Hauling Wood As You Get Older...What Changes Have You Made?

[gink595]

I'm only 35 but I've had a surgery that cut my abdomen muscles and they put a mesh to hold my innards in, so I really don't have any strength in my stomach muscles which makes my lower back work twice as hard. I've had to learn how to do heavy work with new methods. I rely on the Bobcat for most of it. I will cut the logs and haul them home and then I put the up on some stands and buck them, the only time I really bend over is to put them in the log splitter. I'm looking at making a log splitter for the bobcat just to break the big rounds so I can manage them on the log splitter.

 

[Chris-PA]

Just a thought..... Do you use a weight lifters belt? I ALWAYS have a magnet belt on, and when I have to mess with heavy stuff I put a weight lifters belt on over the magnet one! Have had a bad back since '85 from lifting locust when I lived in Ohio. Use my splitter in the vertical sitting on a big round. Pull logs over with a three pronged rake.

I probably should give that try. I've started using an elbow brace for my left arm, as I blew it out years ago with the digging bar setting fence posts and it's never fully recovered. That helps so I suppose some back support might too. It's not that my back is terribly weak, it's actually been holding up well and I've been working it hard, it's just that I'm a bit paranoid about it. I don't mind being sore, as long as I'm not injured.

 

[litefoot]

Well, I'm 58 and have cut firewood to heat my houses since I was 25, but with a 5 year "hiatus" from 35 - 40.

Here in Nevada and Utah I've primarily cut three species, Utah juniper, pinyon pine, and mountain mahogany. With a little Gambel's Oak thrown in for a few years.

I owned a splitter when I was cutting pinyon pine, as it was about impossible to split, but Utah juniper is real easy to split, and I sold the splitter years ago.

Anyway, I've almost always "bucked up" the wood into stove length chunks "in the field", and split them at home.

What I have purchased recently are a couple of 8" Timber Tongs which have been a godsend for saving my back when loading or otherwise handling firewood rounds. I have a holster for one tong which I carry while cutting which helps me handle logs, then I use the pair to transport stove length chunks to the truck. WOW, works good. I'd bet a pulp hook would really help too.

I like to go at a relatively slow pace, and I'm usually alone. I have about 7 cords of wood in my back yard. My wife and kids say, "Dad, we don't need anymore wood!!" I keep cutting though, because it keeps me healthy and in shape!!

Take care and keep cutting!

RPrice,
Good to talk to another intermountain guy. I'm in Utah and my typical wood is lodgepole, ponderosa or doug fir. I like the tong idea. I'm hoping to pursue it with a log arch that I can break down for hauling up to the mountains. Thanks for you suggestions.

Built a splitter with a lift, and yard truck with a dump, and a dozer with a winch. Just gotta find a few youngin's that wanna work

Blazer, I'd love to see pictures of your stuff. Especially you splitter and lift.

I gave up trying to lift 150+ lb logs onto the tailgate. Best bet is to noodle cut them in half and save your back. I bought a 25" bar and chain for the big puppies, and my MS 361 chews them up nicely.

Crotchwood is a PITA anyway, and noodle cutting the crotch in half saves the splitter as well. I also stopped maul splitting a few years ago. Needless to say, my back troubles have subsided for awhile.

Aging is relentless. You cannot fight it, but you can ease the pain by reducing the load.

Good suggestion on noodling. I don't usually cut anything that big, but I did help a neighbor cut up a 40" ash that I needed to noodle. Looks like the noodles will be good fire starter.

As I get older, turning 65 next year, I am thankful each year that I can still grab the saws, the tractor and splitter and go chase wood. Will not be a happy day when I need to stop. In view of this, I do whatever I can to keep these years of wood work/play coming. During the off season, I walk and hike to try and keep myself in some degree of good condition. To help with the wood processing, I updated my tractor to a larger size and last week traded in my splitter for one with a lift. With the cost of my saws, tractor and splitter, my wife says we could have spent the rest of our winters together in Hawaii. She is correct but I would much rather cut wood. I also try to find ways that make my cutting a little easier. This forum has been a great asset to me in finding these ideas. Thank you for this site. I also try to remind myself each day I cut to not get in a hurry, be safe, think, know when to stop for the day. Thanks for asking. Excellent question.

