Free Logs

[Rick-Wi]

Well we just got back with 1400 BF of Sugar Maple, and 1600 BF of Green ash, free for the taking. The town limbed them and dropped them, we had to buck them, load and take away. 40 miles one way, and we still have to go back to get the loader and a few loggs we couldn't load. + while we were there the owner asked if we could take down anothe tree, which we haven't done yet. It is a 20" chest height Black Cherry. We will get that some other time, as the lean wasn't compatible to the equipment we had with us. Besides I might be able to get the town to top that out too.

Rick-Wi

[Tom]

That's the way to do it Rick.  I'm a little envious of the bigh cherry.  It's the only thing you got that I can relate to and I'd sure like to have it.

Is Black Cherry the same as Wild Black Cherry?  I remember climbing a Black Cherry tree in Boone, N.C. as a child that had sweet cherries on it as big as my thumb and hanging in two's and three's.  The Wild Black Cherry tree we have around here is a fence-row tree and produces small cherries the size of a pencil eraser that are mostly pit. It is bitter but I've been told that "bitter" is a taste that is detected by the same taste buds as "sweet".  Bitter is just so sweet that it throws your taste off.  these make a fine wine and tasty jelly if you have the patience so it may be true. :-/

[Rick-Wi]

Tom,

Black Cherry
Species Prunus serotina
Family: Rosaceae

Also has small bitter fruit, But I have seen this tree in Wi to be over 36" in width and 100' high. Sap Wood is almost Orange, but tones out with age. Hey at $4.50 a bf sawn, and Dried that is better then Walnut. We got a Nice 26" 8' long Box Elder out of it too. It has nice Red Spaulting. Should be interesteing to some Turrners I know.

Now we just have to find the time to start cutting again. But winter is coming and can't think of a better time to saw then when the snow is falling and I am sawing loggs in the shed.

Rick-Wi

[Tom]

I guess that is the same cherry we saw here. the average size here is 8-12 inches because they are cleared to repair fence and not allowed to get any larger.  Sometimes there will be one in a back yard that gets in the 20 inch range.  Seldom do we find them growing in the woods. Your right, it is pretty wood quite marketable.  

It amazes me to find it cut up and split in a wood pile and the owner saying " I didn't know it was good for anything but firewood.". :-/

[Rick-Wi]

Tom,
What amazes me is that every day there is more timber tossed into land fill then a 1,000 small mills could process. If you guys would talk and get a rapport going with town, and county public works that deal with trees. You will get more and more Logs. Yes, some of it will be nothing more then bad firewood. Tell them upfront you don't want junk wood, or small stuff. But it is free, and you don't have to chip the limbs. Just do a good job cleaning up the place and don't mess up the landscape.

Anyone ever seen a public employee that would rather cut a log to firewood size, or load it into a chipper? Heck no, they would rather leave the log and take a coffee break. Do part of there job, get the log and everyone is happy.

Rick-Wi

[Ron Wenrich]

There are several different species of cherry.  The one that everyone wants is black cherry.  

But, there is also the wild sweet cherry.  That has a smoother bark, and has a muddier grain.  The grade doesn't hold out as well, and then there are the rots and ants.

There is also a choke cherry.  It doesn't get as big, but looks a lot like black cherry.  I've had one in my back yard for 20 years and it doesn't seem to grow at all.  But, the tent caterpillers sure do like it.   :D  Ain't worth nothing more than firewood due to size.

Yes, there is a lot of "free" logs available.  But, as we continue out in time, the newer species aren't as good.  Russian maple, pin oak, Norway maple, ailanthus are all species that you must have a niche to fill.  

I was in one man's cabin that had some mighty attractive paneling.  He asked me to guess the species.  It was catalpa, and I missed the guess.  He worked for a local municipal govt, and they were going to cut them into firewood.  He had them cut into 10" wide paneling boards.  It worked very well.

[smwwoody]

Most of the free logs I see have those neet little treasures inside them.  like horse shoes eye bolts and rail road spikes :-/ :-/ :-/ :-/ too much hardware in urban logs for me

[Tom]

Yep, I've been sawing public services logs for years.  Down here it is mostly Water Oak and sometimes pine.  Advertisers will nail signs on roadside pine as high as 20 feet so much of it is not economical to saw.  I think that my best rural logs have come form the locally owned tree services.  The big nationwide services have no local interest other than the trimming and right-of-way contracts and will take a pretty log to the landfill in a heart beat rather than take the time to call anyone.  They can't leave the logs on the ground because the local Gov. doen't allow it.

When our county had foresters that worked for the power company and right-of-way crews,  the sawyers were top of the list to get good trees and the foresters were pretty good judges.  The county planners have suffered a real setback in utilization of natural resources.  They got rid of the foresters and turned the job they were doing over to contracts bidded by the big tree companies.  Now when you call the county or city about tree service you reach a private company tree guy that just hasn't gone out on his truck yet.  I still can get logs if I want but have to jump through hoops and tickle wallets.  Life is too short for those kinds of politics and I stay too busy with my custom sawing service to worry about it.

Actually, to answer your question about cutting the log into firewood, many of them would rather finish the tree and haul the logs and chips to the landfill because it gives them mileage rather than tree time.  That's a long coffee break. :D

[Ron Wenrich]

Maybe the local govt. has gotten away with their local foresters, but power companies still have their utilization foresters.

I have done surveys for power companies in the past.  On the average, they like to go through an area every 5 years.  Trees that pose a problem will be cut.  In wooded areas, they will be left lay and rot.  

They just "trimmed" my trees in my back yard.  They only make the problems worse by their continual use of flat-topping a tree.  It only gives more sucker sprouts.  

If you want free logs, go to the local power company.  Forget about the telephone lines.  They couldn't care if they were laying on the ground (I've seen where it has happened).  

[Rick-Wi]

I have hit my share of metal too, but with the setup now it is less likely.. We took the first 16' of the approch to the mill and Rebared the 8" concrete heavely. I can drop a log from 6' and it will not hurt the approch.. the last 6' have no rebar at all, and when the log comes up I scan it with a metal detector for the second time and role it and scan again.. It is  90% or beter, chance it is clean if the second time dosn't give me a tone.. I will take them free logs any day.

Rick-Wi

[DanG]

I'm with you on this one, Rick.  I'll take all the free logs I can get, too.  I recently ran into a local tree guy, that I was in the third grade with. After he got through asking about my sisters,  :D I told him that I had bought a sawmill. We started talking about the situation with the logs he comes across. I think we agreed that they shouldn't be wasted. He has to pay for the "opportunity" to dump his logs at the local tub grinder guy. I need to get back with him to discuss a way to get the logs to my place.  He has an old 2 1/2 ton truck with a log loader mounted on it that he would like to sell. I'm gonna look at it.  I won't be able to take everything he can generate, but we could probably give each other some relief. Its worth a shot.

[Frank_Pender]

DanG, you are fortunate.  I "wood" buy the truck in a heartbeat.   You will find that it will be ne of your very bes investments for your mill operation.  I have one spotted about 65 miles away. I just have to get there to talk to the fella about "disposing" of the unit.   :-/