# Saw for cutting logs lengthwise?



## BreathMint76

I am planning to do a project that would require me to cut a log (About 6 in. in diameter and 3 feet long), but for several varying reasons I would rather not purchase a piece of machinery to do this. I was wondering what the best hand saw would be to do this with.


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## firefighterontheside

A chain saw.


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## DocBailey

^not helpful and not even funny

Your title seems to indicate that you want to rip the log-you'll need either a coarse-toothed 4 - 5½ PPI rip handsaw or better still, a docking saw










*OR*

a frame saw.









The frame saw will, of course, need sufficent clearance between blade and brace bar so as to allow the log to pass through it as the cut progresses.


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## firefighterontheside

Wasnt trying to be funny. Many people have chainsaws. If he just needs to get the log in half and has one it will certainly do the job.


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## trz

Chainsaw would be my first choice


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## upchuck

My choice of tools would be what I have on hand: Sledge Hammer or Maul with wedges. If the wood was not too stringy and if it had even grain that was not interlocking it is possible to get a clean split. There would be more cleanup of the split surfaces then a sawn face but those are the tools I have on hand. With some woods this idea wouldn't work.


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## TheWoodenOyster

Here is a frame saw specifically made for resawing. This type of frame is made to saw thru and basically have infinite clearance depthwise. You just couldn't go with a massive diameter log.


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## OldEd

I'd go with the chain saw… JUST AS LONG as you have a ripping chain on it. The normal chainsaw chain is a CROSS-CUT chain, after all. That's what you are doing with it, isn't it? Cross-cutting the trunk of the tree to fell it, or cut the limbs off, or sectioning it for whatever purpose, ranging from firewood or what ever…

I just googled "Chainsaw ripping chain" and got pointers to Oregon, which makes a "95R" ripping chain, which is just the thing for you, especially if you want to make planks out of the log…

Of course, you fell the tree with a cross-cut chain, and then switch.


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## Ghidrah

Chain saw would chew up a lot of useable product, I'm a sissy when it comes to the amount of labor involved with doing it by hand. I'd begin looking for someone close by that had a BS and some Pam.


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## JohnChung

I would suggest a wedge and hammer. It can split the wood in the middle.


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## Wildwood

Some species of wood with straight grain split lot easier than others. Knots concealed make splitting a log evenly more difficult by hand. When splitting logs over two feet long axes, mails, and wedges just too much work.

A homemade saw buck and one or two man rip cut saw would do the job.

Rip saw -a saw with rip teeth meant for cutting a board along its length (with the grain).

Crosscut saw a handsaw used to cut a board through its width (across the grain).






Cost of a new or used rip saw today verus an electric chain saw?

I would be using homemade saw buck and electric chain saw faster and safe too!


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## runswithscissors

If it's just a single cut, I wouldn't bother with a ripping chain. They don't rip that much better than a cross cutting chain, which will do just fine. But experiment with different angles of the saw to the log until you find the most efficient orientation.


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## jar944

chainsaw.

noodle it (cut with the grain or as close to with the grain as possible) a std chain will be fine.

Edit didn't realize this was in the hand tool forum.


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## Mahdeew

If you have a fro, that might do the job the easiest way and least time consuming provided the piece is straight grain. Wedges work well too. A drawknife can clean the split followed by hand plane.


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## SirIrb

Chain saw
Chalk line
Bourbon

Ok, Bourbon for when you conquer it.

But you have to trash-talk the log first.
"Im about to rip you to shreds. You hear me, log? The rest of the forest will cry in fear when I get done with you. [swig of bourbon] You just got yourself too deep. Fear me, log, Im about to go loco on you."


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## 280305

Do you have a *really* good friend to help?


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## Quanter50

I just cut a Black Walnut in half. Chainsaw did a nice job.


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## BroncoBrian

Ha - looks like doc is out numbered. A chain saw would be easy to find if you don't have one.

Ideally a Band saw, find a neighbor with one.


