Whoo, that was close!

[Pilot]

Roger is a very experienced logger, former Clackamas county "logger of the year" in a big timber county. He has done a little logging for me and he volunteered to take down some trees that I wanted down before the winter storms hit, as they were a danger to the house.

He's a little embarrassed, as things didn't work out quite as planned.

32 inch Doug-fir, 100 ft. tall, 90 ft. from the house and 20 ft. or so from the pole barn.

Fired up his saw, nice undercut, checked his aim, started his back cut, didn't like the alignment, so moved his saw and started cutting again. Got in a few inches, and pounded in some wedges. A little more cutting, more pounding, more cutting, more pounding and eventually it started to move right toward Roger! I hollered, he didn't hear me but he moved fast. And from where I was, it looked like it was headed for the side of the barn.

Well, it couldn't have been better. Didn't hurt anyone and just missed the barn, lined up perfectly for removal.

Take a look at the pics. One shows the cutting error and it broke where he didn't leave a high enough step and enough hinge. The other shot shows how close it came to the barn. All we did was cut limbs to make it easier to pick them up; none have been moved from where they fell. Not shown is that the butt kicked back across the stump about 4 ft. Had it not kicked back, the longest, lowest limbs would have hit the barn but probably wouldn't have hurt it because it would have just been the ends of the limbs. As it was, it didn't touch it and the top fell about 3 ft. short of hitting my utility trailer.

The second and 3rd trees hit right where he was aiming.

 

[creekbend]

Just goes to show: There is no Substitute for Experience. And a little luck, just in case a sudden burst of wind occurs.:thumbsup:

 

[brin]

I have a friend who was a lineman and then 20 yrs. ago he went into the tree business and he falls any dangerous trees when I have them...It is amazing to see how careful and accurate he is...Usually on one close to the house or barn he climbs it and takes it down a piece at a time from the top...It is amazing to watch him and how fast he branches the tree from the top down and then cuts off fireplace size chunks as he goes...He and I have often discussed the dangers and he is well aware and always very careful but he knows his stuff...that's for sure....Glad it missed your barn ! If I had cut it you would not have a barn anymore...LOL

 

[weedpharma]

I have cut down lots of trees up to 500mm diameter and not wrecked anything yet. This is more to good luck than good management.

Does anyone know of a source of good instruction on aiming and felling safely? I am sure many would also be interested.

Weedpharma

 

[20 20]

I have been dropping trees for over 30yrs, folks have asked if I was a pro. I allways say there is no such thing when it comes to logging. Anything that can, will happen, the only pro in the woods is the one that thinks{safety...} and is constantly trying to be aware of their surroundings. I have seen/been there/had happen, the perfect{easy} tree drop, gone wrong. One time in the middle of a field while droping a very large maple, mother nature had other ideas. It even started falling in the correct direction, when BINGO out of no where on a windless day, a gust of wind pushed the tree back up spun it around and set it completely in the opposite direction, luckily the only thing hurt{crushed} was a saw.

 

[jimmyj]

Glad it worked out OK. Most of us have had a tree go wrong and thankfully lived to tell of it. Scary stuff when it happens though.

 

[clemsonfor]

Roger is a very experienced logger, former Clackamas county "logger of the year" in a big timber county. He has done a little logging for me and he volunteered to take down some trees that I wanted down before the winter storms hit, as they were a danger to the house.

He's a little embarrassed, as things didn't work out quite as planned.

32 inch Doug-fir, 100 ft. tall, 90 ft. from the house and 20 ft. or so from the pole barn.

Fired up his saw, nice undercut, checked his aim, started his back cut, didn't like the alignment, so moved his saw and started cutting again. Got in a few inches, and pounded in some wedges. A little more cutting, more pounding, more cutting, more pounding and eventually it started to move right toward Roger! I hollered, he didn't hear me but he moved fast. And from where I was, it looked like it was headed for the side of the barn.

Well, it couldn't have been better. Didn't hurt anyone and just missed the barn, lined up perfectly for removal.

Take a look at the pics. One shows the cutting error and it broke where he didn't leave a high enough step and enough hinge. The other shot shows how close it came to the barn. All we did was cut limbs to make it easier to pick them up; none have been moved from where they fell. Not shown is that the butt kicked back across the stump about 4 ft. Had it not kicked back, the longest, lowest limbs would have hit the barn but probably wouldn't have hurt it because it would have just been the ends of the limbs. As it was, it didn't touch it and the top fell about 3 ft. short of hitting my utility trailer.

The second and 3rd trees hit right where he was aiming.

Sounds like he did good. And the trailer should have been moved. If there were no kick back the top 1 ft would have hit trailer!

