#287 

For a first time wood buyer like myself this is extremly helpful. I bought my first face cord a few weeks back and got ripped off. Seller said it was seasoned for 3 to 4 years and it was all Oak and Ash. WRONG! What I got was unseasoned WET Walnut and very little Oak with 1/4 of the face cord being unsplit branches several stumps and 22 to 28 inch long pieces that don't even fit in my fireplace. At the cost of $75.00. I have been watching your videos along with some research and have learned a lot about firewood. I have a fireplace in a modular home and wanted to use it to provide some heat to offset my gas bill. Well so far I have spent another $50.00 buying wood from the gas station to get a good fire going then putting in some of the wood this guy sold me and listening to it sizzle and watching the sap and water run out of it. Now I'm scared about buying another load. Thanks for the videos.

I've got a 1992 Chevy 1/2 ton W/T 1500 4.3L with a 5 speed transmission that my wife and I used to haul one cord loads with every day 6 days a week out in Centralia Washington. I had sideboards level to the cab that tied into a headache rack, air shocks in the rear and 8 ply tires all around. You can haul a full cord of wood like that safely no problems. It was rounded just a bit at the top and a few pieces at the tailgate. I always took it nice and easy out of the woods and did the speed limit. One guy we hauled wood to (a retired state trooper) couldn't believe it until we stacked it in his woodshed. he was so pleased he had finally met an honest firewood cutter he ordered 5 more loads. I would always hear the same thing from folks out there. "I ordered a cord but they only brought me rank and charged me for a cord" or "I ordered a rank and they brought me a pickup load that was thrown in and it didn't even come to 2/3rds of a rank". Folks there are a lot of bums that are only looking for a fast buck and could care less if they get your business again. My advice for what its worth. Ask around in your friends and neighbors that burn wood who they get their would from and if the person does firewood for a living or just a side hustle and are they honest. Not saying that all side hustle fire wood guys are bad but most are. Find one that does wood for his main bread and butter and you'll be better off in the long run. And don't be stingy, flip your cutter at least a $10 or $20 dollar tip. Cutting, splitting and hauling firewood isn't easy work and it cost money. If it was easy you would be getting your own. So be kind and take care of those who are taking care of you. The Little Red Wood Wagon

I’m really enjoying these raw unedited videos. I think it’s because it’s so REAL. There’s no plan, and no script. Your just rolling with punches, and making the best of an unfortunate situation. Hopefully the power is restored soon.

This visual demonstration is very helpful for those of us new to buying wood. Just moved to Maine and your videos have been very helpful as a wood stove is my primary heat - and I love it. Many thanks!

When I younger a teen, a friend and I used to cut and deliver firewood using an old Army 2-1/2 ton truck. Using the sideboards, we could barely get 3 honestly measured cords in the 8' (wide) x 12' long bed. At that time, we got $50/cord delivered and stacked. Definitely an all day job, especially if the customer made you unload by the street and carry it around to stack. Didn't take us long to see that it wasn't really a viable career option for us; especially considering that we had to drive about 50 miles each way to cut the wood, take it home to hand split, load it into the truck and deliver. Gave me a real appreciation for the old saying that "Firewood will hear you up 4 times-" once for cutting, once for splitting, once for delivery, and finally for stacking. I, for one, am just glad that diesel was only about 17 cents a gallon back then.

And I now realize I have been ripped iff for the last 5 years......

Find yourself a used F350 dually,pre 2003 with the old 7.3 Powerstroke and 8' bed. You'll get a full cord in there and,the 7.3 is plenty powerful and,bulletproof to boot. Wish i still had mine.

There is nothing wrong with the short not editing videos. Many people new at buying firewood have no clue of how much wood is in a cord. I think when we got our first fireplace we bought wood and they brought it out in a pick up. Doubt if it was as much as they said it was. Hope they your power back on soon.

No problem with these videos...I myself are "simple and quick", so I'm not offended. Thanks for your work giving us good stuff to watch.

