Scrounging Firewood (and other stuff)

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There are no easy species here. :laugh:
Only oddly-shaped oaks, very tall locusts primed to fall on power/telephone lines and other far less useful trees, all growing in impossible places. Struggling when splitting them is just the final part of struggling with the whole process of firewood gathering.
We've gotten into loads of fenceline trees where everything was growing at an angle out to the sun. Every tree had twisted grain. We just ended up noodling about halfway through each round and once halved (or quartered) if needed they split pretty easily with whatever splitting tool is at hand. The only downside is that creates a LOT of noodles in a hurry which of course must be disposed of.
 
I do not know what species you have over there but for tough to split species over here a good maul will work better than the X27. For the moderate to easy to split species the X27 shines because of it's lighter weight and efficient head design. And the X-27 only works well if swung fast.

When I am hand splitting, things like white oak, sugar maple, pin oak, and larger black cherry go off to the side for the maul if they do not show signs of cracking after 4-5 hits with the Fiskars.

My cut-off is three shots with x27. I can usually tell from the sound of the first shot if it will split easy.
 
Might have to chop those last few London trees down, Our version of a polar vortex is on its way!!! :crazy2::crazy2::surprised3::eek::eek: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-43167583 Temps about 10C down on seasonal and probably some snow, predicted coldest Feb week for 5 years ( so not super unusual, but a bit chilly, and unusual this late on in winter). Being late on my seasoned wood pile is dwindling...combine that with the fact I installed stove #2 and have started feeding my parents stove too and...yep, I'm down to scratching around in what should be 2018/19s pile for the dry stuff. Luckily the dead locust is easy to identify and to get at, and I know where to find some of the dry ash....but I'm starting to keep a close eye out for nearby pallets. I thought i was beyond that...I feel a bit ashamed :oops: Then again...it all burns. At least my 2019/20 scrounging is going ok....I'm hoping to have photographic evidence for you in a day or so
 
0745A486-DE97-4075-88FD-75F38769B95A.jpeg 2D82557F-E576-406A-9533-810D01201F68.jpeg E2ACEA94-C6D6-4886-8201-7B67CC72B68D.jpeg I’m a believer. Swung the x27 for the first time today. Hit some fir, silver maple and Manitoba maple. This gnarly crotch piece (sounds derogatory doesn’t it!) would normally be reserved for the splitter but I was able to smack it apart with the fiskars. I hit it 7 times for 4 pieces. Was laying on the ground and was nice and wet so that juice splashed out when I hit it. As far as the easier to split rounds, one strike splits with less energy than the maul and I found the axe didn’t twist in my hand like the maul does. I like it and am happy with my purchase. I do have a hydraulic splitter that does most of what I ask of it, just interested in hand splitting as healthy thing to do.
 
View attachment 635218 View attachment 635220 View attachment 635219 I’m a believer. Swung the x27 for the first time today. Hit some fir, silver maple and Manitoba maple. This gnarly crotch piece (sounds derogatory doesn’t it!) would normally be reserved for the splitter but I was able to smack it apart with the fiskars. I hit it 7 times for 4 pieces. Was laying on the ground and was nice and wet so that juice splashed out when I hit it. As far as the easier to split rounds, one strike splits with less energy than the maul and I found the axe didn’t twist in my hand like the maul does. I like it and am happy with my purchase. I do have a hydraulic splitter that does most of what I ask of it, just interested in hand splitting as healthy thing to do.
Atta boy
 
I'm starting to keep a close eye out for nearby pallets. I thought i was beyond that.
I used to snatch pallets up quick when they were easy pickins. Especially the big shipping crates that had 2x3's in them or alot of slats close together. Easy to split into kindling and super dry. But somebody told me about heat treat chemical they put in the wood, and alot of the lumber has an "HT" stamp on it. I stopped picking up pallets. It burns funny and I thought it was just because it was pine, but none of the other softwood I have does that. Next year I will be sure to have alot of strait grain, easy-to-split something to make multiple 5gal buckets of kindling before winter so I'm not using that stankass weird burning pallet wood.
 
Got a load of Limb wood Tuesday. Maple and locust mix. Buddy calls me up and says, I have a dump trailer load of wood, already cut up, laying where you can just pull up beside it with my trailer, do I want it. Foolish question, of course I want it. So I hook up my trailer and ask my brother to go with e to help load it. Brother had a 16ft 4x6 close by and I told him we could tie it on top of the wood to get it home. everything was going perfect until,,,, We drive up to the wood and say oh crap. If this was lib wood, I would hate to see the size of tree they came off of. Some 20-24 in dia. We had nothing to roll rounds up with so brother and I got on each end of a round and hoisted onto the trailer. To make things worse, My trailer sides are 2ft high. I made them that way because a 6x10 trailer load stacked 2ft high is right at a full cord. This isnt a problem loading logs with a loader, or stacking splits, but those side boards strike me right at chest high which meant we had to hoist those big rounds almost head high to get them in the trailer. Made for a good work out. Today, just a few min ago, sae buddy calls and ask if I wanted the rest of the wood that hadnt been bucked yet. I ask him if there isnt a tractor or something with a forks we can just load in log length instead of picking all those heavy pieces up by hand. Sure he says, they have a trackhoe with thumb in the shed. Now you tell me!!. Look I said, just buck the logs into 10ft lenghts so they fit on the trailer and let use the trackhoe to load those logs in the bed. I can buck them up when I get them home. It will save you climbing on the log pile bucking rounds and save me a lot of lifting loading on the trailer. He liked that ideal, so this evening I should pickup about a cord of maple and locust, and maybe I will remember to take a pic or two. Oh, I also want to see the trees those limbs came off of, must of been a duzzey.
Careful there mud stopper it’s a fine line between good workout and blown disk.
 
View attachment 635218 View attachment 635220 View attachment 635219 I’m a believer. Swung the x27 for the first time today. Hit some fir, silver maple and Manitoba maple. This gnarly crotch piece (sounds derogatory doesn’t it!) would normally be reserved for the splitter but I was able to smack it apart with the fiskars. I hit it 7 times for 4 pieces. Was laying on the ground and was nice and wet so that juice splashed out when I hit it. As far as the easier to split rounds, one strike splits with less energy than the maul and I found the axe didn’t twist in my hand like the maul does. I like it and am happy with my purchase. I do have a hydraulic splitter that does most of what I ask of it, just interested in hand splitting as healthy thing to do.
The x27..... The only polarising controversial topic on the scrounge thread. I’ll have buy one and form my own opinion but cutting and splitting has been the last thing on my mind over the summer months.
 
. . . somebody told me about heat treat chemical they put in the wood, and alot of the lumber has an "HT" stamp on it. . . . so I'm not using that stankass weird burning pallet wood.
Be picky. The treated pallets are usually for international shipping. Lots of good info here:

How To Tell If A Wood Pallet Is Safe For Reuse?
https://www.1001pallets.com/pallet-safety/

Screen shot 2018-02-23 at 6.55.57 PM.png

Philbert
 
The x27..... The only polarising controversial topic on the scrounge thread. I’ll have buy one and form my own opinion but cutting and splitting has been the last thing on my mind over the summer months.
Summer is when I cut and split mine...in between fishing and camping and going to the beach!
 
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Careful there mud stopper it’s a fine line between good workout and blown disk.
Always a better way. Got the rest of the wood today and didnt break a sweat. About a full cord of silver maple, a little locust, and one hickory. Said he had about 2 loads of highly valuable black Walnut, already bucked, and about 10 loads of white oak. Wish I could take that little log loader with me.
0223181419a.jpg
 
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