 

[creekbend]

Since this thread discusses the safety factor involving the felling of trees, I am curious if any fellow TBN member has ever cut a tree that had been struck by lightning in the past. When I was around 15 or 16, my Father, an Uncle and I went to a neighbor's farm to assist him in taking down a dead Hickory tree that had been hit by lightning the previous year. We had three chainsaws on hand--I don't remember the exact bar length, but the saws were more than enough to do the job--or at least we all thought so. The hickory was not close to any buildings, so we thought it was going to be easy enough. When we started our cut, sparks started to fly. Thinking that some barbed wire was embedded inside of the tree, we adjusted our cut. The same thing happened. Sparks kept flying, and it was as if we were using a grinder on metal instead of using a chainsaw on a tree. We even attempted to fell the tree by using double edged axes after our chains were so dull that they became completely worthless. We dug all around the roots of the tree upon deciding to pull the stubborn tree out. In the end, we all harnessed a pair of mules, outfitted with a collar harness with a long length of chain attached. The tree was probably around 20+ foot tall. It took a lot of work, but those mules were used to working together as a team, and they pulled it out. We even tried cutting the tree later with newly sharpened chains--the same thing happened. We were finally able to cut the tree in half while on the ground. Gus, our neighbor, finally took the bottom half with the roots to a gully and covered it with dirt, because it wouldn't even burn. Burning only charred the bark and a little bit more. WE all came to the conclusion that lightning had only hit the bottom half and grounded out, and not reaching the upper half. The tree has probably not rotted out to this day in the gully. To my knowledge, rock doesn't decompose. :laughing:It was as if the tree came from the "Petrified Forest". I remember reading about the Petrified Forest when I was in school but can't remember where it is located. Has anyone else experienced anything similar to this? Can you imagine trying to remove a tree like that close to a dwelling? Could be a serious safety factor? Thanks.:tractor:

 

[Larry Caldwell]

You ever hear the phrase, "tough as an old pine knot?" I always thought pine was pretty soft wood, but I had a pine knot actually bend the blade of an axe once. I didn't even know that was possible. Wood can be really hard.

 

[creekbend]

You ever hear the phrase, "tough as an old pine knot?" I always thought pine was pretty soft wood, but I had a pine knot actually bend the blade of an axe once. I didn't even know that was possible. Wood can be really hard.

Yes Sir, I do realize that wood can be hard. I have even experienced the aftermath of hitting a KNOT with both a chainsaw and a circular saw. The fact remains that the bottom of the tree was hard as a rock. Sparks were flying, and even with continuous attempts, the bottom half could not be penetrated. The only conclusion that we could formulate was that when the lightning struck the bottom half and grounded out through the roots and dirt, it somehow solidified the cellulose composition of the tree. Although this conclusion is both hypothetical and speculative, it seemed to us to be the only plausible reason that we could formulate. It is not a proven theory, therefore that was the reason that I reached out to find out if others had encountered a similar situation. I have cut quite a lot of trees and wood since that time, but I have never, ever experienced an identical or similar occurrence. Thanks in advance.

 

[crash325]

You ever hear the phrase, "tough as an old pine knot?" I always thought pine was pretty soft wood, but I had a pine knot actually bend the blade of an axe once. I didn't even know that was possible. Wood can be really hard.

Not sure what kind of wood it is, a "friend" donated it to me. When hit with a nice sharp axe, the axe just bounces back. After it sat for a couple of years it would saw with a chain saw. On the wood splitter that I built it sort of just explodes once started. Does burn nice though. :laughing::thumbsup:

 

[creekbend]

Not sure what kind of wood it is, a "friend" donated it to me. When hit with a nice sharp axe, the axe just bounces back. After it sat for a couple of years it would saw with a chain saw. On the wood splitter that I built it sort of just explodes once started. Does burn nice though. :laughing::thumbsup:

Just a possibility? There are a lot of varieties of trees included in the category of Ironwood. That is where the term "Ironwood" originates from. I am familiar with American Hornbeam and its qualities. It belongs to the Ironwood variety. Yes, I agree that there are many kinds of tough, hard wood in Nature.

 

[jimmyj]

They used to make splitting wedges out of Hornbeam to make fence rails around here.

 

[clemsonfor]

My grand mother always said lightning striked trees would not burn well. I have cut a few down and that never stopped her from burning them!

But seriously a dead hickory is a hard tree. There is no moisture in it to help- lube the cut so the chain gets even hotter not to mention its super hard. I cut one dead hickory and split it. I will never do it again, at least to a dead one.

 

[Beltzington]

As I recall after 30 years of marriage, felling a tree is an instant first date, high expectations followed immediately by harsh reality.

On another note, two weeks ago a 60-foot Southern Pine was struck by lightning as I drove by about 100 feet away. Spectacular! Blew about 20-foot off the top, wood fragments everywhere and split it in half to 10-foot AGL. Never been so close and I will not underestimate that gift of Mother Nature again.