# Dealing with Schoolmarms



## Cfaller (Jun 14, 2013)

Looking for tips and tricks in dealing with schoolmarms. These are a rare falling situation but the trees can be very unpredictable. Here is a pic of one I dealt with this week.
View attachment 300105


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## Metals406 (Jun 14, 2013)

Cfaller said:


> Looking for tips and tricks in dealing with schoolmarms. These are a rare falling situation but the trees can be very unpredictable. Here is a pic of one I dealt with this week.
> View attachment 300105



There's 100 ways to peel that banana.

I'd cut the small one off, and tackle the big one as normal. . . Although, I'm not standing there looking at it in person. A guy really has to be there looking at each tree individually.

And I might do it completely bass-ackwards to another guy, but get the same result.


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## treeslayer2003 (Jun 14, 2013)

Cfaller said:


> Looking for tips and tricks in dealing with schoolmarms. These are a rare falling situation but the trees can be very unpredictable. Here is a pic of one I dealt with this week.
> View attachment 300105



look like yellow pine. should be no problem, cut the small one first like metal said. ya mean it's a problem putting it were ya want? in my expieriance they useually want to fall opposite each other.
your pic shows low easy stumps, do you mean like 6 foot stumps?


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## madhatte (Jun 14, 2013)

Here's one I marked and then came back to check the stump. I sort of expected that the two stems would be cut separately, but the faller decided otherwise:







and then it all got bucked on the ground:






I like that he pulled it around with one stem whole letting the other move. I'm also happy to see the good balance of utilization and coarse/woody accumulation. There were a couple of dozen small poles in the shade of this prairie monster, which is why I took it. I should walk through the preparation of one of my sales from pre-planning to post-harvest so everybody can see what I'm up to at the landscape level.


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## bustedup (Jun 14, 2013)

Depends where the union is ......how high,how strong etc


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## Sport Faller (Jun 14, 2013)

Well heres how it is. After the clipper puts it in the stack and it gets skidded to the landing youre gonna wanna run the head on the delimber past it with thè arms open and then snap it off on the way back so it doesnt pull the butt off the back plate.


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## Gologit (Jun 14, 2013)

Sport Faller said:


> Well heres how it is. After the clipper puts it in the stack and it gets skidded to the landing youre gonna wanna run the head on the delimber past it with thè arms open and then snap it off on the way back so it doesnt pull the butt off the back plate.



Uh oh...looks like Jake has that Mechanical Logger thing going on. I was afraid that was going to happen.

We're talking SAWS, Jake. SAWS!! Not some big ugly noisy piece of machinery that anybody with a room temperature IQ can run. SAWS, dammit. 

And why aren't you at work???


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## bustedup (Jun 14, 2013)

he pimping his skidder out to deal with schoolies


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## Sport Faller (Jun 14, 2013)

Gologit said:


> Uh oh...looks like Jake has that Mechanical Logger thing going on. I was afraid that was going to happen.
> 
> We're talking SAWS, Jake. SAWS!! Not some big ugly noisy piece of machinery that anybody with a room temperature IQ can run. SAWS, dammit.
> 
> And why aren't you at work???



Lissen Pops

You cant have just any old dummy runnin the clipper. ....Thats why i run the skidder and am the site's head gate pimp


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## Sport Faller (Jun 14, 2013)

Oh, and im home cause we start early, none o' this hollywood logger malarky


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## northmanlogging (Jun 14, 2013)

Mechanized?:msp_confused: whats that... all I got is this old chain saw and a sack full of wedges... I stack the wedges up and when I get to 45 that's a 32' log... not sure what else their good for.


School marms, mostly I just ignored them and continued beating on their brats...

For trees each one is different, some times fall em both together some times separately, all depends on where they can go, where they want to go, and where I think I can park em. Did one the other day fell em separate but the same direction on back over the top of the other, took stacking wedges as it was against the lean but no choice as property line was behind it.


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## Gologit (Jun 14, 2013)

Sport Faller said:


> Lissen Pops
> 
> You cant have just any old dummy runnin the clipper. ....Thats why i run the skidder and am the site's head gate pimp


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## HuskStihl (Jun 14, 2013)

I didn't know that was called a schoolmarm, and I didn't know they were rare or difficult. I'll have to adjust my strategery, cause till now I just cut those down:msp_biggrin:


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## hammerlogging (Jun 14, 2013)

if you are cutting them seperately, then I cut the one that I am more sure of- saw psoition, confidence in hingewood, its going to play along with your plan. then the second one can be evaluated, and its easier to tell what it can do once the first one is gone.

Cutting them together is a fine option when they are going to hold, although it makes me a bit uncomfortable when you notice they are not holding, and neither is the hingewood, and there's a whole lot going on in 2 unitended directions.

lots of poplars do this. more often than not I cut them seperately. Today I had one that split 7'up, cu tthem together no problem, great union


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## treeslayer2003 (Jun 14, 2013)

yup, I cut a lot of poplar that way, oak to sometimes. always wonder tho, is it gonna stay together? once in a while it don't. that's when expiereance comes in. and a little luck if ya want to call it that.


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## northmanlogging (Jun 14, 2013)

here's a pic of that hemlock school marm...


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## Cfaller (Jun 15, 2013)

Thanks for the tips and photos.

