# Domino falling to stay in lead?



## Metals406 (Feb 19, 2009)

How many of you fallers will use domino falling to keep your set/road/block in lead? Seems like it would work really well, if correctly executed. 

Like if a guy has 5 trees leaning the wrong way, and uses one to knock them into lead?

Just curious...

Bonus points will be given for video and pictures.


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## sILlogger (Feb 19, 2009)

i do it somewhat often. typically with oaks and hickories tho..especially useful if you get a tree that wants to go uphill...just knock it down with another.

i did it with these because i was getting 25mph wind gusts that were blowing the trees back on me. 
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## Metals406 (Feb 19, 2009)

Bonus points for you sir!! 

But, much like "Who's line is it anyway"... They aren't worth anything. LOL

That last video was a fine example of using domino to stay in lead. Excellent!


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## sILlogger (Feb 19, 2009)

Metals406 said:


> Bonus points for you sir!!
> 
> But, much like "Who's line is it anyway"... They aren't worth anything. LOL
> 
> That last video was a fine example of using domino to stay in lead. Excellent!



ha ha..thanks...in that first vid...the tree i was cutting was leaning hard to the left and i really had to swing it to get the nudge i was needing on the other tree...it caught it just enought to do the deed.


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## 056 kid (Feb 19, 2009)

i have saved LOTS of hours that could have been spent pounding my brains out.



Another way to use a pusher tree is if you are shy of a certain situation,(a tree that is suspending some dead wood) set up your tree/trees. then knock em on over while you are at a safe distance.


And its just fun to see a truck load go booming to the deck all at once!!!


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## sILlogger (Feb 19, 2009)

056 kid said:


> i have saved LOTS of hours that could have been spent pounding my brains out.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



i do this quite often with snags....only i typically don't even cut them first...if they are solid enough i will cut them and use them for logs..if not they get hammered!!!


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## hammerlogging (Feb 19, 2009)

That was definately a bonus points reply!


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## stihlloggin (Feb 19, 2009)

well here's a white fir that was leaning way to hard to cut/ push so i had to stack a few trees in it then get in there and fall it. Sorry for the bad picture the sun wasn't up yet. The shiny spot is me and my mac-t leavin in a hurry.


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## Cletuspsc (Feb 19, 2009)

I tend to find my self doin it quite often. Its a lot easier to set a few up and then let one into the set instead of pounding wedges all day. Only gripe i have is sometimes ya end up with a pile of wood and tops if they don't lay down right.


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## rmihalek (Feb 19, 2009)

stihlloggin said:


> well here's a white fir that was leaning way to hard to cut/ push so i had to stack a few trees in it then get in there and fall it. Sorry for the bad picture the sun wasn't up yet. The shiny spot is me and my mac-t leavin in a hurry.



If I understand what you're saying here, you had several trees leaning against one tree then went in and fell the tree with all the leaners resting on it...That sounds like a death wish scenario to me.


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## sILlogger (Feb 19, 2009)

rmihalek said:


> If I understand what you're saying here, you had several trees leaning against one tree then went in and fell the tree with all the leaners resting on it...That sounds like a death wish scenario to me.



yup..ive had to do it myself. it isn't so much fun but sometimes you have to.


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## redprospector (Feb 19, 2009)

rmihalek said:


> If I understand what you're saying here, you had several trees leaning against one tree then went in and fell the tree with all the leaners resting on it...That sounds like a death wish scenario to me.



Not really advisable, but it happen's all the time.

Andy


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## slowp (Feb 19, 2009)

redprospector said:


> Not really advisable, but it happen's all the time.
> 
> Andy




Its called the "Run Like Hell" maneuver and I don't like to be around when it goes on, but I am, standing where I'm safe or have something to duck behind while the fallers do it. I think, don't trip, don't trip,...and they don't.


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## Tree Sling'r (Feb 19, 2009)

I domino all the time, best when you have a leaner, get it ready - pound some wedges then graze it with another tree. They both go down, but don't brush each other up for manufacture.
Then there are the times when you don't care about brushingthings up, just dead center it and get the hell outta Dodge.


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## Metals406 (Feb 20, 2009)

All excellent posts so far!


