Christmas eve cutting pics

[Steve NW WI]

I "had" a 4 day weekend coming, until I got offered to work yesterday, for big $$$, so I figured to get some cutting done today. I spent most of the morning doing my Christmas shopping, I didn't get out to the woods till 2 or so.

This birch with the top blown out has been on my list for a year or so, just can't get to it most of the time, either a crop growing in the field or big drifts of snow at the field edge.

It had a pretty hard lean toward the field, so I tried some of that fancy stuff on it. I faced it, bored in, made the back cut, cut the strap, and .... nothing! I almost should have bored first, because I did a p, poor job of lining up with the notch. I had to trim a bit to get it to fall. No harm, no foul though, it was in a good place to learn.

You'll notice a ton of prickly ash in the pics, wish I had the brushcutter along, but little bro is using it making ATV trails at his place. Chaps are real handy around this stuff. It wasn't the only thing trying to make me bleed out there though, found this under the log while bucking, it wasn't wrapped up this neat though. I did see it before I hit it with the chain anyhow:

All blocked up:

Here's the start of a brush pile. It'll get a ton of them $%@# prickly ash added to it when the Tanaka gets home!

More to come!

 

[Steve NW WI]

There's a cherry limb across the trail in the "blocked up" pic above. I didn't have room in the truck for the tree it fell from, so it stands for another day, but I did get the limb cut up and loaded:

Here's the load, maybe a 1/3 cord if I'm an optimist, more likely between 1/4 and 1/3:

Since I'm posting pics, these 3 are from a week or so ago, but never got them up here, I put down a bigger (20" or so) birch a while back, but ran out of daylight. When I dropped it, a big limb hung up on me. I got the brush from the main part of the tree out of the way then took it down by hand with a rope on it.

Before:

After:

All bucked up, and pretty easy loading. I just rolled the big stuff down the hill to the truck:

The pics of the wood I got out of this one are on the "Spent time on a Speeco" thread.

Merry Christmas everyone, and if I have time tomorrow between church and family functions, I'll be out there again for that cherry and a big oak blowdown. Otherwise it should be waiting for me on Monday.

 

[Garmins dad]

Thanks for sharing your pics Steve..

 

[Big L]

Good stuff Steve ... keep rippin em up :biggrin:

 

[Beefie]

Glad to see you had a productive afternoon.


Beefie

 

[Iska3]

Nice pictures. Just enough snow on the ground to get your gloves wet. Makes me want to go out and knock down a few of them big ash at our place. Right now would be a good time to get out there. The swamps are dry and the ground is frozen. Maybe tomorrow.

It's funny how a picture of the woods and them rounds on the ground makes a guy start to itch all over.

 

[Garmins dad]

makes a guy start to itch all over.

:msp_biggrin: They make a lotion for that....

 

[TreePointer]

Wow! I use almost exactly the same tools. Exact same bag, Fiskars, fuel can, Stihl winter bar oil, and blue gloves. My variation is the usual two saws I take into the field are the Makita 7901 and Husqvarna NE346XP.

 

[Steve NW WI]

Wow! I use almost exactly the same tools. Exact same bag, Fiskars, fuel can, Stihl winter bar oil, and blue gloves. My variation is the usual two saws I take into the field are the Makita 7901 and Husqvarna NE346XP.

'Taint really Stihl winter oil. That's the last stuff I bought in a jug. I get bulk from my friendly neighborhood Dolmar dealer. I don't think I'll finish this year without going to get the 5 gallon can refilled.

For MY money, that little 420 does a great job at all the limbing tasks the 346 is supposed to be the best at. De-catted and retuned, it doesn't mind burying the bar once in a while either. I've got a 5100, but it doesn't see a lot of work unless I have help to run it. I go straight from the 420 to the 7300 when the wood gets bigger.

The Frosty Grip gloves are my personal favorite, but they stink up a car when new. Rubber smell is strong on the last set I got.

I don't have a ton of handle time on the Fiskars yet, but so far it's all it's cracked up to be. Yesterday it's main job was trimming those pesky little branches that get missed when bucking.

I like the bag, keeps everything in one place, and the gas can has been de-carbed, at least the safety switch is gone. It doesn't pour too bad into saws, bigger fills with that style are too slow though.

 

[iowa]

Nice pics! Nice saws too. Almost exact setup as mine. Except I've got the 79:msp_biggrin:00!

 

[PEKS]

Good pics, Good workout..
No Snow around here yet..