Blasting a tree question?

[BC_Logger]

With a degree in explosive engineering and as a licensed blaster hire a pro if you go this way, I've seen a few deaths as a result of DIY blasting jobs.


Get a few buddies good rope, saw, maybe a winch and pull it over, buck it up, back the trucks up crack a few and have a good bonfire

 

[woodchuck357]

but no longer in this lawsuit crazy and psycho fixated society we now enjoy. You could Google for this but that will probably put you on some terrorist watch list.

Probably already on the list for posting to a thread that included the word "blasting"!

 

[catbuster]

I do a lot of things in-house with my crew. I'm the boss. I've done everything from basalt excavation to marine salvage. Blasting in not something I'm qualified to do. I hired an extra guy on my crew to do two things: blast and drive a dump truck. Any idiot who knows anything about driving and heavy equipment can drive a a Volvo 6x6 dump. I hired him to blast. I've taken some bomb tech classes from my days on the FD, but I don't touch explosives.

The issue with explosives is that if you mess up, bad things happen. It's not like poker. You mess up, you lose a hand and $20. With explosives you literally lose a hand. And your eyesight. And maybe your life.

I would use a large excavator if it was clear of everything. I'm saying 23 metric tons (Cat 320, Komatsu PC210, Hitachi ZX210, Volvo EC210, etc.) Just knock it over.

 

[Gologit]

I do a lot of things in-house with my crew. I'm the boss. I've done everything from basalt excavation to marine salvage. Blasting in not something I'm qualified to do. I hired an extra guy on my crew to do two things: blast and drive a dump truck. Any idiot who knows anything about driving and heavy equipment can drive a a Volvo 6x6 dump. I hired him to blast. I've taken some bomb tech classes from my days on the FD, but I don't touch explosives.

The issue with explosives is that if you mess up, bad things happen. It's not like poker. You mess up, you lose a hand and $20. With explosives you literally lose a hand. And your eyesight. And maybe your life.

I would use a large excavator if it was clear of everything. I'm saying 23 metric tons (Cat 320, Komatsu PC210, Hitachi ZX210, Volvo EC210, etc.) Just knock it over.

You have a licensed blaster and he's willing to drive a dump truck? You don't see that very often. Is he buying and storing the explosives on his permit or yours? I'm not giving you a hard time and it's really not any of my business but if you're not dotting your I's and crossing your T's ATF will come down on you like a ton of bricks.

 

[HuskStihl]

In the early 80's I owned a "Ghetto Blaster". Stored it on my shoulder. Seeing a big excavator pull a tree out of the ground like a weed is a good lesson in "holy **** that thing is strongology"

 

[redprospector]

I know a powder monkey.
No, wait.
Yep, forget it. He's dead.

Andy

 

[Gologit]

I know a powder monkey.
No, wait.
Yep, forget it. He's dead.

Andy

Yup. Where is that guy? He was here just a minute ago.

 

[huskyhank]

Well, seeing this come back to life and realizing I never let y'all know what happened -- I cut it.
Went fine, no problems, and all the guys think I know all about falling.
Big ol' old saw and dirty greasy saw chaps probably helped, and it went where I said it would.

Still, it would have been fun to blow something up.
But I guess that's an impractical thought these days.

Glad to see the forum alive again!

 

[madhatte]

In the meantime...gasoline, matches, food, beverages....party.

I like how you think.

 

[paccity]

i'll tell some of you when we meet up again. wait , what is the statute of limatations .

 

[northmanlogging]

nonexistent in OR, hence why I'm still wanted there...

 

[OlympicYJ]

Explosives aren't so dangerous it's the people using them. Done a little blasting in a mine safetey training course. We were using really stable stuff. Anfo and watergel. Watergel can be thrown around, gotta be careful with the boosters and caps though. Anfo meh pretty much the same. Old school dynamite is pretty dangerous if you're not careful. Can't remember but think they stopped making it in the 80s. Yes it can be set off by a sharp impact if the nitroglycerin has sweatted out of it. That's what makes it so dangerous. Know some guys that had some good stumpin stories from back in the day.

 

[GrassGuerilla]

Late to the party, but... Careful with those explosives. It isn't what you know that will get you. It's more a matter of what you don't know. Improper handling, storage etc. has left more than a few "get r done" types maimed or dead. Through the grace of god I'm alive today. We did some foolish things with modifying fireworks in my youth. I wised up when I saw how much energy was in a handful of sparklers. Not telling anyone to, or not to. Just wanted to point out, it's what you don't know that'll get ya.

To the OP, glad to hear it went ok.

 

[056kid]

I worked with an old hook tender who would tell stories about how he used dynamite to make holes for chokers in big timber.

 

[Gologit]

I worked with an old hook tender who would tell stories about how he used dynamite to make holes for chokers in big timber.

I've seen that happen. It worked pretty good if you were careful not to use too much. I've also seen dynamite use to split logs that were too big to skid out of where they laid. That could get a little messy and it wasn't used unless it was really necessary.
My first exposure to explosives was blowing stumps on ROW. It was always one of my favorite parts of the job.