Today's Scrounge--post the free btu's

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Cut a cord of dead ash for my elderly neighbor lady. Told her I would try and keep her pile up this winter. She has about half cord of good wood left from last year. Her brother who lives with her can split it with the splitter and stack it. I get access to their splitter and old tractor if need. I love felling and cutting, so works great. Wood I cut tonight was all 25% and under with most of it under 20%. Lots more trees marked for this winter. I know, pics or didn't happen, but it was late and dark. Next time.
 
Had an ash come down from neighbours side. Bit of work but she's all bucked, split and stacked!!!
 

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During the week I saw Asplundh cutting on a dirt road along the power lines. This morning during some errands I checked it out. I did yard work most of the day then grabbed the saw and safety equipment and went and had some fun. I got a little under a 1/4 cord of red oak and a few small rounds of maple that I had to cut to get at the oak. I will go back. b18d321dd8cd0cb29c216810082ecda6.jpgc4104245e7380c9b58c1dce6978e77b3.jpgd52b2d1234adab8b2dc9f80604ce6f14.jpga9a637a31c68c0e0cfb48678017a363e.jpg
 
BONUS!

Got my first taker on a free winter of wood. The bonus is he said I could use
his splitter and store it here cuz he rarely uses it!! Fair deal indeed. Gonna hook him up with
some prime stock. Both 4X8 pallets are full now and more rounds stacked in the wood wall.
He gets the Cadillac. (Oak n' ash combo.)

Update to my offer of free wood to site members. If you are in need, gotcha covered. It'll be ready to burn.
All split, and nothing under one year old. Please don't message me if you can afford wood, or are just looking
for an easy winter.
 
Man you guys find some gold in those dumps. We have one nearby, but nothing but bramble and junk usually. Last year found oak but by the time i went back the next day it was gone. Occasionally some maple rounds or cherry, but seems like yours are stuffed with good wood. Is that maple or hickory?
 
In many ways, I m glad I only have less than 1/4 acre of land for seasoning plus she forbids me to scrounge anymore, otherwise I can really go at it like y'all are doing, follow by the justification of getting a chainsaw, splitter and build proper sheds/compounds for storage, the obsession is unstoppable!!!
 
Lookin' good, Warno !!
Indiana too on the ash borer. Our only hope is a die off on the bugs
before the newer ash saplings mature enough to keep the borer in
a positive population cycle.

Going now to pick up the splitter ! ! ! !
CheapHappyMark
 
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Post #59. Excess,

It really is unstoppable for me by choice.
Used to be an out of control drinker and womanizer.
This is an awesome and positive place to direct my thoughts, making
living a normal life even easier. After discussing this with the wife, she
sees it a bit differently now and we have the adjoining forest to play and stack in.
I drive around in the scroungemobile, (stereo worth more than the truck) with the
Christian tunes jammim', praying and throwing fibrous treasure into the truck.
Kinda like the thread titled "The most healthy obsession ever?" This is a good thing.

"Always better to go home smelling like gasoline and cigarrettes than wine and perfume"--- Old biker phrase
 
Post #59. Excess,

It really is unstoppable for me by choice.
Used to be an out of control drinker and womanizer.
This is an awesome and positive place to direct my thoughts, making
living a normal life even easier. After discussing this with the wife, she
sees it a bit differently now and we have the adjoining forest to play and stack in.
I drive around in the scroungemobile, (stereo worth more than the truck) with the
Christian tunes jammim', praying and throwing fibrous treasure into the truck.
Kinda like the thread titled "The most healthy obsession ever?" This is a good thing.

"Always better to go home smelling like gasoline and cigarrettes than wine and perfume"--- Old biker phrase
Well, my vice was raging anger over things I can't control, long steming from childhood. It got to a point I knew I had to stop carrying the burden or ending it all. Well, with the will to change and my other 1/2 stand by me through the last decade, I am a changed man. We just happen to stumble upon the house with a fireplace needed attention. The rest is history. After a stressful day during summer, I always look forward to some quiet time alone to split and she will help stacking.

The weird thing is when I m splitting, I don't think about things don't go my way or people don't like me for reasons unknown. I simply channel my energy and focus on the round in front of me. How to get the most pressure on the top corner tip of the Fiskar onto the end if the log. Always looking for that perfect single pop split without getting hurt. It's very simple, and like you said, it's a good thing.
 
