Tractors and wood! Show your pics

[arrow]

Not sure I know what you mean.

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Kind of curious how many of you guys fall for lead or does it matter to most?

Nope...not as a homeowner. Plenty as a logger when clear cutting especially. Different species, different style of technique.
Selective culling, not so much.
Now its mostly machinery around here that clear cuts.
lots of "solar fields" going around here.

 

[John_Mc]

12 degree kind of cold for the last couple of days...today was 35.

Decided to pull shrubs with the grapple to clear a new cross-over on a small creek into some land on the backside of my property since everything has frozen up.

Was reaching and tugging on a huge Multiflora rose bush tucked in tight next to a tree.

I was pulling with the grapple while moving the tractor backwards...back tires broke loose...rear of the tractor slid just slightly sideways on the frozen ground...it was only a few inches!

Ended up sliding sideways - perfectly in between two trees...could not move the tractor forward or backward more than 1 inch in either direction.

So it was a walk back to the shop for the 572 to drop a 12 inch Poplar to free the tractor.

Getting wedged in like that was a first for me.

I actually turned off the tractor, sat there for a moment and thought..."Now what would Gordon do?"

..//TJ

Wow. That's a bummer.

Do you have chains on your tires? I had an incident or two like that years ago when operating on a side hil in my woods. With enough jockeying back and forth, I was eventually able to drive out. It did start my search for some good chains. It took me a couple of tries with different styles before I finally ended up buying what I really knew I needed all along (but was too cheap to buy - some of us have to learn the hard way).

 

[goeduck]

Their more sawdust on the ground than snow Gordon.

Sawdust, schmawdust. Tree is on the ground.

 

[Gordon Gould]

There are other ways to get jammed in too - and more humiliating. I was a brand new winch owner and just beginning to learn stuff. I had a tree down and jigged the tractor around quite a bit to get on a flatish place with a perfect angle on it and a clear winching path. Winched the tree in real slick, right up to the dozer blade. When I got up in the seat to head out I noticed there was a tree about a foot in front of and dead center on the bucket. Duh.....

gg

 

[dasranger]

20” x 20” wet Red Oak rounds are all I can handle. What a workout. Tomorrow, the rest of the tree.

 

[Loaderman22]

20” x 20” wet Red Oak rounds are all I can handle. What a workout. Tomorrow, the rest of the tree.

It's even heavier when it's green!!! The bark in the photo looks like it's coming off, so it's lost some overall moisture already.

 

[John_Mc]

20” x 20” wet Red Oak rounds are all I can handle. What a workout. Tomorrow, the rest of the tree.

That's getting close to my limit - even with the FEL on the tractor, hydraulic boom and grapple on my forwarding trailer, and the hydraulic lift on the splitter. I'll go to 24" freshly cut Oak if I'm already working in that area anyway, but I don't like it much - it's just not worth the hassle for firewood when I have so many other options, especially when working alone.

 

[dasranger]

It's even heavier when it's green!!! The bark in the photo looks like it's coming off, so it's lost some overall moisture already.

Once the Oakwilt gets to these trees, the bark doesn’t last long but yes, they probably are a little bit lighter. I won’t even think about splitting these until next year and when I do, I’ll split them vertically and that I can manage. I have 48 inch forks and I can only handle two of these at a time. The tractor really knows they are there.

 

[dasranger]

it's just not worth the hassle for firewood when I have so many other options, especially when working alone.

John, I totally agree. I have many oaks that have succumb to the Oak Wilt and why I tackled this big guy, I don’t know. I think the reason is, is because the large rounds just looks so impressive on the rack. Big sense of accomplishment.

 

[Smokeydog]

Wife can no longer lift the 20-24” big rounds so we split vertically. Also easy to remove the bark in this position. Two rounds of splits will fill the 54” wicked grapple and load the B26. This oak wood will season for 2-3 years.

 

[John_Mc]

John, I totally agree. I have many oaks that have succumb to the Oak Wilt and why I tackled this big guy, I don’t know. I think the reason is, is because the large rounds just looks so impressive on the rack. Big sense of accomplishment.

It does give you a nice feeling of accomplishment

 

[arrow]

20” x 20” wet Red Oak rounds are all I can handle. What a workout. Tomorrow, the rest of the tree.
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I prefer to stack mine thusly:

 

[arrow]

I do a lot of small patch cuts and single tree or small group cuts. This small patch I laid every thing up hill perpendicular to the trail.

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Then for single trees and small groups it's like you said - put them in a spot where they will hit the ground and be easy to pull out.

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Here is a leaner right over an oak I want to promote

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gg

Your pics reminded me a bit of what I just got involved with.
This oak was 75' tall and 22" dbh. It took out four trees with it and of course they were all tangled with each other.
The pics don't give the initial mess justice but I had to cut the stem into 3 pieces to be able to skid them up the 15% incline w my 3016.
Jan 13th and WHERE'S THE SNOW!
Next to last photo gives some idea to the distance of the trees this big one knocked down. You can make out the uprooted trees it created toward the center of the pic. One of the trees you can't see was simply knocked flat and it was a 12"er oak. The last pic was of the stem. The first 5 pieces counting from the top are from this one tree and the foreground tree, waiting to be sectioned is of one of the maples it killed.
It was the old "how do you eat an elephant" kind of thing.

