Peeling Bark Off Logs & Poles the Easy Way - FHC Q & A

[@olddawgdreaming5715]

Good morning Pa Mac, great coverage on de-bugging logs before the bugs get them to rotting. Thanks for sharing with us, stay safe and keep up the fun around there too. Fred.

[@drydenstewartenterprises]

Anouther thing to consider is that bark on most trees kinda acts like a sponge and holds moisture when it's exposed to the weather, debarking helps the wood to dry out and helps to prevent rot. The reason the bark starts to shed off over time is because it is starting to rot away.

[@ProleDaddy]

No expert here but to me it seems that the bark dries out and shrinks, which would break its bond on the substrate.

[@vickyannpaintingwithoils]

I really love this channel. ❤

[@johngallagher2313]

What I have seen with pines is that leaving the bark on for any period the log gets buggy and the bugs bore the outer wood. The wood if out in the rain can get blue streaks in it which may or may not be a problem in how it is used. Also pine left to long with bark the outer wood can get punky and useless for lumber. IMO peeling soon after felling probably makes for better lumber.

[@quakerblacksmith1818]

I concur. Although the result may be different elsewhere with different climate or insect pests, in the environment where I live pine logs left with the bark on for several months become almost useless for anything but firewood. Red pines in particular tend to experience ring checks if they aren't either sawn or peeled before they've spent too much time outdoors over the warm months here.

[@billywalker9223]

My pines will get blue streaks in the logs during hot months. We don't cut pine from early June to around October. Even the lumber will sometimes get streaks if we saw when it's hot.

[@johnmead8437]

@@billywalker9223 Blue streaks are fungus infection (sap stain). Often not structurally seriously damaging, but visible. There are plenty of other fungi/decay agents not easily visible, & if one type can infect, so can the less visible. And can be a long-term problem. Get the bark off and prevent it retaining moisture & providing cover for pathogens.

[@billywalker9223]

@@johnmead8437 I use blue pine for personal projects, such as sheds. It doesn't affect the structural integrity, but most of my customers prefer not to have it. I also leave maple logs on the ground for 19 to 24 months to get spalting. People do pay extra for spalted maple. Same for wormy oak.

[@woodydavis8287]

​@@billywalker9223I run allot of blue pine through my mill. People like it and buy it.

[@jasonplant5432]

Hey pa Mac. I've been building a log cabin for the last two years. Hand sawing the pines,moving them just with my hands.up a mountain. my draw knife is nothing more than a machete that I stsbed into smaller piece of wood for a second handle. It's been working for the last two years . Thank you again for a new video.

[@ciphercode2298]

Always a wealth of information to be found here.,thanks for sharing

[@fortitudinefarm]

Another great video! Thanks for answering questions

[@Eric-dz1we]

You have been blessed

[@tomcogger2132]

I mill a lot of pine on my northern Wisconsin bandsaw mill. I find the pine gets infested with pine bark beetles if it not milled within one year. If you can easily peal the bark off the pine the beetles are generally already at work. When possible, I mill pine as soon as I can. Winter cut pine is the best. Less dirt in the bark, no beetles and less chance of blue staining on the wood.

[@razor3151]

We fenced in about 3 acres. We simple threw the fence posts into a large deep ditch. They laid there for several months. After all the sun and water. The bark just fell off. Worked perfect for barbwire fence.

[@Rusty_ok]

Great information thanks for posting.

[@Mynx5050]

Thanks for sharing valuable tips❤

[@jamesrochon2195]

Love me some Pa Mac!

[@emmmmmmma92]

I just found ur channel and I'm obsessed

[@ciphercode2298]

Hes got alot of great content on a wide variety of farm stuff,and a great sense of humor too.

[@Barbarra63297]

I don't know if you use the burning method to prolong the life of posts that will be in the ground for fences, buildings, etc. I have used it and it works very well, takes a long time for them to finally rot. Would like to know what you think about this method of preserving wood.

[@thisguy333]

I was about to try this for my next goat pen, do you have any tips?

[@mdm17146]

Do you have experience harvesting Tulip Poplar bark for siding. A video on that would be interesting. In my experience White Pine rots rapidly if the bark is not removed as soon as possible.

[@mrpete9958]

I'm not sure if it can be used for siding, but Barnwood Builders had an episode were they showed the traditional way of making baskets out of the fresh bark.

[@billywalker9223]

The best time to peel Poplar bark is when the sap starts to rise. It can be used for siding, applied the same as cedar shakes.

