Using a Clinometer and Pro-Sight

[Marky Mark]

I was surfing around on the web and came accross this page

http://www.osha-slc.gov/SLTC/loggin.../otherhandtools-list/otherhandtools-list.html


they mention using a clinometer and a prosight I wanted to know how they are used, are they popular and where can I look at one on the web?
Thanks

 

[Kevin]

http://store.wtsherrill.com/pgi-Product Spec?18453

 

[Kevin]

I think Beeboo used one to calculate how much of the tree would be resting on the top of the neighbors house across the street when he was doing removals.

 

[Tom Dunlap]

Use http://google.com/
to find out more info on a clinometer.

Go to http://www.forestapps.com/
to find out more about the Pro Sight.

Tom

 

[Frans]

equipment source

Also check out www.forestry-suppliers.com.
Good place to buy tools.
Frans

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

or you can take a tape mesure and mark 10 ft on the tree,

hold a ruler out at arms length, walk back till the to ft ts at the 1 inch mark

now you have a scale ofe 1 in=10 ft lok up tp where the tree tops out at 5.5 inches and infer the tree is aproximately 55ft tall.

 

[DDM]

How accurate would you say the prosite is? For instance if the prosite revealed a 50' tree and you have 60' of space to drop the tree would you trust it?

 

[Nickrosis]

Depends on you. With all of these instruments, the accuracy really relies upon who is operating it. Just recently, we had an Ocular Showdown at camp where we challenged our seasoned professor to a competition of eye-balling tree heights in a plantation. Then, they used instruments like the Pro-Sight, Clinometer, Biltmore Stick, etc. to calculate the height. It was fun watching them beat him nearly every time. (Aside to Tim, it was Schabel)

For half the day, we measured with different instruments and found the simplest of measuring devices to be as accurate as the sophisticated equipment. If I had a device to use, though, it would be the clinometer, by far. Before relying on it for backyard removals, get a lot of practice on other trees, then measure them out on the ground with a tape measure to see how close you really were. Just some scrambled thoughts.

Nickrosis

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

And then for added insurance cut the stump high to take a few more feet off.

I just use a stck at 90 degrees from fall path to get a perspective.

hold stick our, fingers at hinge hight, tip at tree top.

Rotate at hinge hight

 

[Tom Dunlap]

Dr. Pete taught me how he "calibrated" his height gauge. He used the square one that Tim Ard used to use.

Pete would hang a throwline in a tree with a piece of flagging tape attached at some height and the weight on the ground. He'd step back and take a measurement. Then he'd drop the throwline and lay out the length on the ground. After doing this several times you can get more accurate and consistent measurements. That practice won him the felling competition at the Arbormaster championships when they were at the SSA conferenced in WI a few years ago.

Tom

 

[DDM]

Originally posted by John Paul Sanborn
And then for added insurance cut the stump high to take a few more feet off.

At about 25'?

 

[geofore]

measure

At 11:00 am and 1:00 pm measure the shadow of the tree and compare it to the shadow of a yardstick. Yardstick is three feet and shows a shadow for three feet. You now have the length of shadow three feet equals. How many of those lengths does the trees shadow show? How tall is the tree? at 11:00 am at 1:00 pm? should be the same.
I use a laser and a 45 degree angle to hit the top of the tree, when you are at the hieght of the tree and the laser is at 45 degrees measure back to the tree and that is the hieght of the tree. Do you need to be this accurate? Have the groundman hold a string the same length at the tree and you at the other end of the string and walk around the tree and see what you will hit if the tree goes in any direction and choose the cheapest target for insurance purposes. Notch and back cut. Practice this on trees in an open field where you won't hit anything until you get the tree to fall where you want it to land. In four or five years you should be pretty good at tree's hieght and landing them accurately.

 

[Lineman]

Wow, the old yardstick trick. Didn't know anybody else used that. Leaving a ruler in your truck is about the cheapest way I know of.
Getting back to the title of this thread, a clinometer comes in mighty handy when working on slopes (and cloudy days).