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## John Ellison (Feb 20, 2009)

Something to watch for(don't ask how I know). You go to brush one lightly, so as not to make too big a mess. It goes over enough to let the wedge/s fall out and then comes back the other way. 
Also, you have to be sure that you have it cut up enough to go over. Leave a lot of hinge, hit it with one that is too close and does not have any leverage and you have the start of a fine teepee.


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## Burvol (Feb 20, 2009)

John Ellison said:


> Something to watch for(don't ask how I know). You go to brush one lightly, so as not to make too big a mess. It goes over enough to let the wedge/s fall out and then comes back the other way.
> Also, you have to be sure that you have it cut up enough to go over. Leave a lot of hinge, hit it with one that is too close and does not have any leverage and you have the start of a fine teepee.



Good way to get killed. Don't get kilt. I think throwing them back is just as good when possible to do so with out brushing yourself out or leaving some gnarly hangers above you. I'm not saying you guys, and I drive trees out all the time, but I have heard some dudes talk and talk about it, and get five or six going. I think that is too much damn effort....and risk. If you have to domino your whole strip you cut it wrong!


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## John Ellison (Feb 20, 2009)

Burvol;1396 If you have to domino your whole strip you cut it wrong![/QUOTE said:


> I agree, it is something you should use very seldom.


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## 056 kid (Feb 20, 2009)

I would agree about letting a leaner go back as long as things are clean.


thing is that round here up in these Appalachian hollers, you will have wood below a skid road that need to go a certain way in order to get to them & get them out.


When i was cutting for a yarder it was different but most of the time there are many many different leads to match the terrain & roads.

Something that i do commonly is cut out a steep bowl or hollow, all the timber has to be got by the top from one area at the bottom.



West coasters have it easy!!


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## sILlogger (Feb 20, 2009)

056 kid said:


> West coasters have it easy!!




your gonna get an earful for that one


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## Burvol (Feb 21, 2009)

sILlogger said:


> your gonna get an earful for that one



Ha, your funny Caleb.


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## Bushler (Feb 21, 2009)

I use drivers, but always with a wedge in the driven tree. Like John Ell. said, when they come back at you its gnarly.

I watched the one armed axman do a multi stem driver, he obviously was doing it for show.  No wedges, several trees, I found myself thinking, "no wonder you lost an arm, you're stupid".


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## hutch3912 (Feb 21, 2009)

Bushler said:


> I use drivers, but always with a wedge in the driven tree. Like John Ell. said, when they come back at you its gnarly.
> 
> I watched the one armed axman do a multi stem driver, he obviously was doing it for show. No wedges, several trees, I found myself thinking, "no wonder you lost an arm, you're stupid".



That cracked me up. :agree2:


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## tlandrum (Feb 27, 2009)

i use the driving tecnique a lot when i need to get my wood stacked out in good position for the skidder driver. it moves wood a lot faster to the landing when all the butts stack in a line. makes it a lot easier to hook up chokers. i also use my notch for a wedge so that i dont have to go back in and get my plastic wedges out of a top if it gets my stump brushed up. plus its just fun to watch all that wood hit the deck at once...


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## Rounder (Mar 16, 2009)

Works good, just get out of the way. Got taken for a ride once.


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## Metals406 (Mar 16, 2009)

mtsamloggit said:


> Works good, just get out of the way. Got taken for a ride once.



Where abouts in Montucky are you?


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## Ontario_Logger (Mar 16, 2009)

ive been logging for 3 years kinda new to the technique of it, i just started to use it this winter. its good for production and easyer on me, not pounding wedges all day. it is nice for the skidder too when all the butts are going the right way. there is alot of risk involed when doing it i understand that. i only do max of 3 trees for the domino affect more that that is getting to risky in the hardwoods


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## forestryworks (Mar 16, 2009)

Metals406 said:


> Where abouts in Montucky are you?



he's in your area.


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## arbadacarba (Mar 17, 2009)

If you are a good feller you should almost never have to domino fall and should never willingly choose to do so. Sorry for being a stickler on this guys, but its no fun playing pull the pancake from between two tree butts Add in a few joints bending the wrong way, paraplegics and quadraplegics, and some compound fractures and it becomes a horrific waste. In life you have to balance your atta-boys and your dumb f*****. For every domino fall you do you should get two of the latter!!! Hard to be a winner in life when you are crippled or dead. Even harder when you have no-one to blame but yourself!


