Kiln dried Vs Seasoned?

[wotavidone]

Re: Kiln dried Vs Seasoned?

You got yourself a real nice load of oven sized firewood. When it dries enough to burn, it will be perfect. Always keeping an eye open is important!

Took the missus for a drive in the country today. She always keeps an eye open for fallen dead wood, and we like to take the road less travelled, so we generally see something worth grabbing.
Today was no different. I have a Mitsubishi Triton club cab ute. In the US it was sold as a Mighty Max or a Dodge D50. I pretty much filled the tray with seasoned eucalypt.
Brought it home and started cutting it to length with my drop saw..
All was going well until this big girl and her babies ran out of a hollow bit and up my arm! I squealed. The missus and number three son came running to see how many fingers I'd cut off.

[mikku]

Re: Kiln dried Vs Seasoned?

If that ran up my arm, I'd shit my pants! I really hate spiders!
Big blow torch and roast the mother--yuck! Nothing like that here, we have occasional poisonous vipers around but if you stay away from rocky areas facing south near rivers--should be OK.

[GrahamG]

Re: Kiln dried Vs Seasoned?

Personally, I would stay away from the country...avoiding the wildlife!

Having holidayed at Lake Gaston and seen the bird eating spiders webs full of "stock". Nothing that frightening in the UK thank goodness.

[cobblerdave]

Re: Kiln dried Vs Seasoned?

Took the missus for a drive in the country today. She always keeps an eye open for fallen dead wood, and we like to take the road less travelled, so we generally see something worth grabbing.
Today was no different. I have a Mitsubishi Triton club cab ute. In the US it was sold as a Mighty Max or a Dodge D50. I pretty much filled the tray with seasoned eucalypt.
Brought it home and started cutting it to length with my drop saw..
All was going well until this big girl and her babies ran out of a hollow bit and up my arm! I squealed. The missus and number three son came running to see how many fingers I'd cut off.

G'day Mick
Bit concerned about the dropsaw. They are not designed for rough timber and pieces of bark etc can jam the safety cover real quik, and the wood can twist in you hands real fast.



Don't remember a thing (shock does that) but my neighbour found the safety cover of the saw jammed open. Weather a bit of wood caught in the saw blades and flicked my hand in Ill never know. The saw must not have been turning under power cause it didn't chop my hand off.
The teeth of the blade did do a good job of breaking bones and cutting nerves and tendons though.
2 1/2 yrs later the middle two fingers have returned to full function and have full movement and feeling. The little finger....they didn't quite have enough left to rebuild it and its shorter and stiff and still gives me pain.
Im happy with my lot, I can live with the pain and the hand has enough function for me to be as good as I ever was.
Mike and whom ever reads this Dropsaws like all power tools are dangerous but more so if you use them to do something they were never designed for

Regards Dave
yes for the first time im using the angry icon

[Greenman]

Re: Kiln dried Vs Seasoned?

I agree Dave. All power tools are made for their specific job. If they get out of their comfort zone then they bite, grab, throw, catch and generally become dangerous.

Having spent some time around falling and milling timber I know that the only ones with all of their fingers are the blokes with great respect for high speed sharp things. I have all of mine luckily. Might be more good luck than good management but it is all about respect.

[mikku]

Re: Kiln dried Vs Seasoned?

What are you calling a "drop saw?" I imagine you are talking about a "chop saw" or "motorized mitre saw"?

I have a miter saw with a 460mm diameter blade, very old one made by Ryobi--only tool that I own of that brand. Usually notorious for "cheap"- poor quality. But it is the only brand of old saws that are still easily rebuilt. I use it for some timber cutting when you get to 6" thick stock or very large crown moldings.

The saw works very well for cutting up branches. Always have to be careful to have the branch up against the fence. It sure does a great job of cutting up small diameter wood--If you extend the length of the fence--you can mark the desired cut lengths and all the wood comes out the same.

I used it a lot when cutting down some big oak, the trunk and main branches give a lot of wood, but it is amazing the amount and quality of the small branches when you utilize the entire tree. I use tie wire to bundle bunches of small branches together. The stuff is great for starting fires or just to heat the house for a short time to get the chill out--early fall days or late spring.

gotta be real careful, shit happens and you cannot even see it... you only feel the pain a minute later when you realize that you hurt yourself!

[wotavidone]

Re: Kiln dried Vs Seasoned?

What are you calling a "drop saw?" I imagine you are talking about a "chop saw" or "motorized mitre saw"?

I have a miter saw with a 460mm diameter blade, very old one made by Ryobi--only tool that I own of that brand. Usually notorious for "cheap"- poor quality. But it is the only brand of old saws that are still easily rebuilt. I use it for some timber cutting when you get to 6" thick stock or very large crown moldings.

The saw works very well for cutting up branches. Always have to be careful to have the branch up against the fence. It sure does a great job of cutting up small diameter wood--If you extend the length of the fence--you can mark the desired cut lengths and all the wood comes out the same.

