Drying (a lot of) firewood

[mikej460]

So why on earth would I want a Fiskars with a plastic handle, it would probably give me blisters and is likely to be too thick, as I prefer a slim shaft which flexes ?

Over half the cost and they are excellent splitters, I wasn't convinced until I watched a few YouTube videos. I've just split with relative ease half an oak trunk that dropped 2 years ago. I agree that splitting segments of each ring is the best way with larger or more knotty pieces. Mine is one of these, at 1st glance you thing the shaft is too short but it works incredibly well. I paid £49.99 for mine in a sale. Fiskars 1015643 | DW Toolshop

Before this I had a Roughneck Splitting Maul for big or knotty stuff; it worked ok but does tend to smash wood rather than spilt it.

 

[GweithdyDU]

Pimps and ******* !

You may have to look that one up.

Fascinating! Etymology is just so full of interesting tales and almost like 'word journeys'. Thanks/Diolch

 

[Solicitus]

The longer you leave it, the tougher it gets to process.

And you could perfect your splitting technique and break the edges off as you go around the outside of the ring.

I am terrified watching her use an ax with bare feet !

 

[Adam W.]

I am terrified watching her use an ax with bare feet !

She's handy with that axe and has built a log cabin in Canada by herself with it, I think it's very impressive. A lot of people tend to dismiss her and think she's just playing around with little sticks !

She's also a dab hand with a scythe if that's of any interest.

 

[Solicitus]

She's handy with that axe and has built a log cabin in Canada by herself with it, I think it's very impressive. A lot of people tend to dismiss her and think she's just playing around with little sticks !

She's also a dab hand with a scythe if that's of any interest.

Yeah it's impressive indeed. I'll need to watch for some scythe action.

 

[woodieallen]

The 'grenades' are fantastic, but I advise getting two. On the very very rare occasions that one get stuck, using another one, sometimes from the opposite end, is the way to get the stuck one out. But yes, for splitting gnarly cussed logs, they're often the only thing that'll work short of cutting up the grain with the chainsaw.

Um, actually you need four. I've got three stuck in a large diameter round albeit only abut 6" thick. I have one grenade left. I keep hoping that as the round dries out it might release the others or at leat the crack will develop.

Dickm....having chopped down a lot of different species over the last few years (or had them dropped professionally) I have found that the longer you leave them the harder they are to split with an axe. However, a log splitter is an excellent investment and not that expensive although I accept 'not that expensive' is a relative term. We recently bought a ForestMaster to replace the Ryobi that had failed.

For fast drying you simply cannot beat chopping small and putting inside a polytunnel. Six months was all it took.

The other thought....do you have a log bank near you ? Northumberland has three where people can donate wood for burning by those in financial difficulty.

 

[dickm]

Thanks for the comments, woodieallen. Log banks are an interesting idea, but as a pensioner, I reckon I'm a deserving cause for the logs when they are split. Still not convinced that logs are easier to split the fresher they are; my impression is that when VERY fresh, their softness means wedges just compress the sappy material. Need to do a controlled trial on the stuff I have; the scientist in me still surfaces occasionally!

 

[woodieallen]

I think that it depends on the diameter. Most of my trees that I fell (ash die-back) only have trunks about 8" diameter. Easy enough with an axe but much, much harder when they are seasoned. For thicker trunks, I'd definitely use a log splitter.

Did you get your solar controller ? There was an excellent one from AliExpress for about a fiver.

 

[dickm]

Taking the easy route to getting logs split; a daughter who is a fitness fanatice, with a big strong husband! Bur they'd been trying out the new village tennis courts this morning, and wielding an axe brought on S-i-L's tennis elbow. So most of the work was down to daughter.

 

[dickm]

Did you get your solar controller ? There was an excellent one from AliExpress for about a fiver.

Not had time to do any more with this; health issues for me and wife have been a bit of a preoccupation over last weeks.