Debarking Cedar Log; Knives vs. Pressure Washer vs. Hammer

[@bajahama]

Here’s a few things I’ve learned from doing Eastern Red Cedar. First, de-bark within the first week or so after cutting it down. The sap layer makes it much easier. Second, leave the log out in the rain for a day, or saturate it several times with a water hose. I think the water helps loosen the bark. I just took a razor knife and cut a slit all the way down the tree, then used a putty knife just like the one you showed. You have to get not only through the outer brown layer, but completely through the white layer as well down to the beige colored core wood. Then work the putty knife under a section of it and peel it off down the log. It usually takes me about 15 minutes to do a 7’ log. Hope this info helps someone out there!

[@MowerMike]

Wow excellent advice. Wish I knew this before I made a video on the internet about it haha.

[@rustxranch1220]

I Thanks for this video Mike. I tried all of these as well, but the best method was a Kutzall Extreme Shaping disc for Mountain Cedar in TX. Cut down the time by 50% and a lot less scraping. Just be very careful with this method, wear gloves and focus. Scrape off as much bark as you can, then use this disc to create an amazing, cleared log.

[@MowerMike]

Very cool have never heard of that tool. Thanks for the comment

[@rustxranch1220]

@@MowerMike Did I say be careful? 🤕

[@Pinche_Whitexican]

You gotta get the high pressure tip for the pressure washer. You might need a bigger pressure washer as well, 4,000 psi

[@seanlinnan2719]

Just used my Bark River Bush craft knife. Sharp as hell. It was fast and fun. Gotta be careful not to get wood up under the fingernails.

[@gordpedersen8691]

Harvesting your logs in the spring of the year when the sap is flowing ,will be a welcomed pleasure to peel your logs . At least that was my experience with Eastern White Cedar . Thanks for uploading the content .👍🙏🏻

[@MowerMike]

Interesting thanks for the info.

[@johnoswald6192]

Great video Mike! Loved the explanations and details on each option and how you made them work. I'm working wester cedar with thick bark. It either comes of in sheets or stays glued on depending on season and how long it's been since felling the tree. The smaller cedars and other trees with lots of branches are hard because of the little knots so they have to be chopped or hammered off first or cut real close before debarking. I've also got beetles that eat deep into the wood if it's not debarked soon enough - learned that the hard way. Was looking for advice on whether I could spray with borax before debarking or if I needed to wait until after debarking since debarking can be such a pain. Your video at least taught me several different ways to make debarking easier. Thanks!

[@johnoswald6192]

I've seen pressure washers used with rotating nozzles - but not on this type of cedar tree. It depends on the tree type for what works best I think. I'll try a knife on the smaller logs for fence posts.

[@MowerMike]

Glad it helped. I didn’t have a clue about this so figured I would try everything. Sounds like you have your hands full with logs, good luck

[@kevinkeelan354]

What would you recommend for Holly? I know very little about trees but the bark seems thin and the wood hard rather than soft.

[@MowerMike]

I have no idea either Kevin, I would start with w kitchen knife and see how it goes. (I don’t know much about trees myself lol)

[@robertmccormack4743]

The key to the pressure washer is a turbo tip. 15 minutes or less.

[@Ishkatan]

Flip the draw knife upside down and change the angle to account for the edge angle. Or try a Bark Stipper chain saw adjustment? Yeah, sharp is better but account for the work of sharpening.

[@JFL829]

Its funny to see the putty knife actually worked which was really surprising 😮. The 30 year kbar rambo style knife was excellent to here the history on it. It worked better than the putty knife, but your hands will be so sore after working that cedar log. After all we have to say the bark stripper was definitely the one for us with a sharp edge.

[@MowerMike]

Yep glad y’all enjoyed it, was a fun one to film.

[@JFL829]

@@MowerMike you jnow how to have some good ol fashioned fun. We appreciate it.

