When the Logs Are Bigger Than the Grapples

[Gologit]

Summer of 08. This was North of Hwy 32 above Forest Ranch, Ca. The log was a forty foot Doug Fir that the loader couldn't lift so we bucked it. Even then, the grapples wouldn't hold it so we slung some rigging, got it on the truck, and sent it to town.

 

[Idaho Bison]

I have had to do it one end at a time.

 

[slowp]

Who defaced the last of the ancient forest? I'm talking about the Happy Face on the log. I need to scan a picture from when such stuff was cut here. I watched the loading of it, and the front of the truck was bouncing off the ground, there was lots of yelling and moving of chokers and a skidder, in addition to the shovel. They didn't buck it, just wrasseled it on the truck.

 

[Spotted Owl]

Good look'in wood there. Did you get to work that stand? Or are you running that old kidney bust'in Barko, that machine looks like a rough ride and a long day. Looks good and solid, we haven't seen many loads like that for a long time around these parts.

Read that you were healing up, hope that is going well for ya.

Nice photos, nice to see afew of them old outlaws making it to the ground. Whats left don'tmake and difference and how, other than getting in the way of what you can do. My boy really lkes looking at old wood and big stumps

You might be able to use that last photo to convince Nike to sart making corks, looks to be a good advertizer for them .


Good post. Thanks


Owl

 

[RPM]

You do what you have to do to get em on the truck!.. These are from 10 years ago or so now.....we still had line loaders with pretty big grapples which would take 10' + logs. Lots of big cedar then so the bigger grapples were pretty common.

Nice logs Gologit! Impressive on the stump, more so when you stick a saw into it....even better on the truck.:greenchainsaw:

 

[joesawer]

Summer of 08. This was North of Hwy 32 above Forest Ranch, Ca. The log was a forty foot Doug Fir that the loader couldn't lift so we bucked it. Even then, the grapples wouldn't hold it so we slung some rigging, got it on the truck, and sent it to town.

Nice pics. Those kind of loads make me smile, even though they are often slower to load.
We usually keep some old kinked and jaggered chokers and some clevises around for such duties. It is a real shame to hook a nice new choker to a grapple or any thing else with a square edge.

 

[urbanlumberinc]

Good gawd man!!! that's a flippin monster. the pic of the excavator wrestling that baby is one for the office wall.

Nice work!!!!

You can bring one of those babies to my place anytime- The Lucas would love to have a go at that one

 

[Mike Van]

Great pics! - Thanks -

 

[slowp]

Today I had to endure picture after picture of Collyfonia Sugar Pine. Pictures of 3 log loads! I tried to convince the logger that he was much better off working up here in small diameter timber. It must get pretty boring to only load 3 logs on a truck--thud thud thud...drive off....thud thud thud...I don't think I convinced him.

Then I offered up my pink duck tape to replace a missing hub thing on a log truck. That driver turned down my offer and wasted valuable time to finally scrounge up some bad looking silver tape. Oh well, I give up!

 

[joesawer]

Yeah, Colly foreign ya grows some nice suger pines, ponderosa and jeffry also.

 

[Gologit]

Today I had to endure picture after picture of Collyfonia Sugar Pine. Pictures of 3 log loads! I tried to convince the logger that he was much better off working up here in small diameter timber. It must get pretty boring to only load 3 logs on a truck--thud thud thud...drive off....thud thud thud...I don't think I convinced him.

Then I offered up my pink duck tape to replace a missing hub thing on a log truck. That driver turned down my offer and wasted valuable time to finally scrounge up some bad looking silver tape. Oh well, I give up!

LOL...Was that your friend who came down to help us last year? He was on the end of the burn salvage with the really nice wood. We were stuck further south in much smaller timber. The big joke during that time was that the north end guys hauled the logs...the rest of us just hauled the limbs.

Nothing wrong with pink duct tape. I painted my axe bright purple one time...it was the only paint I could find and nobody ever stole THAT axe.

 

[slowp]

It was another Oregon Logger that the one guy brought up here with him for this year. The picture shower is a younger guy who loaded logs for Columbia. I asked if he had to use chokers to get the logs on trucks and he said no, he had a pretty large shovel down there. He traded in his big loader and downsized for our more challenging sized wood. They were whining yesterday that I don't mark their skid trails out perfectly straight. Sometimes they have to steer slightly in order to miss a tree. I told them I was merely helping them to keep their skills finely honed. They're doing pretty good so far. They are in limby hemlock and silver fir. I'd like to carry a hatchet just to get in close enough to measure diameters.

 

[2dogs]

I like looking at log loads from the hay days of logging. This area exists because of logging and access to water. 3 log loads are pretty rare these days.

 

[Gologit]

I like looking at log loads from the hay days of logging. This area exists because of logging and access to water. 3 log loads are pretty rare these days.

True. A lot of what we bring in now, especially since we're doing burn salvage, is pretty puny stuff.

3 log loads are neat to look at but they can be miserable to haul. Unless your bunk logs are equal size and you can get a good saddle for the peaker it's gonna be a side-heavy bad handling load. Plus, if you're coming up out of steep ground you can strip out of a three log load faster than anything I've ever seen....especially 33' pine. Don't ask me how I know this. They also ride rough. For pure comfort and ease of hauling I'll take a load of 40 foot small white fir any old day. It's not impressive but it's sure easier to get to town.

 

[slowp]

True. A lot of what we bring in now, especially since we're doing burn salvage, is pretty puny stuff.

3 log loads are neat to look at but they can be miserable to haul. Unless your bunk logs are equal size and you can get a good saddle for the peaker it's gonna be a side-heavy bad handling load. Plus, if you're coming up out of steep ground you can strip out of a three log load faster than anything I've ever seen....especially 33' pine. Don't ask me how I know this. They also ride rough. For pure comfort and ease of hauling I'll take a load of 40 foot small white fir any old day. It's not impressive but it's sure easier to get to town.

May I use this as a whining rebuttal?

 

[NDtreehugger]

Brings back memory's

I haven't seen wood like that since HWY 162 many many years ago

 

[Gologit]

May I use this as a whining rebuttal?

Yup. Waiting a minute...Who's whining? And who does the rebutting? And is that even a word. Sorry....it's been a long day. You know the kind...when it finally makes sense why they don't let you bring guns to work. :censored:

 

[RPM]

Gologit " Tourist...."Is that old growth ?"
Logger.."Not now".

Perfect!

 

[Gologit]

Gologit " Tourist...."Is that old growth ?"
Logger.."Not now".

Perfect!

LOL...That conversation actually happened. We were cold-decking big red fir close to a heavily traveled state highway and some tourists stopped to watch. It was all bug salvage but all the tourists could see was the size of the trees. They got pretty agitated.

 

[John Ellison]

Nice pics, I think that size sticks will get everyones blood racing.

Bob, how did you get them out? Must have been a dozer.