I Found What I Needed At The Paul Bunyan Show

[@outdoorswithlarryrobin]

Great Drone shots Neil, good video 🪵👍🏼🇺🇸

[@Adam_c1965]

So many choices of wood cutting machinery here, I see the unit from Australia took your fancy……. Great video 🇦🇺

[@Ned-p1y]

Thanks for taking us along

[@periwinkle-dragonfly]

I think that future Neil will thank you for saving your back! My 77 yo hubby is going to PT for back pains from years of doing things the hard way.

[@PetersonFarmsofNashvillePFON]

Hello fellow Hoosier ! Great Show this year Wish I would’ve seen you all there I got the same hook a roon last year at the show We brought back a Woodmizer Saw mill this year ! For some reason my Wife wants to go with me to the show next year 😂

[@wakasukadana]

Where I live, people still fight over religion and what they feel is right, but I'm amazed by the people there who are already competing about their work.

[@KNLFirewood]

I can tell you already love them! Thank you for mentioning us, that means a lot. You have inspired us similar to how the Morgan’s have inspired you. It was great meeting you and your crew! Take care neighbor! 🔥🪵

[@digdrivediy]

It was very nice to meet you as well. Hopefully I can make it to down to visit one of these days.

[@jerekirkpatrick2092]

Neil, Split and hose clamp a short piece of steel tubing (not pipe) to the upper handle. Affix a strong magnet to the stripper on the right side of the blade. It will be high, out of the way, and available to your right hand. Jere

[@wakasukadana]

I'm sure those tools were designed and made by genius hands, I really like your insightful video, thank you for sharing

[@95rman]

Neil, I love your videos. I’ve got an idea. Would you consider inviting your subs to bring their tractors for some kind of event/competition. Basically a meet and greet. FYI sold my 318 moved up to a 322. Love those little tractors.😊

[@TheWeekendMedic]

I don't burn wood for heat, but I burn a lot of it for backyard maple syrup production. I have a couple Cant hooks that are over a hundred years old, use them all the time, now I need a hookaroon. Thanks for the idea!

[@fennynough6962]

Your wife must have loved you, when you told her you were going to get a hooked! J.K. This is a show that explains things, bravo!👏

[@paulatkinson2849]

It's all ways the simple piece that is the best tool never used one but it looks like a thing I could fabricate (crudely) it won't be as good as, the one u bought 👌

[@bobpurs]

I gotta buy one also Neil and try. The older I get the more I look at tools to make the process easier 😂

[@meirionevans5137]

Great to speak to like-minded folk at trade shows. Picaroons. I bought one, 18" and made one 34" from an old falling axe. Your back will thank you, and at Xmas you will be cracking walnuts with your bare hands! Btw, may be easier to only strike into the end grain.

[@Hfoutdoorsyt]

I have a lot of respect for you guys that have to split firewood. Not much splitting here in the sunshine state

[@digdrivediy]

Maybe one of these days I'll get to trade in the splitter for a nice warm sunny spot down there! :)

[@jdh395]

Great stuff Neil thanks for taking us along.....

[@davidedwards3734]

Glad you found something at the show that helps in the woodyard!! I don't use mine as often as I should!! Stay Hydrated and Have a Safe Day

[@darthgbc363]

My brother & I are tearing into his Heatmor right now. Replacing some burnt, melted, or soaking wet insulation. The last owner used cheap caulking to seal the roof to the overflow vent. We're also replacing the rusty roof. 9:27 What steel is used to make the business end of this pick? AR500, Grade 50, or simple mild? Wonder if there is a local firewood show? NW MN.

[@wollinger]

Good morning! I use mine to reach for the remote control across the couch.

[@markdilley6422]

Love your wood and stove videos, how I started watching you. Great purchase

[@CowboyCarCrushing]

Right tool, right job 👍🤠

[@fricknjeep]

hi there great show and great video. so great to meat you there ,well i kind of have strange ways of looking at hook - pick aroons . dont recall if you signed the saw or not , hope you did , best to all .john

[@digdrivediy]

I got to sign the saw! It was great to meet you as well John!

[@obiorah1]

Buying the 2 Hookeroons is a Good idea, Thank you for Sharing this video,

[@MoondyneJoe]

Neil, just on a different tack, you have a fair need for firewood, but do you have a woodlot planted to have a sustainable amount of world for future years?, in Australia a lot of our Eucalyptus trees are able to be coppiced so they are the gift that keeps giving so to say, I'm not sure you you have simular their, but I feel it is, if you haven't, a good idea to get your own sustainability happening with wood, it's not going to get any cheaper if you have to buy it! Besided you can use the woodlot for protection of other trees like fruit and nut or stockfood species, so many options when you look into it Tony from Western Australia 🇦🇺

[@garciafamilyfarms]

Ahh shucks Neil!!...... i wish i could of bumped into you. I was there all day friday and until noon on saturday. Maybe next year! Great video i have a hookaroon i use on my splitter but just like anything else i think it has its place. I use it from time to time and then there are times i forget about it. But to each their own.