[@Dydeeo]

I enjoy your videos and am a subscriber. I need to check out your shaving horse video. I didn't know you were a fellow Tennesseean. I'm in the Middle Tennessee area. As Charlie Daniels said " Ain't it good to be alive and be in Tennessee."

[@D-B-Cooper]

I use to build furniture and back then beds made with birch logs with branches with bark on were all the rage. Designers were getting big bucks for them but did not know you needed to heat them to 180 deg for several hrs to kill all the bugs, spores and eggs in the wood. All the well heeled customers had a fit when the dust started falling on their Egyptian cotton sheets and demanded refunds.

[@linuxsdad]

A pressure washer works pretty good on cedar.

[@farmhandscompanion]

Very true, linuxdad; I've got friends that had success with that very method. It looked good afterward, too!

[@tolbaszy8067]

Peeling logs can be very satisfying if you use the correct tool. Bark spuds come in many different styles, and are most effective in Spring, when the sap is rising. Leather tanning in colonial times used bark for its tannin, and much peeled timber was left to rot.

[@TheRedneckprepper]

TY

[@outdoorswithjake2174]

Thanks enjoy your video’s very much

[@farmhandscompanion]

Thank you, Jake

[@geneticdisorder1900]

Don’t have a draw knife or pressure washer, I use my machete and it works great. Plus you can dig out bark around the branch knots and holes !

[@ashleyanderson2859]

I was always told any month with "R" is a good time. Or maybe the inverse, but it had to do with months that had an "R" anyway.

[@thecurrentmoment]

Basically any month aside from the northern hemisphere summer months. Not good advice for us down under!

[@douglasvantassel8098]

Great episode, thank you for making these!

[@danielschneider9312]

If you're cutting birches, it's important to take at least some of the bark off right away. Birch bark is waterproof, and if you leave the bark on, the moisture in the wood can't escape, and the wood rots rather than dries out

[@dandoneral5405]

is the crack of dawn the best time to water tomato plants?

[@farmhandscompanion]

I've always understood morning to be the best time to water (not necessarily the crack of dawn)

[@nelseshaver2679]

Question: I have a 5 year old bull (2200 lb. Baldy) and 3 breeding cows that will be getting hay and pellet feed this winter. I am considering sending this bull to butcher in mid winter. He shouldn't be breeding the cows as they are already serviced by him and I do not intend to separate them. The butcher will process the animal bone out as per policy. They recommend doing burger with the entire animal. I would like to have boneless steaks and roast meat. Have you processed any older bulls and how was the meat if you did? I am interested in learning as much as I can before investing in the services of the butcher. I hear that once upon a time, beef was traditionally butchered at 3-4 years of age but changed with introduction of feed lots (1940's?). Thanks in advance.

[@farmhandscompanion]

Well, I haven't butchered any uncastrated cattle that old, but I have butchered uncastrated boar hogs. While it is edible, it doesn't taste like what you're expecting or used to. We've gotten spoiled in these modern times with grain-fed pampered beef animals of younger ages. If you're willing to have your steaks and roast taste a bit more gamey than you're used to (and perhaps a bit tougher), I think you'll be fine. (I bet our forefathers would eat a steak from your 5 year old bull and not bat an eye). If in doubt, and you can consume that much hamburger, I'd go with the butcher's recommendation. (But at least save a few steaks and roasts so that you'll have a definitive answer to your question!...and invite me over for a meal)

[@digbypowell6208]

Poplar trees. Got many at my place in new zealand, whats your thoughts on uses for them,

[@farmhandscompanion]

The tulip poplar is a favorite for log cabin buildin'; soft for carving, yet still a hardwood. Also makes good dough bowls when carved.

[@digbypowell6208]

@@farmhandscompanion thanks very much for the reply! Great to hear ! Ok cheers

[@outdoorswithjake2174]

Do you use a ripping chain on you Alaskan mill or a standard chain?

[@farmhandscompanion]

I've used both. For more details, take a look at some of my chainsaw millin' videos: kzbin.info/aero/PLriTpyY4mQuj-41-9IyDvnaEmiJiSTKvN

[@-infinity0infinity61]

i mill my logs into cants. then let them air dry that way. any problem with that? have not found anyone else doing that. thanks

[@piousminion7822]

Where do you buy a broad axe for less than an arm/leg? I can't find anything but antiques for display. :/

[@farmhandscompanion]

That's where. Sometimes you can get 'em for just the arm.

