Tip for sawing

  • Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.

    We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.

    We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
Status
Not open for further replies.
teekal

teekal

Member
Nov 28, 2014
91
Manitoba, Canada
Hey guys, I have a whole pile of 8 ft logs that I need to saw up into lengths and split. I've always struggled to figure out the least awkward way to use the chainsaw to cut a log that is laying on the ground (without running into problems at the bottom of the log by cutting into the dirt beneath the log).

This may sound like a stupid question, but does anyone have any tried and true method into the most efficient way to setup a cutting area? Obviously one could cut half of the log and then roll it and cut the other half, but that doesn't seem very efficient to me. The best idea I can come up with so far would be to prop a log underneath one end of the one that I'm cutting to create some space between the log and the ground, then sliding the log up as I continue to cut (very crude picture below, to try and portray what I mean).

Untitled.png


As always, thanks for any help!
 
there is a lot of info out there on different methods. I use some 3 foot 4x4 sections that are spaced out pretty evenly so I can cut the size i want without having to move the log more than once. I don't really like having to bend down and move the log with the saw running....

i have been thinking about getting a big roller set up, but i'm not there yet.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Lakeside
Dobish said:
there is a lot of info out there on different methods. I use some 3 foot 4x4 sections that are spaced out pretty evenly so I can cut the size i want without having to move the log more than once. I don't really like having to bend down and move the log with the saw running....
Click to expand...

Ooh, I like this idea. Space out the 4x4s exactly in line with your ideal length of cut. Thanks for the tip, Dobish!
 
Homeowners have invented about a million inconvenient ways to do this, lifting one end or both, but there is only one way you will ever see a pro cut a log on the ground. Cut 80% thru at each station down the length of the log, grab your cant hook and roll the log, finish the cuts. There is no faster way, without using heavy equipment.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
  • Like
Reactions: cygnus, CTYank, HisTreeNut and 7 others
Ashful said:
Homeowners have invented about a million inconvenient ways to do this, lifting one end or both, but there is only one way you will ever see a pro cut a log on the ground. Cut 80% thru at each station down the length of the log, grab your cant hook and roll the log, finish the cuts. There is no faster way, without using heavy equipment.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...


Would the method that Dobish suggested be more efficient? If done properly, you wouldn't have to touch the log more than once. One could even create some custom 4x4s for this job with a slight "U" shape on top to prevent the log from rolling at all.

Untitled.png
 
  • Like
Reactions: Lone_Gun
Ashful said:
Homeowners have invented about a million inconvenient ways to do this, lifting one end or both, but there is only one way you will ever see a pro cut a log on the ground. Cut 80% thru at each station down the length of the log, grab your cant hook and roll the log, finish the cuts. There is no faster way, without using heavy equipment.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Yup. Rolling is a whole lot easier than lifting.
 
But you'd need a cant hook or some other piece of equipment to get the logs up on the 4x4s.
 
I think ashful nailed it. You gotta store those 4x4s somewhere until next time.
 
Partial cut and roll . . . and I have yet to ever need a cant dog or peavey . . . usually a sapling or large branch cut for the purpose works OK for the size of wood I deal with.
 
teekal said:
Would the method that Dobish suggested be more efficient? If done properly, you wouldn't have to touch the log more than once. One could even create some custom 4x4s for this job with a slight "U" shape on top to prevent the log from rolling at all.

View attachment 182385
Click to expand...
Well, let's tally it up:

1. carrying those heavy 4x4's around, rolling the log up onto them, actually getting them evenly spaced to one side of each cut under a heavy log (which is probably impossible)...

Or

2. Cut part way, roll over, cut rest of way.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jeffm1
Ashful said:
Well, let's tally it up:

1. carrying those heavy 4x4's around, rolling the log up onto them, actually getting them evenly spaced to one side of each cut under a heavy log (which is probably impossible)...

Or

2. Cut part way, roll over, cut rest of way.
Click to expand...

I concede. You win.
 
sportbikerider78 said:
You guys must live in more ideal environments then me...or deal in log loads.

I buck the tree where it falls in the woods..usually on a hill..sometimes in tight quarters.
Click to expand...

