How far have you come in terms of processing wood? One thing I take pride in, is that whether it was as a welder, a Christian, or even cutting wood; I never forgot where I started. I think this keeps a person humble, allows them to help others just starting out by saying 'yeah, I have been there', and having appreciation for the equipment that God has graciously allowed in my life. For me, I was 15 when I cut my first load of wood; tree length spruce and fir pulp. I used a Ford 900 Wide Front End Farm Tractor, using chains attached to the implement bar on the three point hitch! I did this for years before getting a Fransgard Winch. About the same time, I used an old woods trailer, same tractor, pulling out spruce and fir pulp by cutting it up into 4 feet sections at the stump and piling it on a trailer. This was using pulp hooks and pickaroons to get it roadside.
I too started young, perhaps a bit younger than you. Was even sawing lumber at age 16! The farm tractor we used when cutting firewood was an Allis Chalmers WD with narrow front end. And yes, I do not forget how I started and hope to help a few, especially those who are just getting started.
It's only been a year and a half for me so besides better saws, a splitter, great stove and freaking out the neighbors with my ever growing walls of wood I haven't come all that far, but at least I'm enjoying the ride.
My Grandfather trucked wood with an old Ford 600 truck, and it was in the 70's when log loaders were out, but not everyone had them. We didn't, but to make everyone think we did, my Grandfather made us stack the biggest 4 foot sticks of wood on TOP of the tiers! We all have bad backs because of that stupidity, but now when i swing 12 foot logs around with my log trailer like it is nothing, I appreciate it. People laugh at my little log trailer, but it amazes me how 6 HP and some hydraulics can do so much work. Tht is why I say, I never forgot where I came from. Sure my little log trailer is limited, but its a lot better then humping 4 foot sticks of wood out of the woods tripping over brush, having to pile the wood cross-ways on the trailer, etc.
I got my first "Moving Violation" of sorts at age 10. We had an old John Deere 1010 Bulldozer and own land on both sides of the paved road. I was 10 and saw the Deputy Sheriff sitting at the intersection on top of the hill, but thought "he won't pull over a 10 year old farm boy." NOPE! As soon as my tracks hit that pavement on came the blue lights. I never got into trouble, but they took my father to court for "allowing to operate", but it was thrown out. Driving a bulldozer across paved way is against the law, but honestly that little 1010 John Deere Bulldozer was not going to hurt the pavement.
Times are sure different now, when I was about 8 year's old I pulled a saw from a trash bin got it running and was sawing wood when my parents got home. Dad didn't blink an eye he pointed to a pile of logs and said if your going to saw cut those up. I was given a NEW saw for my 9th birthday, I was in heaven. When I was getting my son involved with firewood he was about 10 my wife's family (city folks) thought I was crazy to let him saw and drive tractors and really let it be known.
I helped my dad cut firewood since I can remember, probably about 6 or 7. My, on my own for pay cutting job was; I spent the summer I was 14 cutting trees out of fence rows with a double bitted axe and hauling it all to a ditch in a 1959 2-ton grain truck. Alot of BTU's wasted that summer.
Dad bought his camp in 1978, I was 7 and very small for my age. The field edges were full of 20 foot tall 8 inch DBH trees. Gramps had a farm, no tractor, used horses, and buck saws and double bladed axes. So that's what we used. He cut 35 cord a year If you wanted to eat we needed wood to cook. I like to eat. I still got that 20 inch buck saw. I cut cords with it. Tree down, limb with axe, brush to burn pile, cut 25 to 30 rounds, watch that get put in open cook fire and gone. Good memories.
My earliest memory of making wood is helping dad in the mid to late '60s. I would have been around 13 at the time. Dad had an old McCulloch chainsaw from the '50s. By the time you hauled that old brut to the wood lot, you had to rest before starting. Once starting it, you had to rest again. When dad bought a new Stihl, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. "No one could ever make a better saw." We would fell the trees and bring the rounds up to the house in a trailer pulled by a Simplicity garden tractor. It was my job to split the rounds with an axe, sledge and several wedges. Dad convinced me that it was good conditioning for football. It didn't take me long to figure out I had been duped. Especially after a couple of elm rounds. I now have 3 saws, truck, hydraulic splitter and skid steer to help out. Edited to add: I can't imagine the work involved in my grand pappy's days. They must of been some h**lish men back in the day.
