Anyone use a "whip" when blocking

"That's about right, that's about right..."

My firebox is large and pretty flexible as to size.
Maybe it's because I'm still learning.
Some day I may have one of those laser aligned woodpiles. ;-)

Alright, it's bound to come up..... you have 2 stoves that you cut for? One takes 16", one takes 20" ---- LOL - all in good fun.

Cut it all 16" and load the big stove N/S.

Two stoves, one cookstove and a fireplace.

16" for the two stoves - 16" fuel laid horizontal or they will take 24" vertical plus they burn all the odd size pieces.
14" for the cookstove
20" for the fireplace

So you can see I have a numbers game to play with the saw

I just hold the saw sideways and measure up the bar length 16", make a cut, move along to the next. Pretty fast, and nothing hanging out the side of the saw.

This is what I do too. I have an 18" bar and cut about 20" so just turn saw and measure out a bar length and add a couple inches and let 'er rip. Stove would actually take a 22" incher so even if I go over occasionally I notice it in the wood pile more so than the furnace. Sometimes just go with the "right about there" method but only when I'm having a good day cutting.

I have a loggers tape marked every 16".Put the tapes nail in butt end of log walk down to end of log and cut away.

I too, cut to 20 inches but have a 16" bar. I found that the distance from the handle on the side to the tip of the bar is exactly 20 inches, so I just set the handle on the mark left by the tip and walk down the log.

Having something attached to the saw would be distracting......2 pieces of strapping marked at 20" with drywall screws, mark 4-5 trunks with cheap spray paint and have at it.

WoodButcher

+1 on things hanging from your saw being a distraction. I use a 22" piece of strait scrap crap i found in my basement and an irwin (or any other) wood marking crayon.

Woodbutcher....whats up with the Dolmar/Oregon bar paint cheezing out once u run it threw a few logs? my dads stihl bar still has the paint after 13+ years!?!

I'm not too picky for length - 15-19" is okay with me.
I use my saw: it's 16" from the tip to the first nut on the bar, 18" to the second. I aim for 18". I measure about every third one.
The whip would get in my way. And I cut from both ends on a pile (truck load), so it wouldn't do me any good from one direction.
My dad did the "about here, and about here" method - his wood was any where from 14" to 24". Crazy to rank it up.
Happy burning.

Don't know, my logo was gone after the first cord. Then again my oregon bar for my craftsman did the same thing.
After over 10 cord now with my 5100s the bar paint itself seems to be holding up just fine. I dont usually flip the bar unless I
see wear or paint chipping up on top mid center.

WoodButcher