Broken off, hung up

[Avery]

Hi All,

Found this forum a couple of days ago and have been reading steadily since then. I'm a homeowner surrounded by a stand of about 36 big (c. 100', 36-48" diameter) Eastern white pines (about 36 of them). Amongst those is a lot of small stuff, mainly softwood) that hasn't been cut or maintained in any way for 20 years at least. Hence there's lots of blowdowns and small, scraggly stuff that my wife and I are steadily pecking away at.

A couple of weeks ago I was out burning some of the slash and a biggish spruce nearby let go in the wind but immediately hung up in a neighboring hardwood. The spruce is about 70' tall and perhaps 18" at the break (3 or 4' above ground). Tree now leans about 15 degrees and I'd like to bring it all the way down before it does so at an inopportune time (it's kind of close to the driveway and we walk in the woods frequently).

What's the best way to bring down a tree that's hung up without just putting a chain on the butt and pulling from a distance with an excavator or crawler? I can't see the best cut to make since the main force vector seems to be straight down the trunk's axis. Looks like the top 25' or so is hung up, so it's not just a case of shortening it by a few feet until its crown clears out of the tree it's leaning into.

Also, what's the single-best publication / book / video that a guy who runs a Jonsered 490 and is working his way up to bigger trees could read for training and technique? I really enjoy cutting and moving the wood around with levers, Peaveys, wedges, rollers, etc. and fear that I may be addicted. If I am, I'd at least like to get good at it.

Thanks for comments on both questions and although I looked around for a similar question to avoid asking one that's already been posed I apologize if that's the case.

Avery

 

[ShoerFast]

Avery

Welcome to the site.

Cool delima!

Could you post a couple pictures of the hang?

Kevin

 

[skwerl]

Yup, welcome.

Several options, dragging the tree out whole being one of your safest and easiest options assuming you have room to do so without damaging anything. With these situations, it's usually a matter of studying the situation and seeing where the tree could possibly fall, depending on what you do to it. Remember that gravity always works.

 

[Avery]

Thanks for the replies. ShoerFast, I knew somebody would want photos, but I'm actually at work now (on a ship overseas) so won't be able to provide them until I get home in a few weeks.

Skwerl, there's nothing in the drop zone that can be damaged, so drag-n-drop might have to do it.

In the meantime, what can I read online to learn technique? I've been looking at a couple of government sites (OSHA) and one called Illinois Virtual Forest, which are helpful, but I want to go deeper. Specifically interested in boring cuts.

Avery

 

[ArborView]

Well, I've encountered this situation and no doubt there is a lot more people here that are much more qualified than myself, but.........from my experience with spruce is a whole lot of branches. It the top 25' or so is hung up, I would think you're best option is to pull the bottom if possible. Doesn't sound like you could free it by cutting chunks off the bottom. I found you need to be careful pulling trees that have tops hung up. The base can come up off the ground pretty good and will slide right back toward you.
I'd love to get into some of those pines you have.
A real good book that cover a wide variety of topics is The Fundamentals of General Tree Work by GF Beranek.

 

[Kneejerk Bombas]

Is the tree broken clean off the base, or is it cracked, and still attached?

 

[Avery]

Mike,

It's cracked and still attached. I think I'll need to cut it partway through before pulling with some sort of mechanical advantage or equipment.

But where to cut?

I was looking at a diagram of how to drop a leaner elsewhere in this forum (the guy with the camper) and those cuts looked helpful...kind of like dropping it like a spear straight down a few feet before pulling it.

Sound feasible?

 

[Kneejerk Bombas]

This is very dangerous work.
There is a good chance you will get your saw stuck because of all the weird pressures that are on a tree like this.
One way to cut it is to place a rope around the tree, notch above or below the crack, and then a back cut until you have a nice hinge set up. Then pull from a safe distance until the hinge closes and breaks.
You might also try a bypass cut, and again, pull to breaking from a safe distance.
Spear cutting is for small trees, where you can race your saw through before the kerf closes. I wouldn't try it on a tree of any substance.

 

[Kneejerk Bombas]

It might look something like this:

 

[Avery]

Thanks, Mike. Your illustration is helpful and neatly captures my situation (minus the tree that the leaner is hung up in). Frankly I don't think I would have had the cajones to do the spear-drop thing; this tree is substantial.

I'm thinking more along the lines of notch, backcut, and pull like the dickens from a safe distance...say, the next county.

When I go home I'll try it and let you know.

