You nailed it. Slabbing and ripping are for the really knotty stuff. I got an additional Oregon plug in electric saw (only $100) because the gas you use to cut the slabs is not much savings over heating oil. Most people just throw the knotty stuff away because of the low cost to gain ratio. Ripping and slabbing is also good for really stringy wood that is not easy to split (half of my trees are stringy)
Great comparison. I help cut, split and stack firewood for my in-laws every season 10-12 cords. they are in their (mid 80's) and I worry about the weight he carries with the 16"-18" splits. Now to convince him this might be an easier option for him to handle daily. I'm going to share this video with him to see what he thinks. the area to contain the wood is probably the challenge since there isn't a simpler way to store the rounds compared to stacked wood. Maybe IBC totes with the cages cut open on the top and filled would stack. 4 to 6 totes would fit on each side of his wood shed. If they are stacked in the shed then all he or I would have to do is bring another tote and set on the porch where we bring the stacked wood (buckets full or wheelbarrow or sled a good 100 feet to shovel for a foot path from the shed to the house) a couple times a week. One tote would probably be several weeks burn or more. We are in NE Washington State so 4-5 feet of snow for 6 months or more. What are your thoughts?
I cut my firewood 16in long and split with a log splitter. Any crotch pieces I cut 8 in long and put them in IBC totes. Works out well. Thanks for the video.
One piece of advice ... get rid of that heirloom maul that means so much to you, and buy yourself a Fiskars splitting axe. Every strike on a round you make in the future, you'll think to yourself, "Thank you, ROV Canada, thank you!".
I found out that longitudinal sawing real hard wood thru knots etc. Was making sparks and nearly knocking teeth half off my new chain. As bad as hitting nails.
I've been doing that for years, i can look at a pc of wood most times know right away whether it's worth my struggles , put my rip chain on & cut em up
I've never thought about cutting 6-inch slabs where the crotch wood/knot is, (that's not straight-grained wood). It makes a lot of sense to me. I do have a log splitter (and I don't own a maul. :) When is the best time to split wood? When it's first cut down or wait for it to dry a little in the round? I agree with the stacking of the slabs. It makes a big thick piece of wood out of smaller pieces. I try to split my wood into flat sections as opposed to pie-shaped pieces so they stack for long overnight burns. Great video. :)
The best time to split wood is NEVER!!! Seasoned is often the best, I had some seasoned Alder that would split with the most pleasant and classic sound. Very low effort. Didn't need a maul, the ax would do it one handed.
Unless you're pretty far ahead on your woodpile you're gonna have to split it green, but if you can hold off for a while you can follow the cracks that develop in the wood the wood as it dries. Chasing your cracks makes hand splitting WAY easier.
Up here in Canada we harvest 'dead-standing' through the winter. It's amazing how easy it is to split jack/lodgepole pine when it's -25 °C (-13 °F). The wood just pops apart with minimal swing effort. Try doing the same in the summer, and you really have to work up a sweat! Cold is key.
You nailed it. Slabbing and ripping are for the really knotty stuff. I got an additional Oregon plug in electric saw (only $100) because the gas you use to cut the slabs is not much savings over heating oil. Most people just throw the knotty stuff away because of the low cost to gain ratio.
Ripping and slabbing is also good for really stringy wood that is not easy to split (half of my trees are stringy)
Great comparison. I help cut, split and stack firewood for my in-laws every season 10-12 cords. they are in their (mid 80's) and I worry about the weight he carries with the 16"-18" splits. Now to convince him this might be an easier option for him to handle daily. I'm going to share this video with him to see what he thinks. the area to contain the wood is probably the challenge since there isn't a simpler way to store the rounds compared to stacked wood. Maybe IBC totes with the cages cut open on the top and filled would stack.
4 to 6 totes would fit on each side of his wood shed. If they are stacked in the shed then all he or I would have to do is bring another tote and set on the porch where we bring the stacked wood (buckets full or wheelbarrow or sled a good 100 feet to shovel for a foot path from the shed to the house) a couple times a week. One tote would probably be several weeks burn or more. We are in NE Washington State so 4-5 feet of snow for 6 months or more. What are your thoughts?
Good info. Thanks
I cut my firewood 16in long and split with a log splitter. Any crotch pieces I cut 8 in long and put them in IBC totes. Works out well. Thanks for the video.
One piece of advice ... get rid of that heirloom maul that means so much to you, and buy yourself a Fiskars splitting axe. Every strike on a round you make in the future, you'll think to yourself, "Thank you, ROV Canada, thank you!".
With the amount of chainsaw use you should consider heating on gasoline directly
I found out that longitudinal sawing real hard wood thru knots etc. Was making sparks and nearly knocking teeth half off my new chain. As bad as hitting nails.
I've been doing that for years, i can look at a pc of wood most times know right away whether it's worth my struggles , put my rip chain on & cut em up
I've never thought about cutting 6-inch slabs where the crotch wood/knot is, (that's not straight-grained wood).
It makes a lot of sense to me.
I do have a log splitter (and I don't own a maul. :)
When is the best time to split wood?
When it's first cut down or wait for it to dry a little in the round?
I agree with the stacking of the slabs. It makes a big thick piece of wood out of smaller pieces.
I try to split my wood into flat sections as opposed to pie-shaped pieces so they stack for long overnight burns.
Great video. :)
The best time to split wood is NEVER!!! Seasoned is often the best, I had some seasoned Alder that would split with the most pleasant and classic sound. Very low effort. Didn't need a maul, the ax would do it one handed.
Unless you're pretty far ahead on your woodpile you're gonna have to split it green, but if you can hold off for a while you can follow the cracks that develop in the wood the wood as it dries. Chasing your cracks makes hand splitting WAY easier.
Up here in Canada we harvest 'dead-standing' through the winter. It's amazing how easy it is to split jack/lodgepole pine when it's -25 °C (-13 °F). The wood just pops apart with minimal swing effort. Try doing the same in the summer, and you really have to work up a sweat! Cold is key.