LOL! Some folks buy boats and others buy tractors and splitters. I guess you focus on what brings you the most pleasure!

the best thing i bought was a trailer no more tail gate lifts i roll the rounds in the trailer and on the tw6 with log lift the best thing you want when you get older good luck

I pull a trailer behind a suburban. I can get about 2 cords in the trailer. And you're right, it's much easier to load. My ideal would be a splitter integrated into the front of the trailer. I could buck and split right there on the mountain and be done with it.

I'm only 35 but I've had a surgery that cut my abdomen muscles and they put a mesh to hold my innards in, so I really don't have any strength in my stomach muscles which makes my lower back work twice as hard. I've had to learn how to do heavy work with new methods. I rely on the Bobcat for most of it. I will cut the logs and haul them home and then I put the up on some stands and buck them, the only time I really bend over is to put them in the log splitter. I'm looking at making a log splitter for the bobcat just to break the big rounds so I can manage them on the log splitter.

Thanks for the pics, Gink. Nice set up you have there. I admire your resilience. Hang in there!

 

[KiwiBro]

I'm looking at making a log splitter for the bobcat

Firewood Processor - HFP160 Firewood Pro

This one is only up to 18" though, but might give you a few ideas. I can't recall the AS member's username but he helped develop that one I think. There's a thread somewhere on AS about it.

 

[bobt]

All you guys with the equipment make me very envious!

I have found that with all the gnarly knot infested stuff that I cut, I am well ahead by simply ripping the tree trunk down the middle before I block it into firewood lengths. I don't wrestle big rounds into the box of the pickup anymore, and it makes it much easier to split with the maul.

And Oh Yes, the rest time sitting on the tailgate with a cup a joe,,,,,,,,,priceless!!!

Bob

 

[Doug Fir]

Smaller diameter trees FTW!

As I have gotten older (and wiser?) I have shifted to smaller diameter wood. The smaller rounds are easier to lift and toss, and I can easily split all of my wood with a lightweight splitting axe. The smaller diameter stuff is also easier to find, in part because the commercial guys like the big stuff. I cut trees up to 18" this year, but most of the wood in my shed came from trees that were 6-10" in diameter.

Sure, it takes a bit longer to get a cord, but the body suffers less wear and tear. I no longer try to minimize the time per cord. Instead, I try to minimize "wear and tear" per cord, while still getting the exercise that comes from doing most of the work by hand. I suppose I could get a splitter and other machinery to help out, but I fear that would only accelerate the aging process.

I'm just a firewood scavenger cutting for my own use. I enjoy it. Needless to say, my advice does not apply to those who are trying to make a living cutting firewood.

Doug

 

[unclemoustache]

Let me preface by saying that I'm still strong enough to handle some good-sized rounds, but I have had hernia surgery related to hauling wood, so I have to be careful. Other than having your kids haul the wood for you, what have you done to facilitate the process?

Darn - you said "Other than having your kids haul the wood..." That was going to be my answer.

I don't have any heavy equipment - just a lawn tractor which pulls a small trailer, then a larger trailer pulled by my truck. A buddy of mine uses a two-wheel cart to haul the medium size rounds onto the trailer- the bigger ones are noodled in half or quarters. Don't have the funds for heavy equipment, but maybe someday....

 

[eric_271]

We grew up with a wood stove for heat and i hated pulling brush for dad while he cut. He stopped burning when all of us kids moved away. I ended up buying property across the road from his a few years later and after a really harsh winter decided i was going to start burning wood. Dad loaned me his Chevy half ton and his saw and i never looked back. The next year Mom and Dad decided to start burning again. Dad bought a 53 Chevy wheat truck and i built him a new steel dump bed to replace the rotted out wood frame and deck. He also has a 23H.P. 4x4 Kubota.

From that point on we left everything we cut a few feet longer than the bed of the wheat truck and used ramps for the little kubota to get high enough to dump the logs over the sides of the bed. He had built his bucket to be able to use forks which were great for hooking and pushing brush away and into piles. This was really beating the heck out of loading and unloading the wood by hand and eliminating the hand handling of brush.

About 11 years ago i ran across a good deal on a backhoe and added forks to the bucket on it. We've used it and his kubota and his and my wheat trucks ever since. His tractor is handy for pushing the brush and stacking the logs in piles and my backhoe for carrying whole trees and stacking the piles of logs high in the trucks. We hauled home over 40 heaping wheat truck loads last winter. I built 2 different log splitters with the second being a vertical and horizontal. It's worked out well for both of us and i enjoyed cutting wood with him. Two people and a little equipment can sure save on tons of labor.