Here is what I did. Put a springboard notch in the bigger part of the tree and fell the little one. View attachment 300226


Put a fairly steep Humboldt in the large part and let go for a little ride. :msp_biggrin: Notice how it is twisting as it comes off the stump.View attachment 300227


A nice dust cloud as it land.View attachment 300228


Where it stopped.  View attachment 300229


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## HuskStihl (Jun 15, 2013)

Nice work. I would have fallen off the springboard and busted my ass. The defect left in the large stem took away some of your holding wood on that side and basically left you with a kerf Dutchman pulling it to the right. Looked to go where you intended


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## paccity (Jun 15, 2013)

just dump it.


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## bitzer (Jun 15, 2013)

Looks good! Now you just need a bushellin' hat. 

Had to split a couple of hard maples on the last job. One was growing around the main stem. Had to rip it and pop it with wedges. Not fun. They would not have gone well together. The holding wood was questionable all the way through so I did not want to take both at once. It all depends on the union/speices/hieght/seam/rot clues/ on and on and on. Nice work and nice pictures!


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## paccity (Jun 15, 2013)

ya thanks bitz. that one i lucked out on that. i could gun to the lay. layed open when it flopped.


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## Plankton (Jun 15, 2013)

+1 let er' rip! split halfway through fall, I almost ripped it but decided to trust the union. Every tree is different though.


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## 2dogs (Jun 15, 2013)

Here is another proven method for dealing with schoolmarms.


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## madhatte (Jun 15, 2013)

2dogs said:


> Here is another proven method for dealing with schoolmarms.



Oho! Seen that trick a few times. Usually a few hundred yards from pavement, just out of sight from the road. There's a few firewood poachers whose work is distinctive enough that I know them by their crappy stump.


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## Gologit (Jun 15, 2013)

School-marms? Candy and flattery usually produce good results. :msp_biggrin:


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## Cfaller (Jun 15, 2013)

HuskStihl said:


> Nice work. I would have fallen off the springboard and busted my ass. The defect left in the large stem took away some of your holding wood on that side and basically left you with a kerf Dutchman pulling it to the right. Looked to go where you intended



The tree ended up about two feet to the right of where I had it gunned. Not to bad for the way it rolled out, plus the hold wood was thicker on the right too. Pulling it to the right was a good thing.


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## Cfaller (Jun 15, 2013)

madhatte said:


> Oho! Seen that trick a few times. Usually a few hundred yards from pavement, just out of sight from the road. There's a few firewood poachers whose work is distinctive enough that I know them by their crappy stump.



If it was around here it would need a sloping back-cut too. The true sign of a firewood hack.:msp_rolleyes:


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## madhatte (Jun 15, 2013)

Cfaller said:


> If it was around here it would need a sloping back-cut too. The true sign of a firewood hack.:msp_rolleyes:



We got those too. Also spiral-cut ham stumps. Pretty creative, those firewood hacks.


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## Metals406 (Jun 16, 2013)

I've seen some stumps where it looked like a guy and a beaver sat there and dropped some acid, then they went to work as a team gnawing away at the tree.


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## madhatte (Jun 16, 2013)

I... don't think I'd ever drop acid with a beaver. Just sayin'. 

(nothing against Oregon State)


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## bitzer (Jun 16, 2013)

paccity said:


> just dump it.



Sorry Pac! My post was meant for Cfaller! Nice work too though! I think I've seen that one before and probably mentioned so. 

Happy Father's Day everyone!


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## 2dogs (Jun 16, 2013)

madhatte said:


> I... don't think I'd ever drop acid with a beaver. Just sayin'.
> 
> (nothing against Oregon State)



With a duck?


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## rwoods (Jun 16, 2013)

2dogs said:


> Here is another proven method for dealing with schoolmarms.



Hey, next time ask me before posting pictures of my stumps!!! Wait, that second cut is too level. It must be someone else's handiwork. Sorry I snapped at you. :msp_wink: Ron


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## madhatte (Jun 16, 2013)

2dogs said:


> With a duck?




maaaaaaaaaybe


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## roberte (Jun 16, 2013)

2dogs said:


> Here is another proven method for dealing with schoolmarms.



It sure looks like the sloping backcut makes an appearance on the right side.


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## HuskStihl (Jun 16, 2013)

roberte said:


> It sure looks like the sloping backcut makes an appearance on the right side.



Good eyes, I used it to "push" the tree the direction I wanted


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## Eccentric (Jun 16, 2013)

HuskStihl said:


> Good eyes, I used it to "push" the tree the direction I wanted



Good call. That slopping back cut is a valuable tool for safe tree chopping.


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## Metals406 (Jun 17, 2013)

Eccentric said:


> Good call. That slopping back cut is a valuable tool for safe tree chopping *with yer blade*.



*FIXT!* :msp_sneaky:


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## hammerlogging (Jun 20, 2013)

Cfaller said:


> Thanks for the tips and photos.
> 
> Here is what I did. Put a springboard notch in the bigger part of the tree and fell the little one. View attachment 300226
> 
> ...



The difference between this post and the original is night and day. All in the scale. I thought you were just asking about plain old wood. major cred for a real tree, and dumping it toward a building with confidence. well done. Scale is everything.


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