So I'm new to all this, I went out to my timber where I knew some large trees blew down last fall but never paid much attention to what kind they were, really big hackberry and a large cherry, have lots of them and lots of mullberry and some locust, and osage orange I will be cutting on these a long time... need a bigger saw, my 170 just isn't big enough, been on this site 3 days and I already want a bigger saw.
Jdub, Welcome aboard! Hackberry is a good wood, and does fantastic mixed with others. It sounds like you have the start of a really good hoard with all the types of trees you mentioned. One trick to getting a bigger saw is reminding your wife all the money you'll be saving on heating bills. It always works for me!
Hackberry is good firewood. Sounds like you have lots of nice species for a firewood hoard I went through the same thing with my 170. You won't regret getting a bigger saw
Hang onto that 170, though. You'll want it for limbing and trimming. Good little saw, and versatile. I wouldn't be burning that Hackberry this winter, unless it was already deadwood when it blew down. And welcome to FHC. It's the most laid back, easygoing forum I belong to, with the possibility of a tie with Marlin owners.com. I think you'll like it here. I've learned tons in the short time I've been here.
"I wasn't on this site a week and i bought a new Stihl 250!!" Dude! You're my new hero! I keep telling myself I don't need a medium duty saw, and that my 180 and 290 ought to cover most of what I need, so I ought to just save up for a 400 series saw. But then I remember the old 025 and 026 we used about a hundred years ago at Ball State when I was a smart aleck kid doing student employment with the tree crew. That job paid less than almost any other job I've ever had, but it was one of the best jobs I've ever had. The overall quality of people I worked with and met is, as of yet, unsurpassed. Good memories, and good saws and equipment.
Welcome to FHC! Hackberry, is good wood. Dries in one summer if done correctly, ideal by the second summer. Top cover and off the ground and you'll be fine. P.S. great wood to mix with Hedge...
Nothing wrong with hackberry. Its a little stringy when split, but burns just fine. I burn it in my OWB. I tend to split my OWB wood MUCH larger than regular, even still I don't have too bad of a problem drying it in a reasonable timeframe. It tends to produce a fair amount of ash. It definitely looks different in the stacks since its so white.
If memory serves correctly, hackberry is the cousin to elm. It shares a lot of the traits of elm however it is not vulnerable to dutch elm disease.
I was told by an old timer, who btw has forgotten more about woodcutting than i will ever know, to cut and burn right away. I didn't know any better.
Welcome to the club! I'm burning hackberry right now. It burns plenty hot. I do mix it with red elm and oak. This stuff was a tree that a storm took out last summer. Whitey and I split and stacked it and left it be for most of the summer. My opinion is that it burns quicker but just mix it with something harder and you'll be ok.
J Dub welcome to the land of the wooden heads! There is a lot that can be learned here and there are good friends to be made as well! We sure hope you will enjoy your time here. Generally speaking, hackberry will only rot quickly if it's left on the ground either in rounds or split. If you stack it off the ground on pallets it will last as long as any other wood, except maybe black locust or hedge. If you leave it on the ground it will be rottten in a year rather than seasoned. I've been burning 2 year old hackberry, 24-7, since before Thanksgiving and never found any punk what so ever. All my hackberry was stacked single row on pallets and never top covered until I brought it up to the covered porch before burning. On really cold nights Ill mix it with some oak, ash or black locust. It gets those "hard to start" woods going in a hurry. Good stuff, I'd take all I can get. Sounds like you have access to some really fine burning woods so get all you can get. Maybe rent a larger saw just for this "starting harvest." Or I'll sell you a slightly used and lovingly cared for MS 441.
Hackberry needs CSS very quickly. Don't leave rounds on the ground. Can go bad in six months. Welcome J Dub
Sounds like you have a great firewood honey hole! All the woods you listed are fine. Osage is what a lot of guys want but Mulberry is probably one of the more under rated woods out there. Grows super fast and has decent heat value, plus, no thorns like Osage. Pops some while burning, like osage. With storing, bugs like eating hackberry and especially cherry. Powderpost beetles choose those two first from my experience. If you want a bigger saw and want to keep your finances from being hit, just sell a few cords and feed your "new addiction" with a little of your own labor. that is the approach I have done over the years by justifying the money saved from not having to pay the oil man. Try to upgrade one thing a year to make the whole process easier and more effeceint. Welcome to the club!
