Tight squeeze

[The Big Hurt]

Did a job today that required the removal of 3 dead magnolias each about 60 feet in height. These mag's were all in a 15 yard radius with one standing 5 feet from the owner's privacy fence the other standing 12 feet from the pool and the other standing a foot or so from the house and 5 feet from the privacy fence. I got up in the first one and topped it, dropping the large dead limbs less than a foot from the fence. The one by the pool wasnt hard but did have to scoop a few small twigs out of the water. The last one was the hard one though. I couldnt just climb up and hack away without hitting something so I looked at the angle of the tree to the position of the fence's gate. Now the gate was double the tree's circumfrence but if I were to drop it from the base it would be coming into the gate at an angle leaving me little room for error.
Imagine throwing a baseball through an open box with the open box standing upright and then imagine throwing the baseball through it with the box angled 45 degrees....it makes for less room for the ball to go through. This was kinda what I was facing in dropping this tree.
I looked at the angle and the tree circumfrence and said "I can do this." I threw my throwline up into a crotch 3/4 the way up the tree and sent up a tagline. I had a groundy take the rope and extend it right in the path I wanted the tree falling and began to make my cuts. As it began to come down I had my groundie(whom I trust very much by the way) pull it right in the direction I wanted and BAM! Only had 12"-15" on both sides to spare. I pulled out my big saw to start loggin it and said Hell Yeah!

 

[daveyclimber]

tagline?

Why did you use your climbing line . I would much rather use a rope that I don't have to worry about each time I ascend up a tree

 

[The Big Hurt]

Oops

That was wrong....I didnt send up a climbing line but I accidentally typed that in my story I edited that part.

 

[treeman82]

I know that this way takes a bit longer, and is more dangerous. However it also removes a lot of the possibility of doing damage. Why not block the tree out? Either just chucking and throwing or piecing it out with a false crotch? Just wondering.

 

[murphy4trees]

Biggy,
Congrats on a job well done. It's a satisfying feeling knowing not one in 20 other guys would have had the skill and blls to do it your way. SWEET !!!!
Ryan,
usually when a tree can be felled from the ground, it's faster, a lot easier, safer (no chance of falling or aerial rescue), and in this case more rewarding, than climbing and riggging. That's why felling technique is so useful.

Did anyone read the article in July's TCI about Davey getting 30% more productivity from 3 climbers/crews by giving them some new school training. Most of that training was in felling technique.

Kevin,
This sounds like the kind of tree where it is necessary to stay with the saw in the backcut and steer this tree right through the needle. It's much different than felling a tree in the woods. A tree, standing alone, eliminates almost all the risk from falling debris and a good clean notch eliminates almost all chance of barber chairing.
God Bless All,
Daniel

 

[o0_TreeMan_0o]

Sometimes the risk of "throwing" a tree is worth it to avoid the amount of damage of blocking it out or the time it takes using blocks and ropes. You can pull out ruts with your fork cheaper than replacing sod and topsoil. With the competition we have here in my city, flopping a tree and getting it to the chipper is the only way to survive.