We've hauled a number of pickup truck loads of firewood for the "Woodbank" program in our town (donates firewood to families in need during the heating season). For a truck bed like yours, we've generally found the numbers to run right around 1/3 cord thrown in, and 1/2 cord stacked (We don't stack quite as high as you did, since we don't want to risk losing pieces in the road or getting pulled over for an unsafe load - the local police generally don't like to see the wood piled up above the side rails, unless you cover and strap it down, but we can get away with maybe 4-6" above without raising too many eyebrows.) For a smaller truck, like my Tacoma, we figure on about 1/4 cord thrown in, and maybe up to 1/3 (or a bit shy of that) when stacked.

I admire honesty, thank you for posting this vid, and perhaps save a few people form getting ripped off the second time

"Simple and quick" video, nothing wrong with it pal. I actually quite enjoyed it. Sometimes less is more! Thanks very informative

This video is for people like me. Thank you!

You had the wood stacked like a dry stone wall great job it looked beautiful 👍

Your videos are still great Mike. Hate that you are going thru this but you are prepared for these things. Sure glad you didn’t get any wind with all the ice on the trees it sure wrecks the woods. Keep safe and sorry about the double comments on this video, got carried away and whoosh the first one was gone. Thanks for sharing.

Thank you for this video. I'm new to buying firewood for my firepit, so this is extremely helpful. The load I just got was half a cord and when stacked is about 8ft x 3 x 4. Price was $150

Mike, regarding those cages you've been using for the 1/3 cord. I used to work for a precast concrete manufacturer and our form release oil came in those tote's. It's a vegetable oil and non-toxic. We always gave away those used totes to the plant laborers. They would sell them on Craigs List. If you know anyone at a precast concrete facility, you might be able to get the cages for free or cheap.

4'x4'x8' been that way for ever.

Im glad u done this video. I have picked up alot of Buisness becausr i deliver an actual cord of wood and people realize they have been screwed in the past. I always tell people that it take 2 loads or 2 trips to deliver a cord in a Truck. Mostly i stack it on a trailer and deliver a full cord and they are surprised at the amout of wood it usually is. Great Video.

I used to cut wood on my parent’s farm and take it home to my house. One time I loaded up my 8 foot bed truck with green oak, ash and a little hackberry tight and above the bed about like yours. All I can say is thank goodness for 4wd as I was a little “floaty” in front on the way home. Never repeated the stunt.

Mike I dislike having to call you out on the "Long Bed" description of your truck. I hate what the automotive industry has done to redefine bed lengths from what they were 20 years ago. 8' is a long bed. Yours is now called a standard bed and less than 6' is called a short bed. I prefer the old system that referred to 8' beds as standard or long bed, 6.5' as short beds and anything less than 6' as a golf cart. Like you I've been in construction all my life. Because of that I have used my trucks daily. Always 8' beds. If they made a 10' bed I'd trade my truck in so fast the dirt couldn't keep up with it. So many construction supplies are in 10' and being able to put those things in the bed, slam the tailgate and go would have saved me 100s of hours in securing crap to the ladder rack. Now 10' would be a long bed but would not have been a long vehicle had they made an Econoline (van) cab with a pickup bed. Thanks for allowing me to vent! Happy holidays to you and yours. VTY, Scott McCarter

Yes, you can fit in the truck just stack it up high, use cargo net to hold it in place 👍

The video seems fine I enjoyed it I used to be able to haul a cord of firewood but I had a 3/4 ton pickup with an 8-foot bed and a topper shell on there but it was one heck of a load for a pickup

Awesome information!!👍👊

Super helpful as I am new to wood buying. Thanks!!

In talking to someone that does not use firewood claiming a cord of wood will fit in his pickup. I usually say how tall are your sides. No matter their reply I then say do you know how much wood it takes to make a cord and how much it weighs. They most often do not know. I then tell them that a full cord of wood is 4X4X8 feet. In order to fit a cord into a pickup it must be stacked well above the cab but then it would be way over weight and into the dangerous category. I know because I once hauled a ton of wood pellets in my half ton and will not do that again.

