Not as big as Sizzle's trees
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tam
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ahh i get why you call it the chase cut now. well, this story, it's a bit better saying it out loud coz you can do the actions. but anyway...
a long long time ago, in a galaxy far far away, there was a line clearance company working on a 33kv line going through a scots pine plantation. for the first few days they were felling medium size trees nice and quickly, keeping well clear of the lines. on the third day of the job, one of the guys, who was a damn good climber, felled a beast of a tree but let the side branches catch the conductors a bit. as you know, this is a huge big deal, coz if the lines touch together, you've got a big electric cut. but it was cool. then a couple days later, another of the dudes felled a tree bad and it went and hung up on the ******* line!! the line held like, coz it's a chunky ass thing. so the boss dude poled the stick til it had no branches and was just poking over the cunductor, know what i mean. right, so then the dude who had skiffed the line the other day gets to the butt of the tree, ready to sever it sos it will roll off the line. but the thing is, there's so much tension on the cable, when the tree comes off, the line will flick about so much it'll definitely hit the other line. so what do we do? we get the poles with the hook on the end, stick it over the LIVE conductor, just a couple feet from where the tree is sitting, and me (woops i was meaning to keep doing this story in the third person) and another dude hold onto it sos we can gradually release the tension when the tree rolls off... as you do. weeeeeeell, the tree comes down and the line SHOOTS up, taking me with it, coz i'm holdin onto the poles, but i can't let go coz the poles will blast off into either orbit or the main road that's just down the bank. eventually i could let go, it felt really high but it couldn't really have been more than 15 foot max, and got back on the ground. we all had a good laugh and lived happily ever after. dunno where the poles did go mind you..
a long long time ago, in a galaxy far far away, there was a line clearance company working on a 33kv line going through a scots pine plantation. for the first few days they were felling medium size trees nice and quickly, keeping well clear of the lines. on the third day of the job, one of the guys, who was a damn good climber, felled a beast of a tree but let the side branches catch the conductors a bit. as you know, this is a huge big deal, coz if the lines touch together, you've got a big electric cut. but it was cool. then a couple days later, another of the dudes felled a tree bad and it went and hung up on the ******* line!! the line held like, coz it's a chunky ass thing. so the boss dude poled the stick til it had no branches and was just poking over the cunductor, know what i mean. right, so then the dude who had skiffed the line the other day gets to the butt of the tree, ready to sever it sos it will roll off the line. but the thing is, there's so much tension on the cable, when the tree comes off, the line will flick about so much it'll definitely hit the other line. so what do we do? we get the poles with the hook on the end, stick it over the LIVE conductor, just a couple feet from where the tree is sitting, and me (woops i was meaning to keep doing this story in the third person) and another dude hold onto it sos we can gradually release the tension when the tree rolls off... as you do. weeeeeeell, the tree comes down and the line SHOOTS up, taking me with it, coz i'm holdin onto the poles, but i can't let go coz the poles will blast off into either orbit or the main road that's just down the bank. eventually i could let go, it felt really high but it couldn't really have been more than 15 foot max, and got back on the ground. we all had a good laugh and lived happily ever after. dunno where the poles did go mind you..
pantheraba
ArboristSite Operative
tam said:
You gotta know...that is one of the funniest stories.
It must have seemed like a good idea to somebody at the time.
Glad you made it OK (I mean that other third person dude).
smokechase II
Addicted to ArboristSite
Tam:
May I suggest that you use crazy as a human behavior descriptor in the first person only.
I've watched a local line crew deal with blown down trees across power lines and that stored energy - rebound thing is impressive.
May I suggest that you use crazy as a human behavior descriptor in the first person only.
I've watched a local line crew deal with blown down trees across power lines and that stored energy - rebound thing is impressive.
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ok back to onelick, i enlarged the picture as much as i could and i'm not 100% but it looks like your wedge is on the face cut side of the hinge, is that correct?
Onelick
ArboristSite Member
Sorry I haven't responded back for awhile, I had "the blue screen of death" with my laptop and had to to the ole' control f11 and reset everything back to factory settings, which means I lost everything...
I'll try to respond to everyone's questions:
Woodfarmer, I was using a 460 with a 20" bar on a 18"-20" tree. There aren't many trees here on the east coast that you can't cut with a 20-24" bar. I don't have that chainsaw bar envy.... I don't have to have the biggest bar on my saw, I figure that's just that much more weight that I have to carry around. Your later question about where I put the wedge, it is behind the hinge as far back as I could put it to get the maximum lift.
