Kevin, Chet, I need your advice again

[Chet]

Wooda never guessed dat.....     Looks like Kevin when he's writin' his name in da snow         

[beenthere]

.................
    I don't think that would hold up in court.

.........

For the court record, that is my saw on the ground...not his. 

I've never had such a fight keeping the bar from getting caught as I did with knocking these willows down and brushing out the tops. Just a half-inch sliver of wood hangs on as the limb rolls, and grabs at the bar.

But I sure made good use of information from this forum, and plunge cutting, and wedging to get these buggers down. And a lot of good luck too. 

[Kevin]

I know what that's like, you can hardly get an undercut in a limb without it pinching the bar.
Very little strength in the wood.

[routestep]

He would need a bucket to reach those branches, it looks pretty high up. If he can't get one in to the tree then he would has to guess if the tree will fall up or down if the root ball is cut. From the picture I think the trunk will still fall down and the rootball try to settle back in its hole. The trunk's weight looks greater than the branches weight and moment. If he cuts from the top side, I think he should slant from the branches to the root ball.  Slant from roots to top if starting on the bottom side. Trunk falls down, root ball goes up or stays still.  Disclamer: I have gotten my saw pinched more than a few occassions and had to use equipment to free it. One time I finished a cut with a large hand cross cut just in case it got pinched, leaving my chainsaw available.

[Coon]

Personally I have never had much to do with this kind of situation but.....  I did see my grandfather, who logged and cut firewood every winter throughout his life, cut one one time.  I phoned him earlier this afternoon  and he reminded of what he did.  He even remembered the particular tree he cut when I was watching him. 

What he did was a plunge cut from each side on an angle pointed towards the stump. He plunged from the middle and worked his way down on both sides.  Next he cut half of the way through each side from the top down at the same angle as the plung cut.  From there he would cut a little more in one cut then the other and watch to see which direction the stump wanted to go.  Once the tree started to move a little he then quit cutting and hooked on a loooong tow rope just above the cuts.  From there he used the tractor on the far end of the rope.  He put a little tension on the rope and would give it a few good hard nudges.  If it didn't want to break free he then pulled from the other side.  He says if you do this from both sides and it still doesn't break free then give the rope a half a dozen wraps around the tree before you hook it to the tractor.

Seems way too dangerous for me to even try this but this is what he says to do.  My grandfather is 84 years old and never quit in the bush until 6 years ago and he still has all of his body parts.

[Gary_C]

The trees are down now, and bucked up for clean-up. A couple pics (and yes, the guy is sawing!!)

 

Glad you clarified that. 

Are you getting firewood for next year? 

That should be enough to carry you thru at least August.   

[rockenbman]

That looks like the mess I cut in all the time beenthere.I have to pull out most of my falling trees