Thanks for the introduction to the IBC baskets. These are soooooo much easier to manage firewood.

Great video, enjoyed. Been cutting firewood in Northern PA for many years. That 036 Pro is one of the best saws Stihl ever made.

Good video and pretty good summation of costs, good job, makes it worthwhile. A couple of things you may want to consider on the tractor, Kubota recommend running my 4760 HST at 2000 rpm or more if I do this I do not have to burn crap out of the particulate filter, if I run the tractor idling around and not at 2000 rpm or higher I have to rev-up and burn crap from the particulate filter more often than I care to. On the wood I have been doing firewood for likely more than 40 years, I started with my Pa when I wasn't allowed to run the saw, a long time ago, in my experience if you want to make money with firewood you need to handle a stick once and then sell it, watching your video you are handling the wood, to split it, pile it in the 4 wheeler, pile it in the yard, pile it in the buyers truck or trailer, you are doing a lot of physical labour there besides cutting up the wood. The sweetest tool I have ever finally fabricated to make firewood way easier is a steel frame on a plastic pallet. I had a welding shop fabricate me a frame with angle iron outside and flat bar inside supports and expanded metal inside the angle on the sides only, I bolted the steel frame to the pallet 4 bolts thru frame and the pallet one 3/8" bolt in each corner, pallet size is roughly 48" by 48"my frame is 48" high. I have never heard of a 1/3 cord here we have 1/2 cord and full cord (4 feet by 4 feet by 8 feet), so one pallet load is 1/2cord. I have a quick connect on the front of the 4760 and I can change implements and the forks for lifting was about $300.00, from the dealer. Cost of the metal and welding of the metal frames was $285.00 each pallet, I got pallets for free. And I see that you are cross piling the ends to keep the wood piles straight and from falling over, looks good but not necessary anymore, splitting and loading the wagon bringing in the wood to stack it in the yard not necessary anymore, taking the wood and piling it in a truck to sell it not necessary anymore, this is a major time saver for me. I can load the metal framed pallet on the tractor take it out to the woods besides the wood splitter and I leave pallet up a foot or more so it's easier on my back to pile the wood inside the frame, as I split the wood I load it in the pallet frame and when I have the frame full I have a half cord and I take it out and I set them in an area where they have full sun all day to dry them until they are dry. When it's time to put the wood in the house for the winter I load the pallet on the 4760 and take it around front of the house and I can open the double doors to the basement and set the pallet in on the floor, but have these little dolly wheels for snowmobiles and I put a little dolly under each corner of the pallet and I can wheel the pallet over to the wall beside the wood stove. So with all of this I handle the wood when I take it off the splitter and put it in the pallet and then I handle the wood again when I take it out of the pallet to put it in the wood stove. This is a real timesaver, I also have a piece of thin conveyor belt attached to the top of the pallet frame to shed water but you can stack a pallet on top of one another if you wish. I tried this method without the metal frame and every time you hit a bump the wood would shake and some would fall off the pallet but with the frame it works very well. I like working in the woods myself and I used to split by hand, now that I am older I am looking for the wood heat the easiest method possible as I like to spend more time in the garden now. If you want to sell firewood people can come and get it all I do is tie the pallet to the fork on the tractor and dump the wood in there trailer or truck, there is no arguing about the amount of wood the frame is 1/2 cord size very visible. This is what I do and it works well for me.

I like your technique using the loader to lift the log out of the dirt. I will be adopting this method. I started cutting wood a few years ago, so I have a lot to learn.

that's a very interesting video you did. I used a Honda 350quad 4x4 to pull woods out, I timed it was faster than using a tractor I could pull in 3trips a ton of firewood this was mostly all down hill v steep slopes all Oak the wood drag behind would help hold quad back, cut up by pick up and Chuck on and deliver.keep up with videos loved stacked fences

Thanks for this video Mike! I’m like you I love being in the outdoors and in the woods. Cutting wood clears my head and it’s not as stressful as my regular job. I been thinking about trying to sell some firewood but unsure if it’s worth it. My parents have a big wood burner to heat their house so I typically just cut wood for them. But with COVID I’ve had more time than usual and have a pretty hefty pile of wood. Thanks again for the actual breakdown. I use that same log splitter and it’s a life changer!