[@GrandmaGingersFarm]

👍 May YAH Bless

[@somatder]

That lazy method sounds a bit risky to me, as the bark often is even harder to remove if the surface dries. For hardwoods if would nevee to that, but maybe it would work on soft. Anyways I like to be in control of things so I stick to winter felled wood peeled with the drawknife if it is not for milling or hewing

[@gwc3721]

Why did you move from Tennessee to Arkansas?

[@farmhandscompanion]

Basically, to be closer to family. My wife and I grew up in Southwest Arkansas.

[@gwc3721]

@@farmhandscompanion I have driven through Arkansas many times on my way to Texas to visit my son. It is a beautiful state.

[@Sawbucs]

RED WASP. Hammer time.

[@bhamby9305]

Working the milk cow. Pa Mac

[@pierrejohnson6264]

👍

[@BacktotheBasics101]

👍🏽

[@MarkWYoung-ky4uc]

Great tutorial Pa. I like pork too!

[@mountainwolf1]

I'am sure you already know this but you can use a shovel to peel the bark aswell the quick and dirty way😂😂

[@brendaoates9391]

❤️🙏🏻

[@ciphercode2298]

Lets build an old fashioned smokehouse!

[@LitoGeorge]

mmmm on my radar too. Was smoking meats at 4am today. Although its easy when you have land (ex farmer here), I do prefer cold smoking over hot smoking for the carcinogen factor. Where I live now (apartment - can u believe it), I sneak by with what I can and use a hot smoker when most others are sleeping.

[@ciphercode2298]

@@LitoGeorge I've only got about 1/2 acre,but raise meat chickens,eggsayers,quail,and meat rabbits. I tryin buy farm raised pork and beef from local farmers through a butcher we know. I've never smoked my own meat,but I'm game to give it a try. Doesn't take much room and itd be a good family project.

[@LitoGeorge]

@@ciphercode2298 I slightly disagree with you. It would be a GREAT family project, with life long delicious rewards for the job done. Few things can guarantee that. I buy grass fed/finished beef from a farmer friend of mine at a good rate, but its still 50% more expensive than Walmarts sales. I highly recommend River Cottages Smoking and Curing book for hands down the best information on the subject I ever saw.

[@ciphercode2298]

@@LitoGeorge I dont think I could eat walmart beef. All meat is pretty high right now,but it's worth it to know what my family is eating. I'm sure I dont come out ahead financially raising rabbits and laying hens,but it's great for my grandkids to learn and appreciate the process. My grandson is 8 and his twin sisters are 6 and they help feed and water all the animals and process them for the freezer. They love helping raise new hatchlings and baby bunnies. Even if the smoked meat was hit and miss I'd rather try it and say that I did than to always wonder.

[@LitoGeorge]

@@ciphercode2298 I'll admit to going into American grocery stores and being shocked as what was presented as beef. I can happily say the beef quality up here in the North is significantly better. I typically buy around $20/kg but the grass fed good stuff was $30 per kg for me (and its set to rise). The difference in taste is whats so interesting - feedlot cattle tastes far less "gamey" than healthy meat. Good for you for raising your grandkids in the right way. My young girls are interested in the same things too. Only in the city because we're forced to (custody issues). The smoked meat will be a hit. My research shows that fruit hardwoods (apple, pear, peach etc) have low risk in carcinogens even in hot smoking. Enjoy the process, make some smoked cheese and various meats, and have a blast.

[@RobCardIV]

bug murder warning ! spoiler ! hehehehe.

[@deonettevoges5492]

If the boaring insects "get under the bark and have a hayday", do they then become Entertaining insects? ;)

[@carpespasm]

What's the weirdest place you've ever found one of your animals when it got out?

[@farmhandscompanion]

I guess this story comes closest: my geese didn't really get out; they were allowed to run freely in the yard. One day, I discovered I needed to do some repair work under my house in a very shallow crawlspace where I'm basically crawlin' on my belly with my fingernails. The geese had been honkin' loudly and rather annoyingly in the yard, , which was normal for them. As I crawled further and further to the other end of the house, the honkin' got louder and I couldn't figure out why-until I looked behind me and saw both geese followin' closely in my path with their heads ducked low.

[@carpespasm]

@@farmhandscompanion the crawlspace under my house is similarly tight quarters, first time I had to creep under there I found a coke bottle from the 40s and oddly enough a hardee cutoff tool for an anvil. No geese though.

[@rochrich1223]

Sometimes a donkey or a horse would be willing to peel the bark for you.(Everyone gotta have a hobby, right?) The tastier species of tree work best but there is the concept of too much of a good thing.

[@stevenbp101]

Stay close to Jesus