Santa Came Early!

[brenndatomu]

. I actually really like the 11.5 second cycle time @brenndatomu @Ashful I think it's just right. It's slow enough to let me remove/reposition splits on it's way back up and not cycle all the way up. Then it's fast enough to not make me wait forever to actually split the piece.

Yeah that's not a bad cycle time, especially for the first one...that's about the time my Champion was too (11.8 IIRC)
Sitting on a folded towel on a milk crate works pretty well, unless you are very tall, you don't have to use a towel, but you'll end up with "waffle butt" if you don't have something!

 

[Caw]

I have milk crates downstairs, the kids use them for skating practice, but I'm 6'2 I think a may might be too low for me. I'm happy with the log as a seat it's just so hard my poor butt lol. I think I'm just gonna grab another kneeling pad from Lowe's like the one I have inside. Should double nicely as a butt cushion.

 

[bigealta]

Padded Backless Swivel chair with short legs.

 

[Caw]

You know what else I think I'm gonna get? A pair of cheap soccer shin guards. I tipped a lot over and absolutely destroyed my shin again. Happens once or twice a year then it hurts for 3 months. Sounds totally ridiculous but soccer shin guards would totally solve that issue. I already have steel toes why not add more PPE!

 

[Ashful]

I actually really like the 11.5 second cycle time @brenndatomu @Ashful I think it's just right. It's slow enough to let me remove/reposition splits on it's way back up and not cycle all the way up. Then it's fast enough to not make me wait forever to actually split the piece.

You gotta find what works for you, so that's great if you like the timing of your machine.

Me? I'm in the middle of some mod's that will get my machine down from 8.9 seconds to 7.7, and then eventually 6.4 seconds. I had actually been debating selling this machine and starting all over with one I could get down to 6.4 seconds without much effort, just a lot of cash, and actually has the potential to get as low as 4.7 seconds with mod's. But I figured I'd stick with the old girl a little longer, as there are several things I like about it.

You'll probably find that whatever time your splitter runs today, will feel slow tomorrow. I have the same problem with everything from cars to zero-turn mowers, they all feel slower each year. Always seeking that new speed high.

 

[Caw]

You'll probably find that whatever time your splitter runs today, will feel slow tomorrow. I have the same problem with everything from cars to zero-turn mowers, they all feel slower each year. Always seeking that new speed high.

It's entirely possible. I used to be a speed demon. I owned very fast cars, got so many speeding tickets, always liked being first, everything needed to be faster and better. Tools, cars, life. Ive found the opposite to be true for me as I've gotten older though. Im not saying going fast or bigger and better still aren't fun but I prefer consistency and predicability these days. I just want things to work properly and reliably.

The only thing I want more speed on right now is my golf swing! Ok and a bigger chainsaw but that's more practical. I cut too much wood to be using a 41 cc saw.

Happy New Years wood friends! First reply in 2024 let's go! More splitting action next weekend.

 

[bigealta]

Yeah agree the saw is a bit small. Didn't realize that 440 is a fair amount smaller than an ms250. Even the ms 250 is probably a little light for those logs you are getting. MS261 - MS290 seems like the sweet spot for your set up. (Or your favorite equivalents.)

 

[Ashful]

Looks like you already got a lot done! If shopping saws, 60-65 cc makes a real nice sweet spot for most firewood cutters. Check the MS-362, or 036 if you're into the older stuff.

I'm not old enough to enjoy golf, yet. Mom was/is a big golfer, so I grew up playing at a country club, doing golf camp every summer. I found it as slow and boring then, as I do now! Give me chainsaws over golf clubs, please.

 

[bigealta]

My buddy had an ms440 and although that saw did rip, it just gets heavy using it all day. That's why i use the lighter saws that can still handle the job. But if you have lots of really big stuff than those heavy rippers are Gold.

 

[Ashful]

My buddy had an ms440 and although that saw did rip, it just gets heavy using it all day. That's why i use the lighter saws that can still handle the job. But if you have lots of really big stuff than those heavy rippers are Gold.

Any of the 44x's are awesome, if you're only going to own one saw. They can handle the big stuff, without being as heavy as the 66x's. But yeah... a little heavy to be carrying all day.

I went thru a lot of saws in just a few years, before settling on a 3-saw plan as ideal for me:

1. 30cc top handle (MS-19x/20x)
2. 60cc with 18" bar (MS-36x)
3. 90cc with 28" bar (MS-66x)

IIRC, the 44x's are something like 70-75cc, depending on exact variant. A great single-saw replacement for the 60 + 90cc pairing, but a little heavy for small stuff and a little wimpy for big stuff.

Good arguments could be made to ditch my 30cc top handle in favor of a 35-40cc traditional grip, but I like the top handle for limbing and marking logs before bucking lengths.

Likewise, good arguments could be made for dropping that 60cc saw down to 50cc for the sake of less weight, if you have a 75cc or larger saw to pair with it when you need more. The 036/36x's are great saws, but they aren't featherweights, either.

 

[Caw]

I used my dad's MS 250 recently and it's 46 cc 18" compared to my husky 440 41 cc at 18". The extra power was noticeable. I don't hink I want to spend $900+ for one of the 60+ cc saws. After using the 440 and MS 250 I think a 50-55 cc saw is plenty. 18" bar is also fine I really don't need anything huge just more power. I was thinking the MS 261 or Husky 550 xp Mark II would both be excellent for my needs.

