tree cutting

[nomak]

I am wanting to cut the tree attached down sometime soon like maybe this weekend but with out getting squashed or squashing anything else...It has a natural lean to it that leans away from house and falls into a pretty much open area. The top will fall into my gravel drive way but I can deal with that. My only two major concerns are First of all I have never cut a tree that large and tall... and secondly it will be falling up hill when it falls but there are no other obstructions trees or what not in the way of its path if I cut it correctly..So Im asking for any advice before I attempt tackling this job on my own or maybe even with advice offered I get talked out of it..lol... Im intimidated by large trees and I have only cut trees down that were at most 20 foot tall or so...so heres a pic of the beast Im wanting to tackle.. any insight greatly appreciated... Its a maple by the way...

 

[EdenT]

Why?

Why are you cutting the tree down?
Why aren't you hiring a professional?

 

[DJ4wd]

I am no pro so take this advise with a grain of salt. If there are no obstructions in its path then thats 90% of the issue gone. I would take some time to be sure that it will fall the way its leaning and to make sure that your escape path is clear ( run away very fast path). Make a healthy face cut then make a back cut just slightly above the were the hinge will be.I find its helpful to cut just a few seconds longer than you think you need to, your hinge will turn out cleaner. As stated before I am not a pro, just a guy who has dropped his share of trees and who likes helping out.

 

[gwiley]

When you are cutting a tree that leans toward its lay it is generally a good idea to use straps or chains to prevent a barber chair. This means that you firmly secure the tree about 1' above your cuts with heavy duty (multi-ton rated) binders.

Even if the tree is small it can be risky - even an 8" DBH tree can kill you if you get hit with a barber chair (think of a giant swinging a 4x4 baseball bat at your head). A splitting tree generates a HUGE amount of force if the top swings a vertical section out.

Some folks will call you a pansy for taking the time to be safe, and the truth is that most of the time you will be fine without the precautions. The downside is that it only takes one fatal injury to kill you, and you only get one shot at life.

 

[DJ4wd]

:agree2:

 

[randyg]

More info please?

What is the DBH (diameter at breast height) of this tree?
How much of a lean in degrees? (hang a string with nut on end for a plumb bob out at arms length to establish true verticle, as being on side-hill, sometimes things get a little deceptive)
How steep of an uphill slope are we talking? If you think tree may slide back down the hill after felling, it probably will. Play it out in your head and allow ample room for error.
Possible to get some on location advice from someone with more experience than you?

 

[nomak]

well I cutter down just lil bit ago... I took gwileys advice and wrapped a tie down strap about a 2 or 3 inch wide one around it and tightened it down so as to prevent the barber chair effect. Then from there I walked around it checking for any obvious dangers to take into account made my escape route and then went to town on it..All in all beings this is the biggest tree I have ever fell everything seemed to go perfect.. It landed right were I wanted it to and just worked out perfectly...I did paint some orange guide lines to help me with my face cut and my back cut beings im new at this but everything went great... Only thing that happened that could have been bad on me was I hitched a ride up the hill to the front of the house with my 11 yr old son driving the lawn mower and I hopped in the trailor.. well beings I was sitting on the edge and there was an incline to the hill we went up.. I got dumped on my ass...lol...Im ok but sure scared the heck out of my son but I finally got him calmed down and off we went again except I decided to walk the hill this time..lolol...I told him it wasnt his fault I shouldnt been riding on the edge of the trailor like that..But hes calmed down now.. But I wanted to at least post some pics of what I accomplished with my tree cutting today..I have yet to buck it up but at least its down...Dont know if you can see it but it has some bug damage in the center of it and up at top its had some critter trying to make a home in it so im sure sooner or later it would have been useless even for firewood so Im glad I got it down now and will have it for this winter..thanks everyone on their advice..:greenchainsaw:

 

[randyg]

Good on you! Glad it went well for you. Now you want a bigger one to take down don't chya... : ) It is addictive.

 

[DJ4wd]

Awesome Job man, congrats

 

[EdenT]

Why are you cutting the tree down?
Why aren't you hiring a professional?

... the reason I cut the tree down is because its in soft ground and was leaning pretty bad and trees in my yard are notoriuos for uprooting when they start leaning like that.. so beings that tree was at a pretty substantial lean and it was 75 ft tall and the ground already bulging up on the back side of it well I figure it was time for it to go ...pluas it had tree rot in it at the top of tree so it was dying on a side note as well...

Thanks for coming back to me on this one nomak. Your reasoning seems OK to me. You got the tree down safely, good job. You are obviously a little more skilled than I gave you credit for. Marking the cut lines with the paint was a v/good idea. Looks like you took out a little too much hinge on the lower side getting it to fall. My suggestion for next time is get a rope in the tree and have someone 'pull' the tree down when the hinge is appropriate thickness. This will give you more control and time to leave the area.

 

[nomak]

Thanks for coming back to me on this one nomak. Your reasoning seems OK to me. You got the tree down safely, good job. You are obviously a little more skilled than I gave you credit for. Marking the cut lines with the paint was a v/good idea. Looks like you took out a little too much hinge on the lower side getting it to fall. My suggestion for next time is get a rope in the tree and have someone 'pull' the tree down when the hinge is appropriate thickness. This will give you more control and time to leave the area.

thanks for the compliment on the paint lines and the advice on the hinge as well...It was getting awful thin to the point I thought I was gonna have to use a wedge to get it to fall over..but for this being my first big tree I was proud of myself and no one got hurt...