I went to the post office to mail off my secret santa package......and on the way there I noticed two downed trees....so on my way back I stopped and snapped a pic. Sugar maple: I rang the doorbell of the house across the street and the lady answered through her doorbell camera and said that space is shared and that I could take all the wood I wanted. Woo hoo! Took 2 trips to get the main trunk and a small limb. And then literally around the corner I stopped after finishing the sugar maple and spoke to another neighbor. She also answered via the doorbell camera and I asked politely if I could have the wood. She said "Well, they are rather large....and my arborists are supposed to come back and take it. Can you leave a card?" I think she assumed that I was going to charge her and I said "I'm your neighbor (literally 3 minutes away) and I would do it for free." She laughed and told me to hold on a second and she came out and gave me permission. The norway maple had split in half from the storm so the rounds were easy to deal with. Have it split like that also made for easy bucking. She asked if she should tell the arobists to cancel and I told her "Let me take a close look at the wood. If it's all decent I'll take everything." Indeed all the pieces were super nice so I'm going back on Tuesday to take the super long trunk. I was just thinking yesterday "Man, my neck and back really hurt from sitting all day. I need to get more wood and get it asap." Ask and ye shall receive. I was thinking this trunk is a perfect practice tree for felling......except it was rotting in the middle and I wouldn't take the wood....so I'll leave that for someone else. This is from the first spot.
Both excellent choices, and sourcing them locally is also a bonus. Yesterday I got half a pickup truck load of Norway Maple myself actually. Your "promo video" in your signature is hilarious BTW! At first I didn't get that it was satire, was thinking what kind of hipster BS is this...
I started a thread about some mold/fungus growing on some white oak.....and someone was like "uh.....I think it's time for this video again." I laughed my you-kn0w-what-off the first time thinking it was REAL. It wasn't until he used the scissors that I called BS lmfao. I should have picked up on the assistant washing the split with soap and water which happened before the scissors......but I think they did a real good job. At the beginning I was thinking "Man, this is the kind of thing *I* should do......" hahahahahahahahahahahaahahahaha. I have a bunch of maple now all c/s/s/ - sugar, norway, red, japanese......that will be ready for next year.......Hopefully some of my oak is ready too by next year. I don't have any red oak that's ready now.
I'm ashamed to admit, the scissors thing got me, and washing the split, I was confused but wanted to see where they were going with it... it wasn't until I saw the price tag on the wood that I was like Ohhhhhhhhh.
I almost fell off my chair when I saw the "organic" ginger rub. I've been perusing FBMP looking for a good fixer upper.....but I don't need more saws at the moment. I ran out of chain today since I'm using a full chisel Rapid Super Stihl chain on the 028 and today's score was a little dirty. I hit the dirt a few times. I used 3 chains today and then decided to call it a day since I was tired and didn't have any more sharp chains left.....even though I had the Makita 36v....I've just got the itch to run the big boy.
Keep cutting, you will get better at keeping your chain out of the ground. I challenge myself all the time with how much I can get cut before I reach for a sharp saw and I’m picky about how a chain is cutting. If I hit dirt, it’s time to put the saw down for the day. If I can see a bunch of debris in the bark, I’ll take a backpack blower and blast it, or sweep it. If I don’t have either I take a stick and clean out the bark furrows where I’m cutting. If I can finish cutting and the chain is still good for another day that’s a win.
Some more unsolicited advice on chains and sharpening. I recall seeing a pic of your sharp chain and it had too much hook, so it will dull faster. The top plate is too thin and rolls down. I use a Husqvarna roller file guide on .325 and 3/8 picco. They help keep more of a 90 between top and side plates.
Thanks. It was certainly tiring today. I should be more diligent about lifting the log up or, if it's too heavy, at least just cut into it and then roll it and finish the cut. Thanks for the tip. This is my first chisel chain (the Makita is semi) so I'm a total noob. I do like the feel of the Stihl chainsaw better than the Oregon LP when sharpening. Feels more buttery.
Nice score LOTF! Im seeing more red maple than sugar, but either way some nice rounds. Norway is rather common around here i just dont seem to score any for some reason. Those trunk spars can be tricky to fell since the center of gravity is so low.
Great advice. I do the same, but sometimes ill get tired and hurry and i get lax. Will you grab another saw or swap out chains Chud? Luckily most of the wood i score is clean.
I grab another saw of course. I have a 40cc, two 50cc, two 70cc, one 90cc, one 121cc. Stopping to sharpen jacks up my work flow.
I pack my tacoma now with two saws and associated accessories but it's hard for me to imagine where I'd put a 3rd, 4th, or 5th saw on a bucking adventure away from home. For me that was a good time to call it a day. I was contemplating going back a 3rd time for that long log but I was plenty tired and didn't want to push my luck.
You are right buZZsaw BRAD that is red maple. I thought it was sugar but hadn't split it yet. Of course just now my tree guy texted me and ended up dropping a small dump truck load of white oak and norway maple and he looked at it and said red maple as well! Scrounge load on the left, tree guy load on the right. There are a few cruddy crotches and rotted pieces but I will haul that to the dump.
I don't like those short beds though! And trust me it was hard enough to find a manual tranny so I'm happy with what I got!
I know... I figured I'd go the way of most of the people on here and just comment/like things for a while. Try it out, see how it fits Here's the second but smaller load I scrounged from there, which was smaller diameter Norway Maple/crotch pieces and White Pine. Someone had done a tree job, cut at weird lengths and left this heaping pile spilling into the road so I helped myself (as did at least one other local scrounger).
Nice! How do you like your 029 Super? I keep looking on facebook mp but I haven't found a chainsaw yet that is worth fixing and/or cheap enough.
Also, I'm not such a crazy fan of the whole "liking" thing. I think if there's a like button there should be a dislike button too!
