Easy Sawbuck Using 1 Tool and 2 Materials
Introduction: Easy Sawbuck Using 1 Tool and 2 Materials
Here is a different way to make a sawbuck
(a device for cutting firewood faster and easier).
I like to build things that are very strong yet quick and easy. It will only take an hour or so to build.
This sawbuck is very stable and practicly impossible to tip over, it is also fairly easy to dismantle and to transport for setting up somewhere else. It will not take up much space when stored and all materials are reusable for other purposes.
Supplies
Materials
5 pieces of rebar
10 inner parts of jack posts (shoring columns or see step 10 for info)
Tools
1 auger with hollow handle for bending rebar
Step 1: Pick a Spot
Select a suitable spot with good soil free from obstacles such as stones, pipes or roots. I selected a place in the garden where i have plenty of room to work, not too far from the house to drystack the firewood.
Step 2: Drill Your 1st Hole and Measure
Drill a deep enough hole, put the metal jack pole in the hole and measure the distance for the next hole. This is the distance of the length you want your firewood to be. In my instance i used the auger tool handle as a measure but you can use anything you like such as a logg or a foot or whatever.
Step 3: Repeat Step 2 and Start a New Row
Continue to drill holes at the same distance (firewood length) and insert the jack poles until you did half of your amount of poles. Then take a piece of rebar and use it to measure where the next row will be drilled. The rebar has to stick out from both sides enough so we can bend it (step5). Make sure to work in a straight and square pattern as much as possible.
Step 4: Finnish Putting the Poles and Already Usable
Now you have 2 rows of 5 poles in the ground and if you are in a hurry you can already cut firewood as is, but you would be working on the ground. This has many disadvantages such as dulling the chainsaw when touching the ground, bending your back too much and the sawn wood sitting in the same place as the unsawn wood. 34
So we will add rebar to enable us to work at chosen height.
Step 5: Bending the Rebar
Insert a piece of rebar into the holes of one of the jack poles (a corner pole works easiest). Now use the hollow handle of the auger tool to bend the rebar at one end in a 45 degree angle. Insert the rebar again with the longest side pointing up along side of the pole and use the auger handle to bend the short end sticking out into a U-shape.
Step 6: Select Height and Push In
Select a height you feel comfortable with to perform your firewood cutting and push the rebar through the jack pole holes. Start with the straight end and see that the U-shape ends up in the next holes below the chosen height. This may require some wiggle and jiggle or some brutal force by hitting it with a piece of wood or so.
Step 7: Bend the Rebar to Close at Other End
Take the auger tool and use the handle to bend the rebar sticking out at the other end of the pole across and bend it down as much as you can so that it sits as close to the pole as possible.
Step 8: Repeat and Finnish
Do the same thing for the following poles and try to maintain the same height and lenght. The poles will tend to move a bit in the ground and the rebar will not be the same tightness everywhere but this is normal. When using it a lot it will settle into a solid configuration. Also the rebar wil bend a bit in the middle but this is normal.
Step 9: Adjust and Ready to Load
Now that all the poles and rebar are set you can still adjust here and there by knocking some poles deeper into the ground or by pushing them sideways. After doing this make sure none of the rebar sticks out in the gaps between the poles where you will be sawing. Now you are ready to load it up with wood and start cutting.
Step 10: Extra Tips and Info
Best is to wait for a couple of rainy days to drill the holes because the auger works easier in moist soil.
You can expand this with more poles or make it smaller with less poles, i just used 10 beause that is the material i had.
I intentionally did not put any specific measures in the description since every country has its own standards for materials.
When sourcing your materials you are not obliged to use jack poles and rebar if you find something that does the same or feels more usefull to you just go with that. 21