Wedges

[Cedarkerf]

Unless you really need to do some heavy lifting the plastics work just fine the hard heads are noticeably heavier and more expensive, The hard heads earn their keep on big back leaners tho 30 plus inchers

 

[farmboy53]

I use the wedge to keep the bar from getting pinched. Remember if the wind blows the wedge can fall out, as the tree starts forward out it comes only to have the wind bring the tree back with no wedge. If the tree has a back lean and the wedge falls out as described the saw gets pinched, the hinge breaks and major damage may occur. The wedge is no guarantee. If the tree has a back lean and you attempt to use a wedge to lift, while pounding you can break the hinge.

 

[alderman]

I just picked up a few of the blemished wedges at Madsens whenever I stopped in. Most of the stuff I cut can be handled with a couple of all wedges.

 

[Evanrude]

Last tree I cut was a good sized maple in my neighbors yard (26" dbh or so). It was pretty straight but had quite a bit more weight on the opposite side of my falling direction. After beating and wrecking some wedges trying to get it over, I really started liking my hard head wedge! Eventually, I had to cut a notch and put my trusty bottle jack in it to get er over, wedges wouldn't quite do it. Nonetheless, gotta get me some more hard heads!

Most of my wedges are Stihl or Timber Savage (with the grippers). They don't stack worth a damn when there's a lot of weight on them. They kept kicking out of the kerf on me in this tree.

 

[ford4500]

I rub a little dirt between the wedges befor stacking them, seems to help keep them from kicking out.

 

[MCW]

Don't eliminate aluminium wedges either guys. Very handy in our hardwoods.

 

[Wood Doctor]

I use these that I make in my own shop using oak:





About a 4-degree wedge. It takes a little skill using the chain saw.

 

[bcaarms]

Wedges are one area I have learned to never go to work without. If I'm taking a chainsaw, I take wedges and either an axe or sledge. This site has taught me to use wedges as an indicator of the tree starting to move. Getting a wedge in quickly does more than just protect against pinching. I don't fell in changing winds without a rope in the tree. As for the type of wedge, I usually end up with a few cheap plastic ones because my hard head ones seem to grow legs and walk off.

 

[MasterBlaster]

And I'm just the opposite. About the only time I use a wedge is when I'm bucking a log.

But I'm not a logger. 99% of the time, I have targets everywhere.

 

[RandyMac]

You can buck any log without wedges. Falling timber? Better have two or three wedges of the correct size.

 

[treeslayer2003]

Matt, where do ya get aluminum wedges? pics? i might would try um. i never had good luck stacking, always slip.......i rather use three or four side by side.

i use red head triple tapers most of the time.

 

[CTYank]

Couple 5", couple 8" wedges with the lil bumps. Always plenty of sticks that can serve as hammers around these parts.

Wedges = greatest cheap insurance for bucking/felling.

 

[slowp]

 

[MCW]

Matt, where do ya get aluminum wedges? pics? i might would try um. i never had good luck stacking, always slip.......i rather use three or four side by side.

i use red head triple tapers most of the time.

I've spoken with an ex hardwood faller in Australia who always used Stihl alloy wedges. He made a good point about plastics in our hardwoods and I have experienced it myself first hand. Even with the hardheads you can be driving them in but all you are doing is shearing the plastic off and creating a step in the wedge. Alloys don't do this. Apparently Oregon have improved their alloy quality recently and their wedges now rival Stihl who have been the benchmark for years. A supplier of mine has also now sourced a decent alloy wedge forged in Australia which is right up there with the Stihl alloy. Stihl alloys sell for about USD$50 each here whereas the Australian wedges are less than half of that. You can drive alloys hard into big, heavy, leaning hardwoods and every hit drives them in further. Plastics in this type of timber will reach a point and stop. Any extra hitting wrecks them.

I'll get pictures up later of good and bad alloys.

 

[slowp]

I packed in some aluminum wedges. We were logging out a trail in the wilderness. Aluminum wedges are heavier than you'd think they should be. We were using a cross cut saw so weren't going to saw into them. Oh, and we were bucking up blowdown--not falling.