What would be an appropriate amount to get each time, though? Remember, you need #5# to make the pitch glue. Would a tapping mechanism as an alternative but more complex method
—snip— selective quote
Tapping a pine wouldn’t work: The resin isn’t pine tree’s sap.
To increase pitch yield on a living pine, one needs to peel section of the bark off. Not a ring around the tree, but maybe 120 degree wide section on easily reachable area. And score multiple trees for more.
I’ve not researched when “tervahauta” (tar grave) were established as tar producing system, but it produces more than bleeding the trees. Of course, you’ll need to cut the trees into firewood’s with that method.
Tervahauta consists generally of a sizable earthen mound with a concave pit atop, with a drain in the middle, stacked with several cords of split pine firewood on the concave section. All but bottom foot (12” / 30cm) is covered with swamp peat/moss.
The exposed pine splits are lit up, all around the mound. Once they’re burning on their own, the bottom also gets covered with swamp peat/moss. Burning the tar out is not a quick job; decent tar grave takes 2-4days to “burn out”. And it needs to be monitored for any flare ups, and they need to be put out fast, or all remaining tar will burn up with the remaining wood.
For flare ups, plenty of wet peat is shoveled on it. Water from pails/buckets only screws up the tar extraction.