 

[turnkey4099]

I'm closing in on 77. Still out there but my work day is down to around 4 hours anymore. Changes? Not many, I bust the rounds down smaller any more, about 100 lbs is all I want to "clean and jerk" onto the tailgate . Got both hips replaced about 10 years ago and that didn't slow me down. Doc didn't even object when I told him I was out there 'wooding'.

Tools?

1. Rider mower and small cart

2. Splitter but it only gets used on the knots/crotches, all others gets the wedge/sledge, maul, Fiskars treatment - I need all the exercise I can get. Took me a good month last spring to get back into some semblance of "shape" after sitting on my rear all winter.

3.Best tool and I wish I had gotten one years ago (finally did 2 years ago): Hookeroon. It is amazing how much 'work' one saves just moving rounds around. It really comes into play when unloading. I added a 7' homebuilt one so I can now unload the pickup without ever crawling up into the bed. On the ground or in the truck it is rare that I ever bend over to move a round. Those hookeroons have become a third arm for me. I saw that someone mentioned using a 3 tine rake. I did the same for years. The first time I used a real hookeroon I realized just how poor a substitute rakes are. I gaurantee that anyone who uses a hookeroon once will never, ever be without one again.

Headed out tomorrow to finish the last job of the year, fall a medium size, mostly dead locust. Figure I should have it down, brush piled and all cut up by noon.

Unfortunately I have not one tree lined up after tomorrow's. Gotta get on the phone and start calling around. I send out letters asking about trees that really need removing but hardly ever get an answer to them - I'll try the phone this winter.

Harry K

 

[EXCALIBER]

Well I would suggest to keep the most $ in your pocket and for as little wood as you do each year to mount one of these on your truck or trailer to lift logs into place. I would then replace the hand winch with an electric one and you would be set for very little money. I think these are 150-300 $ at Northern Tool

 

[Nosmo]

Changes or Additions I Have Made

I turned 70 in July and am still cutting , loading, splitting and stacking my own firewood. Used to do it all by hand except the cutting.

Decided a couple years ago to try and make things easier. First thing I added was a Harbor Freight crane to my pickup to make loading the big ones easier. It is no problem to lift a 150 round into my pickup or set it onto my trailer.

Next addition was a Huskee 35 ton splitter. Sure do wish I'd gotten it a long time before waiting so long.

Latest addition was a Big Red 2-ton engine hoist from Tractor Supply. I modified the hoist by adding a hand operated winch. I can lift a 150 lb. round and set it right into the cradle of the splitter.

Nosmo

 

[spike60]

I gave up trying to lift 150+ lb logs onto the tailgate. Best bet is to noodle cut them in half and save your back. I bought a 25" bar and chain for the big puppies, and my MS 361 chews them up nicely.

Crotchwood is a PITA anyway, and noodle cutting the crotch in half saves the splitter as well. I also stopped maul splitting a few years ago. Needless to say, my back troubles have subsided for awhile.

Aging is relentless. You cannot fight it, but you can ease the pain by reducing the load.

Pretty much the same for me. Anything I don't feel like lifting gets halved or quartered. No reason to strain myself, plus it's a good excuse to run the bigger saws. :msp_thumbup:

Got a splitter about 10 years ago. I was only 45 then and still using a maul, but it was a super deal from a guy who was moving. ($500 like new MTD) But I'm sure that at some point between then and now it would have been a move that I would have had to make regardless of getting a great deal or not.

Also I've grown to love cutting tops. A lot less splitting and everything is easy to toss in the truck.

 

[Chris-PA]

As I have gotten older (and wiser?) I have shifted to smaller diameter wood. The smaller rounds are easier to lift and toss, and I can easily split all of my wood with a lightweight splitting axe. The smaller diameter stuff is also easier to find, in part because the commercial guys like the big stuff. I cut trees up to 18" this year, but most of the wood in my shed came from trees that were 6-10" in diameter.

Sure, it takes a bit longer to get a cord, but the body suffers less wear and tear. I no longer try to minimize the time per cord. Instead, I try to minimize "wear and tear" per cord, while still getting the exercise that comes from doing most of the work by hand. I suppose I could get a splitter and other machinery to help out, but I fear that would only accelerate the aging process.

I'm just a firewood scavenger cutting for my own use. I enjoy it. Needless to say, my advice does not apply to those who are trying to make a living cutting firewood.