Excellent spreadsheet at end and nice track of expenses !

Yep I came to the conclusion that making a living at firewood... pretty tough... but for a side income or for your own heat it's good exercise. Thanks for posting!

I’m going to do that at perimeter of my woods and put openings for the deer where they have established trails. Awesome job Mike.

BLESS YALL HEART BUTCH SPRINGHILL ,LA YA'II COME A LONG WAY ,,,, SEEN IN 4/6/2020 LOCKDOWN LOVE YA'LL THANK YOU FOR UR TIME

If you enjoy what you're doing, how and where you're doing it, any money is pure gravy.

Back when I still had a truck and drivers license I used to cut up and bundle driftwood on the banks of the Mississippi River here near St. Louis, MO. on the IL. Side of the river. It was just me with a chainsaw and my pick-up truck. It provided pocket money for gas, drinks, and helped pay for lunch, but it's not like I made a killing at it or anything.

great video, great property..I love the outdoors, and if I can make some money, love it even more.

Mike, I recently added your channel and love it! I own a small acreage in Missouri and would love to have a setup like you guys! I have watched many videos (usually daily) and tonight I went back to 2016 or so. You seem much happier two years later, I hope it was just newness and now you're really into your groove. I'm literally laughed out loud when you raised hell about the round about and this is not Europe!

I'm in western NY state (southern Livingston Cnty., cut on my own land and from a few others who have hunting camps and want their woods "passable". I mostly use a Honda Foreman with a homemade skidding arch. I'm retired now but have done this since the '70s (I used an old Dodge power wagon then) and still love to do it most every day. It's nice to see you take pride in your stacks, I do too.

Wood Cutting split and stack a lot of work!! My Dad used to say You get Heated out of wood 5 times! Cutting, splitting, stacking, carrying into house, burning it!! 👊

Not a bad income. Lots of work but honestly I love hard work. May start doing a bit of this to fund other activities. If I want more "play money" I have to work more. Simple math. Keep up the good work Mike. I have lived my entire life taking care of my family. Now my son and I are building a homestead and two houses for our families. There is nothing better than working your own land. Terry

I have the same splitter and its is possible to split a full cord and stack it in 1 and 1/2 hours. Now thats with 2 people so u r pretty much on the same timeline. I run a Firewood Buisness and the way u do it os perfectly fine for 15 cord per winter. Good job. I am looming at 75+ cord this year so i will be running 2 splitters. 22 ton huskey and a 35 ton witj 4 way wedge. And i am glad u know what a full cord is. Lots of people dont have a clue. Hard work but never hurt any one.

you're really good, great to see pride in work.

Hello from Northern Michigan (Mancelona area).Great vid. I have an L3301. My first regen was this weekend at 35.9 hours. I try to keep my rpms in the 2k and up range and shut it down when there is a possibility of idling for more than 10 minutes. It is pretty amazing what these tractors can do. I am glad I went with the L series vs the larger tractors due to the areas I can go in the woods to build trails, gather wood and work on hunting blinds

Thank you for taking the time and effort to show your costs. This was good information. The thing that some of the other commentary's are complaining about is irrelevant to you. You enjoy doing the work, you are proud of your work, and you do great, neat, and beautiful stacks. Spreadsheet showed you enjoy the work - you did the same neat and formatted job. You could add the cost of 2-cycle oil and bar and chain oil. Thank again for sharing. Jim

if you enjoy doing it and can make money at it its a win win for you, and if you are taking care of leaners and down trees[keeping you wooded area clean] than thats another plus .well done

When you consider all the machinery, the expenses, depreciation, and time, you can make some money in the woods; it's more like encouragement though, not profit. Selling the resource for firewood v. lumber is worth analyzing, too. But those of us who enjoy being outside and doing manual labor for its own sake, gladly overlook the practicality of what we are doing. Having a piece of property to work on and the vitality to be active outdoors is a great blessing. The freedom to do as much or as little as you choose, and perhaps one day retire to easier work, makes all the difference. As long as you have the interest, you will find time and effort to keep happily working in the woods.

