Wood hauling suggestions.

[Bill Wilcox]

Hey all, I'm looking for some ideas on hauling wood. I have a friend who lives in Oklahoma and has a 60 acre wood lot. 2 yrs ago there was a wind storm that took out a bunch of old very large Pecan and Black Walnut. He says that one of the BW's has a 6 foot diameter and is still standing however it is near a creek and the ground is eroding the bank to where the tree is growing. I mentioned to him that he should think about building up the bank so the tree can remain but he says no he doesn't want to do that. He told me that I can have all the wood I want I just need to figure a way to get it.
I live in Wisconsin on the western border. If you were in the same situation, how would you figure out a way to score on this massive, free opportunity?
I thought of renting a U-haul truck with a trailer. I just don't know what the load capacity is on one of those trucks. I also thought of trying to find a trucking outfit that is going out to Oklahoma to drop a load and come back empty.
I appreciate any thought or suggestions.
Bill Wilcox

[Bob Haverstock]

Bill,

This is an interesting situation. Do you have a way of loading the truck once it is on site? Will the wood be used for turning blanks of flat work?
This's a lot of wood, where will you store it? You are going to need a lot of Anchorseal.

Please keep us posted.

Bob Haverstock

[Prashun Patel]

Hire a local with a portable saw mill to come out and cut it on site?

[Nick Fournier]

There's a website called www.uship.com that specializes in shipping oversized items. I do think that someone would have to be on site to help load though.

[David E Keller]

Hmmmm.... A big black walnut tree in Oklahoma, huh?:cool:

Seriously, the uhaul sounds like a good idea if you're up for a trip. Hopefully, your friend has a tractor to help with moving and loading. I'm not sure where you are talking about in Oklahoma, but I know a local arborist/tree service that might help you for a fee. Let me know if it's anywhere close to Enid.

[Fred Perreault]

Bill,
Even "free" wood is not really free. Personal time, transportation, chainsaw, gas... you get the idea. Spend a wee bit of time calculating your expenses, make a few calls to local sawyers with bandsaw mills, and then immediately rush down there and get your prize. If you get in too deep, then come by my yard, drop all the stuff off, and I'll pay you cash. By the way, sawn material would stack heavy, but more managable and easier to transport.

[Harvey M. Taylor]

I live in North Tx. Ft. Worth to be exact. I too would like to know where in Ok. this wood is. Max

[Karl Card]

Hmmmmm...... Sounds like you might need some help... hmmm got wood, will travel..lol.

[scott schmidt grasshopper]

thats the beginning of our story. lv is las vegas.free wood is alot of work and cost ya alot too, black walnut is too avalible to haul that sort of distance I would hope. being wood turners we did a trip to LV for mountain mahogany a very heavy wood, took the 3/4 ton van down with saws and gas made almost manageable blocks and short logs ( to 4 ft x 16 inches)had to hand dolly everything out. took 3 days of cutting and loading to get it into the van and a rented Uhaul ( get the 17 ft heavy truck carries 5700 lbs) then two days to drive it home with about 9K worth of wood. the cost of the gas was terrible, when you load a truck like that everything is uphill and speed is a serious factor

so if you want the pecan and walnut to go get it yourself I would think COST in the 3000 dollar range ( with two drivers) hopefully a pu +trailer( two axle) and then rent a uhaul if we did it again would use a diesal
you still have to load it and not damage the uhaul
a ton of walnut aint alot of wood, I would assume the pecan is similar
best bet is like someone said, if you want flat work, get a sawmiller to cut it first then go get it cant afford to haul home offcuts, if you want lathe stock definently highgrade and yes, 5 gals of anchor seal. good luck scott