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## Wildwood

Unless make your own froe for splitting and draw knives for smoothing wood does not take long to spend some serious money. Need lot of time and patients finding those items at flea markets, estate or yard sales.

http://www.mikestools.com/385-1000-Froe-by-Ochsenkope-OX-Head-since-1781-German.aspx

http://www.highlandwoodworking.com/lie-nielsen-froe.aspx

http://www.loghomestore.com/c173-froes.php

http://www.traditionalwoodworker.com/Draw-Knife-Selection/products/104/

Unless you are dealing with straight grain logs with no hidden defects a froe is a waste of time splitting logs down the middle. You need an extra pair of hands to help getting a straight split once get over 18" in length. 
Have a homemade $10 froe so can speak with some experience!

You can find both new & used rip saws for under $50. You can spend as much as $150 for great new or used rip saw too. Better have tooth setting gauge and know how to sharpen those bad boys. Lot of those under $50 rip saws are throw away tools.

A saw buck to hold the logs and electric or gas chain saw, will make quick work of splitting logs 36" long. If don't own one or want to buy one can always rent one.

That Black Walnut is an outstanding example of how to do it! Thanks for sharing.


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## Mahdeew

If my little wife can do it, you can do it. That is if you want to do by hand:



























If not, as everyone else have said, chainsaw is the choice tool.


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## OldEd

> BroncoBrian
> 
> The laugh s on you genius
> 
> The collective IQs of the chainsaw-advocating posters couldn t light a 15W bulb.
> 
> 1. This is a handtool forum
> 2. The OP specified he didn t want to buy machinery
> 3. He asked for the best handsaw with which to accomplish the task at hand.
> 
> Case closed.
> 
> - DocBailey


Yeah. Case closed. just as an aside, have YOU ever tried to rip a log? Have you ever tried to CROSSCUT a log, for that matter???
A wet log - and they take a LONG time to dry out - is, shall we say - EXTREMELY DIFFICULT to cut with a saw. The two men pictured in the pit saw illustration were big, brawny fellows, and they were relieved quite often.

Working a pit saw was used as a punishment, back in the days that pit saws were in use.

I made the perhaps foolish assumption that the person - one man, mind you, not two - wanted to rip that log in a reasonable amount of time, not measured in years.

I grew up in a rural environment: New England farming country, where fence posts were still split out of logs with wedges and mauls. I KNOW what that work is like. I have actually used an axe to fell a tree. Not some little xmas tree in a cut-your-own tree nursery, but a full-sized TREE - 18" to 24" through at a foot from the ground. White Oak, usually, 'cause that was what grew in the Berkshires. Then my father and I split it: splitting axe (wider wedge and you wouldn't ruin it by hitting it with a maul) and wedges and mauls. Not at all fun, believe me. And it wasn't being split for lumber, but merely to get fence posts out of it: appearance didn't count.

So the common sense way to split that tree trunk is to use what we did the second time: a chain saw: a two-man chainsaw, to be exact, which has a nose guard with a handle on it - one that you held with both hands.

And you did this after rolling the trunk up onto a pair of sawbucks, so you wouldn't run the chain into the dirt. And you rolled it with peevees, with a helper or two to put the chocks in so you could take a new bite.

Yeah, as you said: it's a hand tool forum. Big deal. I assume - maybe that makes an ass out of me, if not you and me - that the purpose is to split the log sometime this century. Excuse me if I, and the rest of the chainsaw people, are wrong.


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## Mahdeew

Here is one of the saws I bought before planning on homesteading in Alaska wilderness. The handle is interchangeable so it can be placed in front to serve as a two man saw or in the back for one person use:



















The blade is designed to remove material with each forward and then backward stroke. I didn't want to recommend this saw or any other saw for that matter because you would have to really secure a small log 16" X 3' in order to saw it. I suppose log dogs might work if you had the piece elevated enough. I still think wedges and fro would work best. Mark your lines at each end. Set the log up vertically, drive two wedges on a straight line. Lay it on the ground flat. Snap a chalk line to the other end and use additional wedges as you work your way to the end.


