Scoping wood in Big Bear & new saw coming soon! m-tronic

[Bigfoot]

Determining if expensive saw purchase is worth it, part 2
I went to scope out fire wood in the mountain resort of Big Bear, ca. Its only 35 miles from my house and took less the an hour to get there. The rangers gave my friend & I maps & info as to where there "may" be available wood, permits cost $15 per cord.

Thanks for the help in the last thread. I wasn't sure if it was worth the high dollar expense of a pro saw, trailer, ect. to only burn 1.5 - 3 cords of wood per year. I now think with a saw and the will to find wood it is worth the trouble compared to purchasing 2 cords per year. Now we can burn 4 cords ha!



After leaving the discovery center we headed to a recommended dirt road 10 minutes away behind snow summit mountain area. We arrived to the dirt road and only 5 minutes in we saw some big logs & 5 more minutes in (2 miles) we hit the jack pot. They are logging and harvesting the dug fir, there was limb ed tree tops lined up for the taking by the road side. I know it wont always be that easy but it caused me to see the light. we drove around (with no saw) and enjoyed the woods on a nice day. The elevation was way higher then the 5000' I originally thought, more like 7000' & up on the mountain we were at 8000', it went up to 9000'+ So being new to chain saws I like the idea of a self adjusting carburetor. We didn't come home empty handed though, got a small truck load. Lots of folks cutting & collecting wood. Mostly soft wood (pine) but did see a few oak trees and a few other better woods but seemed like everybody was picking up the pine.
Now a lot of the logs are huge, like 36-48"+. I figure once the scavengers take all the easy pickings (12" - 18") that will leave me with the larger sized logs. I can buck them to small 12"-16" sizes to get them on the truck so I don't ever have to leave empty handed however I do prefer the 12-24 inch diameter sized logs. I have video I can edit if you guys are interested (YouTube) & I'LL try to upload some images of the adventure so you can see too.
When we first arrived at this location we were on a steep grade above & below us. I thought that is where we had to get the wood from but after going another mile back it became flatter. That's when we started seeing the good wood if you will. The choice was made at this point, GET A NEW SAW Mike So that's what I'm working on.

Went to the dealer on Tuesday & ordered a new stihl M-tonic 441 wrap with a 32' Bar & I think skip chain. I'm new to all this lingo. I also got a 20' BAR .50 gauge 3/8? I think (is that good?) Also got oil for 2 year warranty, gallon of bar oil & stihl chaps. Dealer gave me a deal on the expensive saw (free wrap handle upgrade) & 10% OFF anything elso I bought, I also get 10% OFF ON whatever else I need before I pick up the saw on Thursday/Friday. So is a 50 gauge bar good on a 441, I thought I needed a .o63?
Anything else I should pick up, i'm thinking about wedges, no spill gas can & file set up.
Lets see if I can upload pics, thanks everybody here on this forum -Mike

 

[Bigfoot]

More pics

 

[Bigfoot]

More

Like I said, maybe if you want I can get a video.
I have more questions Im sure & lots of work & fun ahead of me. thanks for any tips...........

 

[MasterMech]

Go big or go home...

Dealer gave me a deal on the expensive saw (free wrap handle upgrade)​

You got more than a wrap handle in that deal, the MS441R-CM comes with larger felling dawgs (spikes), the high-output oiler (which you will want with that 32" bar), and heavy-duty AV springs as well.

Anything else I should pick up, i'm thinking about wedges, no spill gas can & file set up.​

All sounds good to me.

So is a 50 gauge bar good on a 441, I thought I needed a .o63?​

.050 will run fine on the MS441, the "need" for .063 starts to come into play when the saw displaces 100cc+

I'd think about running skip chain on that 32", to help clear chips and keep the saw RPM's up. Don't have much experience with setups longer than 30" but I know it can be an issue even on 25-28" setups depending on the wood. Usually the softer the wood, the bigger the chips, the greater the need for skip chain. Run full-comp on that 20" with an 8 pin rim and you'll only be breaking out the big bar when you absolutely need it.

 

[Sean McGillicuddy]

Way to go
We need some pics after you run that saw! Smiles!!
Keep us posted!

 

[Bigfoot]

Go big or go home...




.050 will run fine on the MS441, the "need" for .063 starts to come into play when the saw displaces 100cc+

I'd think about running skip chain on that 32", to help clear chips and keep the saw RPM's up. Don't have much experience with setups longer than 30" but I know it can be an issue even on 25-28" setups depending on the wood. Usually the softer the wood, the bigger the chips, the greater the need for skip chain. Run full-comp on that 20" with an 8 pin rim and you'll only be breaking out the big bar when you absolutely need it.

Thanks for the assistance =)

I think they are ordering me a .063 on the 32", (I know its a large bar, almost went with 28") Should I be thinking about exchanging it to a .050???
Full comp on the 20", got it, thanks Master Mech...

will do sean, tnx

 

[MrWhoopee]

Congratulations, looks like you'll be able to handle the big wood! Now it's time to think about moving and loading those big rounds, which will easily exceed 100 lbs. A cant hook for rolling the logs (to prevent grounding that nice sharp chain) and some means of getting the rounds into the transport. Oh, don't forget a splitter, helmet with face shield and ear protection, gloves, plastic felling wedges, sledge or maul, extra chains, files, hookaroon, cut length measuring device, a winch, choker, chains and tow straps for pulling logs out where you can work on them.......

Soon you'll understand why so many of us are in here talking gear instead of out cutting wood.

Get familiar with the species of trees available. Some are more desireable than others. Obviously oak if you can get it, douglas fir is good (high btu, less pitch than pine, smells like the lumber department at HD), but it all burns.

 

[bogydave]

Looks like you'll have several years supply in no time.
Lots of wood there to be had.
Hope the wood cutting outing are fun.
Just being out there will be lots of enjoyment

Nice saw