Logcutter, see post #4.
Thanks, sorry it took so long to respond back.
Onelick
I'll try to respond to everyone's questions:
Woodfarmer, I was using a 460 with a 20" bar on a 18"-20" tree. There aren't many trees here on the east coast that you can't cut with a 20-24" bar. I don't have that chainsaw bar envy.... I don't have to have the biggest bar on my saw, I figure that's just that much more weight that I have to carry around. Your later question about where I put the wedge, it is behind the hinge as far back as I could put it to get the maximum lift.
Logcutter, see post #4.
Thanks, sorry it took so long to respond back.
Onelick
Ross Turner
ArboristSite Operative
tam said:ahh i get why you call it the chase cut now. well, this story, it's a bit better saying it out loud coz you can do the actions. but anyway...
a long long time ago, in a galaxy far far away, there was a line clearance company working on a 33kv line going through a scots pine plantation. for the first few days they were felling medium size trees nice and quickly, keeping well clear of the lines. on the third day of the job, one of the guys, who was a damn good climber, felled a beast of a tree but let the side branches catch the conductors a bit. as you know, this is a huge big deal, coz if the lines touch together, you've got a big electric cut. but it was cool. then a couple days later, another of the dudes felled a tree bad and it went and hung up on the ******* line!! the line held like, coz it's a chunky ass thing. so the boss dude poled the stick til it had no branches and was just poking over the cunductor, know what i mean. right, so then the dude who had skiffed the line the other day gets to the butt of the tree, ready to sever it sos it will roll off the line. but the thing is, there's so much tension on the cable, when the tree comes off, the line will flick about so much it'll definitely hit the other line. so what do we do? we get the poles with the hook on the end, stick it over the LIVE conductor, just a couple feet from where the tree is sitting, and me (woops i was meaning to keep doing this story in the third person) and another dude hold onto it sos we can gradually release the tension when the tree rolls off... as you do. weeeeeeell, the tree comes down and the line SHOOTS up, taking me with it, coz i'm holdin onto the poles, but i can't let go coz the poles will blast off into either orbit or the main road that's just down the bank. eventually i could let go, it felt really high but it couldn't really have been more than 15 foot max, and got back on the ground. we all had a good laugh and lived happily ever after. dunno where the poles did go mind you..
How this incident happened was that i was sent to site with unqualified staff in utility arb,the trees where cat 1 trees(trees that are in the live zone or the potentail to breech the live zone,Live zone .8m vicinty zone 2.5m)
Under our regulations that should be a shutdown but the company said we would do it live as thats the way the company works which is why im getting out,im sick of doing unsafe stuff & im the only fully qualified person in the company.
clearance
Addicted to ArboristSite
Ross-talked to you on that other thing, hi. You were working on a 33kv. line huh? Our regs. are real clear on this, 20kv to 30kv as long as the tree is 4 feet away from the line you can climb it. Limits on this voltage are as follows personal (body) limit=4ft tested tool (pole pruner) 1.5 ft. For 30kv to 75kv line the limit is 5ft and 3ft with a tool. If the tree could hit the line when you fall it it must be restrained with a rope, that means pulled over away from the line. If the tree is closer than 4 or 5ft to the line you are supposed to get a kill (outage). I think I understand your reg. to mean that even if the trees are outside the .8 you need a kill. The incident detailed by Tam, the tree must have hit the neutral wire, otherwise electrocution would have resulted. Here the neutral is almost always under the primary (live) by at least 6ft. I would not have done that, would have taken my chances with the lines slapping together, if the power went out I would just deny it was anything to do with us. Usually when the power goes out the phone starts ringing and the power co. man is on the way to crucify you. If you can its best to hide evidence (burned tree for example) get everyone on the same page and deny it. I have done stuff around the powerline that I could have had my ticket pulled, but who hasn't, after you know how it works you know what you can get away with. When the lines here are under great pressure they just break-its the telephone line that stores huge tension, enough to chuck a 300lb. block across the road. Onelick-thems some mighty strange falling ways you got going out east there. I'm a humbolt, backcut guy myself but I guess there is more than one way to skin a cat.
