Chainsawing - Yell TIMBER

[jerrye]

The reason I was told was due to wedging. If it's needed the wedges are easier to drive in & keep in place if the cut is more horizontal instead of vertical. Also if the tree sets back on the wedge, and it does happen to shoot out, it will be less likely to go squirrely if the back cut is more horizontal. DAMHIKT.

If ya wanna, I can run up your way one Saturday & we can cut some trees & I'll show ya how I was taught. I got rid of all my equipment though, so I hope you have some. I have an uncle & aunt near you that I need to get up to see anyway!

[jeff...]

Originally Posted by jerrye

The reason I was told was due to wedging. If it's needed the wedges are easier to drive in & keep in place if the cut is more horizontal instead of vertical. Also if the tree sets back on the wedge, and it does happen to shoot out, it will be less likely to go squirrely if the back cut is more horizontal. DAMHIKT.

If ya wanna, I can run up your way one Saturday & we can cut some trees & I'll show ya how I was taught. I got rid of all my equipment though, so I hope you have some. I have an uncle & aunt near you that I need to get up to see anyway!

Don't really have any trees to come down right now and I got the weekend planed out with the family. We'll have to hookup sometime soon though.

[Gofor]

Originally Posted by jeff...

...Now how about the back cut why should it be more horizontal than at a slight angle? ..
Thanks

Jeff: My thought wasn't that it needed to be horizontal, per se, but that the back cut should be higher than the notch. Your picture showed the back cut intersecting with the notch and the notch was flat bottomed. This leaves nothing to prevent the tree from kicking back. With the flat bottom notch, the back cut should be far enough above the notch to leave a "Shoulder" to stop the tree from sliding back off the stump as the tree falls. However, if it slabs out, (splits up the middle as it falls) the back can still kick back at you as one of your previous avatars so aptly illustrated.

So did I get the test question right?

I have always used the flat bottom notch, but after reading this, if I ever do drop another one, I will probably go with the 20-70 notch.

I do have to take down a couple dying pecan trees at my nephew's, tho. The good thing is that they are relatively small (about 40'.) the bad things are that they are multi-trunked, diseased (don't know how much good wood is holding them up) and are yard trees, so I have no idea what they may have grown into them. Any thoughts?
I am definitely no expert, having only dropped a few dozen trees, and only a few in the 30"d trunk, 100' tall category, and none of those in the woods. Gettin too old for much of that lumberjack stuff.

Go

[jeff...]

I've dropped a few, We had a blast one weekend a few months ago when a buddy of mine and I dropped about 30 oaks and two big 42" plus diameter poplars out at his farm. I did most of the butt cutting and yelling timber and he did most of the bucking and limbing. I must admit, all this time I thought I was cutting those bad boys off the stump correctly but always wondered why they never just laid down still staying on the stump. The more I stop and think about it the more I think Jerrye is on to something. I've always cut a flat bottom wedge and had a pretty steep angle on back cut.

I can't recall a time when I've actually had a trunk hinge and stay on the stump. I can see why now, as the tree is falling the top of the wedge catches the flat wedge bottom and causes the hinge wood to pull away from either the trunk or the stump (sometimes both). By angle cutting both the wedge top and bottom, there's nothing left for the trunk to hit when it's falling. So in theory the trunk should hinge as it's laying down and stay on the butt.

I have had a few get away from me before but they were tall thin wimpy pines and the wind was blowing when they did. I've also been knocked on my rear once because some 1/2 rotten hickory decided it was going to barber chair on me, that really got my heart pumping I tell you. Thankfully I have never been hurt more than a scratch or two. Dropping trees is very dangerous and you have to take all the safety precautions you can think of besides the one you know about.

This thread really helped me a lot.

Thanks guys

[jerrye]

Originally Posted by jeff...

Don't really have any trees to come down right now and I got the weekend planed out with the family. We'll have to hookup sometime soon though.

Sounds good. This wk-end bad for me too. Maybe we can plan something 2-4 weeks ahead? I usually need this much time to "catch up" enough. Kinda sucks being on the road 50%-60% of the month.