Thank you for doing true informative videos this one is one that I will recommend for my future costumers and all of my business friends

Great video with some good, real world information. I need to get some gravel and I'm already worried I'm going to get shorted. I wouldn't have a clue if I ordered 10 tons and only get 7. Hope they get you guys back up soon.

I love to see your wife work she reminds me of a lady that use to work with me I work for a man and he word at night so he had me to run his hen farm and cow farm and we had to cut fire wood for winter she was a very hard worker too they were great friends too I miss doing that kind of work and may y'all have happy happy merry merry and a happy happy I hope you get that for the 3 Holliday's comeing up. God bless yall for now.

So... sitting here, Sunday morning, making out bills to be mailed tomorrow. Happen to check my phone... Oh, another video from the Morgans. The bills can wait...time for a break anyway😊 Again, good and useful information. Thanks, Mike.

Very good video Mike!! I would not have known that a truck that size could not hold a full cord. Thank you for the great videos!! 😊

An 8 foot bed can hold a full cord if you know how to stack it. I do it all the time. Suspension/tires are going to be the weak links. I just hauled 4 face cord home with my factory 8 ft bed yesterday. It was stacked a little taller than the cab. I normally carry at least a full cord. A load of wet oak weighs around 6,000 lbs.

I kinda like these "off grid" videos

Hey Mike. Glad you did this. Here in Louisiana, we buy by the “rick” which is 1/2 a cord. So I’m glad to see how much actually fits in 6.5’ bed. Thanks 👍👍

A cord of wood is a lot more than I thought it was.

This is a good and helpful video. I am in the Sierra Nevada mountains of rural California. Practically everyone here knows what a real cord is, and most of the truck purchases around here are of long bed, 3/4 ton trucks, whether it is the Ford F250, or another brand. I got the long (8') bed on purpose because I haul wood for family and sometimes sell or barter firewood. My most recent customer, a lady, knew they wanted 16" firewood. It's nice when people know what they are talking about. For other viewers here let me reiterate something. As Mike said, a cord is 128 cubic feet. You can stack or pile it any way you like. But think of it as equaling 4x4x8 feet. And that is what I use to show a cord in my pickup truck. And yes I do have high sides on my truck for that purpose. For our metric friends, I am told by Canadian forestry officials that firewood may be sold by the "stere", which is a cubic metre, a little larger than our half cord. Because firewood that is cut and split does not stack like bricks, my State, California, recognizes a 15% actual loss in that stacked cord. You may wish to find out what that allowance is in your area. Mark Twain wrote humorously about cheating firewood sellers. He indicated that their loose stacks of firewood had holes big enough to throw a dog through.

Just posted a video on my channel saying that I was going to go to a little more of a "run & gun" style. I haven't become really proficient with my editing work flow and it is a huge bottle neck at the moment because I tend to try to make them perfect before posting them...going to try a few other styles of filming and editing to really find what I like to do.

I searched online for the details and found so many mixed results that I needed to find out for myself. Using a 10' pallet as my base and then 4' pallets on the end I constructed a cage which I filled to give me a true cord or firewood, Once I was completed with filling the cage I stacked a face cord in my truck bed (2003 2500HD Silverado with a 6.5' bed) and I took a photo, then again with the truck bed stacked flush with the rails and finally with a half cord. In order to get a half cord SAFELY stacked I had to build some rails to ensure that any firewood would not fall out when I delivered it. All my customers received a photo after I filled my truck bed too so they knew they were getting their monies worth. For just starting out this year selling firewood I made some returning customers next year just because they liked how I was providing them with true details on what they were getting. I just wish I had more firewood because I the customer's neighbors wanted to buy from me too! The 5 1/2 cords I sold this year went to buy the MS441-C, the firewood I sell next year will go towards getting a fireplace insert installed in the living room. Oh the weight issue, even on my 2500HD my leaf springs were pretty straight!! Keep an eye out on the springs when you load up!! Thanks for sharing Mike. Hope the power is returned shortly for everyone.