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## 280305

Lighting a bulb is a very accurate indicator of intelligence.


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## bandit571

Had one of these saws. Not my idea of fun









IF I find a log worth the effort, I will use a friend of mines chainsaw. Will also use his supply of wedges, so the log doesn't close back up and pinch the bar.

IF Doc Bailey wishes to handsaw a log…I will bring a cooler of cold ones, and a lawn chair, and sit and watch.

Be sure to bring a small oiler can of Kerosene. Keep the saw blade lubed that way. Might need to bring along the saw set and files for the saw. Just for a touch up.

Note: the ONLY time I could light a light bulb? Seems "Sparky" had forgot to kill the 270 circuit to the lights we were demo-ing out. Left a burn mark on the forearm. And Sparky wound up with a shoe print from a size 11 workboot on his backside. And, no, the lights did not light up, someone had already removed the bulbs….

While I am sure some are enlightened by all this light bulb talk, it doesn't HELP the OP in the slightest. Now, what would he do? I doubt if Uncle Fester would be of much help in this matter…


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## Mahdeew

This looks interesting. Let's face it, some folks enjoy using handtool more than others and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. I love using handtools mainly because it provides a good exercise and helps me meditate. Machinery, though can do things faster and more efficient, they are noisy, polluting and require one's full attention while in operation. When I am using my power tools, it is like work, stressful and demanding. When I am using my hand tools, it is like going to the gym; totally a different feeling.


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## Wildwood

OP has not weighed back in on any information provided! Would be nice if saw a picture or knew the species of logs he wants to split in half!

Mr. Jinx007 anybody can do what your wife is doing in the picture I do it all the time! As long as avoid knots and working sides of a log no big deal!

As seen in these videos you lose mechanical advantage working center of a log with a froe. Wedges save the day but definitely working harder than smarter!










Mr. Jinx007 & Bandit571 those are pretty nice saws, wonder if OP knows how to sharpen & set teeth on a saws like those? Until got skills with a saw like them might opt to keep it a two man op!

Sorry still think chain saw the way to go!


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## DocBailey

> ... hide behind your James Bond avatar.
> 
> - BroncoBrian


Nobody hiding here-are you saying that your fish avatar is actually your photo?


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## bandit571

Oh, but I think I will stay WIDE awake for this one…..Got three flags, so far, wish to try for a fourth?

And, IF anyone should know the difference between hand and power toys, er..tools, I think I am very well qualified. IN THEIR USE. Rather than sitting in an Ivory Tower, and looking down one's nose at all the "Lesser Lights"....

Wildwood: Not sure if he does, but I am sure there are people here whom would love to help him with that. And, without the name-calling snobbery of some here. I bought mine last year, to trim out a problem tree. Once that was done, I then sold the biggie saw. Have enough trouble with a normal sized one.


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## MikeThrockmorton

I've processed logs (cherry, 4 ft, 18" dia) both with a two man saw (uh, dad and daughter saw, as it turns out) and by hand splitting.

The two man saw is the one you can get from Woodcraft.

Sawing wasn't too bad, though I used up two daughters doing it and the 3rd learned by her sisters' experience and says "NO!".

Splitting is not something I'd do again, without real good reason.


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## Cricket

In this community members are expected to treat each other with respect at all times.
http://lumberjocks.com/CricketWalker/blog/42535


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## OldEd

> In this community members are expected to treat each other with respect at all times.
> http://lumberjocks.com/CricketWalker/blog/42535
> 
> - Cricket


Ummmmm…... I certainly respect the other posters on (or is it in?) this thread, as well as on the forum as a whole (hole?).

However, the OP (Original Poster, I assume) said, and I quote, "but for several varying reasons I would rather not purchase a piece of machinery to do this.", which is a bit different than " The OP specified he didn t want to buy machinery". 
We chain-saw advocates are simply providing the most reasonable method of accomplishing the task of cutting that 6in by 3ft hunk of wood.