[@kevinrussell2136]

Maybe a suggestion is to attach a piece of plywood to the part of the platform that raises the wood to the table top. That way when you are dragging the pieces to the main chopping deck it's a step down to the orange platform and the less chance of the wood getting caught on the gap and tipping. The plywood can even be cut to bridge the gap between the two sections.

[@kennyshort8685]

A pulp hook or hale bale hook may work better when moving rounds on top of the table as it’s a smaller tool. A magnetic hook off the side would keep it out of the way.

[@Huntersprojects]

Nothing like a dig drive diy video on a Sunday morning!

[@HabitualButtonPusher]

If that hookaroo shaft is metal glue a magnet to the front of the table or on the lift part and one on the hook. Click in place, won’t fall off and always at hand.

[@josephcollins4336]

Interesting!!

[@suttoo85]

such a simple tool, and i can see it makes a massive difference, very good buy

[@wallyzworld7108]

You will love the versatility of that tool. I made a couple a few years ago from old cheap hatchet heads and boy's axe handles. I always keep one on the tractor now. Great for pulling the wood out of a truck bed without having to climb into the bed. I had to make more for other people because they want to steal mine.

[@christophersielski1388]

I have been using a pickaroon for 20+ years. Best purchase I ever made. Besides moving wood as you illustrated, I love the ability to grab small rounds in the end grain on the ground and pick them without bending over. Saves the old back muscles!

[@dubberkm7200]

Looks like a really cool show. This video is just another reminder of how far behind I am as well in getting things done before winter. Time really does fly.

[@TimothysTractors]

Thanks for taking us along to the show with your videos! Looks like a great time. Makes me want one an Eastonmade splitter even more... Hope to own one someday!

[@markhollick2511]

Thanks Neil Stay busy

[@goptools]

Hi Neil. Pretty neat accessories. Extends your reach quite a bit. I don't heat with wood but hope that I will someday. I like your setup a lot. It makes sense considering that you always seem to have a good source of large logs in your area. Thanks for the video! -mike

[@dab.]

I like the hookaroon. I'm amazed at how few people were at the show. Looks like you had the place to yourself!

[@brianworley7705]

Neil, we cut firewood for a number of years before considering a timber jack, cant hook and pickaroon kit from Logox. We explored other options and almost bought one like yours, but seemed the Logox was a better option, so we bought a kit for my wife and one for myself also. Been helpful for rolling logs, lifting them off the ground for cutting, plus picking up rounds or split pieces for transport and stacking. The pickaroon has indeed been a backsaver and is a much appreciated added tool for firewood handling. Tha k you for the reminder to make sure it is better accessible when handling firewood.

[@countryroadslife]

Hey I’m glad you made it and had a great time!

[@matteckelberry5964]

I'm watching you from Cambridge, Oh. I know that festival has been going on for years but never have been.

[@johnnylindsey5808]

Good job I have never seen that before

[@lonnieclifton3883]

Anything to make the process simple, the hook a roo is the real deal

[@mitchjones2821]

I run a 72’ platform track lift almost daily down here. Great piece of equipment.

[@robsmith7681]

This is my first time hearing about the Paul Bunyan show. I’m gonna try to remember it for next year! That and Harlan days. I really wanna check out your festival.

[@denjhill]

Called a pickaroon out here in the NW. Made my own from an old axe head. Great simple tool. Mostly use it to pull stuff out of my 8 ft pickup bed.

[@lisaharvey4373]

Looks like works great

[@KhaledAlSaadany]

When are you digging that well?

[@terryrogers1025]

Good show, always fun to see the latest and greatest in action. Never used a hookroon , that being said, if I had access to one, I probably would have at least tried it. Thanks for the video sir.

[@snoozieq4584]

The Paul Bunyan show is awesome! My Grandpa Meinke took me to one in 1989. So much cool stuff back then. Cutting and splitting competitions, timed tree climbing, a real carnival / state fair atmosphere. I really hope you all had fun🥰🥰🤗🤗😘😘 See you next Sunday!

[@chummy22]

Mrs Koch is a straight up baddie Holy Neil atta boy batting way out of your league what a smoke show need her in mor3 videos

[@Feelalive1009]

Weather is awesome dear contractor boss

[@digdrivediy]

Yes it is

[@michaelmcguire3983]

Thanks for taking us along Niel! It is so nice seeing you enjoy your your family ( not in-laws & out-laws 🤣). Take care my friend!!

