bucket babies

[treeman82]

This past Thursday was my first time flying in a bucket for the purpose of actually doing a job. It was a 60 footer forestry package... so not exactly the greatest. However I was given the responsibility for taking down 2 dead ash trees next to a driveway. 1 of them, we had to reposition 2 times to get it down, and the second one I wound up just climbing the darn thing after repositioning 2 or 3 times... the truck only wound up being useful for blocking down the wood. So I ask this... how is it possible for people to take on the attitude of "I'll only do the tree if I can get to it with the bucket." Or "I won't climb out of the bucket." The larger tree... which was actually rather easy... I mean you could get right next to it with the bucket truck...

 

[Dadatwins]

Setting up the bucket is a skill just like a climber picking the right tie-in point on a tree. It takes getting used to and one of those things that the more you do it the better you will get at it. For most production work, it would be difficult if not impossible for even the best climber to keep up with a skilled bucket operator. JMHO

 

[oldirty]

personally i would rather climb but saying that sometimes its just that much easier running the bucket.


nothing worse than tearing branches off the wrong tree though. yup, ive done that. lol

 

[teamtree]

Ok...I admit I am a bucket baby and I could not climb to save my life.

I will admit also that I am so jealous of those of you who can climb and envy your abilities. I work with one of the best climbers in the business (imo) and he has taught me much about the tree business.

On Friday I took out 3 80 ft. Pines to our climber's one. All the same setup...fence line...10ft from pool....8 ft drop zone on slope with another fence on the bottom...tight working area.

If you are taking down a tree with a bucket truck it is sometimes harder than climbing as now you have a bucket truck right in the only drop zone. So having a good climber would allow you to put the chipper in a better position. However, if you can get a bucket truck to it and there is a little bit of open zone....I would be happy to challenge any climber on who can do it faster.

Believe me, there have been many times I wish I was not in the bucket on some removals as it is more dangerous when you are cutting the top out of a tree....a climber can spin around the tree if it goes wrong....if a guy in the bucket it gets hit...it can be bad.

I suppose my point is there is a need for climbers as much as their is a need for a guy working a bucket in this business.

I do know this...I have cut some trees from a bucket truck that no climber would tackle (except for those who don't give a #### about the people that care for them and take the risk anyway). And there have been some trees that our climber has done that I would have never been able to get a bucket truck to it.

 

[Cbrexdogg]

We have three climbers on staff. (Four starting tommorow) We also have a Leo 15gt. The lift is faster and never gets tired. There is a need for climbers in certain cituations, but the lifts are nice. I do miss the open drop zone though. I agree that a lift is about three times as fast and when you have to pay a good climber 40k or more a year a 60k lift doesn't seem so bad.

 

[Slvrmple72]

Those Leos are nice! I climb and really see the added benefit of a bucket for those trees that you can get one to. As a climber though I don't get the bucket truck accessible tree jobs unless of course we can get the house moved outta the way:hmm3grin2orange:

 

[tree MDS]

I have a bucket and I climb. There is no substitude for either if you're trying to make money and do some production. That being said I climbed for 4 and a half hours yesterday and it felt like 40 miniutes-what a pleasure! I had forgotten my love. But then the other day I went back to a dead Ash tree with the bark falling off of it that I had previously walked on (before I got the bucket up and running), and it was more like grabbing that thing by the neck and strangling it to the ground rather than actually cutting it down. Bucket has its place, thats for sure, lol. Its the same as loading wood with a tractor v.s. loading by hand-take the gravy when you can get it! thats what I say.