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## Gologit (Mar 17, 2009)

I'll use it when I have to. I don't like it much but sometimes it's the only way to make things come out right.

I don't much care for somebody preaching against it though...especially somebody that's not out there doing it for a living. My decision, my risk.


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## joesawer (Mar 17, 2009)

Gologit said:


> I'll use it when I have to. I don't like it much but sometimes it's the only way to make things come out right.
> 
> I don't much care for somebody preaching against it though...especially somebody that's not out there doing it for a living. My decision, my risk.





Well said.
I know the osha regs about dominoe falling, But they do not take into account the exteme conditions and variables we often work with. Well maybe they do because they always use the "unless it can be demonstrated to be more safe/less safe" qualifier in their regs.
So if I can demonstate my way to be more safe, they have to abide by it.


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## arbadacarba (Mar 17, 2009)

Gologit said:


> I'll use it when I have to. I don't like it much but sometimes it's the only way to make things come out right.
> 
> I don't much care for somebody preaching against it though...especially somebody that's not out there doing it for a living. My decision, my risk.



I don't disagree with you at all. The thing is I have done a lot of felling over forty years, have seen an awful lot, and I still have friends that fell. If you look through all the replies to the original post we all feel the same way about it. Even the best current feller I know knows he can't control it so he only does it *if he absolutely has to*. -Same response as yourself. I also know of a lot of extremely experienced fellers up here who retired rather than be pushed into practices which scared the hell out of them- one of them being exactly this.

What worries me is someone with little or no experience reading this thread and thinking that it is a good way to go. I think we owe it to them to give them a chance by encouraging safe practices from day one.


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## Gologit (Mar 17, 2009)

arbadacarba said:


> I don't disagree with you at all. The thing is I have done a lot of felling over forty years, have seen an awful lot, and I still have friends that fell. If you look through all the replies to the original post we all feel the same way about it. Even the best current feller I know knows he can't control it so he only does it *if he absolutely has to*. -Same response as yourself. I also know of a lot of extremely experienced fellers up here who retired rather than be pushed into practices which scared the hell out of them- one of them being exactly this.
> 
> What worries me is someone with little or no experience reading this thread and thinking that it is a good way to go. I think we owe it to them to give them a chance by encouraging safe practices from day one.



You make a good point about people trying techniques beyond their level of experience. It's not a good idea and I sure wouldn't encourage it. You've been in the woods...you know how fast things can turn on you and how little chance you have when they do.

What I'm mainly against is letting a rule book take the place of common sense. No book can ever cover every situation. Blind adherence to a bunch of words written on a page can kill a guy just as quick as bad judgement and ignorance.

Besides...it's darn hard to try to hold that little rule book, read it, and cut at the same time.


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## arbadacarba (Mar 17, 2009)




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## Metals406 (Mar 17, 2009)

forestryworks said:


> he's in your area.



Yup, he's about an hour-fourty-five south of me.


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## palogger (Mar 17, 2009)

i use it when i have to and thats it, this past summer i had a large ash tree that was busted at the base but still connected, hanging in a small tree, so i cut a little bit on the large ash enough to weaken it, and then drove both of them down with another large ash, if i had been able to get the skidder to it i would have had it pulled down, but at the time we had a d6 cat pushing skid trails for us and i was cuuting to get them through


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## arbadacarba (Mar 17, 2009)

palogger said:


> i use it when i have to and thats it, this past summer i had a large ash tree that was busted at the base but still connected, hanging in a small tree, so i cut a little bit on the large ash enough to weaken it, and then drove both of them down with another large ash, if i had been able to get the skidder to it i would have had it pulled down, but at the time we had a d6 cat pushing skid trails for us and i was cuuting to get them through



Now that's the type of advice we should be giving the newbies. Have a look at the situation, determine the safest way to fix it given your own knowledge and any advice you can get, and then fix it. In your case I would have added to the post the obvious - that the alternative of leaving a large hanger until a skidder was available would have been even more dangerous to everyone in the area than the solution you applied. Of course we all know that, but most don't.


Kudos!


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