Great video. I have always wondered how much I save cutting wood. By the time you add in all the cost but like you say making or savings money being in the woods is hard to beat. I think if I was going to try to do it for a living in would order a logging truck load of green logs with no branches, let it sit 2 years, then all your cutting and splitting is in one place.

Interesting. Since you like machinery, you should consider a WoodMizer sawmill. It is a shame to see big cherry and oak logs go to firewood. The sawmill is a blast to operate for yourself, not so much though if it is to make a living. You could probably get more money for the boards out of the butt log than you get from firewood. And don't worry, the Woodmizer would be a perfect color match for your tractors ;)

Great video, thank you!!

I enjoyed the video! I'm an engineer, so I loved the detail to the numbers and spreadsheet! Very interesting to see what it costs. Great video!

Enjoy the videos. I'm in Pa. also and got a Kubota last spring.Love it

Great investment Pa Pa. I salute to you Pa Pa Mike. Peace!

Could you remake this video with your newest setup I would like to know how much more effective you are now at production of firewood. Congrats on how far you have made it to date.

You are freaking awesome! What great analysis!

Good video. Thanks. I have a Kubota similar to yours and one of the best investments I made for it was getting a fork lift attachment for the front loader. I'm older and all that bending and kneeling was killing me. Just slide the fork under and lift to have the tree up off the ground. With the quick attach system it only takes a couple minutes to change between the fork and bucket.

I like your video because you do it much the way any of us could... by hand and with the tools/toys at hand. Wouldn't want to do it every day, but could make a few extra bucks.

up in Michigan in the winter you do anywhere from 50 to pert near 85 or 90 a face cord depending on how green the wood is and how small they want it split wood stove vs. outside wood boiler system.

I've always sold by the cubic foot. Easier to handle and more $/foot. Easy sale in Northern NJ because plenty of occasional burners who don't want to move 1/3 cord (me included). Only up to 4-5 cords/year, but it's growing.

I notice you're a "bark side down" guy. I'm in the "bark side up" camp, but honestly I don't think it matters. I'm almost finished cutting, splitting, hauling and stacking my wood for next winter. It's 13F and snowing here today in south-central Missouri but the house is toasty warm. Lately I've been enjoying your old videos and seeing how far you've come. Well done, Mike. Looking forward to seeing where you are in another five years.

thanks for the explanation it does seem stupid. will have to check if mine has that filter in UK mine is a b1620 done 45hrs so far had it a month now brilliant machine.look forward to more videos.thanks for replying

Lots of changes in a couple of years😁 really starting to motivate me to start a channel for our new property and timber frame build starting in the spring in northern Michigan!

As your doing your videos show , at different stages, what you’ve done. You take all that time explaining what you do but you don’t show what it looks like at that point or r the finished product. Love your videos

Love the videos, and your musical content

Fine choice of music as usual. Thanks

A stacking maestro ! There is not one thing about processing firewood that I don't absolutely love. Including the look of well stacked cordwood.

Really fun video to watch, really enjoyed it. I use the same type of Eagle gas cans because they pour fast

I guess it depends on how much you need the cash. The old timer who owns the mountain that my home is on used to cut up firewood for his place and to sell. He had land taxes to pay. He sold field stone, and anything else that he could. Instead of a 9-5 job he worked his land and lived off it.

Lol that is a heck of a lot of firewood. You could heat the whole state of Pennsylvania with that stash. I agree with you about not wanting to do that kind of work full time. It is fun, occasionally, but it is hard. Down here on the Texas Gulf Coast we don't have much need for firewood but I do cut up an occasional oak or pecan tree that falls. I love all your equipment, my life would be a breeze to have equipment like that. Hurricane Harvey destroyed just about everything I owned so the last tree I had to cut up I did it with a handsaw. And part of it still hasn't been done lol. I'm thinking about starting my next burn pile on top of it and just deal with it that way. I really enjoy your videos. They are down to earth and a real help.

I really enjoyed the video! Nice guy, wish we were neighbors, I learned a lot...

Hi just watching your video... great stuff! I am Scottish but live in France. The main source of fuel for heating where I live is wood. We burn mostly oak, sweet chestnut and hornbeam on a glass fronted stove and kitchen cooker. Any way I have to pay €60 for a stere ( loose 1 cubic metre) delivered. It comes in split 1m lengths which I cut into smaller pieces for my two stoves 500mm and 250 mm with a Stihl 038 and split really big bits down with a small electric splitter. I leave it for another year before I burn it. The question asked though is can you make money from cutting wood...well I say yes if you are getting pleasure from doing the job and it keeps you fit and active do it! I COULD have my wood delivered ready to go but I, out of choice, buy it with work to do on it because it is cheaper in longer lengths and being retired it gives me a purpose... love to be 40 years younger and doing the same where you are. Back to can you make money from fire wood ?...Well if I can save money by cutting and a little splitting to shorter lengths there must be profit in the initial part... you do have some really nice mechanicals there though ! All the best and take care!!

I have a tractor and split wood too. I put an extension on my front loader (just made of plywood)...it lets the front loader carry way more wood. I roll the rounds into the front loader, lift all level with the splitter and roll them right onto the splitter. Throw the split wood right onto the trailer and stack it. Lifting those rounds and putting them on the splitter is too much work.

Thanks for a thoughtful, well presented and informative video. I'm from England (old, not New England) and would happily spend time in the woods as you do and, having thought about it quite a bit, would have made just the same practical and logistical decisions that you have. Perhaps I'd be emphasising the conservation and biodiversity possibilities more. Circumstances are different here mainly in the higher land price (following from high population density) and the lack of availabilty of woodland (same cause) so that woodland anywhere but in the most remote areas starts at $20,000 an acre and is often more. Also, more expense is consumed in the shelter/covering needed to dry the wood and in meeting customers' expectations of delivery, but this is balanced somewhat by higher achievable prices. Finally, the best hardwoods here are under threat from (human-spread) disease or (human-enhanced) heat stress - and that would cast a shadow over a big long-term investment. The 'time and motion' analysts who want you to drag the logs back to the yard to minimise handling just fail to comprehend the joys of being close to nature in the woods - and that's before the additional attractions of the exercise benefit and the benefit for your son. The economic analysis is interesting and confirms my own informal one - that even with higher woodfuel prices here, the equipment and establishment costs are prohibitive if all the motivation comes from making money. But hey - it isn't - it's wonderful being in the woods - and THAT...is the justification. Good luck, and hope you can continue it for a long time.

Beautiful place to spend time in the woods. And making a few bucks too. Very nice! Tim FHC

Good information I'm sure you have a good reason for doing it the way you do and you still make a little money, enjoy what you're doing and getting good exercise. I doubt the sale of firewood paid for the tractor, side by side, splitter, saws and everything else anyway. Keep doing what you do brother...

Here in Connecticut we sell around 1000 full cord of firewood per season, we get $240.00 per cord delivered. My firewood business is only a 7 month of the year business. So, yes you can make a few bucks if your setup right.

Good job.I watch the videos of you cleaning the old apple orchard.Just wondering what you do for a living.You seem to know how to operate heavy equipment pretty good.Good job,and a very nice place.You can tell you enjoy it a lot.Your wife does not mind you spend all your time playing on your property.LOL

I thought your woods looked familiar. Or type of woods, i live in central PA myself... im a tractor guy my self ,,only from the green team 😂

Noticed no chain saw chaps? We always brougth our paultry 12-14 cords of firewood in by the log (6-6ft) then blocked/split and stacked at home. It was easier to handle/haul, the nearly 100 miles down from the mountain. Differant strokes! Enjoy your videos

Thanks for sharing, (TFS) you'll see that a lot

Those Cherry logs are probably worth about 5x more as sawlogs than as firewood. One 16' log is probably around $400. You should consider having your land professionally logged or buy a small sawmill so you can market the high grade at higher values and sell only low grade as fuel.

Agreed ...."Ya gettin' paid in the woods is a pretty cool thing "

Beautifully neat and extensive wood piles. Very impressive! That equipment is very expensive, can't imagine it breaks down to $81/cord.

