Who is cutting wood?

[XXX-er]

its not about a man card thing, its about buying enough product to do the job cuz its a tough job for the product never mind the person running that product.

I've read of people blowing up multiple cheap saws and by the time they figure it out they could have bought 1 good saw which they would have a better time running

You might consider buying wood which is what my GF used to do, no saw, no sharpening chains, no transporting the wood, buddy drops it in the alley, already split to size, just stack it in the shed

In any case good luck with it !

[AlpiNord]

After spending way to much time trying to restart my 20 year old Husqvarna 350 every few years or so, an electric or cordless chainsaw is starting to look very appealing for infrequent use. I took it into a local shop to see if it was simply the idling and/or High low set screws. We'll see but one thing I did not realize is that ethanol is not recommended and stabilizer is good all the time. Doh! so we'll see if I can get a few more years out of it. BUT, electric would be so much easier since I'm basically just cutting for camp fires and occasional downfall cleanup.

At the store, along with Husqvarnas, they now carry a brand I've never heard of Kress. For their commercial equipment, they offer a battery back pack and whole battery infrastructure, which looks weighty & spendy, but might be useful for some:

[Trackhead]

its not about a man card thing, its about buying enough product to do the job cuz its a tough job for the product never mind the person running that product.

I've read of people blowing up multiple cheap saws and by the time they figure it out they could have bought 1 good saw which they would have a better time running

You might consider buying wood which is what my GF used to do, no saw, no sharpening chains, no transporting the wood, buddy drops it in the alley, already split to size, just stack it in the shed

Nah, I like cutting wood with my wife/kid, they enjoy it too.

[gaijin]

[blog incoming...] TLDR-- buy a quiver of saws and a quiver of axes, and even buy wood. Be a happy family.

You might consider buying wood which is what my GF used to do, no saw, no sharpening chains, no transporting the wood, buddy drops it in the alley, already split to size, just stack it in the shed.

That's where we're at now. The amount of MY labor for a season of heat costs more than buying it from a crew who can process it 5-10x faster than myself, and therefore they can sell it for cheaper than I can cut it. $800-1000 a winter to heat my house or 6-8 full days of me in the field just to get rounds... that I then have to split at home. It's a sport, you do it for fun and then it gets tiring as I get older. Except when I see deadfall in April on public land right by my house. That's an easy haul. I still cut those guys. Usually acacia, which is clean burning wood, but sparks more than I prefer. Makes for a messy firebox.

I never fell trees anymore. Fuck that shit. I know the art, I get it, but it terrifies me. Plus, felling usually involves walking over undergrowth throughout the day.

My Stihl saw is still kicking ass after 15 years, though. And I've blown through 2 electric saws for those home cuts in the same amount of time. That said, cheap Oregon electric saws for cutting things at home for an hour or two here and there is way worth it. They're lighter and quieter. And running a saw that doesn't require ear protection for a bit after work is good zen.

Better zen is just splitting with a Fiskars out in the cold in a T-shirt on those nights I can't ski but can still see the floodlights on the hill across the valley. My kids also have their own splitting axes... a family of Fiskars.

My 15yo daughter can swing a mean axe. I'm quite proud of that. And my 12yo son is on the Kendo team at school now (sword fighting), so his swing is also dialed. My 9yo keeps asking for the bigger axe, but his eyes are bigger than his muscles. Gotta be careful with these kids. The youngest wanna be as cool as the oldest. Same with skiing-- "Bro, slow down. You're not that good yet."

[Trackhead]

Cutting wood certainly is a sport and not even remotely related to saving $$. That’s the truth. And yeah, doesn’t pencil out for labor/time versus buying. Not even close. But for some reason we still do it.

[Grange]

Nah, I like cutting wood with my wife/kid, they enjoy it too.

I grew up cutting wood with my family and have a lot of fond memories. I remember being paid a penny per piece carrying wood to my mom to load in the truck when I was around 3 or 4 years old. I'd guess she just tossed most of them over the side when we went back for another armful since they weren't much more than twigs, but for us kids it made us feel like we were helping. I remember the first time I was allowed to use the chainsaw and first time I was allowed to split with a little hand axe.

[XXX-er]

[blog incoming...] TLDR-- buy a quiver of saws and a quiver of axes, and even buy wood. Be a happy family.



That's where we're at now. The amount of MY labor for a season of heat costs more than buying it from a crew who can process it 5-10x faster than myself, and therefore they can sell it for cheaper than I can cut it.

My Stihl saw is still kicking ass after 15 years, though. And I've blown through 2 electric saws for those home cuts in the same amount of time. That said, cheap Oregon electric saws for cutting things at home for an hour or two here and there is way worth it. They're lighter and quieter. And running a saw that doesn't
"

Gf burns wood but she is a small yoga instructor who doesnt do anything but stack the fire wood, so she would just call up Lars the logger to dump a 2 cord truck load in the back alley and write him a cheque. Lars is a very reliable firewood seller ( an oxymoran in firewood business IME ) Lars was a logger but he was off being a real logger making money so he had his wife run this load which means she fed the fire wood processor with a front end loader, to fill up the dump, no splitting cuz Lar's wife set the wedges on the processor as requested so every piece of wood was the right size

On the other end of the spectrum y'all seem to be into more work while blowing up more hardware that has the least amount of capability you can get away with which is actualy a pretty standard attitude

[Trackhead]

On the other end of the spectrum y'all seem to be into more work while blowing up more hardware that has the least amount of capability you can get away with

I'll report back on my fairy saw, we'll see. I'll miss the brap brap of the two stroke sound, which is admittedly kinda fun, but probably only briefly.