[@TexasUrbanSawmillLLC]

Dont listen to this guy. If you have the right experience level, proper technique and proper pressure washer with tips...it is BY FAR the most effective on stringy cedar and juniper bark. We will post a video for folks next fencing project....

[@MowerMike]

Totally agree do not listen to this moron, it is like he shot the video on the first log he stripped. Haha soo true. Hope you fellas can straighten everyone out on this topic!

[@stuckmannen3876]

greetings from norway, God bless! :)

[@MowerMike]

Greetings! I am a fellow Norwegian relocated to Texas. Am sure you could strip logs better than I can haha

[@stuckmannen3876]

@@MowerMike hehe, I just started learning the craft now actually 😅👍

[@rshutterbug47]

That Was Good, But with A Log With More Rotten Bark Try Some Different Tips on Your Sprayer it Does Work Good & A Straight Blade Draw Knife Thats SHARP & I Have A OLD ONE With Good Steel Works Good, Going With The Grain & Touch Up With A Regular Knife Tip Or Use A Drill With A Round Wire Wheel ,That Cleans it Up Real Nice, I'm Making A Big Huge Out Door CROSS 17 Feet From Ground To The Very Top & About Done, & I Was Wondering Whats Best To Coat it & Bring Out The RED IN THE CEDAR,So Thanks 👍👍👍

[@MowerMike]

Thanks for the suggestions. On coating I always went with clear Thompson Waterseal, all the others tend to come out too dark.

[@gbr828]

I've stripped 100s of cedar logs and the pressure washer was BY FAR the fastest way to do so. You have to use a turbo nozzle. From what I could see, you had no nozzle at all...only a 15 or 45 degree head. From these meager tests, I don't think you are qualified to make these broad statements regarding bark stripping.

[@MowerMike]

I totally agree with you. They shouldn’t let just anyone post dumb videos on KZbin

[@gbr828]

@@MowerMikeWasn't my point at all. Your videos are not dumb and I didn't insinuate that. You have every right to your opinion and can strip logs however you want and can recommend that method to whoever you want. I was simply stating that your method of experimentation was flawed. After spending maybe 5 minutes using the pressure washer incorrectly for stripping logs, you just outright dumped on a method that I and many others have seen great success with. I know of 3 different cedar yards that exclusively use the pressure washer with turbo nozzle for stripping all their logs. Please don't construe that I am calling you dumb or your videos dumb...quite the contrary. If I thought you or your video was dumb, I wouldn't have watched it till the end and I certainly wouldn't have wasted my time commenting on it. You seem to have a lot of fun doing your videos and putting out content that appears to be of value. I'm simply stating you might benefit from trying it another way.

[@MowerMike]

@@gbr828 I hear ya and appreciate your response. One thing to consider is a logging company has much higher powered pressure washers and special nozzles that the average guy doesn’t have. I am impressed you watched to the end!

[@gbr828]

@@MowerMike That's fair.

[@thelawdoc8029]

2500psi does it. Turbo nozzle helps. Or just leave the logs to sit for a few months and the bark falls off. @@MowerMike

[@larrybauman7430]

Put your cedars in a pond for 6 wks, the bark will peel off ezzy. Even in the hard to get places.

[@MowerMike]

Haha love it. Now I just need to find a good pond

[@larrybauman7430]

Cut the bottoms and tops out if 55 gallon barrels then cut them in half then weld them together to make a soaking tank.

[@Charlie_StCloud]

I got about 200 logs to strip, that pressure washer sounded kinda nice at first, lol. Guess I'm using the drawknife.

[@MowerMike]

Damn 200 lots. I hope you can find some better advice than my video, I have only stripped this one. I know people up north have companies that do this you may check and get some professional guidance. Good luck! Sounds like fun

[@mitakuyeoyasin2732]

You building a HOGAN?