Ya, I'm extremely lucky to have a neighbor who actually delivers any wood that he cuts down on his property right to my driveway with his trailer. He is somewhat of a social outcast in my small town due to some transgressions in the past, and a few years ago when we were next door neighbors, I took the time to talk to him and get to know him a bit. I think just that little bit of interaction that nobody else has offered to him may have went a long way, because to this day (and now that I moved a ways down the road to a new home), he knocks on my door any time he is cutting and asking if I'm looking for more wood. My answer is without fail, "Always" and I offer to come help him out, he insists that he's already cut the tree and is on his way by with his trailer in a few minutes.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 7acres
i don't bother moving my 4x4's, i just keep them there on the ground and stack the logs on them in the first place. I haven't had a ton of time to process them, so I would rather stack them off the ground. I find it easier to get the logs there in 1 piece, but I am cutting them down to 6 foot sections, or they are getting dumped pretty close to where I am cutting them. My setup is not really ideal for processing wood, since I don't really have a central location for anything on my property yet. Stuff I want to cut shorter, I will cut 80% then roll. Most stuff I am dealing with is not very big right now either (8-14" dia)
 
sportbikerider78 said:
You guys must live in more ideal environments then me...or deal in log loads.

I buck the tree where it falls in the woods..usually on a hill..sometimes in tight quarters.
Click to expand...

you don't buck it in the tree? :)
 
  • Like
Reactions: Lone_Gun and 7acres
Other folks have advocated one if these https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002ASAB6I/?tag=hearthamazon-20

I cut in the woods where it falls and usually roll the log. I also keep a small plastic wedge in my pocket and stick a wedge in every several cuts so I can cut all the way through the log without binding. That means I don't have to roll the whole log.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Woody Stover, BenTN and Ashful
Put a log jack on your cant hook or just cut through 80% and roll the log with your cant hook and finish the cuts. Anything else seems like a waste of time and energy.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
  • Like
Reactions: 7acres and Ashful
I want to add a cant hook to my kit this year. I deal with some 3"+ trunks and those don't roll without some leverage.
 
  • Like
Reactions: TedyOH and kennyp2339
7acres said:
I want to add a cant hook to my kit this year. I deal with some 3"+ trunks and those don't roll without some leverage.
Click to expand...
3 inch is easy. ;-p

I have a 60" Logrite cant hook, and it works well for 18" - 30" oak in reasonable lengths (eg. 10' - 12'). I also cut a lot of wood in the 40" plus range, and it's not as useful there, as the hook slips on real large diameters, and I'm not heavy enough (175 lb.) to lever them over with a 60" handle anyway.

If you deal with a lot of 36" stuff, you might want two hooks, a 48" for daily use and a 72" for the big stuff.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Ashful said:
3 inch is easy. ;-p

I have a 60" Logrite cant hook, and it works well for 18" - 30" oak in reasonable lengths (eg. 10' - 12'). I also cut a lot of wood in the 40" plus range, and it's not as useful there, as the hook slips on real large diameters, and I'm not heavy enough (175 lb.) to lever them over with a 60" handle anyway.

If you deal with a lot of 36" stuff, you might want two hooks, a 48" for daily use and a 72" for the big stuff.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Yeah, those mature 3 inch trunks can be a beast. Haha!

Thanks for that feedback. I was looking at Logrite's cant hooks and wondering if I ultimately should have two of them. That Logrite stuff is so enticing.
 
Another vote for the 85% cut and then roll method. I just can't see any more efficient method.



Sent from my iBatteryCharger using Zapatalk
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jeffm1
After 35 yrs off cutting,I can almost sense when to pull the bar out of a top cut when using the 80%/ roll method and seldom if ever get pinched
But... If you get pinched, efficiency is gone
So if you haven't the experience to have that "sense" then lifting and propping may work best in the interim
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

P
Squirting Sugar Maples
Replies
6
Views
492
The Wood Shed
Max W
Max W
W
Lookie what I have....NIELS!!!
Replies
28
Views
2K
The Wood Shed
Woodcutter Tom
W
J
Monetary challenged stiff- backed wood processing ideas
Replies
3
Views
1K
The Wood Shed
jackpine savage63
J
P
Mega Noodling
Replies
12
Views
2K
The Wood Shed
peakbagger
P
paredown
Safe way to cut large downed oak into usable rounds?
Replies
16
Views
2K
The Wood Shed
Highbeam
Highbeam
Top Bottom
Back