Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Cutting firewood by hand - buck or crosscut saw?

No experience here so any help would be appreciated.


Looking to have the capacity to cut firewood by hand not only for emergency situations but I live 20 minutes away from the nearest gas station and sometimes I just don't feel like dealing with it.


Which would be the most practical and are there any brands I should look for?


Also would like to know what tools I would need to sharpen the saw myself.

1. Bowsaw.
2. mill bastard file.

Depends on the size of the wood you are trying to cut. A oneman crosscut will work you to death on big stuff.

To sharpen a saw and do a first rate job you should have a saw vise, triangular file and a saw set.

I used a cross cut saw a lot as a kid. It is back breaking work. To sharpen a crosscut you will need a small file (mill Bastard), probably a six inch and a saw set guage. I have one around here somewhere and if I can find it, I will post pictures. We also had a small hammer, kinda like a tack hammer but it had a slot in one end so you could bend a tooth. It has disappeared and I don't know where it went. miles

You can still find good saws around here at flee markets and such. First thing you have to do when you bring one home is use paint remover to get rid of the stupid picture somebody painted on it.

There are still made in the USA new saws and saw sharpening tools. Look at http://www.crosscutsaw.com/

You can find US and German saws at LEHMANS

We have a smaller saw and my wife and I find it enjoyable work. We plan to offer a weekend class on crosscut saw use and maintenance when we get the school up and running.

A couple of logs cut with a hand saw, will make you rethink that trip to the gas station, very quickly.

R.

Or you could just do it for 30-45min every other day and completely get out of lard-ass mode.

Bow saw and an extra blade, look for standing dead stuff no bigger than about 4", limbs are good too. Downed stuff is usually dirty and will dull the saw quickly.

My twin brother and I kept two fireplaces going with all hand cut wood for about two years when we lived in Minnesota. It will definitely make you appreciate the internal combustion engine, but it's doable. Getting the wood onto something waist high so you can comfortably run the saw is very important, we drug everything back to the house and used an elevated deck to work from.

Get some gloves for your hands.

Good Luck,
Mike

Two people not in a big hurry with a well maintained saw can get a lot done without killing themselves.

I am 62, the wife is a couple of weeks from 59. We can do it so you young and tough guys should be able to do it. Three hundred pound couch potatoes may have a different outlook on the subject but is they had to do it they would in a short time no longer be three hundred pound couch potatoes. A good saw and the tools to keep it sharp and trued should be part of every SHIF kit for long term survival.

Sure I have and use a newer Dolmar chain saw. I used it last weekend and it will get used hard again tomorrow. But I have the tools and the saw should gas and oil no longer be available. I even have enough kerosene to keep the saw lubricated in pitch filled logs.

There is something peaceful when tow people spend a day working together in harmony (a requirement for to man saw use) and looking back to see what they have accomplished at the end of the day. When a saw is sharp, set, and true so that every tooth cuts evenly it is not that hard to pull a good saw.

True. But then it becomes a hobby, and is no longer work.
Cut more than my share of wood and lumber by hand. Still do some, until I remember that there is both electricity and two stroke power availible.

R.

A two man is nice for stuff like this:



Anything smaller, and a one man would be better. But you would also want to invest in a good felling axe either way.

So the big questions to ask yourself:
~What size of tree will I be felling & cutting?
~Will I also need a canthook and/or snatch block to move it?
~Will I be doing this by myself, and if not, how capable is my helper?
~Is there a really good reason why not to use a chainsaw?

While growing up, Dad's old chainsaw finally bit the bullet and money was too tight to afford a new one. Dad got out a couple of old crosscuts, had them sharpened and we cut every stick of firewood with them for several years. Later on in life I worked on Forest Service trail crews tasked with clearing non-motorized wilderness trails with cross cuts. Properly sharpened they work great. They are a work out though and they're not called a misery whip for nothing. If your partner doesn't grasp the subtleties of proper crosscut operation it becomes misery to run one.

Mart

The best way to think of firewood is an investment account: Add to it slowly and steadily over a long time to maximize your investment.

Wasn't meaning to slam anyone! And I'm not 300 pounds (295)!
If its a job, and it needs doing, then it becomes production.
If its a hobby, and creates enjoyment and excercise, then great.
Either way, no one can tell me cutting wood using a powered saw, is the lazy mans way, as it is still damn hard work. Unless I'm doing it wrong. Can't run either saw from a couch.

R.

A good quality tool of the correct type, and properly maintained, is so different from anything which appears similar, that 'night and day' hardly expresses the difference. That is true of every other woodworking tool I have used; I can't imagine the rules are different here. Not saying the relative ease of a chainsaw isn't generally preferable however.

"They are a work out though and they're not called a misery whip for nothing. If your partner doesn't grasp the subtleties of proper crosscut operation it becomes misery to run one.

Mart "

A misery on both ends!!!!!!!!!!

There is the key.

Don't ride the saw and you only pull. NO PUSHING!

My granfather said that all the time. He added that a wood pile was a great measure of a man, either in town, or in the bush.
Still the first we do when a camp is set up. Get that account started!

R.

Yes, there is a reason why professional loggers use a chainsaw.

Not meant a a slam to anyone either. Sorry. When I reread I saw where I could have written that a lot better.

I used a saw for about a half a gallon of gas last Sunday. Was I beat at the end of the day? You can bet your booties I was!

No slam meant to anyone.