I used it a lot when cutting down some big oak, the trunk and main branches give a lot of wood, but it is amazing the amount and quality of the small branches when you utilize the entire tree. I use tie wire to bundle bunches of small branches together. The stuff is great for starting fires or just to heat the house for a short time to get the chill out--early fall days or late spring.

gotta be real careful, shit happens and you cannot even see it... you only feel the pain a minute later when you realize that you hurt yourself!

I use one of these. For small branches only. Like you say, it has to be up against the fence.
All of these circular saws are nasty. I won't even stand in line with the blade.
Right hand running the saw, left hand holding the timber against the fence.
You've gotta use timber that is so small it gives before you do.
But my chainsaw is scarier.
Unfortunately, my Makita mitre saw, used only for timber, finally died. Stripped gears I think.

Dave how th eheck did you manage to get your hand in there?

Anyway, drop saw is the local term for the thing in the picture.

They've all got their risks. My mate was telling me he was walking into the local timber merchants (closed now unfortunately) and met all the blokes from the workshop running the other way. One ot the big circular saws had developed a crack in the blade, and they all knew what the ringing noise meant. They'd hit the emergency stop on the way out, and it stopped before it shattered, but there were some very pale faces he reckoned.

[cobblerdave]

Re: Kiln dried Vs Seasoned?

G'day
The saw was put away by a neighbor. The saw was upright but the safety cover was jammed up and the blade was bare. Never used again so I don't know if it was a bit of bark etc or the safety cover failed. My son threw it out.
It had a rip blade fitted, big teeth, four did the damage. How my hand contacted the ill never know.


Regards Dave

[wotavidone]

Re: Kiln dried Vs Seasoned?

Far out. I refuse to click on the thumbnail, in case I toss my breakfast looking at the full size pic.
(I'm a sook like that, I can slaughter and cut up an animal for food, but buggered if I can look at injured humans.)
When I inhereited the Makita, the one I'll be using when I get it repaired, it had the guard wired open out of the way. I asked my mum, she said the old man reckoned it was more trouble than it was worth.
It ain't that way now.

[cobblerdave]

Re: Kiln dried Vs Seasoned?

G'day
Haven't had to think about this for while.... So I'll continue
Best guess it that the safety stuck up with the blade still spinning but not under power. I have moved the stick along the fence with the left hand palm down like you would. The sticks contacted the teeth of the blade and they have jammed in the wood for a while. The sticks continued forward rolling my hand over underneath the blade the damage is to the underside of my hand. The hospital said injuries like mine usually happen on bench saws rather than drop saws so its unusual.
Sorry I haven't had to think about this for a while in such depth. There are a lot of ifs and buts .... Results are the same ,it happened,
I suppose there is no safe way to dock down wood, just really be careful with anyway you use.
Regards dave

[Gulf]

Re: Kiln dried Vs Seasoned?

Great safety Warning! Dave,

A few posts back I mentioned my chainsaw and loppers. I now have a new toy that I have added to my old Stihl weed eater. The pole saw attachment worked great this weekend . I got permission to go on private land where a lot of oak tops were left behind by firewood cutters. The pole saw attachment made short work of that. Now I don't have to worry about winterizing the weed eater any more .

Seriously, with the chainsaw head far away form the body, and the strap over the shoulder, kick back is a little less to worry about.

Mikku,

I also bundle very small limbs and even twigs. They do make great fire starter. You mentioned tie wire. Try untreated sisal string. We call it hay bailing twine. Use a modified truckers hitch and you can pull them down to a tight bundle. The string burns away .

[cobblerdave]

Re: Kiln dried Vs Seasoned?

G'day
Thanks (especially Mick) all for letting my have me little whine. I usually spend my time hiding it and getting on with things. Felt good to say it
Regards dave

[mikku]

Re: Kiln dried Vs Seasoned?

The farmers around here don't bale with twine, all their baling is with a plastic wrap either white or black. That is true for straw and hay. The dairy farmers import most of their hay from Canada or the United States. Those bales are sometimes round, but mostly square. The square ones are packed tightly into an ocean container and the dairy people have a special attachment to a forklift to pull the feed out.

I'll have to take a picture some day of the old Ryobi chop miter saw. This is used exclusively for wood cutting. The photograph you attached is of something I would only use for cutting steel products. Don't even remember what they were called in America--had one there but left it there when I moved.

Only reason I used wire was to make it easier for stacking. If burning the branches, always would only use a little at a time. If I could find the rope your talking about it would work slick. We used to call that "bukka-lunga" but that is an all inclusive name for small rope. Old times before tape--in butcher shops the butcher would wrap the meat up in white paper and tie it closed with a white cord. We would save the cord and tie the ends together to make a long cord. There is a tourist attraction in Minnesota of a huge ball--taller than a man that was saved "bukka-lunga"--Maybe Mrchipster heard of it!

[stonecutter]

Re: Kiln dried Vs Seasoned?

You guys are all going to be nicknamed lefty if you get this up.

The only tool that is any good for cutting rough timber is a reciprocating saw, corded or battery...demo blades work best.

[cobblerdave]

Re: Kiln dried Vs Seasoned?

G'day
I agree but its slower on Aussie hardwood. But with the timber clamped into a set of jaws you have both hands in view.
Regards dave