Big Bertha

Frank-New Zealand

Frank-New Zealand

Joined
Jan 16, 2012
Messages
333
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I acquired 'Big Bertha' some time back. It looks like this beaten-up old war horse has had a hard life. This is the condition I received her in. I wanted to do some firewood today so took my normal splitting axe and 'Bertha' as well. I put a very short bevel on her face with a coarse wet stone. Thought I would just use her until the haft broke then replace it at a later date. I immediately took a liking to this old girl. I reckon that haft will last for years.

The timber is a windfall from one of the Aussie eucalyptus (there are over 600 variates) growing in an exposed windy situation. So the wood is very twisted and does not split well. It's very stringy and hangs on hard. Hence the short lengths.

Bertha is a Kelly...What else.

regards...Frank
 
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very nice frank!

what kind of kelly and how much does she weigh? in pounds please not metric:D

also, is eucalyptus a good burning wood?
 
Frank-New Zealand said:
Thought I would just use her until the haft broke then replace it at a later date. I immediately took a liking to this old girl. I reckon that haft will last for years.
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As long as you don't pry down on the handle when she's stuck then she should hang in there for a good long time.

I love all these old axes you're showing us, Frank.
 
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Here's the tree..

Bear...Bertha is Kelly True Temper and weighs-in at 6lb 1oz (with haft of course). Yes the wood is very good for firewood. Burns slow and hot with not too much ash. Takes a long time to season though.

Peg...Shes got pretty fat cheeks so sticking doesn't seem to be an issue. On tight wood I would much rather have an axe 'bounce-out' than get stuck. All my gear was on the back of my truck but I gave Bertha a ride home in the front. My wife (and others) think I'm crazy.

regards...Frank
 
Frank, is a 5lb head average head weight for axes in your area? I've noticed a lot of heavyweight heads mingling over your way. It can be tough to spot a head over 3 1/2lbs in my area of the states (south east).
 
The toughest wood I ever split was eucalyptus here in FLorida. Enjoyed watching it burn after all the work it took to split. It was a small tree.
That's a nice big tree. I like the menthol aroma from it.
Wish I had Berthas sister.
 
Another nice old axe, Frank. I still envy that pattern. That's a grand tree as well. Which island you on, Frank?
 
That's a heck of a tree to be choppin. You could really find out what your axes are made of choppin that bad boy, cool axe you got too,
 
I like to use the old handles when possible. I just love the character. I would glue and clamp those splits and try to make it last.
 
OutdoorEnvy said:
That's a heck of a tree to be choppin. You could really find out what your axes are made of choppin that bad boy, cool axe you got too,
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i dont think hes chopping the whole tree down, i was just kidding about that...
hes just chopping and splitting some windfall from it... limps ans such...
 
Thank you Frank! Nice Bertha... seems to be a kind and cute girl ;)

But that tree is great! Here in Germany we have oaks like this, but they are all under protection and it´s forbidden felling them. Some of our oaks here are more than 400 years old. I grew up with the woods... I´d never think about felling such an old beauty...

Is eucalyptus a fast-growing-wood (like birch)?

Splitting wood from a wind-twisted area can be really hard work... I remember, last year I had an old beech (about 130 years old) which was hitten by a flash of lightning, so I could use it as firewood. My hydraulic wood-splitter (electricity driven) didn´t get the bigger parts. But the Fiskar Splitting axe finished the job :D

Kind regards
Andi
 
Broady....It seems that most of the old bush axes here average around 4 1/2lb.

Cattledog...I also like cutting wood that gives off a nice fragrance.

Memphis...I am on the east coast of North Island.

cckw...I feel the same about old stuff. Going to oil that dry old haft and use it for as long as I can.

Humppa...I hear what you are saying. There a millions of trees here that are not native to NZ and not much value apart from firewood. Never short of something to get your chainsaw or axe into. There are also millions of acres of beautiful native bush with a huge variety of trees. I am a environmentalist/conservationist and am very very protective of our native flora.

I am sure many of you guys on this forum are like me...Enjoy and like axes and tools used for cutting and working timber but are also very protective of the environment.

regards...Frank
 
Hi Frank!

We both have the same point of view! :) :) My dad and I had fell about a half a hectar of our own forest, in the winter 2010 - 2011. In spring 2011 we planted there about 300 new little trees (pines, oaks, beeches, ashes and so on). It´s so nice to see them grow... :)

Kind regards
Andi
 
As we say here Andi...Good on yer mate.

One of the first projects my wife and I did on moving here (5 years ago) was plant native trees.

Have worked in forestry so have cut down many trees but have planted many also.

regards...Frank

ps..No, my conscience would not allow me to cut that tree down. Just clean up after storm damage.
 
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Frank-New Zealand said:
I am sure many of you guys on this forum are like me...Enjoy and like axes and tools used for cutting and working timber but are also very protective of the environment.
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I'm with you there. As a young carpenter I realized that I still wanted to have trees around when I was an old carpenter. I don't consider myself an old carpenter yet - just 50. But I'm still giving back and planting trees every year. With my different volunteer groups I plant 100's of trees every year.

Here in the Northwest you don't need to cut down trees for fire wood. Enough falls naturally every year to give a good supply. Plus friends and neighbors occasionally want a tree taken down.

Back in the 1990's Washington State pretty much quit cutting old growth forests. Only 7% of our original old growth forests remain. That is a genetic repository of breeding stock. But there's plenty of 2nd and 3rd growth timber to supply a sustainable timber industry. And the state lets us cut firewood out of the scrap piles from timber sales with a modestly priced permit.
 
over here in montana, we've got plenty of beetle kill lodgepole pines... thats all i ever cut... whole tracts of LP forest are dying/dead in some areas...
i live in the woods, and i actually cut one today in front of the cabin... bucked it up and am burning some of it right now...
 
bearhunter said:
over here in montana, we've got plenty of beetle kill lodgepole pines... thats all i ever cut... whole tracts of LP forest are dying/dead in some areas...
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I have a friend in Helena whom I visit. It's just plain devastation out there. Very sad. And it's headed here to Washington. :(
 
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