Started draggin’ branches and brush when I was probably 5-6 yo. Also loading wood in from the stacks. Was turned loose on splitting maul at grandparent’s wood pile 10-11 yo. Grandpa was kind when I would approach the house with a maul head in one hand and the handle in the other.... Good times
The first dozen or two trees I cut down was done with an axe. Not big trees, but big enough for fence posts. The leftovers got cut up for firewood with a two man saw on a saw horse. Split with an axe. We burned everything after it sat for a year. Cedar, pine, oak, didn't matter, it all went into the same pile. Cut up pine boards, slabs and branches went into a shed.
I grew up in a small city, my dad had decided to become a teacher and leave the farm. I only got a chainsaw some 9 years ago or so, to get some recreational firewood when we lived in the city. Weren't supposed to have fires, but as long as it wasn't out of control or smoked too much no-one minded much. Now we have 22 acres and that Poulan has fared better than I figured it would with the work I've thrown at it. So, I'm just at the beginning of the journey. I grew up with forced air NG furnace, and no need for a chainsaw. I was however "loaned" out to some people here that my folks knew who they or their family had small farms. I have had the pleasure of moving hay bales many a summer, and since I was shortest, got loft duty as well. I never minded the work, only the itching at the end of the day. I also detassled corn one year on a large feed corn farm, was decent pay and decent work. Since my uncle worked on the farm as well and he had other duties I asked for additional work rather than sit around and wait till his workday was done. Many was a time that I was put in the tractor to monitor things when they were irrigating the fields. Heck, I even made more money monitoring the tractor than I made when detassling. I think it's hard to find many kids from my small city that go out and work on the farms these days. It's a shame, it's not bad work, just not sit at desk type work. I cannot speak for anyone other than myself, but it seems that actual labor is looked down upon in this day and age, and that is a true shame. Any and all laborers can and SHOULD be proud of what they do, provided they do it to the best of their abilities. Chaz
Had it lucky-Dad was an excavating contractor, so my first trips to the woods had him bucking up tops while my brother and I threw the rounds into a Case 850 loader bucket. I think I was 9 or 10. We did have to wheel firewood around 200 ' from the woodpile to the front porch with a wheel barrow. When I help my brother now, we split and load our UTVs for the 300 yard trip from his processing area to his OWB.
I do remember some of the things my imature mouth spewed out......the depression was when you were a kid not now.....so and so doesn't have to do split wood and you make more than his dad.......when I have my own place I'll never need firewood.......why do I have to split logs that fit in the stove already.........why do we need kindling, can't we just use charcoal lighter fluid
Started cutting wood with Dad about age 8. He built an 8' oak sled, non steerable of course with black pipe affixed to the runners to slide easier on the snow. Hauled many a load of firewood that way! Thought it was terrible work then but boy were those the good days!!! Dad and I still cut wood together often, he is 72 now but still pretty spry, I do the heavy work and when he needs wood he comes to my place to get it. Now we use a ford tractor with bucket , hydraulic splitter, gas splitter, and many Stihl chainsaws, used to have one saw, wedges and sledgehammer.
Case VA tractor, old trailer & Grandpa's Homelite XL 12. I was 10, but pretty good with the tractor & trailer. Cut into 6' Lengths, hauled into the main yard & buzzed with an ancient buzz rig run by the same tractor. Grandpa, dad, uncle & all three boys worked together to make firewood for 3 houses. This was the mid-late 70's. Good memories for sure. Grandpa died from a widow maker to the head in 1983 at 78. Healthy & spry right to the end doing what he loved. I wear a helmet for that reason. I figure there's a lot worse ways to die. I've got lots of equipment now, but probably could still do what we did then & enjoy it.
I started when I was 50, with a cold house in we had just bought in December, an Allnighter woodstove that I had no idea how to operate, and a stack of pine logs in the snow. I was an inexperienced southern city boy, but I did what I had to do. I cut the logs with an electric chainsaw, and split them with a maul, and they were in the stove within a few days. I worked through that stack of logs pretty quick, cut down a couple of dead standing trees, and bought 2 cord of dry firewood towards the end of the season. (It was neither 2 cord nor dry, of course.) Four years later, I have 3 basic saws, a couple of Fiskars, a small electric splitter that I really don't use or need, and an EPA stove. And about 2 years of wood outside, and this year's wood inside, all harvested on my land, none bought. We have given away a few cord as well. No other heating in our house other than the woodstove, and both my wife and I love it. She does her part as well in getting the wood together. It is working out quite fine so far.
1970 Dad had the woodlot logged off, logger left lots of tops. A friend and I cut and hand split wood to sell the following couple years. He had a old Homelite 55 and I had Dad's old Mac 250. Skidded the tops out with a John Deere B narrow front end and hauled the loads with Dad's New Dodge pickup. We sold it by the pick-up load cut, split and delivered $20.00. would stack it for an extra $5.00. Good times!!!