[@edsecorr7812]

Great job love your videos thank you keep up the good work

[@Buttonsfirewood34]

Great purchase! I love my hookaroon. FYI hookaroon,pickaroon,and axaroon are different tools for working with forestry wood. Also hookaroons are known as a sappie.

[@BG-vq9fd]

Economy of motion. 👍

[@digdrivediy]

Absolutely!

[@briancarpenter8297]

I bought one of those LogRite hookaroons last season. Total game changer for our firewood processing! I don't burn for heat, but I have a friend that does, so we get together a few times a year and split everything that's down on his property. We run a 4 man team, 1 guy on chainsaw, 2 guys on the splitter stacking into a tractor bucket, and 1 guy running the tractors, bringing rounds from the saw man, and taking away split pieces.

[@digdrivediy]

Glad to hear you find it helpful! I'm looking forward to getting used to using it!

[@blackhillsandeasternrailroad]

It was fun to see you in that picture with the Morgans! Three of my favorite TY people in one photo!

[@Andyrob323]

I’m not completely sold on the hook yet. I’ve had mine for 3 years now and still find myself moving wood with my hands. I wish I would have made it to Bunyan this year. Maybe next!

[@raytalbot5890]

Marty T in NZ has a home made twin blade saw mill with a car engine running it on his off grid homestead 👍👍🇬🇧🇬🇧

[@denniswright8949]

I bought an 18 inch picaroon on a lark when I purchased a Peavey (for rolling logs on the ground as I bucked them). I have since purchased a couple of more and my wife found them useful when she started helping me load rounds onto my splitter. She was amazed at how much labor this simple device saves.

[@resiliencyisrough]

What an incredible efficiency improvement made with such a simple, manual tool. I’m an absolute nerd for process improvement/efficiency and I am very happy you have this tool. Thank you so much for taking us along to the Paul Bunyan show. Looks like it was a blast!

[@blackdogexcavator21]

I've never seen one of the hookaroons. When we burned wood, we were splitting with a maul and wedge. Didn't really need one when I was a teenager. I had a strong back and a weak mind to work with. Now I only have one of the two, you can guess at which one. Lol, thanks for sharing.

[@digdrivediy]

My mind has never been as strong as I'd like :) my back either now that I think about it!

[@beauxtx1959]

So easy to make at home; 2x2 and a large bolt ground to a point. Love it! Keep up the great work! LOVE your channel!

[@richryan8904]

Fun to see you visit the wood processor you’ve hired a few times: the video you made for that (and referenced here) was the first one of yours I watched! I liked the easy, kind style of your output then, and it had been consistent since! It looks like you had a nice time there with your dad and family! Not too far from your house to the show either (well, for America, I mean: 240 miles is a big trip in the UK!) 🇬🇧👋🇺🇸

[@88888gerald]

the aluminum shafts with the sharp triangle on the in are essentially the same thing with a wood handle we called pickaroons when I worked in a woodyard at a paper mill..the ones you had at the last had blue shafts...they are for handling logs...

[@CorwinBos]

Great to have. Really saves your back. I use the Forster version as I found the lighter ones tend to bounce in dry hardwood. I put a 36" handle on mine to make it better for ground work and do less bending as Im 6'7".

[@terrancesnyder9323]

GOOD SUNDAY MORNING

[@digdrivediy]

Morning Terrance!

[@jackel440]

I always wanted to get one to try myself but never have. I haven't used my outdoor wood boiler for several yrs now so there hasn't been a huge need for one. Maybe in the future if I start burning again I'll have to get one. My back is done with the strain for sure.

[@johnhamilton9229]

Enjoy those hooks

[@jasonmaxfield6y312]

Great to see you and the family yesterday. Excellent video as well.

[@digdrivediy]

It was great to see you too Jason! Thanks as always for watching!

[@calebferguson2634]

That pickaroon looks much better than the Harbour freight/ princess auto ones we've been using in the matting industry

[@desertdweller4951]

You chose wisely 😊 Hope you had the chance to meet the ladies from Capital Lumber Log Yard at the Wood Mizer tent. Great family run business in PA. Looks like your girls missed this season of jump and splash in the pond. Hope next year will bring you a source of water. Oh, my first thought was another dump truck, you did a great jod of self control 😅

[@OneEyeCustoms]

One suggestion on the hooharoons make a place to store them. Maybe a simple pvc pipe to slide or drop them in. Or even a HD magnet attached to it. It will definitely help from loosing them.

[@digdrivediy]

That's a good idea Doug!

[@JazzJaguar]

Will you go through all that wood in a season? Curious if the older wood on the bottom of the stack sits overly long and starts to break down.

[@digdrivediy]

We will go through all that and more.