 

[Avery]

Photos for ArborView

Here are a couple of shots that typify the trees surrounding my fragile home. No one wants to drop them for fear of making a big mess yarding them around. I'd like some of them gone.

View attachment 31996

View attachment 31997

View attachment 31998

View attachment 31999

View attachment 32000

The trunk on the ground is 32" dbh and over 69' after 25' of crown was removed before dropping it. For the record, I did not drop this tree myself. Too big for my skill level, and too close (30') to the house.

I had them leave the stump 6' proud so I can attempt another carving. The fish was from the first one I had taken down (right next to this one). Originally it was 'standing' on its tail, still attached to the stump, but in preparation for yarding this big log out of the back yard I need to pivot it right where the fish was, so had to cut it off at the tail.

Oh, and the photo of me is just before I snapped my Peavey handle trying to dislodge part of the crown that had been driven deep into my lawn when the trunk came down on it...

These shots are just to give an idea of the size of pine on my property. Hope I've attached them properly.

 

[skwerl]

Cool stuff! Love the fish, will look nice with a few coats of polyurethane and hanging on the wall, or even on the front porch.

There's a company called Log Rite in Connecticut that makes peaveys and cants. I bet you can't break one of those. Ask anyone that's bought one, you'll never want another brand. Look em up, I think it's www.logrite.com

 

[Avery]

Thanks Skwerl. I'll check their site now.

And, now that I look at that photo more closely, I'd say that I'd already broken the peavey, seeing's how I'm holding the pick end in my hand. Ended up having to throw the whole end into the fire to burn out the stump of the handle that was still inside the ironwork.

Any idea why the photo attachments don't look like everyone else's?

 

[appalachianarbo]

Mike - Your drawing would work, but you'd need another notch in the stump to allow it to pivot. Otherwise, you would be trying to break your hinge or pull the roots out of the ground. See attached (if I can attach my poor artwork right)

 

[Avery]

Here are photos

As promised, here's the dead leaner I need to drop.

 

[smokechase II]

Vertical danger

Let’s say you decide to take it down yourself with just your saw.
You could find yourself 'walking' it down in four foot increments.
Each time you do this it will most likely move to a more vertical posture and that puts the cutter directly below the hazards.
That is not good. There are ways of directing the butt away from the vertical. However, your scenario in the last photo doesn't look good for that.

The last picture you posted appears to show a fairly secure hang and the limbs look to be smaller diameter and at least mostly healthy.
That is good.

The first and second picture do show problems with rot/splits that easily could sponsor a pinched bar as warned against by MMass.
Sometimes you can mitigate that by cutting above or below the splits, but usually they go higher than you realize looking at the exterior of the tree. Not a solution here.

Seriously, you really should be thinking an equipment solution or bring in a pro option.

If you were to bring in a logger/arborist type, do you have enough of a property where you could have them thin some of the other trees like the one pictured before they become a problem? Perhaps the more dangerous snags too?
I realize that bringing in a bonded businessman is going to cost. You at least have done something like that before with the bigger tree you had dropped.
Maybe it would be cost effective if you got that pro to deal with enough trees on this visit. They get 'em to the ground and you work on them from there. Firewood, fish carvings and maybe even mill some plank lumber.
{Ask the pro to point out any additional hazards, such has hanging limbs and make sure he removes any spring poles caused by the falling.}

Many folks don't want to cut a single tree on their property and prefer to live in a Walt Disney world where every tree lives forever. You can make your forest healthier by some judicious thinning. Looks like you're on that tract.
Cut the weakest, sickly and dense trees and leave the best. Try for a mixed species stand. (Caveat; if you thin too much you can open a timber stand up to wind damage).

Your quote: "I was out burning some of the slash and a biggish spruce nearby let go in the wind” leads me to believe that your wind respect is there now.
I doubt that you could meet an experienced faller out west that hasn't had a buddy die or get seriously injured by simply working in the woods on a windy day.

All the Best

 

[Avery]

Smokechase,

Thanks for your take on it. I'm gonna hire my local guy (who is cheap compared to some of the examples I've read here; he took down 2 100' white pines for $250 each (I cleaned up)) and I'll just watch him do it to learn technique.

As for being out in the wind while surrounded by trees, I'm afraid I can't avoid it. My property is thoroughly wooded with giant guys and in need of serious remedial removal work, but I can only afford to have the biggest offenders taken out one-by-one. I pack up my wife and son on the windiest days and go on day-trips until the fronts blow through.

If you're in Maine come check out some big, clear pines. I'm open to suggestions on how to drop 'em and sharing the wealth...