Very good video for those of us considering same. I might be able to get my cost a little lower as I don’t have a side by side, so I’d be dragging a trailer behind the tractor. But my tractor cost would be higher. Thanks.

Hey thanks for responce..beautiful...very envious..lot of work...plus got to have the tractors...but wow what property..great vid by the way...the speeding up stuff...very cool..still envious...very...good luck..

OWTM: have you considered using a timber jack? Similar to a peavey but lifts log off ground same as your tractor and only costs 40-50 here. Just a hand tool but essentially cuts tractor out and time going back and forth. Just use the SxS to bring in the splitter and go to town

You need a versatile kinda wide axel small basket trailer for getting back there and loading up a nice load of split wood

I've been cutting firewood for a couple of years now. If you want to make decent money you need to be able to haul out big loads at once; having to make 4 or 5 trips to the woods almost doubles your time spent. I bought an old 5 ton m54 military cargo truck from Vietnam era for 5k. I can haul out 7 cords in the bed. Spend half the day cutting and quartering by hand and loading, then bring it in for a late lunch and fire up the log spliter after. If you're doing it for sale don't bother stacking it, just pile it on pallets and tarp it when it rains. Its a hell of a weekend gig.

You should try to find a small trailer. build some sides up on it. that way can haul more wood to stack. can pull it with the tractor. plus if some bad weather happens to come thur can just leave the trailer in the woods.

Try it with a 4 way splitting tip for the splitter... You'll cut down splitting time....

I find myself hating New vehicles and equipment since they brought in all this emissions b.s. and really before that even since they've made everything so computer centric. I went from brand new truck and fairly new equipment 8 years ago to now driving a 1986 truck and a 1958 john deere tractor and couldn't be happier. Mostly because I can actually work on them myself and when I have a problem I can usually solve it rather quickly on my own. I live in a logging area up north. I don't often go out and fell trees for selling firewood anymore I buy red oak logs by the truckload. I pay $1000 for a straight truck load of logs delivered to my homestead. that works out to 8 full cords by the time I process it and I'm getting $400/cord when I sell it by the cord. (Keep in mind this is all in canadian dollars). I do go out and cut some birch every year for myself because 1) you don't really need kindling to get the red oak going when you have dry birch and 2) it smells awesome lol

You could look at selling bundles of firewood near campgrounds and at gas stations for single use camp fires. You could probably get a premium price per bundle to give people that convenience factor.

I sell wood for profit but I do it a bit differently. Everything gets skidded to the processing area. Once it is split it does not get touched until sold and getting loaded. Stacking is up to the buyer. I also avoid any trees that are smaller. I aim for roughly 20 inch diameter.

Very interesting thanks for taking the time to do this. How many acres do you have? I am familiar with Butler worked in that area for 8 years. We Built our forever home in a 20 acre spot on 1200 frontage feet of the Milwaukee River in SE Wisconsin 9 years ago. 5 years ago in this area the Emerald Ash Borer has destroyed all the Ash trees. The borer simply followed the river. We have 3-4 hundred dead ash trees. I have one friend who is cutting them down and hauling them out to heat his business and home and my wife and I are doing a few a week when the weather is right. So a lot of time in the woods. Often thought about selling the some wood. This wood cannot legally be removed from the county. Lastly when i bought the property we put in 12 ladder stands all but 3 are on dead widow maker trees now. We have good maple and poplar trees to re-hang these but everywhere close is another widow make. We now call it the Dead Forest a real shame...

I see a love for firewood. Almost hate to burn such a pretty stack of wood.

Wood warms you twice when you're cutting it and then when you burn it.

Cutting firewood in Idaho sells for $250 a cord takes four-man hours to cut and split, process a cord if you don't have to pay for the wood that's around $60hr. A very hard work very fulfilling meet lots of great people who come back year after year plus teaches young boys how to be real men and they'll be proud of it when they grow old makes for great stories around the campfire

Love the wood fence!

Thats some damn nice firewood stacking.