 

[Ashful]

Cool. If I weren't getting so much stupid-big stuff at the time I was selecting saws, I could have easily seen myself go 50+75cc (eg. MS-26x + MS-44x) over 60+90cc, as lighter weight is a huge advantage.

As to cost, I bought all of mine used. This was 10 years ago, when the 036 wasn't quite as "ancient" as it is today. I bought a clean almost-unused 036 PRO (63cc) in the original case for $300, and a moderately-used 064 AV (85cc) for $500 with a new bar and new ignition. I probably only have $1200 in my entire saw collection, ignoring spare chain loops and a spare bar. I even re-sold the case and original bar from the 036, so I probably only have $200 in that saw.

I did briefly own an MS-084, which is something stupid-big, like 125cc. I felt like that motor should be wearing a pair of wheels and handlebars, not a bar and chain. I didn't keep that one long.

 

[bigealta]

Me too. I got my used 029 super for "free" from a tenant that owed me much more than a couple new ones. My ms250 was $200 used got it last year. Was in great shape. Big fan of used.

 

[Caw]

So far today between errands I filled up bay #2 and built bay #3. Time to go get the kids from school then put thek to work filling up bad #3!

 

[joop]

Thanks for the link! I'll be measuring this weekend to see if that can fit my machine. I'm at 8 seconds now, and would really like to get below 6 seconds full-cycle at 24" down and back. Not quite the speed of a kinetic splitter, but also without all the limitations that come with those.

You guys who say you're short-cycling must be splitting different stuff than me! I used to short-cycle, but found I'd waste more time muscling the splits apart after, rather than just letting the splitter run full stroke. Red oak pops apart nicely when splitting tangentially, but most of the radial splits require full strokes, most especially those first radial splits in a big 24" diameter round when I'm struggling to hold the thing straight vertical on a footplate on rutted and frozen or unlevel ground.

I've never paid attention to the exact "split" (sorry...), but I'd guess probably half of my work gets full strokes, with only half or less popping apart with short strokes.

do you guys just make up words lol what the hay is tangentially .a split that looks like a tangerine?

 

[Caw]

It's definitely a word. I don't think that's the right word for what he's describing though. He's saying the first diameter cut red oak pops apart super easily and can be short stroked. Subsequent radial cuts require more force and a longer stroke.

I haven't found the to be true though. I almost never need a full stroke on red oak unless there is some funky grain going on. On a big 24" round I'll usually quarter it then start taking slabs off those quarters which is a radial cut. Slabs get the bark popped off and cut into appropriate sized rectangles leaving the triangle end.

Could just be a different sub species of red oak in my area or trees just growing straighter around here. I think we can all agree oak is the easiest hardwood to split though. Only downside is it's heavy as heck when green.

 

[MRD1985]

White oak can be tough. The ash and maple I just got flies right apart with the maul cleanly with little effort. The red oak is more stubborn but still splits

 

[Caw]

White oak can be tough. The ash and maple I just got flies right apart with the maul cleanly with little effort. The red oak is more stubborn but still splits

I've never had any white oak so can't comment. Red oak around here I can literally split with 1 hand on the axe. I agree ash and maple are pretty easy too. Of course assuming no huge knots. I sometimes enjoy the mental game of how little effort can I use to split a piece.

 

[bigealta]

I'm a fan of the Chord and Secant splits for Big Rounds.

 

[Ashful]

do you guys just make up words lol what the hay is tangentially .a split that looks like a tangerine?

"radially" would be a line that goes from center to outer edge of a circle, as a radius of a circle.

"tangentially" would be any chord thru the end of log, parallel to a line drawn tangent to the circle.

"Radially" is perpendicular to "tangentially". These are standard terms you learned in 9th grade Geometry, but few remember them.

 

[Caw]

Now we're getting technical. I love it. I'm going to ask my wife to make a secant cut tomorrow when we're splitting just to see what happens. I'm also going to make sure to be at least 5 feet away because she'll have an axe in her hands lol.

 

[Ashful]

Now we're getting technical. I love it. I'm going to ask my wife to make a secant cut tomorrow when we're splitting just to see what happens. I'm also going to make sure to be at least 5 feet away because she'll have an axe in her hands lol.

My wife is also an engineer, valedictorian in her high school, and dean's list in her engineering program. If you ask her to make a secant cut, it might be the first time she's ever heard anything relating to firewood that actually interests her.

 

[Caw]

My wife is also an engineer, valedictorian in her high school, and dean's list in her engineering program. If you ask her to make a secant cut, it might be the first time she's ever heard anything relating to firewood that actually interests her.

Mine is a pharmacist like me. We took 4 years of calculus after all the standard math classes but don't ask us to remember most of it lol. She's much smarter than me. I only have one degree she's got 4. I never liked school that much.

 

[NHWS]

So far today between errands I filled up bay #2 and built bay #3. Time to go get the kids from school then put thek to work filling up bad #3!
...

No air space between rows? Does that hurt drying time?

 

[NHWS]

"radially" would be a line that goes from center to outer edge of a circle, as a radius of a circle.

"tangentially" would be any chord thru the end of log, parallel to a line drawn tangent to the circle.

"Radially" is perpendicular to "tangentially". These are standard terms you learned in 9th grade Geometry, but few remember them.

How does one split radially? A cut line from the center to the edge would not separate the round into two pieces.

How can one split on a tangent line, since it only touches the circle at one exterior point?

I originally assumed that you meant tangential to mean "with the grain." A radial split, if continued past the center, would also be tangential by that meaning. And then radial would mean "across the grain".

Pedantic? Who, me? Well...hopefully only when it is funny.