[@mattlambert3118]

Are you serious? Somebody actually believes the "blood groove" thing? That's not what it's for and it doesn't even work that way. It's just to reduce the material and weight of the blade without reducing the strength significantly. I've never seen a drawknife shaped like that before and I feel like it must be specialized for a specific size of tree that has no knots because that shape would make it suck for anything else. I feel like this video must have been prioritized by KZbin specifically because of the Norwegian flag since KZbin seems to give extreme priority to non-American videos and this guy clearly has no idea what he's talking about here.

[@MowerMike]

I completely agree. Am tired of these anti American videos. What a moron.

[@mattlambert3118]

@@MowerMike I didn't say this was an anti American video. You've also got an American flag in it so you're clearly a patriotic American to some extent. I just said I think the Norwegian flag must have been the reason why KZbin's algorithm presented this video since you clearly have no idea what you're talking about and KZbin's algorithm has been giving extreme priority to videos from non-American countries for at least a couple of years now. Seriously, try to look just about anything and you won't see videos from American creators unless there's literally nobody else in the world with videos that match your search terms. For the most part, you get UK, Scandinavian, or Indian content even if there are American creators who do a much better job.

[@MowerMike]

@ Based on your comments though American creators don’t know what we are talking about. Maybe you should dress up in a Viking outfit and start making bark peeling videos with all your expertise, you would dominate KZbin!

[@mattlambert3118]

@@MowerMike "Based on your comments though American creators don’t know what we are talking about." What? Are you drunk? How are you even getting that? I mean, you're an American creator and you don't know what you're talking about in this video, but it's not like you're somehow representative of American creators. Doctors aren't tall just because a doctor is tall. "Maybe you should dress up in a Viking outfit and start making bark peeling videos with all your expertise, you would dominate KZbin!" 1) I didn't say I was a bark peeling expert, but I do know a knife's fuller isn't really supposed to let blood flow out so it doesn't somehow vacuum seal the flesh to it and get stuck when you stab something. That doesn't take an expert to know and there are already plenty of creators on KZbin who have corrected that old wives tale. 2) I'm not sure why you think dressing up in a Viking outfit would make KZbin's algorithm associate a video with non US countries like a Norwegian flag would. 3) If you're just butt-hurt about me saying you don't know what you're talking about, it didn't even seem like you were pretending to know what you were talking about. This was just a video of you making half-assed attempts to test bark pealing techniques you'd heard about. You didn't bother to find out if you needed a pressure washer with a specific amount of power or use a specific kind of nozzle. You didn't bother to get am appropriate kind of drawknife, didn't bother learning how to use it, and almost didn't even bother sharpening it. You didn't bother finding out how the putty knife trick works. You didn't bother to figure out how the hammer trick works (assuming it's a real thing I've just never heard of before). Are you really trying to claim that you knew what you were talking about? I didn't get the impression that you were.

[@benbrown1042]

Question, how do you pick your tools pronouns? 😂 Jk! Would the draw knife work better if you flipped it? Helpful video, thanks!

[@MowerMike]

Haha my father in law hates me calling all my tools and equipment female names. No idea man that is the first and only time I have stripped tree bark. Is fun and way easier than you think it is.

[@ecii437]

Yes, that draw knife is designed to be used with the curved side down. Others have flat blades, but you still have the bevel side toward the workpiece so you can adjust the angle rather than biting too deep.

[@trace_fr]

Why all the sexism? Just give a review and live the "real man" "wifes paint bucket" stuff out of it.

[@MowerMike]

Just can’t help myself when working with a piece of wood that girthy. I suggest you move onto other stripping videos on KZbin if mine was too edgy.

[@gc5258]

Exactly. Misogynistic asses can’t help themselves. They have to insert some sexism into all they do. Pretty lame and not funny. He sounds super insecure about his “manliness”. His wife must cringe inside every time he makes these stupid jokes.

[@maggieanderson8559]

Yeah that's not edgy. Just juvenile

[@gc5258]

Hey insecure bro. I see you. 😂

[@MowerMike]

Very, why do you think I am on here rambling on