My Meager Firewood process

[Danaidh]

@WI_Hedgehog asked about my log moving system and firewood process.

Several years ago, before the company split, I purchased Titan's 29" log grapple. About the same time, I was gifted an old beat-up 12' trailer with a single heavy-duty axle of unknown weight capacity. I hook-up the trailer to my 4wd John deere tractor with log grapple attached and chainsaws on board.

I drive into the woods to a pre-selected Pine, Oak, Elm or Hickory to cut. The tree species has been pre-selected for firewood or lumber. The trailer is parked in an area which allows for loading logs with the tractor. The tree is felled and cut up into log lengths that I need for lumber or lengths to be cut up later for firewood. The Trailer is loaded via the log grapple. The weight limit is determined by the squat of the trailer springs and tires.

The trailer is reattached to the tractor and the logs are moved to the sawmill or firewood area. If the logs are for lumber they are stacked in a whack in anticipation of sawing into lumber. If for firewood, the logs are unloaded in an open firewood area. Then I pick up each log with the grapple and saw it into firewood lengths. I have a hydraulic wood splitter which I use to split firewood and then stack it in place or later move with the tractor bucket to a firewood rack.

Slabs from sawing lumber are also used for firewood.

That is my current method for moving and using logs. The Titan log grapple has been invaluable to me as a land manager.

Kind regards,
Dan

 

[WI_Hedgehog]

Thanks for starting the conversation, I'm looking forward to the replies. I'm still missing the grapple and a decent trailer hitch setup. Got the top shredder though, and a big box for the chips, so "mostly there."

 

[MapleLeafFarmer]

ok.... I'll share. All photos pulled from internet.
I am very happy with my setup and if I could start from scratch I would do it exactly the same.
In my woodlot I use a L3301 open cab HST with a loader up front. No cab as I worry about glass breakage.

I pull trees out of the bush with a Wallenstein FX85 winch. Its more than big enough to handle any trees I have as 20" diameter is max. The tractor handles this winch very well. Going bigger not needed and not sure tractor would really like a bigger one anyways. 165' of cable.

I cut my trees into 20' - 25' lengths and place them on a double axle, 7,000 pound trailer. this lets me haul 5,000 pounds of wood which is about 2/3 of a cord at a time. I use a Everything Attachments root grapple to pick up the 20-25 footers and place on the deck. I use a log weight calculator to load the trailer then use tractor to pull back to my shop.

I pull the 20-25 foot trunks through a Wallenstein WP870 wood processor and with a 80 yo+ helper we make a 1.2 cord pile of wood per hour. By myself I do slightly less than a cord an hour. WP runs on a honda gas motor driving a hydraulic pump, winch infeed is hydraulic and my chainsaw of choice is a Stihl 261 c-m