Ross Turner
ArboristSite Operative
It was a 3 phase 33kv line & it had hit 2 of the conductors,an untrained lad felled it but it sat back so they tried to wedge it over,as they where doing this the hinge snapped & it went side ways falling across the conductors.
clearance
Addicted to ArboristSite
Ross-that is feckin insane. The ground must have been really dry or something, maybe just shathouse luck. I was working on a rock bluff by a 25kv three phase line when I cut of my holding wood on a little cedar tree. It fell across two phases and started to burn, I froze, cringing, then I tried to hop away but fell in the slash and snow. There was a funny noise and the line blew the fuses. I was o.k. but kind of shaky for a while. It put out power to the ski hill, people had to be rescued from the chairlift. I was just an apprentice then, my foreman got the blame. The lineman showed up hours later due to being away from civilisation. I hate using up one of my nine lives like that but my number wasn't up. If my foreman had got down to truck in time he would have gone up in the bucket and sawed it down with his trimsaw. The lawsuit has not gone to court yet, I am a long way away, a 1000 mile drive and a seven hour ferry ride up the coast, no one has served me with papers yet. Life goes on, you win some you lose some, everyday above ground is a good day.
Ross Turner
ArboristSite Operative
as i have said im the only one in the company who is qualified to NPTC standards for electrical/utility arb work,& am getting sick of doing crap & filling in risk assesments that mean crap as if anything happened its my ass on the line as it states only qualified people to be working next to live overhead lines.
BIG JAKE
Let’s go Brandon!
Ross Turner said:
Hey Ross-If you took the hit for a kid getting killed what would your likelyhood of getting a job elsewhere be after that? My guess is it's new career time. I'd get the company to hire enough profs to oversee these guys or line up a job and bail. It ain't about the money in the end. Sounds like a lot of sleepless nights too.
BIG JAKE
Let’s go Brandon!
BIG JAKE said:
I'm trying to imagine your situation over there. Maybe not a lot of alternate job options? I'm thinking starting something on your own-kind of on the side maybe-get it going a little before you jump. Other way to help cover yourself would be to compile copies of all requests made for additional qualified help to the company they failed to act on-just in case. Might vindicate you as then they failed to act on your requests for qualified help. Then you pull out the copies when they try to make you the fall guy in an investigation. I assume that would be gov't at some level. I'd make sure it's in writing though. I know the young fellers need to learn but should have experience overseeing in those dangerous scenarios. Maybe start a program where you demonstrate how those scenarios to the crews. Liability might be back on you then though. Whatever option you see fit just ideas.
Ross Turner
ArboristSite Operative
BIG JAKE said:
Thats my intention.
ask for triple your wage rate that should get their attention(companies) then increase your insurance coverage if you have your own policy,... or try to become the company trainer, usually when on the management side of things you are more protected by the company in terms of liability.
tam
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apart from that, the work is great fun.
Dale M
ArboristSite Member
why so many cuts?
Hi . Im not criticizing you, infact the opposite I am trying to learn here.. Why do you make so many cuts to drop a 12 inch tree?,, I cut a notch in the front, about 1/3 of the way thro. lined up where I want to tree to drop, then
go behind and start my cut a couple inchs above the notch center and slowly cut in,, when the tree starts lean or Im down to a couple inch hinge I stop the saw, try giving the tree a push and if its not moving I hammer in a wedge and tip it that way.... Am I going about this all wrong? And a plunge cut? and when do you want to use this type of cut..
Thank-You
Dale M
Hi . Im not criticizing you, infact the opposite I am trying to learn here.. Why do you make so many cuts to drop a 12 inch tree?,, I cut a notch in the front, about 1/3 of the way thro. lined up where I want to tree to drop, then
go behind and start my cut a couple inchs above the notch center and slowly cut in,, when the tree starts lean or Im down to a couple inch hinge I stop the saw, try giving the tree a push and if its not moving I hammer in a wedge and tip it that way.... Am I going about this all wrong? And a plunge cut? and when do you want to use this type of cut..
Thank-You
Dale M
tam
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yeah man nothing wrong with that. however, theoretically, you're only meant to put your gub a quarter of the way in. as you probably know... mind you, i sometimes take it halfway into the tree if i really can't be arsed levering it over and if it'll go easily. but what can i say? i'm just a big cowboy.
hahaha another nice wee picture
hahaha another nice wee picture
