Pallet sawbuck, pine, seasoning stacks

[Skier76]

When we last left off, I was hauling 9 pallets up to VT for stacking. I took 2 pallets and made a sawbuck. I got the idea from someone on this forum. Mine's not perfect, but it gets the job done...and you can't beat the cost. It's not ideal for taking a few inches off a round, but it's great for longer rounds or longer smaller diameter trees/big branches. I used a bungee cord to keep the round from moving while I sawed away.

As you can see, I cut down to size a good amount of pine rounds I had. I scrounged these rounds last August. Most needed to be cut to 16-18" so they'll fit in the Castine. The pic I posted was about 1/2 way done....I cut the other 1/2 of the pile shortly after. I split a few rounds and dusted off the ol' moisture meter. The pine splits were registering around 20-25%. Sweet...they'll be ready to burn by fall. Well, they're probably ready now.

And a shot of the stacks. Most of that is Ash...cut back in November. The darker wood is hardwood leftover from last August.

 

[Skier76]

Pallet sawbuck and pine.

 

[BucksCoBernie]

Pallet sawbuck and pine.

nice job on the sawbuck! very creative.

 

[Skier76]

Thanks! I don't want to take credit for the idea though. Here's the thread where I found it: https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewthread/40924

Thanks to "olpotosi" for posting pics.

 

[LLigetfa]

Hey, I like the mountain goat style sawbuck. Is it asymmetrical or just on a slope? Building it asymmetric keeps the base away from your feet. Looking at the pattern of sawdust on the ground though, it looks like you're standing on the long side.

Also, I can't help but notice your wood is stacked all wrong. You got the bark side down. Rain will get trapped between the bark and the wood. Hate to be the one to tell you but you will have to restack it.

 

[Skier76]

It is sorta asym...mostly by chance. :lol: of course, I had no long screws in VT...so I had to do a bit of counter-sinking. It works well though, so that's a good thing.

I'll just let the stacks be. I'll take the risk with the bark. It's been very very dry this summer. When it does rain, the water only goes down about a foot into the pile. Righ now, I have some unsplit rounds up top. I need to split those...and I'll stack that barkside up. I'm sure the wood will be dryer than the wood I burned last year. Which was purchased in August and only seasoned for a few months.

 

[smokinj]

Saw buck looks good.

 

[LLigetfa]

I had to do a bit of counter-sinking.

Counter-sinking is good. You don't want metal anywhere near the surface for a chain to get nicked on.

My next sawbuck will be asymmetric, even more so than your accidental version. The idea being two-fold. One, the base will not be under foot and two, the front log holder will be lower than the rear for easier loading.

 

[Skier76]

Post pics of that when you make it. I've got good access to free pallets, so I wouldn't mind making another down the road.

What difference this made though. Much less stopping over. And it held that log a lot firmer vs just resting it on a flat pallet.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Looks good Skier.

 

[Skier76]

Thanks Dennis!

Hopefully, the next round of pics will be most of that pine split and stacked. I need to spend some time with the Fiskars this weekend.

 

[savageactor7]

It’s not ideal for taking a few inches off a round,

Given a little thought I bet you could come up with a quick fix for doing that even if it was to lay some already cut rounds in there. I don't use sawbucks but if I did I'd do just what you did. Very elegant in its simplicity...and it's recycled too. Holy Cow!

 

[Skier76]

That's a good thought. I could also attach another flat board or two closer to the end, so the log/round has something to rest on when I "bungee" it down.

It's a work in progress. I'm sure I'll "refine" the idea as I move along. Small adjustments are bound to happen after a period of use.

 

[precaud]

Great idea, skier. I'm starting to think of a holder for cutting kindling, made from pallets (mostly). This could be the basis for it.

 

[Skier76]

Cool, post some pics when you're done.

 

[Joey]

I like it Skier.....i'm looking for something similar. I'm trying to find something that would easily take a few inches off a long split. I have some 22" pieces that I need to cut down to 18",,,,lookin for some advise.

 

[Skier76]

Joey, I "think" that may work. Some of the pine I had this weekend was around 2' and I cut it down to about 16-18". Let me take some better pics this weekend. I'll get a round in there and secure it with the bungee cord. I'll also take some measurements to show how much can be cut off in the current configuration.

 

[precaud]

Or some kind of depth stop that you can clamp on temporarily.

 

[Joey]

Sounds good.......

 

[Bubbavh]

I like it Skier.....i'm looking for something similar. I'm trying to find something that would easily take a few inches off a long split. I have some 22" pieces that I need to cut down to 18",,,,lookin for some advise.

If 22" is too long... Measure how deep your stove is and maybe cut them in half and load it N/S. Those 4" cut offs are a real PITA!

 

[Skier76]

I took a few pics this weekend.

Two shots with the round in place. And a shot of of the sawbuck empty.

 

[Skier76]

Here's and idea I had....Attach another board closer to the edge of the sawbuck. This should, in theory, make it easier to secure shorter rounds that only need a few inches cut off.

 

[thewoodlands]

Skier what size are the pallets you use for stacking, I'm thinking about picking some up for the softwood.

zap

 

[Skier76]

zap,
Most are 4'x4'. I have a few that aren't, but I tried to use all the same size under my stacks.