New subscriber here, saw a couple of your videos in the suggestion boxes. This is the third video I've watched and I had to sub, I like your attitude and your no nonsense videos. Merry Christmas to you and your family, and I look forward to watching more of your videos.

Excellent mike!!! Neatly stacked 4ft×4ft×8ft= 1 cord= 128sqft Ford 150 6.5ft×5ft×21in (1.75ft)= 56.8sqft (56.8sqft×100%)÷128sqft=44% Needless to say less than a half a cord in a ford 150 level to side rails.

Thank you for being such an honest person. Can't get that where I live.

I fit a full cord in my pickup with 6.5 foot bed. It has to be dry oak, 10 ply tires and heavy duty shocks on half ton. The high sides is necessary. The measurements when I was done was 5 feet high above the cab, 4 feet wide and 6.5 feet long wich is 130 cubic feet over a cord. Absolutly able to be done but the must haves of the 10 ply tires, heavy duty shocks, high sides to get above cab and dry wood must be done or it gets realy scary😂 ill have to do a video so this can be put to rest easily by sharing of the video. Ive done 8 loads in two weeks with no issues. Even with all the above in place it sags the back end pretty good but for me its definatly not beiyond my comfort zone.

Thanks for being honest. I appreciate you. I am a fellow Pennsyltuckian.

So here in northern Ontario where I am they sell 1/2 ton loads as a single .So most people buy wood as noted singles usually 10 to 12 singles . If you buy it by the truck load ( log truck ) these come as full logs and you would get 18 to 20 singles , Just have to watch it's not 1/2 load season . I like your bush lot you have done lots of under brush clearing . I hope to do the same 100 acre wood lot . nice video

Here in Arkansas the only legal measure for selling wood is a cord I am told. However a lot of people sell wood by the rick, a half cord, or by the load and get by with it. I knew before you started you would never get a cord in a 6 1/2 ft box. I have hauled lots of wood and knew the answer. In my F150 hauling green wood about a half cord is all I am comfortable hauling because of the weight. And at 65 years old a pickup load cut and loaded in the truck is about my daily limit to get to the house with. LOL

Hope they get the power back on tonight for you folks. Take a lesson from Hunter and enjoy the quiet time ;-)

I use my 8' X 5' trailer for hauling firewood, with 24" high sideboards, it takes 2 trips for me to safely haul 1 full cord...The trailer is a tilt bed so the axel is a little farther forward, so I have to taper it off to the back so it will stay properly balanced most of the weight to the front, ...and not start fishtailing on me. I had that happen 4 years ago, and now I have another car sense the Jeep I had ended up in the junkyard after the crash .....So far this season I have hauled 2 full cords and looking for 2 more before fall ...

A small pickup bed loaded to the top is about 1/3rd. Piled up good is about 1/2. A medium pickup bed loaded to the top is about 1/2. Piled up good is about 2/3. A full length (8ft) bed loaded to the top is about 2/3. Piled up pretty good can just about fit 1 cord. So... if someone delivers an 8ft pickup bed piled up generously and packed pretty tight, that's an honest enough cord for most buyers and sellers.

great to see you talk about this... 128 cft is 4'x4'x8' of wood... so if your getting it by the truck an 8' bed stacked over the side you'd need two loads (approx)

It is possible in an 8-ft bed with side panels but it's a heavy load for a half ton. I wouldn't recommend driving on the road but it's doable around the property.

Mike, in my area, not many folks selling fire wood are delivering in a truck like yours. Generally speaking, it would be an old 3/4 or one ton with an eight foot bed and side panels. A guy down the road from my place delivers with a dump bed trailer and you get 7'4" logs totaling 1.3 cord once you cut and stack. Not too bad.

