Too much for my come-along , so how to lay it down w/o busting it

[chainsaw_louie]

Hi,

I am preparing a white oak for milling on the lucas.  The location is on a slight hillside and the tree is balanced on a log it fell on.   I tried pulling it up the hill with my 4/8000 lb come-along but gave up trying when it didnt move.  I want to cut it in half but dont want to break it when the end in the air falls.  Any suggestions:

 

I'm thinking I should roll it off the fulcrum its on then cut it so it dont fall too far .

Tim

[zopi]

Undercut the part in the air..say a third of the way through, then cut from the top down to that undercut..trick is not getting under the log when it falls.
Tow the whole trunk off that little ridge if you can...

[isawlogs]

 Well theres a few ways of going about this , one would be to cut it where it is, do an under cut without getting the saw caught in there , then cut it from the top down.
  You could make a crib under it at both ends to support it while you cut it if you are not comfortable with the under over cut.
 Me, I would under cut it and then cut both sides some and then go in from the top.
 Zopi , you're quicker then me 

[Ianab]

I agree with the others about cutting from the bottom first, but I would actually try and create an narrow notch, similar to when you are falling a tree. It need not be very wide, only enough to allow the far end of the tree to sag to the ground. Need not even be 1/3 though, just deep enough to get some decent hinge wood.

Then bore cut through the log above the hinge, form a hinge, then work up and cut the holding strap at the top of the log. That way if you get tearout it's going to be in the top of the log, which is waste slab wood anyway.

If all goes well, the log will hinge and the end will sag to the ground. Carefully cut off your hinge wood to separate the two logs.

Yes it's a bit of messing about, but if you don't have heavy machinery, don't want to split the log, and of course want to stay safe.. it's worth the extra effort.

Ian

[eastberkshirecustoms]

 Maybe you should have split it in two on your head like your avatar Nice log, where in NY are you located? I agree with Ianab, undercut with a notch.

[T Welsh]

Under cut by 1/3 until it starts to close in on the bar,then come in from the top and run the saw down to the first cut. trim your log while its in the air. and stick a chain under the front end before you cut it so you can drag it out of there with a car,truck,tractor or what ever! Tim

[chainsaw_louie]

Thanks fellas, good ideas , glad I asked.

Tim

[logboy]

What Lucas do you have?  What are you milling it into?

[chainsaw_louie]

The other thing was that before I asked you how to handle this one,  I was just about to tear into it with the ol husky. It was late in the day, almost dusk and I wanted to be done with it, then for some reason I hesitated.  I've gotten hurt with these late in the day actions before and that 2000lb log made a voice say 'hold on, think about this ' .

Re the mill, I got a Lucas 825 that I bought used last summer and have been learning to use it on wind fallen trees.  I got to admit though, taking the mill to this particular tree is not going to easy.  I've been thinking that it would be much easier to speak to the tree service guys and offer them a place to drop off large pine and other non lumber/firewood quality trees.

This is the 2nd white oak I have gotten. Like the first one,  I'll make this into 1"x4-8"x10' boards and use them for flooring or sell them.  My thought is to see if I can cut enough lumber to build a 20'x30' barn .  Problem is that around here most of the free trees I have gotten so far or will get are oak and that isnt going to be easy to frame a building with .   Just enjoying the hunt for now.


Tim

[Magicman]

Just enjoying the hunt for now.

Sometimes the "enjoying" is the best part.    

[Chris Burchfield]

If you don't have it yet, a block pulley for a snatch block would double your come-along pulling strength, by attaching it to the end of your log and anchoring back at the come-along.  You just don't want to exceed the cable strength which I don't think would occur.

[John Mc]

The other thing was that before I asked you how to handle this one,  I was just about to tear into it with the ol husky. It was late in the day, almost dusk and I wanted to be done with it, then for some reason I hesitated.  I've gotten hurt with these late in the day actions before and that 2000lb log made a voice say 'hold on, think about this ' .

Glad you listened to that little voice. I have a friend who is a ski patrol guy at a mountain near me. He's always saying "you won't believe how many people I've pulled down off the mountain on a rescue sled who tell me 'this was going to be my last run'." It's that one last job that always ends up with the oversight or stupid mistake that costs you an injury or a lot of time and money.

I almost lost the last two sections of my index finger in my log splitter: I found myelf at the end of the day, ready to quit. Talked myself into a bit more when I figured I just had a bit more to go to finish filling the trailer. Three split logs later, I was on my way to the E.R. with a crush injury. Stupid mistake, doing something something I "never do" -- I used to be able to say "I'm always very careful where I put my hands when operating this".

John Mc

[chainsaw_louie]

I took all of your advice and it worked perfectly.
  a) added support under the far end of the log so it wouldn't fall far
  b) cut the notch underneath
  c)  did the plunge cut and established the hinge wood
  d)  cut the top strap

After cutting the top strap wood, the free end of the  log sank down 6", to the supporting wood I stacked underneath, then held in place.  I had a choker cable w come-along attached between another tree and the center of this log and with this, I was able to pull the two logs apart safely.  No damage done by this operation to the wood or the operator! 

Here are some pics
 

...after it 'sat down' on the support
 

....it didn't bend much due to the support be close
 



Now I wish that I had  asked you earlier before I cut the root ball off . That operation didn't go so well.  I cut it the base of the tree free from the root ball by cutting down from the top with the result being that it cracked in the center of the tree trunk. A lot of tension was pulling up on the root ball by the crown of the tree balanced halfway in the middle by the log it was resting on .  I could have avoided the center crack I made during that cut, had I followed steps above (notch underneath, plunge cut , strap cut) . Live and learn.

Thanks !

[John Mc]

Looks like you did a nice job!

[Magicman]

Sawing a root ball off is dangerous, and probably more so if the log is being bucked while still attached to the root ball.  That root ball will/can stand back up.   

[shelbycharger400]

like magicman said,
or the log can "slide" back and pinch you or roll,    sometimes you have no choice but to cut the root ball off on BIG blowdown leaners, side winch them to get them out of the trees.

[Ianab]

Code: [Select]

No damage done by this operation to the wood or the operator! 
That's the important thing 

That's exactly how I envisioned cutting it, and you were able to keep the log under control the whole time. Nice job.

Ian

[cutterboy]

NICE JOB, LOUIE!!!  I love it when someone asks for advice and then actually follows it. You did good. Thanks for the pictures and thanks for letting us know how it came out.
   All the best, Cutter

[chainsaw_louie]

Thats exactly what that root ball did, after it was free,  it stood back up like when the tree was vertical.  The other side went up too but not as far, cause the tree was balanced on a pivot point about 15' up fro the root ball.  In my inexperience, I mis-read the situation:  a) cut from the top 2/3 and then b)cut from the bottom.  This resulted in getting the bar pinched so tight the channel in the bar had to be pryed open in a spot and the main and best log cracking down the center.

[WDH]

Good job!

[John Mc]

Thats exactly what that root ball did, after it was free,  it stood back up like when the tree was vertical.  The other side went up too but not as far, cause the tree was balanced on a pivot point about 15' up fro the root ball.  In my inexperience, I mis-read the situation:  a) cut from the top 2/3 and then b)cut from the bottom.  This resulted in getting the bar pinched so tight the channel in the bar had to be pryed open in a spot and the main and best log cracking down the center.

Been there, done that (minus the severe bar pinch). Glad it wasn't on a high-value tree. Fortunately, I learned something from that experience, as I'm sure you did from this one.

[Magicman]

Downed trees have many forces exerting pressure in so many different ways.  Limby trees and root ball trees are especially dangerous.  This and mandolin's thread are very good reminders for all of us.