This pic and Jack Straw ’s new toy tractor have you both in a tie for the “¥ou $uck” award today.... Seriously tho, sweet scrounge jo191145
Glad you are able to still do what you want. Hey, that's the way we are, improvise and get'er done. That's the way my dad taught me. He said my grand daddy was a murderer, he killed Ol' Man Can't...
You had to ask LOL. Who am I kidding, glad to reply. My original plan was to have the tower in the back 8” taller. Once I stuck the tubing in I thought it looked too tall. Wish I had stuck with my original intent and be dammed with aesthetics. Extra height is always good. I also intended to cut and reweld the tower to allow it to angle back just a little. The day I was welding it all together was the day I heard the trees were coming down. I decided to skip the angle,,,,,at least for now. Could always add it later. FWIW can’t really tell from the pic but I’ve buttressed/ strengthened those rear pillar posts on the trailer. They’re not intended or built to take that kind of punishment. Didn’t want to see the back of the trailer fold up like a beer can. All in all it’s working pretty well. Broke my middle finger right at the top knuckle drilling the half inch holes for axle u bolts. Three days later I’m loading wood. Gotta call that good Might get a blister on my thumb from pushing the button. Still using the short ramp I had made from before the tower. Hard to say if I really need it but it does also aim the log into whatever pocket I want. Need to build sides for the trailer. I also have an idea in mind for Spiked shoe that will pull the logs aboard more easily. Right now I’m using a choke chain to pull nose of the logs up. Detach and reattach in rear to slide forward. The quick release swivel block come in handy for that. This shoe, if it works would speed up the process just a bit by not needing to get the chain out from under the log. The winch does the work but it still takes a little time. PS. I bought the ten foot trailer for added maneuverability. Wish I went with the ever popular 12 footer now. 2 extra feet of wood on there is always good.
Really bad about Lyme Disease. Hope you get better as that has to be terrible. And yes, that is not white oak; red is the winner.
Good ideas you have there. Just a thought, be careful if you put sides on there, you will overload in a hurry. This is a load of hickory and white oak, not even piled higher than the sides. Weighed 7200 net, about 700 # over stated limit. No problems with it though. Might also try log tongs to pull your logs.
Grabbed another load of oak this morning. Then I felt obligated to grab some of this maple tree. A little peeved. Don’t know what to call this guy. Let’s use the term brother in law. Had this big rotten maple taken down. Said I would take the wood just to get it out of his yard. Didn’t really want a huge trunk of maple filled with dirt. So I go there today and he’s hoarding all the decent branches for himself and I get this stinking trunk. Almost drove away but don’t want to listen to his whining. He doesn’t even burn wood but wants it for emergency’s. Never would have agreed to take the trunk if I wasn’t getting the branches too. Jack wagon. On the bright side there’s a 36” Ash just across the street I’m getting. Never burned ash yet as far as I know. Woods not all rotten either. Looks nice and solid.
Ash is great to burn in my opinion. First year we had a stove I wish I'd found this site. We had the property logged, and had a lot of tops. I was hand splitting so I concentrated on the ash as it splits easier than the maple. I lost a good bit of maple to rot because of that decision. Ash doesn't rot nearly as quickly as maple. It dries pretty well (quick), and splits well. So yeah, I'm a fan.
Family gathering time? Burn the large chunk of Maple in place while holding down lawn chairs and coolers! Then get everyone to help you load up the Ash.. Just a idea
Have you tried the tongs? They were my first idea but I went with a choke chain instead. Any added height messes with loading and the tongs will lessen available height. Just wondering how well they really grip.
Tongs are all I use mostly. Just need to make sure they have sharp points. I use tongs and a short chain on the hooks on my FEL or hook them to back of tractor if I'm pulling logs. I was just thinking about ease of moving them on the logs as you pull it up on the trailer.
jo191145 you'll love that ash, especially how it splits and is super slow to rot. Burns really nice. The only difference between that and oak is that oak will hold the fire a little longer than the ash but ash still does a great job. To me it is one of the very best firewoods, even if you have oak or hickory.
No doubt the tongs would be faster. Chain isn’t terrible but there are times,,,,,, If my finger wasn’t busted I probably wouldn’t notice.
Good to hear Backwoods. I’ve heard on this site it’s a favorable wood. I should probably let that tree rest awhile and work on the red oak first. Tree warden came around again today, twice. He’s happy as all get out that people are taking the wood. Helps his budget. Competition is showing up. That’s quite OK by me. They mostly want the small dead stuff. That and there’s plenty to go around. Plenty more coming. Warden clued me in on more closer to my house and pretty soon they’re going to be cutting on my road. It’s a wood hoarders heaven around here right now LOL
You logging like me now...lol...be glad when I can make some room on the yard and get back in the woods again. That's the way to hustle, get it to the house and CSS it later.
Ok, rain today. Started thinking,,,,,,dangerous,,,,, Now I’m thinking of a way to build a log lift onto my splitter. Thinking I could use this winch trailer to rig the rope overhead and operate a log lift without hydraulics. Split right into the trailer while it serves double duty. damm rainy days.