Doug

Since I split by hand any piece that has big knots or is oversize or otherwise splits hard is a big time hit. I can knock apart decently straight 20" logs for hours, but if I have to drag some oversize thing around I lose a lot of time and expend a lot of energy.

One of my wedges is still up in a big oak log by the treeline from Saturday. I don't know what's inside that log - there were no hints from either end or around the sides - but it won't let go. It kept popping the wedge part way out, and I said it's either gonna split or give me the wedge back. I was wrong. I got wedge half way through the darn thing and decided to call it a day. I coulda split a dozen smaller logs for all time and effort I put into that.

 

[moose5180]

I have learned that the only time a piece of wood should hit the ground is when the tree is cut down.
I have a system that works well, fell tree, chunk up, load on trailer, roll from trailer directly to splitter, split, stack.
The less it is handled and kept off the ground the more efficient your firewood getting process will be.

In the past i made the mistake of dumping chunked wood in a pile to split later. Well every piece of it will again need
to be picked off the ground to the splitter. This will double your work and your back will not thank you.

 

[litefoot]

I have learned that the only time a piece of wood should hit the ground is when the tree is cut down.
I have a system that works well, fell tree, chunk up, load on trailer, roll from trailer directly to splitter, split, stack.
The less it is handled and kept off the ground the more efficient your firewood getting process will be.

In the past i made the mistake of dumping chunked wood in a pile to split later. Well every piece of it will again need
to be picked off the ground to the splitter. This will double your work and your back will not thank you.

Good thinking! The wood I haul this year is usually not going get used until next year or even the year after. And since it's not covered, it sits for 1 or 2 long winters out in the rain and snow, so to keep it protected, I don't split it until I need it. Maybe I'm over-thinking...or may I just need to build a shed

 

[turnkey4099]

Good thinking! The wood I haul this year is usually not going get used until next year or even the year after. And since it's not covered, it sits for 1 or 2 long winters out in the rain and snow, so to keep it protected, I don't split it until I need it. Maybe I'm over-thinking...or may I just need to build a shed

Same here, Iam about 10-12 years ahead on Black Locust. Every chunk that comes home gets dumped an piled "in the round" for splitting later when I need something to do, to work off some energy, to whale away at a chunk instead of the wife .

I usually, on days I'm not doing anything staart it by splitting manually a garden trailer of rounds (4-6 big ones) to get the blood flowing, then bring another trailerload up to the split/pile area.

Harry K

 

[ponyexpress976]

This is only my third year of wood burning at my house. As a kid, my dad would bring home trailer loads of pallets on the weekends and let me "play" with the saw to my hart's content all summer long. Man. I hated running an old speaker magnet through the ask bin to get all the nails out!

Now that I'm cutting for myself, I'm not sure which utensil I love more, my fiskars or my tw-6. I have a nice area under a maple tree that stays shaded to work. Back up the truck and hit a button to unload. Once I cut a decent size pile to stove length, I'll spend some time with the fiskars getting warmed up. I'll whack away at all the easy pieces filling up the gator and saving my wallet from the gas man. Once Im down to the "harder" pieces like big stuff and crotches, I will fire up the tw.

I have become much more coscientoius as to the size of my splits. Last year I acquired a nasty case of tenis elbow. Split everything big and picked it all up by the ends to toss into the gator...that was the most annoying injury I've ever had. My dominant hand was so weak that on the worst days I could barely hold a cup of coffee.

 

[peterc38]

I turned 50 last year and while I don't have the brute strength I had as a 210 .lb 25 year old, I probably have 85% of the strength as a 185 .lb 50 year old and am a lot smarter! I still can get it done physically, even with having spinal fusion 10 years ago. I have a tractor when needed and one handy gadget I got a couple months ago is a Logrite pickaroon. About the only thing that really slows me down is the really hot summer days. I don't know how my southern AS brethren can tolerate it, as I have lived in a cold climate all my life. Cuttin' in the heat is real tough, splittin' not quite as bad.

 

[ponyexpress976]

I don't know how my southern AS brethren can tolerate it, as I have lived in a cold climate all my life. Cuttin' in the heat is real tough, splittin' not quite as bad.

You ain't kidding brother...cuting in the heat just plain sucks, no matter what your age is!

 

[rmount]

I'll turn 60 while I'm cutting next spring. The best trick I've learned is to slow down a bit and don't go at it non-stop. Leaning on the maul and watching the chipmunks play, or sitting on a stump and listening to the birds occasionally doesn't change your output all that much but it sure leaves you feeling better at the end of the day.