I'm guessing the tractor is in the $35,000.00 range,side by side is a nice to have but not a necessity.Drop back to a good used 45HP utility tractor with FEL($8000.00 range) delete side by side and your equipment cost per hour drops a lot. You can make money with firewood but Lordy you are earning every single penny of it! Just recently found your channel and really enjoy your videos. Amos

Very nice video. Well done. I do believe you have a built in measuring tape in your head - the uniformity in your cuts appear to be supremely accurate! I also think you have a laser line when you stack. It's a beautiful thing to see wood stacked like that! Seriously. (I think I'm type A and a bit OCD) :)

I like your numbers all the way up 'til you sell it....I find marketing and delivery to be a huge added expense....once you've done whatever advertising and phone/e-mail time, do people come to you?...If so do you help'em load, or supervise, or keep'em from messing up your stacks?...1/3 cord at a time is a lot of inter face time per sale...Anyway, I really enjoy your videos nice to know you're not risking life and limb for $5 an hour...and if it's something you can do with your son, thats a big plus....and puts a nickel in his pocket!...Keepem coming!

your stacks look so nice......great video~!

I like your system for stacking fire wood.I might try it on our farm.thanks

Ty for information . I can cut and split 2 cords a day by hand. I have a log splitter but it's just too slow . Consistently day in day out 1 cord per day ,so it's nice to know I can make money at 250 per cord

Using the tractor to lift up the tree was a great idea and the splitter saves so much time compared to an axe.

Adam over on Hometown Acres (KZfaq) found cutting a tree into logs back home is more efficient than in the forest. That way saves stacking and then moving the rounds to where they will be split. That might work for you, too.

Cracking vid, really enjoyed it.

Cords of firewood in south central PA go for $180.00 delivered, and you can't make money at that, but you can have fun. It should be $220 at the very least, but with videos like this making it look like you can get rich and everyone with a pick up selling cords for almost half of what they should be, fun is all you will make.

There should also be a cost associated with those cherry trees that you haven't factored in, here, yet. But great video, and thank you for all of the information.

Just wondering would it be worth spending more time cutting and loading into say a 6x4 trailer and thus reducing the amount of trips to your wood stack. Your track seems to accomodate a small trailer, you'd spend more time splitting and less time hauling, just a thought. I cut timber for campers and don't charge for it, I'm clearing land and saving the campers taking wood from the national park at the end of our road, it's a win win because I burn the stumps and branches for potash and help out campers who either pay $25 for 15kg of split wood or go cut up timber in a national park which carries heavy fines. Great vid btw but I think you could spend more time splitting and less time carting using a bigger trailer to haul out

I really enjoy the videos it’s awesome all the machinery that you have . I’m a newbie to your channel just curious what did you do for a day job before that allows you your lifestyle and if you still have a day job besides working on your fabulous peace of land.

Thank you

great video. im addicted to fire wood

great vid, well done. Envious of your trails. Need to clear my new farm with new tractor and new grapple. I don't know how to use any of it and learning from your vids! I don't mind the tier 4. 40 hrs and I've only had one 15 min regen. Not breathing the diesel exhaust is worth it.

hard satisfying work never killed nobody, good job.

I make $30 an hour after expenses cutting, selling and delivering wood. I do it as much as I can. When the saw is running I hear dollar signs. I actually use a technique to split very quickly by hand with a maul. I can split a face chord in about 30 mins by hand. Less if I'm trying to hurry or am feeling the work out! I'm in my late 20s though so I'm sure a spliiter will be something to consider someday. Maybe not though.

Any profit or time you enjoy being out there can be lost real quick. Get yourself some chaps and a helmet. Things can change in a second.... Be safe!

man i made a killing salen firewood in Oklahoma. i would cut a full truck load in the morning, unload and go to work for 8 hours. come home split and stack at night. did it every day if it was not raining. i would sale over a 100 cords a year. did it for 12 years. i dont do it no more, man i miss the work out. take care and be safe out there buddy.

Great videos and the music is great in this one.

Cut , spilt then haul , so can max time to be efficient

Hi there. I make firewood for my self and I sell it as well.Nice greetings from Finland!

Yeah I didn't mention the cost of the logs for a living and so many other cost involved. In reality people in my area of the cut firewood mostly on drugs or have no idea the next three to five dollars an hour

i envy your wood piles they are stacked so perfect.