Thanks much!! Being how hard this wood is, this might explain how I apparently blew out my saw. It struggled mightily trying to dice this up and cutting the stump down to ground level I think did it!
Sharp chain needed for red oak. It should split fairly easy however. Sent from my SM-T280 using Tapatalk
Hahah, yep that would be a good comparison. Running a hot saw through it only enhances that pungent smell, lol!!!
If you think red oak smells bad wait until get a whiff of fresh cut pin oak. Much worse in my opinion, but I love it.
Last winter I cut a red oak that smelled absolutely terrible. Like smell it from down the street bad when it was fresh split. The red oak that I cs&s this winter doesn't smell that bad at all. Possible to have misidentified a pin as a red?
Yes, it is very hard wood and yes, you need a sharp chain for cutting and a good saw. My guess is that soon you will have a saw that will laugh at that particular log! As for the odor, you should be near a sawmill sometime when they are sawing red oak! At one time I was a sawyer and milled many red and white oak and loved the scent of it. Some don't like it but perhaps it grows on you. Actually there is not much wood that I do not like the smell of. One exception is cottonwood when it is freshly cut. Nasty stuff it can be. Some thornapple is pretty bad too. Popple is not the best either. But other than those, I like most.
Good possibility since pin is in the red oak family. Pin usually has darker heart wood. Everywhere is different but around here pin smells like an old barn full of manure. The smell goes away quickly with the Missouri 100+ degree summers. Then smells great out the stack in below freezing winters. Best of both worlds!!
Whooo yeah. Hotter it gets the worse the smell seems...try putting your saw in a shed after that cutting session, give it a good clean out.
Yes we notice a pretty pee like smell when splitting it. I split some cottonwood last year for my dad having got a fresh load from a friend. Likely somewhat dry now but it’s incredibly heavy when fresh. Splits like a dream though, almost that drum-pop sound.
Looks like red oak to me. Would need to see some leaves to know for sure. According to the map, only western South Jersey has native pin oak. Did you see the tree standing?