[@shanesherwood343]

Great video looks like a fun show that eastern made processor was really cool i never heard of a hookaroon been doing firewood since I could walk but now I have to find one looks very useful tool/back saver

[@lucasthornton5676]

That confirms that I need to try a hookaroon. Hope to see you at Paul Bunyan next year b

[@PurpleCollarLife]

I've still not made the investment or tried one myself.

[@glennspreeman1634]

Evrerybody needs to learn from C&C equipment that anything Sany bought at auction has no warranty, none.

[@doogals]

That show is 45 minutes up I-77 from me. I've never heard of it.

[@tonynieuwlandt5407]

That mini skid steer is definitely what I've been looking for. I've got my eye on one of those.

[@digdrivediy]

I think you'll love it when you get it. Go for it!

[@davidepperson2376]

Basically your message was be open-minded throughout your life, and don’t belittle others. Those are good words to live by. And important to share with others - society largely fails at teaching these good messages anymore. (Heave you ever read Kipling’s “The gods of the copybook headings”?)

[@timf6916]

Nice

[@andrewjames5925]

I use a 20 inch pickaroon and I love it pickaroon for grabbing rounds and my wood hooks when stacking and love it everyone should use when doing firewood

[@jamesharrod8733]

you might look at Log OX tool for diff round moving

[@wallingj68]

You are the 2nd video this morning using a hookaroon, having never seen one before. HomeSteadHow was doing a video on his fasting experience and he was moving rounds around. Also, it seems like the extension table on the splitter should have a lip of some sorts to bridge the gap to the main table, and that would smooth out the transfer process. I'm assuming it doesn't because it may fold up for storage or transport? I'm just a guy from the suburbs, so...

[@danshearer2689]

The real Paul Bunyan is from Northern Minnesota (Brainard, Akeley, Bemidji) area!

[@nssomedude]

Make a PVC pipe holder for the hook-a-roo

[@gidge34]

I was hoping for a new machine, but these are perfect 💪🇮🇱

[@toddincabo]

👍Good video, thanks. Looks like you need to modify that blue swiveling log holder on your splitter to be a little higher than the actual orange splitting deck so the logs don't catch every time you slide one over, that would get old, quick.

[@digdrivediy]

Yes.

[@jandblawncare8570]

Glad your video popped up, this is one of the best Paul Bunyan video's Ive seen. II went last year and ordered my Eastonmade splitter and it showed up a few weeks ago and Ive already wore the paint off the wedge quite a bit lol. Cant go wrong with any Logrite tool. I got a huge cant hook last year at the show for 50% off because it had a tiny rip in the foam but it's been a real back saver. I have a Fiskars pick a roon but I always seem to forget I have it but the times I use it, it does ok but should have bought a couple different Logrite ones last year while they were on sale.

[@digdrivediy]

Thanks! Sounds like you know how to do the Paul Bunyan show proper!

[@chrishamilton1459]

Great video and awesome splitter you own there Neil!!

[@digdrivediy]

Thanks 👍

[@sacmarine]

You’d love a pulp hook for around the splitter and slinging log rounds.

[@casycasy5199]

let us know after you use them for awhile if you really like them .I split some ugly big logs and I don't see how they would make my job easier

[@noc8076]

Fiskars has hookaroons. Light weight, good grip and slides easily in your hand if you want to choke up on it. Recommended.

[@05xlt]

What awesome timing you have! My buddy and I were splitting the other day and I brought these up! Did you get to meet and talk to Buckin’?

[@gregd931]

That show looked like fun! Boys day out huh? That chipper that was eating those logs was insane! Don't need one, have no use for it, but damn it would be fun! The hooks are a great idea and a back saver, you are getting older by the minute you fine figure of a man you! I saw some machines with rollers that I mentioned to you months ago! You are a pack rat and scrounger, quite surprised you haven't worked one in yet. Oh ya, hooks are just Peavey's before they grow up. Either way, they save your ass in many situations. Last item on my agenda is the "Firewood is getting me excited again" comment. Loving the enthusiasm to keep the family warm and dry, but damn son! Do I need to get Kara on the phone again and have a chat? You are just too precious when you attend a show and get all pumped up and full of piss and vinegar! Those sales people earned their $$$ when you were there. As always, thank you for the post and love home my brother. Never forget how much I and others out here, appreciate what you do.

[@StephenCope-tc9un]

Someone I’m-watching from wales UK From Stephen, I injoy your videos

[@digdrivediy]

Excellent! Thanks for watching Stephen!

[@letsgobrandon177six]

Well if you only had the chance to use a block splitter on wood called ironbark. Grows here in Australia. It's the hardest wood in the world. Most experts are of the opinion that the Australian Buloke, which is an ironwood tree, provides the hardest wood in the world, with a Janka hardness rating of 5,060 lbf. Great video.