John in Scotland

Ok thanks looks great

I fancy something that will put a smile on my face not something that feels like a sledgehammer...but must work really well. If what you used broke, what would you buy next. I haven't decided not to get a splitter, just gonna wait and see how unfit I am. As I only tend to work3-4 hours at a time. not the whole day.

the 25kg orange? how many of those to a cube sack?

just starting out and don't want to get useless net bags. which ones do you buy? Thanks John

I'm not sure the OP is looking for anything quite that large! Yep you're right. Ideally something smaller probably petrol, fast, enough power so that it splits knotted bits 24" long. Comfortable to work at and will last a few years.

now that does look the dogs. No ones said what to avoid? Are the cheap ones rubbish..250 quid?electric?

tow bar coming tomorrow being fitted sunday. next... a trailer lol

will be once I get my tow bar and trailer sorted.

I will keep this in mind as an alternative to buying. Thanks

No I'm probably looking at petrol driven.

Thanks for that mate. All useful points.

I'm new to splitters have only used axe and chainsaw but looking into part time work doing firewood to sell. all sizes including large oak and beech. However pricewise I don't want to go mad as I'm just starting out. I'm happy to use an axe for smallstuff if it's quicker and of course anything really difficult could be sawn. so budget...3 figures..I can always upgrade later.

Rock could well be the way for me to go as they are based about 6 miles from me. What are your views on their splitters Rather than hire I think that buying something is for me. Do you tend to use a splitter for the big stuff and then use an axe for speed, or use the splitter always?

hi. what should I avoid or what would you recommend Don't want to waste my time and money please give me an electric option and a petrol option also vertical or horizontal?

yeo 4am and awake, planning how long I'd have to work before I make a profit lol. Lots of people wake up after 4 or 5 hours for a very good reason... The body has had enough sleep. Just that we would like a bit more. So I'm up now after 4 hours sleep, wide awake writing this. trouble is my body clocks used to being asleep till 7, so about 6 I'll start feeling tired again...rant

Thanks... makes sense. I think a log splitter would be good anyway as I have a woodstove anyway and just splitting all that wood takes a fair time with an axe. So I'm gonna need a log splitter that's quite fast/ I also see that delivering wood is going to take time and fuel too. Will either need a delivery charge or minimum order size.

Thanks guys. all great comments. An update.today I visited the guy who owns a small estate(i don't mean a car...think Farmland). He has lots of trees, quite a few large ones that have blown down and plenty on his land that hasn't been touched for sometime. he also has some woodland, most of which is hard to get the wood out. He also has quite a lot of cut but not logged up wood. He and his wife want to keep all the beech for themselves as they have an open fire and say that beech doesn't spit. He seems quite keen on my idea of starting a small firewood business. I suggested that for every bag I sold ,he would get a percentage, so that he wouldn't have to invest any of his own money into buying equipment or paying me an hourly rate. Having read the thread about how much you pay for your wood it seems that a lot of you pay 20 - 30% for wood. I would probably have to collect all the wood off the estate rather than it being delivered. He does seem to have a fair bit already in the yard though that he might allow me to log and sell(apart from the beech). I would expect that he would let me use his tractor and trailer though, perhaps even some of his chainsaws. He was talking about putting up a large shed but also probably could free up some space for me to work out of. So basically I would do all the work cutting,moving,logging bagging,selling delivering. To start off with part time and slowly build it up as sales build up. I would need to buy a logging machine, probably petrol driven(need advice on which one). This will also free up my yard at home to build a workshop. What do you guys think? what percentage rate should I offer him(he provides the wood,shed and tractor) what logging machine should I invest in(fast and strong but good value) I will get a trailer for my car to help with my deliveries/garden work. Thanks in advance.... John

Mowing lawns can pay fine in good weather. However in Scotland the grass is often wet which takes longer, so nice to have some work for wetter weather, like log splitting when it's chucking it down. how long do you find it takes to get the logs dry enough to sell from green? and what %...20? My biggest situation will be space to dry logs I think. I have 2 small logsheds so far. think I'll have to build another.

well this week I've been cutting beech up to about 20" diameter. No 1 thing I've learnt is to keep the chain sharpened regularly. every other time I fill it up sound about right? done with a round file. Seen those blade sharpeners in the shop...they any good?. I'm guessing that a decent file used properly is way better?

so the plan is at the moment 1. towbar etc and trailer 2. log splitter(what should I avoid)what do you use? 3. I reckon a stihl or a husky chainsaw would make life easier. At present i'm using a sanli with a .325 chain. I'm guessing a better chainsaw makes a world of difference. which one should I get?..perhaps something slightly larger and use the one I have for smaller branches. 4 log bags off ebay. 5 ask around pubs Thanks guys hope you can answer some of the above questions... you've been a real friendly helpful bunch John

any recommendations on an electric log splitter?

Thanks everyone. Thinking perhaps either a trailer for my fabia(diesel) estate, or getting a pickup with a tow bar..any suggestions. are secondhand still chainsaws usually fine? or should I be looking at new?

I'm in Lanark. I have a friendly sawmill guy that I usually buy my shed/fence wood from and he seems cheaper than anywhere else around here. he also lets me take offcuts away for free...tons if I want it. thanks for the offer though. John

Thanks Guys. I'll get some net bags to start with and I have been looking at getting a tow bar and trailer for some time. the axe keeps me fit. gotta build a workshop this year so perhaps room for a log splitter. how much would It cost for the tickets?...think I know just the guy. I had guessed that someone would say to get a stihl chainsaw, or a husky. when this sanli packs up then that probably will be a good buy. I'll look into the nissan thanks John any more?

thinking more self employed working for myself. thanks