I have tried to use the Tool Box Calculator but it I cannot find a good way to get the answer to this question. How much do green balsam fir saw logs weigh? I need to know how many bf I can load on a truck that can haul 10 tons.
If you don't get the answer from this forum , I would throw a average size log that you cut in your area and haul it to a feedmill or junk yard and get it weighed on there scale then just deduct the truck weight.
I didn't have any trouble finding a weight for a Balsam Fir log using the Forum Calculator. To get your answer in board feet, you would need to first find the weight by log size, then convert to bf. ;)
I believe the standard conversion used here in MN is 4700 lbs per cord, same as white pine and red pine. I have been hauling balsam to a pulp mill and it is being stick scaled and from what I can guess of the weights of the truck loads, I would guess it is weighing somewhere between 4200 lbs and 4500 lbs. per cord.
If it's in logs, you do not want to go by wt per bd ft.
Balsam can vary a lot, I would go with around 4700 like Gary said, to be safe. It all depends on how wet the wood is, and that varies from job to job.
Around 8500 pounds per thousand board feet. It does vary quite a bit. If you speak French, you could get some good info from the scaler at Lauzon's.
For rough figuring on balsam saw logs I use 500 BF per cord and 2 ton plus per cord which gives a little over 8000 lb MBF like Rick said
in maine most pulp mills used 4100 to the cd so 8200. the fir will almost always weight more than spruce. so the fir may weight a bit more depending on where it grew
If you watch trucks around here, you will notice they are stacked about 2' higher when hauling spruce. Our spruce is a good bit lighter than balsam (green)
Average weight of Balsam fir logs 12 to 24 inches in diameter per 1000 feet on basis of Doyle Log Scale rule is:
7,900 lbs. green
4,400 lbs. dry