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Ahh....
I call it the "Jedi swing". Focus, then land the perfect strike.
"Feel the Force as it flows through you, Luke" LOL
Brog  n' split 011.JPG Brog  n' split 013.JPG

Luckily I get to use Jedi gasoline instead of a human rotator cuff !
Best thing I ever bartered other than gf's.
Left is some city dump freebies. Oak and pine.
Quite the bonus having the forest to play in for feeding the hobby/ obsession.

CheapSoberGrinnin'
 
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Been splittin' my brains out enjoying some 70 degree November weather,
and had a most wonderful interruption. Ran an errand and the boys were
out making sawdust! Since I was hitting the C-store anyhoo snatched up
2 dozen doughnuts and a coupla 2 litres for the tree crew. They asked "What'cha want?" My
answer was anything under 27" and they literally started handing them to me.
Had the reflective vest and hardhat on and was happily tossing them in the truck.
Looking like one of them not one property owner questioned me. One was a stover as
he had stax. I left those but got everything on both sides.
Asplundh 001.JPG Asplundh 004.JPG Asplundh 009.JPG
Asplundh 010.JPG Another two tire squishing loads on the poor scroungemobile.
They are nailing 4 miles of ash one street over from us here @ Cheap Acres. Getting rained out on
more scrounge and splitting. Been at it for many hours and a nice lil' break this is.
 
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Ahh....
I call it the "Jedi swing". Focus, then land the perfect strike.
"Feel the Force as it flows through you, Luke" LOL
I wish I had a Jedi light saber...I bet I could buck & split wood in no time with one of those!! ==c
 
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IMG_0782.JPG
Still working on this tree year later haha When the crane set a section in my dump trailer it weighed 8k ! just the one section - all the rest of it - the limb wood etc was about 2 ft in diameter - got to love the big ol oak trees !
 
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View attachment 188340 Still working on this tree year later haha When the crane set a section in my dump trailer it weighed 8k ! just the one section - all the rest of it - the limb wood etc was about 2 ft in diameter - got to love the big ol oak trees !

That's one booger of a crotch!
 
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View attachment 188340 Still working on this tree year later haha When the crane set a section in my dump trailer it weighed 8k ! just the one section - all the rest of it - the limb wood etc was about 2 ft in diameter - got to love the big ol oak trees !
How big of a wedge did you have to use on that? :p
 
Great morning for a smoke drive. (smoke-free home)

The Asplundh fellers went thru the trouble of leaving me stax !!
How cool. Went out at dawn and these were in groups at each cut site.
Asplundh 2 003.JPG Asplundh 2 001.JPG
I went along taking only the best in each group.
I'm not the picky type. There's so much available and we're so far ahead it only
makes sense to grab pretties exclusively and still leave decent stock for Timdude,
the other area scrounger than burns exclusively on freebies.

Not being cocky one bit either. (It's hard to see body language and facial expressions on the interweb.)
This is a true blessing. If scrounge was rare, I'd be scooping up knots and punkwood to keep my family warm affordably.
 
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Made a big old Box Elder into 11" pancakes for a fellow about the size of that Oak Pic. 42" bar- need to be attacked from both sides. I still have some Elm sections that the 42" bar almost doesn't reach all the way across.( believe it to be Siberian type not American)
 
Great morning for a smoke drive. (smoke-free home)

The Asplundh fellers went thru the trouble of leaving me stax !!
How cool. Went out at dawn and these were in groups at each cut site.
View attachment 188368 View attachment 188369
I went along taking only the best in each group.
I'm not the picky type. There's so much available and we're so far ahead it only
makes sense to grab pretties exclusively and still leave decent stock for Timdude,
the other area scrounger than burns exclusively on freebies.

Not being cocky one bit either. (It's hard to see body language and facial expressions on the interweb.)
This is a true blessing. If scrounge was rare, I'd be scooping up knots and punkwood to keep my family warm affordably.
Nice scrounge! What is the wood with the dark heartwood on the top row in your truck bed? Can't tell from the pics.

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Diesel,
I was thinking oak from the smell, but I really don't know.
I'll shoot side pics of the bark and post it in a bit.
The bark is very deep, even on the limbs.