How would you deal with these beast rounds

[Guido Salvage]

This is the tool here:

While you are still messing with trying to get them to the splitter, I would be done and drinking a beer...

 

[trailmaker]

Just with the equipment in the photo I fail to see any real challenge. Unless that is some really tough splitting wood as short as it's cut an 8lb maul should walk right through it. Have you tried those orange handled mauls on it yet?

I tried the Fiskars SS, traditional maul, wedge and sledge without much luck. I'll give the mauls another go tomorrow morning before I tire myself out with other nonsense activities. Shreve Oak is about the toughest stuff around here. It has tortuous growth like a Coast live oak but higher density.

 

[H-Ranch]

With the view from that particular splitting location I would take the longest method possible.

 

[trailmaker]

This is the tool here:

While you are still messing with trying to get them to the splitter, I would be done and drinking a beer...

Never tried that style, I'll look for one next time I'm in town. I've got a good shopping list from this thread; bigger saw, bigger hand truck, tongs, hook, explosives, new maul. I'll just tell my wife that's what the experienced arborists suggested.:hmm3grin2orange:

 

[jhoff310]

oh just throw them over your shoulder and carry them home. I picked up some ash last week 28" across X 19" tall HEAVY STUFF. busted nut surgery is next Tuesday :hmm3grin2orange: just kidding about the busted nut.

I would use a maul or noodle them up

Jeff

 

[trailmaker]

Powder wedges work really well. I used one last week on several 36 inch white oak rounds and it blew all of them into thirds except one it blem in half. Here's a video of one in action:

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Cool video! That seems to work very well. What's the process? Drill a hole and pour it in? What's the other round for?

 

[Constrictor]

id roll the splitter right by em, split em, stack em, season em, then burn em.:hmm3grin2orange:

 

[CTYank]

It's not so much the tool(s) you use, but how you use them.

The first split is always the hardest. You might noodle one end of a diameter, set a wedge there, then, with it lying face up, hit it with a maul opposite where the wedge is.

Big pieces, with a maul, I hit on one edge, then the other, then maybe the middle, depending on cracks that open. Working the whole line of the split makes it easier.

I've found that I can do more damage with a 6 lb maul than the heavier.

When in doubt, don't be afraid to cheat, experiment, improvise.

 

[cjnspecial]

Cool video! That seems to work very well. What's the process? Drill a hole and pour it in? What's the other round for?

It's a thick, hollow steel tube filled with black powder and drove into the end grain of the wood. They do have powder wedges that are driven onto the side grain of the wood but in my experience, they do not work as well.

Here's another video with a better shot of the actual powder wedge:
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[Swamp Yankee]

You only get one back, save it!!!!

I've found noodling the really big stuff into 1/4s then dealing with the four smaller pieces is most convenient. The 1/4s then go in the tractor bucket and I just pull them onto the splitter with a pickeroon or pulp hook.

Looking at your set up I would recommend the noodle technique, and then use a pickeroon to drag the chunks to the splitter. Split vertically to manageable size and go from there.

Definitely a lot of good usable wood there, just work deliberately and you'll be amazed how fast it gets done. Piles of big chunks sometimes look overwhelming, but the good part is once you get going the pile shrinks quickly.

Take Care

 

[BlueRidgeMark]

You only get one back, save it!!!!

I've found noodling the really big stuff into 1/4s then dealing with the four smaller pieces is most convenient.

:agree2:


A lot of my stuff is that size. Some bigger. Noodle away!

 

[stihl sawing]

Noodle into quarters and then split. So much easier than draggin em to the splitter or pulling the splitter to them. Plus a whole lot more fun.

Having lots of noodles is a good thing

 

[brisawyer]

I would chain a pair of tongs to the mini exc bucket and get a helper. Let the machines do the work.

 

[cmsmoke]

Here's how I use my northstar 32ton with big rounds. It may be worth a look. (If I kept it hooked to something, it wouldn't slide)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGIti5Qk5jg

 

[jack_90125]

Here's how I use my northstar 32ton with big rounds. It may be worth a look. (If I kept it hooked to something, it wouldn't slide)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGIti5Qk5jg

great idea but why not finish splitting them as it would be less wood handling.

 

[KD57]

Noddle and split. Collect the noodles and use them for dog house bedding.
But those rounds in your pic are short, I would just split them as they are.

 

[cmsmoke]

I size everything into managable pieces, then set the splitter horizontal and install the table. Notice my loaded trailer waiting to be split. I toss all the big chunks into it and then work from the same level. Bending over for prolonged periods is just as bad as handling those large rounds. I tried it both ways and this way is much faster and less painful.

 

[2FatGuys]

With the correct technique and tools, noodling is much faster than any other method (except explosives... LOL). We routinely reduce our big rounds with a 460 or 395 wearing a 24" and full skip. It goes FAST....

We are currently dealing with a 14k trailer load of 54" white oak....

 

[hoosier daddy]

I would noodle and split. save the noodles for firestarter...but because your on the West Coast I'd say call Chuck Norris and have him kick them into splits. Heck he could probably kick them into splits that are stacked!!! He's SOOOOOOO BAAADDDDD!:hmm3grin2orange:

 

[trailmaker]

Just with the equipment in the photo I fail to see any real challenge. Unless that is some really tough splitting wood as short as it's cut an 8lb maul should walk right through it. Have you tried those orange handled mauls on it yet?

Tried again today to blast through it old school but it was still real slow going. A friend with a lot more hand splitting experience is coming to give a hand tomorrow, hopefully I can learn something from him. It may just be tough splitting wood, I took a picture of a split next to some Doug Fir.

That little 13 in piece didn't look so bad from the outside but you can see the grain is pretty twisted.