proper direction of tree falling

[lumberjack48]

I put my trees right where i wanted them !!
 
I never left the tree precut, it was only notched, i finished the cut when the skidder was pushing.

I left my job at night there wasn't a tree left in the woods, theres nothing worse than trees froze down or a foot of snow on them.

I started fresh every morning, while the skidders were warming up I'd go start laying them down.

Four of us working, 2 drivers, one topper and one feller, this is when the markets were taking a lot of wood.
When the markets tightened up i had to lay off one driver and the topper, the wife and me worked.

Most of Mn is flat, i've ran in to some steep ground, not that many days of it, expect when i logged up on the Voyage National Park, on Lake Kabetogama, that is rough ground, steep and lots of rock.
I logged the winter of 1970 on Locater Lake trail, i stayed in logging camp with the wife and 3 kids. I barged my skidder across  Kabetogama in Sept, beautiful country.
There were two other couples, and 4 French Canadians staying in camp, they were strip cutting.
I brought a logger friend of mine to work with me.
You can't buy these kind of times

 

[bill m]

I guess if putting them right where you wanted them means somewhere on the ground than you don't need wedges. But if you want to put them where it makes the skidder operators job easier and not destroy all of the understory regeneration it's a good idea to learn directional felling and use wedges.

[Paul_H]

I agree Bill.If you're falling a face on a side hill,one log in the wrong spot will make it miserable for the lay.

[John Mc]

A tree will fall three directions with out a using a wedge.

If it's got any lean to it, I'd buy up to 180˚ of choices (up to 90˚ on either side of the direction of lean). I wouldn't buy 270˚, which is what I think you may be getting at with your "three directions". Once you get past 90˚ from the lean, you are trying to go against the lean. You're going to need something to give it a push (or pull) in that case. Could be a wedge, could be a felling lever (if you feel like carrying one around), could be a skidder, come-along, etc.

Disadvantage using a wedge, i can't imagine playing with a wedge when theres a skidder at my heals wanting trees on the ground.
 I can't see where i could save time using a wedge, if i had a tree that i could not pull with a hinge, i would notch it, have it ready to tip, and keep on felling other trees. When i saw the skidder coming back I'd wave her over, i'd run over to the tree, a little push over it goes.

And this is where I come back to my statement that wedges "can save a lot of time when you consider the whole logging operation, not just the process of getting trees on the ground." I'd have the feller doing the felling, rather than tying up an expensive piece of equipment doing the job the feller should be doing. I'd also want the feller to be able to put the tree down in the direction that minimizes residual stand damage, and is the most efficient direction for skidding... even if this direction is against the lean.

[Ianab]

I was thinking the same thing, using a $50,000 skidder to do the job a $5 wedge could do, in the same time?

It's not like you even need to wedge every tree, the ones you do, it takes maybe 30secs to set the wedge, complete the cuts normally, and give the wedge a few whacks to tip the tree. It's over before you could get the skidder turned around and lined up behind the tree.

Ian

[thecfarm]

I use wedges,just because I don't have a skidder in my back pocket. For alot of guys on here we are just small scale loggers or just cut firewood.

[lumberjack48]

 I'm talking about a clear cut operation.

 My trees all layed the same why, i worked on finding the best method to get timber out with a pole skidder and a free hand feller 30 years, i did not want to see a skidder tied up because of poor felling methods or broken trees, broken chokers or mainline, because a feller layed the timber cross ways in the stumps, he would be down the road.

I wanted those Detroit's screaming, not setting trying to hook up a messed up drag, i made money when the trees were on the landing not laying in the woods.
I set goals every day, in a good solid stand of timber, i wanted 80 turns, sounds crazy, i was a die-hard logger, the wife was worse then me.

After i got hurt the wife kept the job going, she would load me up everyday , i sat in the pickup all day.
She had my brother falling for her, he came out of the woods and gased up the 044, than poured a cup of coffee and got in the pickup with me, we were Bs'ing , this is about 9am, we didn't break on till 10. Then all of a sudden the pickup door flies open, she grabs his cup, throws it out on the ground, she yells this isn't break time, i need you in the woods, then she looks over at me, she yells at me, what the H___ or you doing, you know better.
Dam i thought, i sure taught her well.

We hired a couple guys after i got hurt, the first night they came in i asked how much they got out, they said, they fell all day, didn't skid a thing, in other words nobody made a dime, a 0 day.
We learned real quick, that all the real loggers were all ready working, and if we could't be on the job, we were better off to park the equipment.


 

[Piston]

I use wedges,just because I don't have a skidder in my back pocket. For alot of guys on here we are just small scale loggers or just cut firewood.

 

Not only funny, but also a great point. 

[captain_crunch]

Here in Oregon we generaly carry 2 wedges at all times. The old steel wedges used flat 1/8 in steel plates and wedges were from 18-20 in long but they kinda went away like the hand saw. But you could tip over a big one with them

[Dave VH]

I wonder how many bent bars are out there because people refuse to use wedges.

I'm not a professional feller, I need my wedges!  I'm yet to get a skidder.  Maybe if I had the bigger equipment, I'd use it.

[54Dutchman]

No experiance - but wedges sound like a good idea.  Where can they be purchased

[beenthere]

Chainsaw shop, farm stores, box stores that sell chainsaws....among a few.

Or click on sponsor Bailey's (left column Lucas Mill Bailey's) for some wedges (plus much more).

[John Mc]

Here's a link to a search on Bailey's site for "wedges". Lots to choose from.

I use 10 or 12" long wedges, even on smaller trees. The little "mini" wedges sold at some hardware stores are just about worthless.

Basic uses for wedges are fairly obvious, IMO, but learning to make the most of them can take some practice and training.

[thecfarm]

Some use a about a 2 pound hammer to tap them in,others just use a small piece of wood. I use the wood,about 2 feet long,and about what ever feels right in my hand for roundness,maybe 3 inches. Remember these are made just to tap kinda hard,not made to use all you got. On some problem trees,if it's bigger enough 2-3 can be used to make it fall. Just go from one to the other,just by tapping them in.

[John Mc]

I use the back of an axe with about a 2+ foot handle. I'm not giving it all I've got, but found a short-handled two pound hammer was just too much work for me - especially when working on larger trees or those with a lot of back lean. The longer handle lets you get more into it without straining, and lets you stand more upright when driving the wedge.

The axe is a nice size for me, since the handle fits in my "job box" that carries spare chains, tools, sharpening file & guide, stump vise, helmet, wedges, web sling to use for an anchor point, log tongs, spare mix oil, bar oil, first aid kit (quite a bit more complete than the pouch on my belt), etc. If I grab that box, a chainsaw, and some fuel, I've got just about everything I need for some felling and bucking firewood.

[chevytaHOE5674]

Also if you carry an axe to pound wedges with, then you also have a tool for chopping out a pinched bar, knocking small limbs off to get to the base of a tree, knocking the "wooden wedge" out of and cleaning up your face cut, etc.