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- 11,636
- Location
- Constantine, MI
Why don't I know? Because I still need to generate some firewood.
Log this under "nothing's really free". Nearly 2 years ago a friend called me and asked me if I wanted the lumber from two walnut trees his dad had taken down on his property - free. Well, not being anyone to pass up anything for free, I stupidly said Yes! Well, I spoke way too soon.
The people who felled the tree snuck off with the prime trunk area and left several logs that were, shall we say, really nice firewood. What could I do? My friend had made the offer and I had accepted. To change my mind now would mean his dad would have to pay someone to remove the logs. I hired a local bandsaw mill to come down and saw everything up for me and I loaded it in the truck for the trip.....uh oh. I had no place to store this much wood. Like I said, stupid.
So, off to the local storage rental for a 5 x 10. I stacked and stickered everything, locked the door, and told myself I'd come back in a short time to sort through it (did I tell you we did all the sawing in the dark and I had no idea what was coming off the mill?) and get it back to the shop where I could mill it into something usable.
Well, nearly 2 years later I finally made the trip and picked up my 'stash'. There's some really good firewood in this pile, but, I think, no dining room tables. After the first 'cull' and stacking only the boards I think I can get something usable from, I estimate I have between 350 and 375 bf left. It's going to take some work, but over the next couple of weeks I intend to go through it piece by piece and bandsaw out anything that looks like good lumber.
So, here's how it might all work out. I paid $125 for the sawyer, $550 for 2 years of storage for a total of $675. Of the original over 400 bf I culled out 50bf right away as future fuel for the fire pit. If I only realize a 50% yield from the remaining wood I'll wind up with about 175 bf of walnut F4S FAS. Unfortunately, very few boards will be over 6' long. That works out to about $3.80 per bf. Assuming my time is worth nothing (something I must not have considered from the start!)
So, is this a gloat? Maybe, if I was the guy who owned the storage yard! Actually, this might all work out OK. The finished price is not too bad, and I did need some stock for small boxes!
Log this under "nothing's really free". Nearly 2 years ago a friend called me and asked me if I wanted the lumber from two walnut trees his dad had taken down on his property - free. Well, not being anyone to pass up anything for free, I stupidly said Yes! Well, I spoke way too soon.
The people who felled the tree snuck off with the prime trunk area and left several logs that were, shall we say, really nice firewood. What could I do? My friend had made the offer and I had accepted. To change my mind now would mean his dad would have to pay someone to remove the logs. I hired a local bandsaw mill to come down and saw everything up for me and I loaded it in the truck for the trip.....uh oh. I had no place to store this much wood. Like I said, stupid.
So, off to the local storage rental for a 5 x 10. I stacked and stickered everything, locked the door, and told myself I'd come back in a short time to sort through it (did I tell you we did all the sawing in the dark and I had no idea what was coming off the mill?) and get it back to the shop where I could mill it into something usable.
Well, nearly 2 years later I finally made the trip and picked up my 'stash'. There's some really good firewood in this pile, but, I think, no dining room tables. After the first 'cull' and stacking only the boards I think I can get something usable from, I estimate I have between 350 and 375 bf left. It's going to take some work, but over the next couple of weeks I intend to go through it piece by piece and bandsaw out anything that looks like good lumber.
So, here's how it might all work out. I paid $125 for the sawyer, $550 for 2 years of storage for a total of $675. Of the original over 400 bf I culled out 50bf right away as future fuel for the fire pit. If I only realize a 50% yield from the remaining wood I'll wind up with about 175 bf of walnut F4S FAS. Unfortunately, very few boards will be over 6' long. That works out to about $3.80 per bf. Assuming my time is worth nothing (something I must not have considered from the start!)
So, is this a gloat? Maybe, if I was the guy who owned the storage yard! Actually, this might all work out OK. The finished price is not too bad, and I did need some stock for small boxes!