remotely close to accurate, probably a misidentification. Obviously there's a lot of variation in density figures due to misidentification and also moisture content when tested where there's very little consistency. Over here though, we don't speak in BTUs, but more commonly in kg/cubic metre, which gives a figure easily converted to specific gravity (Southern blue gum at 12%MC is about 900kg/m while Sydney blue gum is 850kg/m or specific gravity of 0.85. Since all hardwoods produce similar BTUs per kilo, it's an easy way to compare species, provided the measurement is being done consistently and species identified accurately (a big IF). This chart was produced by the Victorian government and is probably as accurate as any other source. For reference, osage orange is 950kg/m and white oak 750kg/m (Bootle, 2010).

In my immediate vicinity, the dominant species are peppermint, blue gum, candlebark and manna gum. Fairly nearby are mountain ash, red gum, grey and yellow box.

Perfect!!!! Thank you!!!!

That was the type of reference I was looking for.

You guys are sitting on really good fire wood. Dang.

Considering a wrong step could get you killed, you've earned it.

 

[dancan]

Coboy254 , I wear chainsaw pants , I do have 2 pair , 1 has more stretchy, breathable fabric making them cooler in the summer , the other pair I have are heavier , more Cordura type nylon so better in the winter . Yes , the light ones are still hot in the summer but my mom always said "Schitt don't melt in the rain , suck it up" lol
I take the btu charts with a grain of salt , there is a big difference in spruce for example , red spruce with big fat growth rings might be a little better than pine while white spruce grown in fields which are full of large branches so all the wood is full of knots is as good as red maple and then the black spruce that took 100 years to grow to 6" in diameter will burn like sugar maple for heat , make less ash but won't last as long .
Hmmm , big saws ??? , I've used my 2100 so little I'm thinking of selling .

 

[Marshy]

Hmmm , big saws ??? , I've used my 2100 so little I'm thinking of selling .

You have my attention!