I believe that a disinterested observer would come to the conclusion from those who are posting the details of using a hand saw to rip (or, in my experience, even cross-cut) a chunk of raw tree.

It isn't simply a matter of the "right saw".

It is a whole lot more: 
(1) wedges - the correct sort. 
(2) Kerosine to lubricate the saw blade while cutting. 
It also helps to clean the blade. Raw tree will gum up the blade with sap, which adds to the labor of using the saw. 
(3) The needed files and setting tool to keep the saw sharp. 
(4) The need to get the hunk of tree off the ground, in order to be able to cut it.
(5…) A whole bunch of other things, like the right gloves to save your hands, etc.

I've done logging by hand, starting with felling the trees and using a horse to haul them out of the woods. It ain't fun - no way. Why the horse? a horse is smart, anda tractor isn't. A horse is narrower than a tractor. A horse doesn't emit sparks, which can set the woods on fire. A horse is smart enough to quit, when it gets tired, by which time the humans are probably exhausted. A horse knows when a slope is too steep, and a tractor DEFINITELY doesn't.


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## NDakota

The easiest way to cut a log that size is with a sawzall and 10inch wood blade. I do it all the time when I build log furniture. I usually put log in tail vise, cut half way down, flip it around and finish the cut


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## OldEd

> The easiest way to cut a log that size is with a sawzall and 10inch wood blade. I do it all the time when I build log furniture. I usually put log in tail vise, cut half way down, flip it around and finish the cut
> 
> - NDakota


Okay…. Good for the small stuff. BUT it requires owning - or buying - a SawzAll…

And that may be forbidden - this is a HAND TOOL area…


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## Mahdeew

Ha, Ha,,, HAND TOOLS!!! Please read the the original context before replying….. HAND TOOOOOOOOOOOOOLLS.


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## OldEd

> Ha, Ha,,, HAND TOOLS!!! Please read the the original context before replying….. HAND TOOOOOOOOOOOOOLLS.
> 
> - mrjinx007


Sir, I DID, and so did several others. What you seem to be missing is that several of us have actually done what the OP wants to do - by hand - and arm and back and… in my case. And what we are implying is that THERE IS NO EASY, SIMPLE WAY TO ACCOMPLISH WHAT THE OP WANTS TO DO. That is why we start talking about chain saws, or, in one case, SawzAlls.

We don't go into portable saw-mills, etc, because that is gross overkill in this case. It is my opinion, and those of others that there IS NO SIMPLE, EASY WAY TO DO IT BY HAND.

Sorry to be so repetitive, but you seem not to understand. Splitting a log is NOT SIMPLE. It is also NOT easy.

If you don't believe me, go outside and try to split a 2×4 using only hand tools.

Remember: that 2×4 from the lumber yard is almost certainly kiln dried, and has nice straight grain, and is "well behaved", whereas a tree is almost certainly "wet", and doesn't have nice straight grain, and will fight you at every turn.

Fun, isn't it?


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## emart

> I would suggest a wedge and hammer. It can split the wood in the middle.
> 
> - JohnChung


that's how i do it. If you just need to split in half some wedges and a sledgehammer will do the job pretty quickly and cheaply. If it's really dense wood I like to mark the split line and cut into it with the skilsaw first so it splits more clean.

Best way to smooth the face of the wood after the split is with a broad axe. then it will be in good enough shape to finish off with hand planes

Personally after doing this to make my shaving horse i would not do it again if i had the choice. sadly I don't so I have spent some time figuring out how to make it suck as little as possible. I use hand held power planers and a thickness planer to finish off the slabs once they have been sized. my advice is to keep a lot of ibuprofen in the medicine cabinet because this is back breaking work especially if you smooth the face using an axe.


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## AESamuel

6" diameter and 3 feet long? You could easily do that with a simple rip cut hand saw! Depending on the type of wood you may need a little patience but if it's a soft wood then you should be able to zip straight through it.

I've used a cheap handsaw to rip 5" sapele before and it took a while but sapele end grain is rock hard. If you plan on making lots of resawing in the future then a frame saw is a very useful thing to have.


