I know a lot of you like the big stuff. Its fun to saw but hard to handle. I think the fastest size to process is probably 8-16". Never actually timed it.
It all depends on your setup. I'll take 20-24" logs delivered by a tree service. Cut the rounds, roll them (down slope) to just in front of where they are to be stacked. Split vertically, toss into heap and then stack.
Ditto! It seems like I can crank through that size. The big stuff seems like more time is spent manuevering it around than splitting it.
Good question! My favorite range would be 3" to 3' feet diameter. Which works out perfectly because 99% of the firewood I encounter lands right in that size range. I am more picky for species than for diameter.
I totally agree....maybe I'm spoiled by the wonderland of Oak tops left after a timber operation. Sizes will average 12-16" but some are even larger at 24" or more. They are fast to cut, easy to handle and make a big pile fast
I wood love to get the smaller wood, but that's not how I get my wood. Smaller is a heck of a lot easier to handle and easier on the back too.
The big rounds yield a lot but they can be a pain to work with. I love those two or three split rounds in the 8 to 10" range.
I like 8-12" standing dead red oak with no bark on them easy to fell buck load on the trailer and splitter. But then I have hundreds of those on our land. I will even pass by 18-24" to cut smaller trees unless they look like they are ready to fall . The best thing about the smaller rounds for me is ease of loading on the splitter. At 60 I still love to work hard but the lighter rounds makes it more enjoyable.
I'd have to go with any round you can easily roll to the splitter can be a productive size. Too big that you have to noodle cuts back on production imo.
I have a piece of property that is polluted with hornbeam, beech and yellow birch. All under 8". Makes FAST firewood for me as there is no splitting involved. Cut and load. Bring home and stack. I got about 8 triaxle loads of rounds a year ago free. They are all 14"-30". I'm kinda dreading working these up when my wood supply has been so easy the last 10 years.
My favorite is 12" or so rounds. Split 4 ways and done. Not too hard on the back. I process it all though.
I like the 16" to 20" diameter range bucked to about 18" to 22" long. They are light enough to move around, easy to split, and I can get an assortment of split sizes (small splits to start the stove or for a quick heat fire to larger splits for overnight burns.) KaptJaq
If I can lift it for horizontal split and if I can roll it for vertical split. If I can't do either then I don't touch it. Back in the fall a friend and I cut a bunch of wood I took all the smaller stuff that I could load by myself . He took the big stuff and couldn't understand why I didn't want the big rounds. One reason I didn't have a splitter capable of vertical operation. Second reason the rounds was so big we had to use a excavator to load them I wasnt about to kill myself trying to get them busted up to split. He still working on them. I have mine split and stacked drying as we speak
I agree with most on the diameter sizes, my max would be no more than 24" for horizontal splitting, the rest would be done vertical. 36" max and that's stretching it.
Though I'll take it all,it depends on what it is,where & when I'm processing it & the end result. Cutting dead stuff on parents land & doing the occasional free scrounge or being paid for a removal I prefer 8" to 14" diameter.Especially since I'm carrying/loading it all by myself. But when tree service contact delivers & dumps it 3-4 times yearly in my backyard for free,I prefer 18" to over 36".He normally brings me all the big stuff that the average homeowner don't want/has no way to process.
1. What does your stove like? If it likes smaller splits, then just suck it up and do what you have to. 2. What wood is available? I like anything up to about 32". The simple reason is that is what we have on our place. Now with a choice on those, I like 20-30" really nice. 3. How will you split? Or how many people will be splitting and stacking? 4. What kind of wood are you splitting? Let's say someone has some 30" ash and another has some 30" gum. Which would you choose and how would you split it?
16-20" if i swinging fiskars in oak, ash, maple, tulip poplar, locust, cherry. 12-16" if i am running the splitter for birch, hickory.