[XXX-er]

I think i would still wear the helmet with the sound protection, with the chip screen and the chaps and the gloves and the fluorescent vest and carry the bandage for a saw cut even with an electric saw

For Halloween i went to a dance as a logger so wearing the flourescent vest the chaps the Sthil helmet, I used the hearing protection on the helmet and in the morning I could still hear

again its only a bad idea if its outside of the capability of your hardware but where is that and when does anyone stop with substandard chainsaws & equipment, same with forgetting that condom ?

[Trackhead]

I work ER full time and have seen enough chainsaw/power tool trauma to have enough common sense (usually) to wear eye/ear protection, etc. Except when welding, I wear sandals and shorts for that. I love burning my toes.

[anotherVTskibum]

Do chaps make a meaningful difference with electric saws? I wear them, but I've also read that the instant torque of an electric motor makes them ineffective.

[XXX-er]

i spent most of my life as a silly fuck but when it came down to running saw/ cutting ski run 1st thing I did was read the Sthil owners guide. Then i got all the safety shit which I always used, also I figured out best practises to kill trees before they killed me. Then I retired from it before me or any of the crew i was running got hurt cuz this is dangerous shit so i payed attention and took it serious

[XXX-er]

Do chaps make a meaningful difference with electric saws? I wear them, but I've also read that the instant torque of an electric motor makes them ineffective.

as i understand it the chain snags in the kevlar and stops the motor, I havent had that happen but maybe someone else can say?

I see a lot of chaps with the face nylon cut so maybe its a good idea ?

If that face fabric get snagged its easy to fix with wait for it


aquaseal

[toast2266]

Do chaps make a meaningful difference with electric saws? I wear them, but I've also read that the instant torque of an electric motor makes them ineffective.

They're better than nothing, but all of the tests I've seen the electric saw will go through standard chaps. The chaps do stop the saw, but not quick enough to prevent some damage to your leg. There's plenty of videos floating around of people doing that test (on a dummy) with more or less the same result.

[Trackhead]

i spent most of my life as a silly fuck but when it came down to running saw/ cutting ski run 1st thing I did was read the Sthil owners guide. Then i got all the safety shit which I always used, also I figured out best practises to kill trees before they killed me. Then I retired from it before me or any of the crew i was running got hurt cuz this is dangerous shit so i payed attention and took it serious

Well now we know why you endorse industrial rated saws if you’re cutting ski runs in BC. Yeah, an electric saw or $250 big box saw probably wouldn’t last long.

[XXX-er]

Well now we know why you endorse industrial rated saws if you’re cutting ski runs in BC. Yeah, an electric saw or $250 big box saw probably wouldn’t last long.

All the stems were at or below tree line so they arent really big, mostly 12" or maybe 16" at most but that is not the point

The point is that pro quality saws will make more power, they will make that power all day without melting and stay running for years while they are making more power

so other than the hit to his wallet initialy the user will have no regrets

or buddy can just buy multiple saws as they quit working

i don't see why this concept is such a hard thing to understand but then I'm not that smart eh

[bodywhomper]

Less weight, too

[Trackhead]

i don't see why this concept is such a hard thing to understand but then I'm not that smart eh

Sometimes you don't need a Dodge 5500 diesel to pull a 1,500lb trailer once or twice a year, a half-ton will work just fine. I think that's the logic.

[XXX-er]

wrong analogy but in any case go ahead and buy whatever

[Cruiser]

No disrespect, XXX, but have you ever used a battery operated chainsaw? Cuz nobody who has cut wood with a well tuned pro timber saw would disagree that it's a damned good tool. But I've used both, though I haven't cut a ton of wood with either, and I'm confident in saying that they're both very useful under the right circumstances.

Confucius say, do not attempt to remove fly from friend's forehead with a hatchet

[XXX-er]

no

but you go ahead, see if it works maybe it does maybe it doesnt

come back and tell me so I can laugh at you

[John_B]

Sometimes you don't need a Dodge 5500 diesel to pull a 1,500lb trailer once or twice a year, a half-ton will work just fine. I think that's the logic.

But what if you suddenly find yourself on a ski run that needs to be cut?

[Trackhead]

But what if you suddenly find yourself on a ski run that needs to be cut?

Well, we have some ok ski touring near my house that I've considered ravaging with a saw to remove the dead/down for easier skiing on shallow winters. So maybe he has a point.

[toast2266]

It's funny - cutting ski runs is one of my primary uses for the electric saw. Although most of the areas I'm cutting require a bit of discretion. Going at it with a big gas saw would likely lead to a confiscated saw and some heavy fines.

[XXX-er]

The maintenance manager would drive us out in the side by side, after 6 hrs he would pick us up at end of day,

we got seasons passes also the difference in day tickets manager said " I don't wana see these day tickets advertised on FB " so I kept it on the downlow, we cut a lot of new runs and its been ongoing, I think they brushed the whole mtn this year

there were 3 big stems down on a bike trail last season, buddy got 2 and missed the last one, I figured he didn't see around the corner but its cuz it but he ran out of battery so had to come back the next day, it seemed a bit lame for a tool to quit after a 4 cuts