I'm a home owner / weekend warrior. What's the cheapest way to stock up on plastic wedges? I chew them up regularly while bucking up dead fall trees/limbs. P.S. I know skill in determining the stress in the wood is better than any wedges, but, the reality is I'm a weekend warrior mostly interested in bucking up trees nocked down by mother nature, so the stresses are not always predictable. Thus, I chew up a decent amount of wedges every year. Please advise me on an economical source for wedges
Cheapest wedges?
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woodchuck357
Addicted to ArboristSite
Not that I hit my wedges often with the saw, but I usually carry a few made of persimmon wood sawn on the bandsaw. I often saw larger wedges and gluts in the woods with the chainsaw as needed from dead limbs mostly.
Trailtrimmer
ArboristSite Operative
Work on technique, you don't have to bury the whole bar in everything you cut. If you are unsure of the stresses a limb is under, cut with the end of the bar while you read what it's doing. If it starts to pinch, keep the throttle pinned and pull back. If you don't give a cut the full bar to clamp down on, you are much less likely to get in a bad pinch.
Yeah, not what you asked for but a little work on technique will save time and be far safer in the long run. Scares me to see people defaulting to throwing more consumables at something and making excuses not to practice when working with unpredictable storm damaged trees.
Yeah, not what you asked for but a little work on technique will save time and be far safer in the long run. Scares me to see people defaulting to throwing more consumables at something and making excuses not to practice when working with unpredictable storm damaged trees.
HuskStihl
Chairin'em for the sound
HardHeads are not the cheapest wedges, but they drive nice
I like this post. I totally agree that working on technique is always preferable to trying to "buy your way" into anything. Happens all the time in bow hunting! Everyone markets that the latest, greatest (and most expensive) gizmo will increase your success, and a lot of people do buy in, when in fact, practice and learning skills doesn't usually cost anything than time!
I'll work on skills.
+1 on that. I limb and buck 15-20 trees a day on average stick a saw maybe twice a month. Work on reading the wood, and not overcomitting to a cut. Jeff
That's very motivating! Not everyone is a pro who works on trees every day, but it is very important for all of us to hear what you are saying. Getting stuck is nearly always a lack of skill and nothing else. Skill/experience will always beat anything you can "buy." Thanks for the motivation!!!!!
I hope that didn't come across as condescending, just making a point that getting stuck and hitting the dirt isn't inevitable, just poor technique. Reading the wood just comes with time. Just remember, all wood is either under compression or tension.
woodchuck357
Addicted to ArboristSite
I have more than a few years professional experience with a saw, both as a logger then as a tree service climber, but these days most of my cutting is as storm damage volunteer.
Sticking a wedge in the kerf is often the safest and fastest way to make the cuts necessary to clear wind blown trees. They seldom need pounded in, just push them before the kerf starts to close and give them a tap with the heel of your hand. A twig or bark would just get crushed. My persimmon wedges are made from firewood split into boards with a froe, smoothed with a plane, then sawed into wedges with the bandsaw. Total cost for four 10 inch wedges about 20 minutes. Leaving the sawn surfaces rough lets the wedges stick together when they need to be stacked and pounded in to tip a tree over when felling.
Sticking a wedge in the kerf is often the safest and fastest way to make the cuts necessary to clear wind blown trees. They seldom need pounded in, just push them before the kerf starts to close and give them a tap with the heel of your hand. A twig or bark would just get crushed. My persimmon wedges are made from firewood split into boards with a froe, smoothed with a plane, then sawed into wedges with the bandsaw. Total cost for four 10 inch wedges about 20 minutes. Leaving the sawn surfaces rough lets the wedges stick together when they need to be stacked and pounded in to tip a tree over when felling.
Don't disagree that they have their use, but I still stand by my statement that they're usually a substitute for proper techniques.
HuskStihl
Chairin'em for the sound
I have trouble not using wedges when bucking something big, which is laying flush on the ground. I've cut most of the way thru, then used a tractor to roll the log to get the remaining strap. I suppose I could bore in and leave a strap on top for last, but palming a wedge is quick and seems to work well. Jeff and Chuck, how do y'all handle a pinchy log you can't move or get under?
Its very rare to have a log perfectly flat on the ground with zero compression or tension wood. If you read the log you'll almost always find a spot to be able to release tension from either the top or bottom and open the cut up. Boring is another good method, especially on large diameter logs. Cutting timber to mill lengths is another story, since you can't pick your spots. It's something that just becomes instinctive over time, I guess. I dont have a problem with wedges, just havent needed them in a long time.
If you're cutting bottom up, you can bore through, cut up til there, s a small strap, then go back down and use the tip at half throttle to whittle the bottom strap until it releases. You'll feel it and see it, but that takes a lot of practice to stay out of the dirt. Jeff
If you're cutting bottom up, you can bore through, cut up til there, s a small strap, then go back down and use the tip at half throttle to whittle the bottom strap until it releases. You'll feel it and see it, but that takes a lot of practice to stay out of the dirt. Jeff
woodchuck357
Addicted to ArboristSite
I did a bit of cutting today and had cause to remember not mentioning one of the reasons I feel my wood wedges are better than most I see for sale.
I was removing a slightly punky soft maple and used wedges several times.
I make my wedges as wide as possible and still be able to get two of them into my hip pocket. They average just over 4 inches wide while commercial felling wedges are usually less than three.
Soft wood gets compressed easier so a wider wedge works better.
I was removing a slightly punky soft maple and used wedges several times.
I make my wedges as wide as possible and still be able to get two of them into my hip pocket. They average just over 4 inches wide while commercial felling wedges are usually less than three.
Soft wood gets compressed easier so a wider wedge works better.
Ummmh, yeah, Chuck, it's so funny how those commercial wedges are all exactly the same width.... like, just narrower than a standard bar and chain..... what an odd coincidence....
+1 on comments about reading tree.
IIRC, the last time a wedge was used around here for bucking was about 40 years ago. Have used wedges (and hydraulic jack a few times) when felling, but never saw the need when bucking. Have not gotten a saw stuck during bucking in that 40 years either.
Am not a pro, but cut 10 cords a year for heat and have cleared a few acres over the years.
Paying close attention to the kerf width will tell you to pull the saw quick an that you need to start from the other side. If ya cannot get to the other side, go down the log a ways and come back to the original cut after you have a moveable section.
Have never bought a plastic wedge in my life, but then, do have a couple of bandsaws <G>, so easy to make wood wedges, usually from old oak pallets as the alder and cedar around here do not make very good wedges, will use DFir in a 'pinch'.
IIRC, the last time a wedge was used around here for bucking was about 40 years ago. Have used wedges (and hydraulic jack a few times) when felling, but never saw the need when bucking. Have not gotten a saw stuck during bucking in that 40 years either.
Am not a pro, but cut 10 cords a year for heat and have cleared a few acres over the years.
Paying close attention to the kerf width will tell you to pull the saw quick an that you need to start from the other side. If ya cannot get to the other side, go down the log a ways and come back to the original cut after you have a moveable section.
Have never bought a plastic wedge in my life, but then, do have a couple of bandsaws <G>, so easy to make wood wedges, usually from old oak pallets as the alder and cedar around here do not make very good wedges, will use DFir in a 'pinch'.
I wish I could say that. I still get hung up occasionally. Most of the guys I work with do too. Not a lot, but every once in awhile. Maybe we ought to come watch you and learn your secrets.
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