What falling cut do you use for tall skinny trees?

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zwoehr

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I have a bunch of 4-12" fir trees to remove. On the bigger ones i can use a traditional directional notch and backcut. I have been using a 2x4 to jill poke them over since a wedge bottoms out before it lifts the tree. The really skinny ones are kind of a problem.

I'm trying to figure out a safe way to control the direction of the fall, hopefully something that can be done with one person. What techniques do you guys use?
 
Get a throw ball and put a line in them. It won't take much tension with a rope come a long or even just a hitch with a carabiner and a strap around a fixed object to get them leaning the direction you want them to go.
 
Taking as given - trees close to vertical and evenly weighted in the head - normal cuts on direction of fall up to 30% dia, back cut to teetering, retain hingewood, put saw in left hand and push over with right. I think you need to have the dual cuts in direction of fall to give tree something to fall into as it goes out of vertical.
Referring to - " The really skinny ones are kind of a problem." ( ie I'm guessing the 4" - 5" dia size.)
Just what I'd try, have to see how it went.
Above posts also worth considering but a bit slower if they can be manhandled.
 
If a small tree needs a wedge to go where you want it ,make the back cut first pound the wedge in ,then make the face,but leave enough hinge to fall the tree with the wedge.
 
For the small ones, 4-8", just make your notch and back cut, then push them over. Unless they have a large lean, they'll stand there long enough for you to begin pushing. Sometimes, I'll get the groundie to push or pull with a pole pruner - faster than setting a rope.

Above 8" you can use a wedge or rope. Definitely by 12" I'd be wanting to use a wedge.
 
Tongue and groove is fun. There's a couple good YouTube videos.
Interesting I was actually thinking about trying to do that with the bore cut through the directional notch. Looks like a good way to do it by yourself when you can't have your helper pushing on the tree. Kind of time consuming to set up though.
 
Not really. Shallow notch, bore the face, set the wedge, make your coos bay t cuts, pound the wedge.
I'm a foreman for a production based construction company. So I always think our things in that context. Where if something takes a couple of seconds longer it's no big deal, until you do it a couple of thousand times.
In this case safety and control have to outweigh maximum productivity.

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