Full cord on 3/4 ton pickup..headboard cab high...20" sticks 3 ricks from front to back.... cab high back to end of wheel wells then slanted to tailgate..don't know why you guys think it can't be done...put 2 small rows between the wheel wells, the same shape as the wells..then 3 ricks..when your done just push in the side ricks...no need for side boards

just one? what on God's green earth do you do for a living? You have everything under the sun that anyone would want or need!

a full cord weighs at least 4000 pounds, thats just too heavy for a f150 to haul. but you could easily tow a cord on a trailer with it

These 2 videos are just fine . You have to make do with what you got . Any kind of video from " Outdoors With The Morgans " is better than none . Some fellows deliver the wood with it just being thrown in the truck . Not even near the amount of wood that you have neatly stacked in your truck. It would be interesting to see the remaining cord in your truck to see exactly how much of truck bed a full cord will take up when adding up the 2 truck loads .

Mike, be careful throwing wood in the truck. I sold firewood and I was throwing it in carefully but a stick bounced and broke the window. Just a helpful reminder. Could put a small thickness plywood piece to protect your window while loading.

I got a cord in a 99 f250 long bed. I built 18 inch side boards. I stacked most of it and tossed the rest on top. It hauled it well. I took 2 cords a week to a campground for 2 summers.

your right Mike 4h 4' wide 4' high 8'long

Great video !! Thanks for the help !

3/4ton truck Sideboards 100 % full cord of maple 4000 lbs(approx.) That's a good mornings work.

Last couple videos have been great mike

Had a chevy stepside 4x8 inside the bed put up 2 4x8 plywood sides and 4x4 at front of bed one full cord stacked about 2/3 or 2 face cords just thrown in iunstacked a regular p/u bed no added sides is 1/3 one face cord

Time for a backup generator!

Its actually called a midbed, in the ford.com options. 6'5" or just under. My uncle loaded his pickup with a full chord, for personal use. His bed was 8', stacked high with side boards. I think a 3/4 ton and still overloaded a tad. When i do dump runs in the 2002 f150 extended cab, with midbed it dont hold much junk. We put medium size boxes, approximately 2'x3' and about a dozen of them full of stacked paper. Over the top, 40 gallon bags of trash, app. 6 or 8 and i was full, heaped

Mike you need to invest into a generator LPfed there are many out there Genetic is what we have set it for get it ours is a 35K you can never have enough when it kicks on we dont even hear it its about 150 foot from the house we built a structure around it so it looks like a pump house blends right in to the property, but you dont have to wait for power to come back on when the power goes out look into it you might be surprised.

Greatly Appreciated.

Going rate a cord is $150.00 Canadian in central Newfoundland. Thanks, So a pick up load as you have is $100.00 a load. Awesome video.

Yep... I have argued with forest guys who think a cord is stacked a foot above the bed rail in my 97 f 350 with an 8' bed. I stack mine above the cab... 👍👍

I have been doing firewood since 1970, it takes an 8FT. bed an one heavy duty pickup to haul a FULL cord of firewood.

Thanks. Had a guy trying to tell me I needed to bring him 3 pickup truck loads for a full cord. I have the same truck and bed size as you. I do 2 loads and I stack it tight and just over flush. Guys a friend of the family and I'm already giving him the wood for 150 a cord delivered.

Still a great vidio because it tell the TRUTH about would selling and scams that people have bee took for.

Funny you mention buying gravel and sand by weight. I always wonder when I buy fill by weight if I'm paying for a lot of water if it's been rainy weather, or conversely, if the weather has been dry, if I should by then, because especially with loam or clay there's a real difference in usable volume. Purchasing firewood by weight would incentive green wood sales. If I remember correctly Red Oak can be over 100 percent water by dry matter weight.

No need to apologize. Not like it is costing your viewers anything.

I have pics of my half ton Chevy 8' box with a tic over 4,000lbs of oak blocks in back. Wish I cld post the pic. Steering was extremely light

1 cord of wood is 128cuft. In a 6.5' x 5' bed (wheel wells not withstanding), you'd have to stack it approximately 4' high (at full length/width) to hit 128cuft. With some rails added to the bed, it could be done. However, you run the risk of putting wood through the back window without a headache rack, and (depending on the species of wood and moisture content), you'll be over GVWR in most 1/2T trucks - especially when you add in the combined weight of persons and gear.

