For I think 3 years now, I've had my crews use hedge trimmers for brushing trails and for cutting firebreaks in fine fuels. This is the one I prefer:
We have 4 of them with the 30" blade. It's a great tool for broom, especially; you can walk through the thickest patch of the stuff and cut at a nearly-walking pace. We commonly cut firebreaks with the trimmer, then wet-line behind it for burnout operations. It's fast and easy, and reduces the risk of injury that comes with chainsaws in such conditions.
Another thing we use it for is releasing over-topped seedlings in plantations. With rotary trimmers, it's easy to cut the seedlings you're trying to protect because you can't see them under the over-topping brush. With the hedge trimmers, you cut from the top down. Even if you nip a branch or two, the seedling is gonna survive.
We use the "R" models because we only cut nasty stuff and we don't care what the cut-line looks like. The 30" blade gives good reach and makes the most of operator effort. The machine is lightweight and has good A/V, and is pretty easy on the gas. The only problem I've had with them is the spark arrestor. It's a tiny little fine-meshed cylinder and clogs easily. Usually I burn them clean twice before I replace them. It's a cheap part, less than ten bones.
Anybody else use these, or other unconventional tools, in a forestry/fire application?
EDIT: D'oh! I meant "R", not "T".
We have 4 of them with the 30" blade. It's a great tool for broom, especially; you can walk through the thickest patch of the stuff and cut at a nearly-walking pace. We commonly cut firebreaks with the trimmer, then wet-line behind it for burnout operations. It's fast and easy, and reduces the risk of injury that comes with chainsaws in such conditions.
Another thing we use it for is releasing over-topped seedlings in plantations. With rotary trimmers, it's easy to cut the seedlings you're trying to protect because you can't see them under the over-topping brush. With the hedge trimmers, you cut from the top down. Even if you nip a branch or two, the seedling is gonna survive.
We use the "R" models because we only cut nasty stuff and we don't care what the cut-line looks like. The 30" blade gives good reach and makes the most of operator effort. The machine is lightweight and has good A/V, and is pretty easy on the gas. The only problem I've had with them is the spark arrestor. It's a tiny little fine-meshed cylinder and clogs easily. Usually I burn them clean twice before I replace them. It's a cheap part, less than ten bones.
Anybody else use these, or other unconventional tools, in a forestry/fire application?
EDIT: D'oh! I meant "R", not "T".
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