Steve NW WI,
Alright who is giving shaky advice? lol
Hope not me, i have cut many a dead and rotted beast and I'm still typing here
Had my number of close calls but that's pretty typical for anyone that cuts trees.
Some days the law of averages just seems to show up uninvited and all.
There's no horribly bad advice, just some that might not be well communicated, some that isn't quite right but not likely to get them killed. Here's a couple examples. Don't get all bent out of shape if I pick on ya below here, I'll explain my reason and we can debate it if you think differently. I'm not a pro, but I try to keep learning, and hope I've made more mistakes in the past than I will in the future. Anyone, especially the old sawdust crusted timber tippers can feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. I take criticism well.
I put goodly amount of tension on the cable (come-a-long, winch, vehicle, etc.) before I start cutting, and then add even more after the face cut; the idea is to get it moving early in the direction I want it to fall... and keep it moving in that direction. Sometimes, if I think it's needed, I'll add a recovery strap to the end of the cable for the "bungee cord" effect. I want a sharp chain to make a fast back cut... the faster the better. If it's a real tricky situation I'll get some help, hook the cable to my truck (if I can), so the "help" can keep the line "pulling" on the tree all the way to the ground... near always the tree will fall right on top of the dead-head.
Not really bad, but unclear. I would never hook a come a long with 1000# of pull to a big tree and hope for good results. A stout winch or heavy piece of equipment is in order. Also, between this post and more than a few others, it seems that solo tree pulling is pretty common. I've done it once or twice, but I'm not at all comfortable with it. Get a GOOD helper that understands what needs to be done to run the winch/truck/whatever, and you can each concentrate on your task.
Dead trees I cut never get a wedge don't trust them.
I had a dead tree lean back on the wedge and as I pounded it in,
the tree snapped and fell back over the wedge. :msp_scared:
That tree would have set back and snapped without the wedge as well most likely. I think of setting wedges whether or not you anticipate needing em as an insurance policy. It's better to have one there and not need it than to not have one and suddenly find yourself needing one.
One thing I would advise is "NOT" to run before it "commits" to the fall, too many people get flattened because they thought it was going one way, then "HELLO stump spin" or something else goofy happens.
Run doesn't have a place in getting away from a dropping tree. Certainly don't lollygag, but running, especially with a saw in your hands isn't the best choice. It's hard to take evasive action if you're flat on your face after tripping over something you didn't see. Again, possibly just not written as it was meant.
I'm not a big fan of that straight across fell cut.
On smallish trees it's fine but on big things the tree tends to sit back just enough to pinch even before you have room to start a wedge.
No fun trying to get a pinch saw out of a big tree.
I like my cut going down at about 5d and ending up an inch or so above the V.
Ending that cut an inch above it's quite difficult to cut the hindge away by accident also.
For me i find even on rough trees that 5d down cut gives you much more time to get a wedge or two in before the tree gets an attitude.
Cutting down just a bit on the fell cut and the tree tends to jump away anyway.
More cuts that i have to make is just that
I've not had trouble with bigger trees setting back before I can get a wedge in, not sure what you have going on there. Maybe a pic of your face cut would show something.
The 5° down cut is a very shallow angled "farmer cut", "slopping back cut" or whatever you want to call it. It doesn't help with wedging, actually hurts it. The steeper the angle, the more force is directed sideways across the tree, putting shear force against the hinge instead of lifting the tree. Again, not probably a huge factor at 5°, but ideally you want to be at 0°. If someone doesn't understand what I'm trying to say here, let me know and I'll try to draw a diagram.
Discuss...
:fart:
