Help! Having trouble ripping hardwood

[Billy_Bob]

I have a several blocks of *very* hard wood which are 25" diameter and about 18" long. I think this may be Yew wood.

Trying to cut these up for firewood....

They are too heavy to lift into a splitter, and I can't split them by hand as is.

So I got the idea I would saw (rip) them in half and then also cut them down to about 9" length. So I did that, then I had 9" long "halves" which I was then able to split by hand.

But I swear that one rip cut dulled my chain! Clean wood, no metal, did not hit the ground????

Anyway I was poking around the archives and noticed there are special "ripping chains".

Anyone know what would be the best ripping chain for a 460 with a 32" Stihl ES bar .50 gauge 3/8 pitch?

 

[Lakeside53]

Just use the Stihl square ground semi skip... It rips fine out of the box. If you want, grind off every 5th raker top.


Better still, get three steel wedges and pound them into the rounds, in a line - from OUTSIDE to middle to outside. It WILL split. After the first split the rest come off easy. I have the same problem with Big Leaf maple stump rounds. Impossible to split until the first break is in place.

 

[pinus]

May be splitting with the wedges will work better than ripping with the saw

 

[SawTroll]

But I swear that one rip cut dulled my chain! Clean wood, no metal, did not hit the ground????

Did you rip from the end, or from the side?

If from the end, try from the side next time!

 

[pbtree]

The make a special chain for ripping, which works pretty darn good...Check out www.bbaileys.com...

 

[Newfie]

ripping chain is designed for milling lumber not cutting down rounds. Keep the round on its side as if you just cut it out of a log and rip the length of the round. This is the fastest and most efficient way. Regular chain works great. You'll know you are doing it right if your saw sinks through the round and produces big curly fry chips. The dull chain may be because of dirt on the log or in the log. Some types of wood bark are naturally "gritty". This method is much faster than "ripping" chain.

 

[smokechase II]

Is that wood dry?
If it's dried Yew, yes that could have dulled your chain.
Is it throwing some sparks?
Note that in timber carnivals it is usually cottonwoods and pines that are used.
Wouldn't a great practical joke be to slip in some yew.
However, rounds the size you (no pun) have may be too big to be typical of yew.
Process of elimination; cut off two bark slabs with your dull saw. Sharpen and see what happens avoiding all dirt/bark.

 

[Vman]

have u tried a grenade for splitting? it is a cone shaped splitting wedge, looks like a metal ice-cream cone. we call it a grenade in my area, but may be known by other names.

 

[Billy_Bob]

have u tried a grenade for splitting? it is a cone shaped splitting wedge, looks like a metal ice-cream cone. we call it a grenade in my area, but may be known by other names.

Yes I have one of those. I pounded it in and there it stayed without any splitting! So then I had to carefully cut it out.

 

[Billy_Bob]

ripping chain is designed for milling lumber not cutting down rounds. Keep the round on its side as if you just cut it out of a log and rip the length of the round. This is the fastest and most efficient way. Regular chain works great. You'll know you are doing it right if your saw sinks through the round and produces big curly fry chips...

Ahhh Ha... That is what it was! Yes I was cutting with it facing up/down as if I was going to split it - not on its side.

Actually come to think about it, I have never done this before - ripping anything facing up/down. I've always done the ripping with the block on its side before.

Also the wood is green/wet wood, no sparks flying.

I'll try the 3 wedges at once thing as well as cutting on its side and also a semi skip and/or ripping chain. Might as well learn about what works best with these monsters and do a little experimenting...

 

[Billy_Bob]

Just use the Stihl square ground semi skip... It rips fine out of the box. If you want, grind off every 5th raker top...

For hardwood, do you sharpen this chain square ground (keep it square ground)?

And do you leave the rakers at about .026 when sharpening for hardwood?

What does filing off every 5th raker do? In what situations would I want to use such a modified chain? Ripping only? Hardwood only?

 

[Blowdown1]

Billy Bob, also keep the bar out of the cut a little (not burried up to the dogs) to allow those long, curly shavings to clear the kerf, otherwise they pack up into the saw.

 

[SawTroll]

Very good advice, Blowdown!

 

[Billy_Bob]

Hey, I actually split that monster! I used 3 splitting wedges as suggested, pounded them in, then started hearing creaking and moaning when they were about 2/3 the way in. Then there was a loud *crack* and the top split. I pounded them in the rest of the way as far as I could, but the bottom was still holding on for dear life. So I had to use a 4th splitting wedge on the bottom side to break the bottom out and free the 3 other wedges. But this got the job done...

I tried getting a half-skip chain, but the saw dealer close by did not have any. So I used my regular full skip chisel chain, but cut from the bark side as suggested above. Worked like a champ! So I was able to get all these blocks ripped today without noticing any unusual dulling of my chain like happened yesterday after just one cut. (Amazing how cutting one way can be so different from cutting the other way.)

Thanks everybody for the great advice!

 

[pinus]

wood is not isotropic material

 

[Billy_Bob]

wood is not isotropic material

Well I had to look up that word! The dictionary says...

"isotropic - equal properties along all axes."

So is this the same as... equal properties along all chainsaws?

 

[Big Woody]

As pinus correctly said "wood is not an isotropic material". Isotropy means the same material properties in all directions as the dictionary noted.

Wood is actually classified as having cylindrical orthotropy (it is an orthotropic material in a cylindrical coordinate system). It has different material properties in three mutually perpendicular directions. One is vertically along the grain (straight up as the tree stands), the second is radially outward from the center and the third is in the circumferential direction along the rings.

For comparison steel, aluminim and most metals are isotropic . Carbon fiber and kevlar composites are also orthotropic like wood although I haven't tried to cut them with a chainsaw yet.

 

[Big Woody]

I forgot to add: When you cut wood in a normal crosscut manner you are attacking the wood in its weaker direction. When you rip longitudinally you are attacking it from its strongest direction. Hence the need for a different style chain and the rather slow progress you make.