Sawing ZZZZZZZZs

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Thursday, May 12. 2011

While the rest of the Maggies Farm truants are off somewhere sawing ZZZZZZZs or something, it occurs to me to insert this easier way to chop firewood:

Posted by Bruce Kesler at 21:57 | Comments (15) | Trackbacks (0)

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I used to chop wood as a part time job on the weekend when I was in college. I mostly cut Post Oak, Hickory and Pecan. This wood is beautiful to split in that it has no knots and the grain is as straight as an arrow. Anyone know what kind it is.

The guy splitting it is really good, but the wood helps too. You couldn't do this with a Live Oak log. It's way too gnarly.

#1 Dangerous Dean on 2011-05-13 00:11 (Reply)

Huh, American man keep warm chopping wood, Canadian man keep warm with big stove holding big logs.

#2 Fred Z on 2011-05-13 01:07 (Reply)

Splittin wood one of my favorite things!

#3 RL on 2011-05-13 01:19 (Reply)

WOW!!! Why didn't I think of that? The guys a genius! If you harvest your wood from stands of tall trees in a stand of close proximity trees (like I have access to) this is perfection!!!

#4 Bob Devine on 2011-05-13 02:07 (Reply)

A bungee cord might do the job.

#5 Bird Dog on 2011-05-13 08:03 (Reply)

That's an old trick. There is a catch though. The wood has to be straight grained, fairly clear and well seasoned. It also helps to have a reasonably sharp maul. Try that with swamp maple or swamp oak (red oak) and you'll be using words you probably didn't know you knew.

#6 Tom Francis on 2011-05-13 08:28 (Reply)

Soft wood. The maul I must swing is heavier and wood much more dense. Smart guy though.

#7 Dave J. on 2011-05-13 09:34 (Reply)

As others have noted the choice of wood species is critical.

I found red oak easy to split but white oak most difficult.

#8 James (Link) on 2011-05-13 09:52 (Reply)

Gotta agree with the comments re: choice of wood. When it comes to firewood I don't own any forests and have rather scant needs since all I feed now is a chimenea to keep My Better Two-Thirds happy. So I scavenge what I can.

White oak and maple, especially sections where there were branches, is like beating on hardened bunker concrete. I use a std 8-lb maul and that sucker bounces off and sends the entire hunk-o-wood flying. Any cutesy bungee thingie wrapped around it would just go flying with it.

On the other hand, I find pine typically splits quite nicely. Bungees work there nicely.

One thing that is essential when using the bungee trick, however, is that you splitting block must be MUCH larger in diameter that the hunk-o-wood you are splitting. I don't always have that luxury.

Now, my fellow splitters, here's a question: wet vs. dry? how long do you let your cut wood sit before splitting?

#9 Knucklehead (Link) on 2011-05-13 11:46 (Reply)

When I was DIY on the wood thing, it was a full season logs stacked - usually three cord's worth. Second year, cut to length and split.

Seth Salding, the guy in Woodstock who does logging for a living says it's better with one year seasoning and that's all. Leave the wood exposed to the elements before cutting to length and splitting. Then just cover the top of the cord, leave the rest exposed to air and moisture.

Worked for me for a lot of years.

#9.1 Tom Francis on 2011-05-13 21:16 (Reply)

Cut the trees down in the first winter. Rack them up in the splitting yard. The second winter cut the logs to length and split.
Dryer then normal wood at that point and any moisture left in the wood will be frozen....viola! easier splitting!
Steve

#10 Steve on 2011-05-13 15:15 (Reply)

Don't normally get to scavenge entire trees and when I do I can't transport them in their entirety so I need to cut to manageable lengths. Ain't got no "splitting yard". But I do stack the unsplit, cut to length bits and split those after they've sat a while. Tend to do that in bits through the course of summer and fall though, taking the older and dryer stuff first.

#11 Knucklehead (Link) on 2011-05-13 20:03 (Reply)

Looks like Alder and from the looks of the moss on it probably in the Northwest where it is common. Splits easy.

#12 observor on 2011-05-13 22:33 (Reply)

Try that with Chinese or American elm and your maul will quickly become embedded in twisted grain! You'll spend much time and energy just trying to re-claim the maul from the grain's death grip!

#13 Earl T on 2011-05-13 23:37 (Reply)

Splitting American Elm is difficult, although standing dead, which is common because of Dutch Elm Disease, splits easier and is stove ready fuel.

Siberian Elm (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulmus_pumila) splits easily. Don't know about Chinese Elm.

#14 observor on 2011-05-13 23:59 (Reply)

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Thursday, May 12. 2011

Sawing ZZZZZZZZs