Stove cord equals 2/3rds of a full cord???

[indiansprings]

Down in this neck of the woods a face cord is not 16' long. People here define it as 4'x8' by whatever however long it is cut, most common sizes being 16",18" 20" 24" they also refer to the same amount of wood as a rick. There are still a few that call up wanting to buy true cord wood, 4' long stacked 4' high by 8' then they cut it to length themselves.

 

[russhd1997]

so what do you guys call a stack 16 foot long 4 foot high and 16 cuts or what do you say that is equal to ?

That would be 2/3 of a cord.

 

[lone wolf]

Oh... I understand it... I'm just curious as to the "Why" part... Most terms have a base in local custom or something unique to a certain local region... Where I came from, the term "face cord" was used primarily in terms of cookstove wood. They measured 12" long out of necessity, due to the fact 16" would not fit in some of the old cookstoves. They based a cord on 4 stacks of 4' high by 8' long with 12" pieces. So what you were getting was the "face" of the cord. Which was 1/4 of a true cord. Make sense?

Yup you make sense I see what you are saying now.

 

[lone wolf]

That would be 2/3 of a cord.

Ok I agree .

 

[Hedgerow]

Yup you make sense I see what you are saying now.

I don't get too worried about what stuff is called. I really DO find the stories and traditions behind why a certain pile of wood is called what it's called, fascinating... Must have been the Paul Harvey influence when I was a kid...
:msp_sneaky:

 

[Coldfront]

So these face cord guys will sell a face cord of 18" or even longer pieces for the same price as 12" pieces? That's what I don't get. So who is getting the short end of the stick??

 

[Hedgerow]

So these face cord guys will sell a face cord of 18" or even longer pieces for the same price as 12" pieces? That's what I don't get. So who is getting the short end of the stick??

The guy on the end of the saw...
:amazed:

That's why I sell by the cord or fraction thereof...

 

[Carl Anderson]

Around here most guys just sell by the cord or 1/2 cord, etc. Every once in a while I see someone selling face cords but they usually specify 12", 16", etc. and adjust price accordingly. It's still more confusing that way and I always think they are just looking for a way to pull a fast one on people. I'm not buying wood anymore, unless I run out but if I do I'll just be happy to get an honest cord for a fair price. Sometimes that's harder than figuring out what's a face cord, stove cord, rip cord, rick, rack patty whack and I don't care.

 

[KsWoodsMan]

I actually got a laugh about how how this guy wanted 32" or even 16" wood to fit in his cook stove. Knowing what a cord was he should hve ordered 2/3 cord of 16" wood.

Last weekend an old guy called and wanted me to bring him a stove cord of firewood. So, I brought him 1/3 of a cord, thinking stove cord, face cord, same thing. When I got there he told me a stove cord is 2/3rds of a full cord. We argued about it, me saying no, same as a face cord, him saying no, 2/3rds of a cord. Eventually we agreed on a price for the amount he wanted and I went and got the rest.
I told him about this website and how no one on here ever mentions anything about a stove cord being anything but another name for a face cord and told him I would put it out on here to see what you guys thought of it. I think back in the day, that may have been possible, but not today.

Any comments would be interesting!
Thanks!
Ted

HTH did we take something as funny as this and turn it into something much funnier ?

Seeing as how there are as many different ways to stack out a cord as there are different 'local' terms to define similar stacks or piles of wood. i can understand how the confusion gets perpetuated. WE can't even seem agree on how it gets stacked, stored or dried but some sure get adamant about any ambiguous word attached to the term cord. True, if it is a cord call it such, if it is less/more adjust accordingly by the fraction or multiple.
I think the OP made a very good point for legal standards used to measure of a volume of wood. He and the buyer seemed to know what a cord is The buyer described what he wanted using a description that could easily be translated to mean much less. Had the buyer used a more exact description than 'stove cord' many man hours and bandwidth would have been saved. But then we wouldn't have gotten a reminder why wood in the US is measured in cords (or cubic feet).

There is no confusion , here , about how big a cord is or how much wood it contains. I always get a chuckle from these types of threads. If we had converted to metrics this would only be worse or funnier !

 

[Dalmatian90]

I'm tellin' ya, measure 'em in cubic furlongs.

On that note, I'm headed up to play in my woodlot and bring down a short bed with a cap Ranger load of wood I have blocked up and waiting for me on the ground

 

[Hedgerow]

I'm tellin' ya, measure 'em in cubic furlongs.

On that note, I'm headed up to play in my woodlot and bring down a short bed with a cap Ranger load of wood I have blocked up and waiting for me on the ground

See? Now I'm familiar with that unit of measurement! It's 149 pieces... Right??? AKA "A bucket and a half"...
:waaaht:

 

[turnkey4099]

Would you mind explaining that?If a face is 16feet long by 4 feet high with 16 inch long pieces how does that equal a 1/3 cord?If a cord as you all should agree is 16 feet x 4 feet x 24 inches agreed?If you cut the 24 inch logs in HALF that is 12 inches now you half half of what you started with so how the heck can 16 inches equal a 1/3 if 12 inches equals a half?So in your estimation it is 1/3 cord so 16 inches x 3 equals 36 inches a log length in a cord is not 36 inches long it is 24 !What say all you guys good at math am i right?

Online Conversion - Percent Calculator Harry type in 16 is 24 what percent of and you will get 66 not 33 percent 66 is 2/3 type in 8 is what percent of 24 and you get 33 which is one third .

That is all well and good but "face cord" has been defined repeatedly as 8' x 4x by unspecified length. You are the first person to bring it to 16' x 4'. Since "face cord" is not a legal definition I guess either definition is good. Thus my face cord turns into a full cord, not 1/3, not 2/3....or mabe 1 1/3 cord.

Harry K

 

[turnkey4099]

I hear you Hedge, I try to educate customers on what a cord is, so they understand what they should be paying for, however, many of my customers can't afford to buy a full cord at at a time. Your professor must be related to the professor from MSSU that buys hay from me, he gets it down to the pound when paying,lol, and he's always about four-six month in paying his bill, or I should say "was", because this year it's cash up front or no hay gets loaded. He is a professor in the business department, in the past he has proven he doesn't understand the definition of "payment is due within ten days". I wish I had more customer's that could afford to buy a full cord at a time.

They don't have to buy a full cord at the time. Sell them 1/4, 1/3, 1/2 whatever they want. It's not rocket science.

Harry K

 

[Hedgerow]

They don't have to buy a full cord at the time. Sell them 1/4, 1/3, 1/2 whatever they want. It's not rocket science.

Harry K

That wasn't the point Harry... He was referring to people having a shortage of money this year...
:msp_mellow:

 

[artbaldoni]

so nobody is good with math here?

Pretty good with math and "chords" Chord -- from Wolfram MathWorld

Wood and "cords" not so much... :tongue2:

 

[Dalmatian90]

It's 149 pieces... Right??? AKA "A bucket and a half"...

Not a 149 of these pieces:

White oak I believe based on the color, the leaves on a shoot growing from the stump (felled tree in the spring), and how quickly my Ranger ran out of springs. Of course every time I make a call on the species of wood here I end embarrassed

Loaded one layer in the bed then rolled a second layer to the front to get two tiers plus a bit in the truck.