I hear yah, we just have to be careful on who we deal with I guess, but it happens way more often then not .

Only if u have an 8ft bed shoot we hauled many loads out on a half ton ford . It would hold 2 ricks of green oak

I've got a '84 chev with 8' box and 2 face cords stacked heaps it

Yes, you can fit 1 cord of wood in a 1/2 ton truck, but, that won't do your suspension, etc. any good

Totally understand, not having power throws everything out of sorts. Hopefully it will be back on soon.

The firewood business sneaks in under the name of "Face Cord" to mean one side or face of a cord. A real cord as we all know is a tight stack 4 x 4 x 8 which is quantity of three 16" each wide. Love it that you guys are an above board business. Hey you know if people want to buy a face cord then that is fine, you just have to price it accordingly. You still need to do the drop off delivery, and it always is cheaper by the dozen. :-)

Thank you for the post. Informative for sure. So I found a local guy on c.l who's advertising for seasoned hard wood. Does three cords of wood for $600.00 with free delivery sound right you?

Trust me you don’t have to worry about weight in that F-150. We pulled 12,000 pounds with your 3.5L F-150

Great video! It’s hard not having power.

Mike I know for a fact that an 8 foot bed on a Ford can hold a half cord. We have done it f250. God bless. Also just to let you know ford will not make a truck with a quad cab and 8 foot bed smaller than a f250.

Come on guys buy a trailer and haul a cord at a time with the 1/2 ton truck!

2. 4x8 piles would be 2/3 cord or 66% yet you stated .65 cord loaded. Still have approximate 1 foot high pile left on ground. So actually truck is loaded with approximately. 58 cord

Cool video. I like how you also mention the weight, as some don’t realize that a real 128 cubic foot cord of wood - whether green or seasoned - is quite hefty. The F Series seems to be handling it quite well too.

You could put a stylish headacke rack on the back of the truck to protect your back window, there are many kinds out there I like the stainless steel wirh the louvered

All though not a official measure in Maine, We often use a 'thrown Cord= 175-180 cubic feet, when selling bulk loaded wood. This will give you a good 128 cu.Ft stacked...A honest measure will always have a repeat customer.

@Outdoors With The Morgans holy cow! you guys are from Evans City? Mars High here, born and raised. Wondering if I might even know you guys. Got 40 acres up in Middlesex, all wooded. Ever need a hand with something..give me a shout!

With an 8 foot bed, 5 foot wide, the stack would have to be 3.5 feet (3.2 feet but the wheel wells take space so 3.5 feet)= 128 cubic foot stack

In the area where I live, wood is sold by the rick which is what you call a face cord. Cord is hardly ever mentioned in this area.

i used to haul a cord of wood (4x4x8) in an 82 chevy 1/2 ton 4x4 longbed, it had stock height bed sides with extra wooden walls built(2x4 construction) to make up height i needed.

6 foot bed and a trailer full is a full cord if you just throw it in not stacked in my set up. I'm wondering how much a cord is if you buy it prepackaged at the grocery store. I saw small bundles for $4.15 today. My guess is $350 a cord.

People that actually USE firewood for heat KNOW value when they see it. I haven't had to BUY in wood for many years. But when I did I wanted to see a nice tight 128 cu ft for a cord. I've only had 1 guy try to short me. I waited until we'd unloaded a truck 'mound' and told him I'd pay when he delivered the other half. He protested so I told him I'd stack while he was gone for the second load. The second load was so heavy his bumper was draggin' his tracks out. I got my full cord. Buyer beware.

Around here unfortunately 80% of the wood sellers rip people off. Cord of wood mix or hard and soft,be they Elm and Pine run $300-$375 dropped and not stacked.

Great video! Very cool! How long will a cord last?

I’m curious, with you and your family liking the outdoors so much and with all the property that you have I’m surprise you don’t have some type of livestock chickens, rabbits. Or that’s something your not interested in .

In Oklahoma it is common to sell a “rick”. 2x4x8. A half ton loaded max. A half cord.