Could have used your Dresser for this mess Gordon.
I wished for it real hard but when I opened my eyes, it still wasn't here.
Must of been the "distance" thing. Go look if its still where you left it...maybe I got it to move a couple feet?

 

[Jstpssng]

^^^^^
That looks like a lot of work but I"m sure that the results are worthwhile. Firewood, or were you able to get some logs out of any of the trees?
>
Did it make a sound when it fell?

 

[Gordon Gould]

Your pics reminded me a bit of what I just got involved with.
This oak was 75' tall and 22" dbh. It took out four trees with it and of course they were all tangled with each other.
The pics don't give the initial mess justice but I had to cut the stem into 3 pieces to be able to skid them up the 15% incline w my 3016.
Jan 13th and WHERE'S THE SNOW!
Next to last photo gives some idea to the distance of the trees this big one knocked down. You can make out the uprooted trees it created toward the center of the pic. One of the trees you can't see was simply knocked flat and it was a 12"er oak. The last pic was of the stem. The first 5 pieces counting from the top are from this one tree and the foreground tree, waiting to be sectioned is of one of the maples it killed.
It was the old "how do you eat an elephant" kind of thing.

Could have used your Dresser for this mess Gordon.
I wished for it real hard but when I opened my eyes, it still wasn't here.
Must of been the "distance" thing. Go look if its still where you left it...maybe I got it to move a couple feet?

It just got light enough to see when I look out back. It's still there but it looks like it shifted a little south though.

You got some nice wood out of that mess, I agree with your idea of a good stack of wood. Anything beyond that is not as near enjoyable. 3016 does well pulling and piling that size stuff.

gg

 

[Smokeydog]

Have three, 20-24”x 9’ white oak logs from tornado damage over a year ago. No success trying to give away. If I move them by the road and say free they will just sit. If I say $50 someone would steal them probably. Read where there is getting an extreme shortage of white oak to make bourbon and whiskey barrels. One time charred. Booming spirit industry with no planting, poor forestry farming practices and disease pressure. Have several 30” forest oaks of both red and white oak dead or dying along the driveway.

They are clearing for five housing developments nearby. Log then chip and grind even huge stumps. Pile the latter for erosion control and landscaping. Huge Multistory storage facilities displacing homes along the highway. Record growth from folks fleeing from the blue states.

Use to tease my wife that someday folks will be driving by pointing at us living in old log cabins like they use to do at Cades Cove in the Smoky mountains NP. Damn, that might actually happen.

 

[arrow]

^^^^^
That looks like a lot of work but I"m sure that the results are worthwhile. Firewood, or were you able to get some logs out of any of the trees?
>
Did it make a sound when it fell?

No Jst, everything I've processed has turned into firewood. I've probably given up a lot of money mill wise but the call for decorative oak beams and oak pallet wood is simply too slim in my neck of the wood.

it was dead silent when it fell. I know cause i snuck up and watched and hid myself and didn't hear a thing so that tree fall in the middle of the woods thing is true!
Now I'm wondering about Santa.

 

[arrow]

Have three, 20-24”x 9’ white oak logs from tornado damage over a year ago. No success trying to give away. If I move them by the road and say free they will just sit. If I say $50 someone would steal them probably. Read where there is getting an extreme shortage of white oak to make bourbon and whiskey barrels. One time charred. Booming spirit industry with no planting, poor forestry farming practices and disease pressure. Have several 30” forest oaks of both red and white oak dead or dying along the driveway.

They are clearing for five housing developments nearby. Log then chip and grind even huge stumps. Pile the latter for erosion control and landscaping. Huge Multistory storage facilities displacing homes along the highway. Record growth from folks fleeing from the blue states.

Use to tease my wife that someday folks will be driving by pointing at us living in old log cabins like they use to do at Cades Cove in the Smoky mountains NP. Damn, that might actually happen.
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Freakin time just keeps moving dun't it.
Doesn't even care what we're thinkin or how we feel.
It's so inconsiderate.
I asked not to get old upon the advice of so many before me.
You think he listened?
Nice and picturesque pic.

 

[Gordon Gould]

Use to tease my wife that someday folks will be driving by pointing at us living in old log cabins.
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If I drove by I would be pointing. Pointing and saying "Hey look, what a nice place that is"

gg

 

[Loaderman22]

Have three, 20-24”x 9’ white oak logs from tornado damage over a year ago. No success trying to give away.

I have a woodworker friend of mine, he is looking to expand his old barn to make a true assembly & finishing room. I have loads of red oak, but he was looking for white oak timbers for the 1st floor girders. Yes the red oak is strong enough, but the white oak is more rot resistant. There is a concrete slab in the basement, but its a tad damp because of the stone foundation walls, so the white oak would just be a little better fit. Maybe like @arrow , I can wish real hard to get them here!! I even have a Cat to move them!