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## Mahdeew

I split 8" diameter and 9' long to make my pitchforks. I split the log in half and then split the halves in half to get 4 pitchfork out of it. It is not back breaking and you won't die doing it if you know how to use leverage and momentum in the process. If you try to wrestle the tree, it will win but if you do it right it is not as hard as it seems:


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## Mahdeew

emart's way isa good way too. Unfortunately my broad axe handle was broken when I made this but the two other axes did just fine:


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## Tim457

Wow this thread went down the toilet fast. I think a lot of people missed the log the person asked about isn't very large. If it's straight grain then splitting will really not be that hard at all with a sledge hammer and some wedges, especially if you have a good way to smooth the resulting pieces or you don't need them to be perfect. I agree with AESamuel that for a 6" diameter log 3 feet long most any rip hand saw will eventually work. You'll want it sharp and make sure the teeth are shaped as rip teeth or it will be a lot slower. Also put a little extra set on the teeth if you can if the wood is still wet so the saw doesn't bind.

I'm really shocked that people would act like splitting a 6" diameter log that short would be all that hard.


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## Mahdeew

Toilet is a little harsh I think. Folks just didn't read the entire content or what category it was posted on and responded accordingly. 
OldEd, my apology if you thought I was responding to you with my comments. I've been trying to help the person who asked the original question the best I know how.


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## OldEd

Okay… forget it. Do it any way you want to.


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## TopamaxSurvivor

The original poster never did say what species of log (tree). That will make a lot of difference between splitting and sawing being the easiest and best way to get a straight "cut".


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## OldEd

The original post is as follows:

"I am planning to do a project that would require me to cut a log (About 6 in. in diameter and 3 feet long), but for several varying reasons I would rather not purchase a piece of machinery to do this. I was wondering what the best hand saw would be to do this with."

Here are the assumptions I detect in the posts which followed:
1. the log already exists: i.e., it is the thing to be operated on, not the thing to be created.
2. the log is to be cut lengthwise, not crosswise.
3. that machinery is out of the question entirely, as opposed to renting the equipment, or borrowing the equipment, or having the temporary use of equipment belonging to someone else in their shop, or, finally, having that someone else do it.

I could toss in a few more rather remote possibilities, but I won't.

I DO notice that we have not heard a peep out of the Original Poster. There I see some possibilties:

The OP is no longer with us - take that anyway you please.

The OP has had his/her question answered and not bothered to let us know.

The OP has lost interest in the proposed project, and so the requirement no longer exists.

The OP is horrified at the kettle of fish he/she has stirred up and has fled in panic.

The OP is disgusted at the petty, childish, bickering in later posts, and has departed in the hope of finding a more mature group with which to communicate.

The OP posted just to see what sort of hornets nest of activity he/she could create and is sitting back giggling.

Does anyone have any other suggestions?


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## BroncoBrian

Stop watching this thread and hope it gets buried very quickly…


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## OldEd

> Stop watching this thread and hope it gets buried very quickly…
> 
> - BroncoBrian


THAT is NOT the sort of suggestion I was expecting, but it is probably as good as any.


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## 280305

> Does anyone have any other suggestions?
> 
> - OldEd


The OP is working full-time on the potential blockbuster dramatic movie based on this thread: Splitting Logs and Splitting Hairs.


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## DLK

As far as the content of this thread is concerned, I for one have learned somethings and I am very happy to have stumbled upon it. I thought some of the posted links were particularly interesting.


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## OldEd

> The OP is working full-time on the potential blockbuster dramatic movie based on this thread: Splitting Logs and Splitting Hairs.
> - ChuckV


Sorry, but I must correct the spelling. Since the OP wooden want to buy MacHinery, the title of the "*blockbuster dramatic movie based on this thread*" is to be titled
"*Splitting Logs and Splitting Heirs*_"...


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## Mahdeew

LOL, comedy is a good remedy at the end of this thread. OP modified a broken chainsaw into a fro and accomplished his task. He is in the process of patenting the design.


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