Double cutting alignment

[rusty2001]

I occasionally fell small trees using a Makita battery saw with a 10" bar. I sometimes do a double cut thinking its aligned then find the two cuts don't join and I end up doing a third cut to join them. Its likely absent mindedness as I cut a tree every year or two but are there any tricks to make sure the cuts align from each side?

Also, the stump in the photos is saturated with water drawn up by the roots and is very difficult to cut through. Its extremely slow going and dulls the chain cutters quite quickly. I've used a Stihl pole chainsaw on it in places and it barely cuts as well, though the cutters still have some sharpness to them. I sharpened all the chains before the job (which was reducing the trunk to this stump). It seems the density of the 'wet' wood is the primary culprit as the upper trunk cut quite quickly.

 

[J D]

That is not the way to fell any tree, you should be making a face cut or "notch", followed by a back cut which leaves enough hinge wood to control the fall of the tree in the direction of your notch.
Wet wood doesn't affect how the chain dulls & the density of the wood doesn't usually make a huge difference. Dirty wood (usually the bark) will make a massive difference. A poorly or improperly sharpened chain will also dull very quickly & is an extremely common issue.
I'd recommend doing some reading on basic tree felling & maybe post some good close up pic's of your chain so we can see if there are any issues there

 

[rusty2001]

That is not the way to fell any tree, you should be making a face cut or "notch", followed by a back cut which leaves enough hinge wood to control the fall of the tree in the direction of your notch.
Wet wood doesn't affect how the chain dulls & the density of the wood doesn't usually make a huge difference. Dirty wood (usually the bark) will make a massive difference. A poorly or improperly sharpened chain will also dull very quickly & is an extremely common issue.
I'd recommend doing some reading on basic tree felling & maybe post some good close up pic's of your chain so we can see if there are any issues there

Oh I should have pointed out this was a gale pushed tree so it was leaning over quite a bit and I've reduced it to just above the stump. I'm trying to cut the last bits to put in a trailer, but aligning the cuts was the issue as was the bite of the saw. I'll see if I can get a close up pic of the chain.

 

[J D]

Generally speaking, a notch & back cut is best practice regardless of the lean. Once the tree is down you should be able to reduce the stump by cutting straight through it, or most the way through & follow the cut around. It looks like your cuts are curving which will make it hard to line cuts up & cause the bar to bind. That is generally caused by inconsistent sharpening or an unevenly worn bar.

 

[rusty2001]

Generally speaking, a notch & back cut is best practice regardless of the lean. Once the tree is down you should be able to reduce the stump by cutting straight through it, or most the way through & follow the cut around. It looks like your cuts are curving which will make it hard to line cuts up & cause the bar to bind. That is generally caused by inconsistent sharpening or an unevenly worn bar.

I think the misalignment is due to not seeing where the cut is going. A chain swap made a difference as the replacement has more bite. The chainsaw uses bar oil as expected but it doesn't visibly spread oil when off the chain like the Stihl saw. I've checked the oil flow with the bar off and it drips steadily when the engine runs.


These are the cutters - two on the left have been used on drier parts of the trunk, the last on the right was used on the wet stump base that is in the photo.

 

[old guy]

Those are too dull to cut cheese!

 

[James Sawyer]

Wow...Not the way to fall a tree. You chain is not sharp and going take a lot to get it sharp again. My advice don't run a saw with a chain like that, it so hard on the saw. Dull chains are seriously dangerous in many ways. Plus, you are going to get yourself into some serious trouble. Your face cut has what's called a dutchman! The other comment that has me worried is you said it was leaning. Depending on the situation and how you do your back cut with a dull chain and underpowered saw you could barber chair the tree. Good way to get killed or seriously injured, smash your saw, at least a good a scare. My advice is get someone that know what they are doing and get them to show you how. Meantime, learn about compression, tension. What a face cut is.... conventional face cut is easier for some people ...if you're not worried about waste. Learn about what a hinge is and how it works. You need to learn about hold wood and how to use it. Plus, how to use wedges. The money you saved not getting a professional ...is not worth your life or serious injury!

Please don't take this as critical as it sound, I just want you to go back to your family in one piece and they not find you in their worst nightmare for years to come. All over saving a few dollars. My friend what you are showing is a good example of what not to do in so many levels and I'm glad you're ok!

 

[James Sawyer]

I'd like to add don't let my comment discourage you. This site has a lot of knowledge and experience. Good people, with good meaning to help each other! Your someone we'd like to help. Remember... we're all had to start somewhere, and someone took the time to help everyone here get to where we are today. Your post is opportunity for what this site is all about! There isn't anyone on this site that hasn't made mistakes, the members here are here because we ourselves need advice too from time to time. If you had a picture of the tree before it was felled we could be more helpful. I hope you take the words here as a positive input because that is how it was meant.

 

[BeatCJ]

I would say you need to take those chains to a shop and get them both sharpened. I don't see a single sharp cutter in those photos.

And, as for me, if I cut a log bigger than my bar, I start at the top of the log, and "crawl" my saw as far around to the far side of the log as I can reach, and cut the far side until my saw bar is vertical. I don't know that I have ever made two separate cuts. But my smallest saw wears a 16" bar, and the saw I have used the most has a 28".

 

[rusty2001]

Thanks for the replies but it all went a bit off topic. I was cutting the last part of the trunk before hiring a stump grinder, so the cut you see in the photos was from me kneeling on the grass cutting that bit of the stump that is now on the ground. I wasn't cutting down the tree. The tree is on the smaller side and had come down resting on a solid treated pine post, so I was just taking it down parts at a time, from the crown to the roots. I found the moisture saturated stump was blunting the blade and to relieve the strain on my body of cutting I swapped sides. The photo of the chain was in response to a query about how I had sharpened it. I know there is a lot of info out there on how wet timber doesn't affect the chains, but the fact that so many people ask, they must have similar experiences to me. I also think that having a small bar means there is less chain to share the load of cutting so it blunts quicker, but as I said, one chain took down most of the trunk and the second chain wore out almost immediately on the wet lower trunk.

 

[Maineland]

To your basic question about "aligning" cuts, it becomes 2nd nature only after years of experience and the saw is an extension of your hands.
In other words, practice.

 

[sean donato]

Thanks for the replies but it all went a bit off topic. I was cutting the last part of the trunk before hiring a stump grinder, so the cut you see in the photos was from me kneeling on the grass cutting that bit of the stump that is now on the ground. I wasn't cutting down the tree. The tree is on the smaller side and had come down resting on a solid treated pine post, so I was just taking it down parts at a time, from the crown to the roots. I found the moisture saturated stump was blunting the blade and to relieve the strain on my body of cutting I swapped sides. The photo of the chain was in response to a query about how I had sharpened it. I know there is a lot of info out there on how wet timber doesn't affect the chains, but the fact that so many people ask, they must have similar experiences to me. I also think that having a small bar means there is less chain to share the load of cutting so it blunts quicker, but as I said, one chain took down most of the trunk and the second chain wore out almost immediately on the wet lower trunk.

It wasn't from it being wet. A lot of the old wives tails come from inexperience and not finding what actually happened. Sand, silt, dirt all accumulates in the bark over the years. Usually worst lower to the ground. You would have been fine with a properly sharpened chain.