locvetter, welcome a board. Whereabouts are you located with that BIG Oak. We might be asble to help you. I am in the Dallas area, West of Salem about 15 miles.
The first thing you do when you cut the rounds is cover each side with a sealer. I get mine form some folks in Johnson City, near Portland. The material is designed for sealing log ends and slowing the drying down and help cut down on checking. The "cookie" will still split, but perhaps not as bad and quickly. There are some ways to deal with the material after the checking has stopped or come to a very slow process of drying.