Metal in residential wood

[SawS]

Is there a way of detecting metal hiding in the middle of a limb, or trunk, put there years ago, and covered over by the tree? I have read about the first 8 to 10 feet of residential trees being the likely spot for metal, but sometimes there is alot of good wood there... I hate to ruin a chain by hitting an old nail or spike etc. Anybody have any tips on what to use to find these foriegn objects? Thanks.

 

[Rotax Robert]

Many times there will be a witness mark on the bark of the tree.
That being said I have used a stud finder to find nails/wire etc. in a saw log prior to milling with my buddies woodmizer. I know some mills also use a metal detector usually though on a sort of logs that came off of a powerline right-o-way and such usually to find bullets. hope this helps

 

[chainsawworld]

saws,
metal detectors are availible but cost much. just do like the rest of us, use the saw chain. ouch marty

 

[tony marks]

never tried that robert ,but seems like it have to work . learn something new for today.

 

[D]

This reminds me of a job that a guy wanted me to bid with t bar stakes sticking out of stumps. They were 4 ft tall and never removed after planting. BTW-I used a backhoe and had to jack up the yard. Wish I had pix.

 

[Treeman14]

Metal will often leave a bluish stain in the wood. If one of your cuts reveals this stain, a closer inspection of the piece may show other telltale signs such as the witness marks mentioned earlier.

 

[confused]

I was working on a tree for my grandfather and he failed to mention the fact that a T stack had been inside the tree for years. I on other hand had failed to notice the tell tale sign on the tree of a seem running parrallel to the unitended hazard. I dug in my bucking spikes and raced into the tree intending to cut it down in record time. Boy the look on his face when the chain about self destructed. I got a brand new chain out of it and the one i used was sharpened (did that ever take awhile) back to useable condition. My advice is to look the tree over as much as you can and ask questions of the homeowner before digging in with a s@#t eating grin on your face.

 

[turnkey4099]

Years ago I was felling a butternut with about 30" diameter. Fresh chain. Made notch, began back cut. Just when it was about time for the tree to fall, the chain quit cutting. Too dangerous to leave so I forced the saw and whittled till the tree fell. Examination showed that I hit a 10 penny nail and shaved it lengthwise. It was smack in the middle of the stump so had to have been put in when the tree was noting but a sapling. I don't think any menthod would have shown it buried that deep.

Harry K

 

[geofore]

stuff in trees

One thing to check whenever you are cutting near a road or street in PA is the highway construction map for the state roads. The surveyers would spike the trees on the turns and mark them on the maps you can get from PennDOT. They name the type of tree and it's location from the street. The RailRoad guys used copper coated steel pins about three feet long and pounded them in the ground not a spike in the trees like PennDOT.
I will waste the first 10' of residential trees rather than try to guess is there a nail in it. On old farm property you can usually see a witness mark for barbed wire fences. A galvinized nail or eye bolt will not leave a streak, rusted iron leaves a streak. I cut a 6" eyebolt lengthwise with a new chain and gave it to the customer and charged him $50 extra for the cut bolt he said wasn't in the tree. Galvinized eyebolt, knocked four teeth off the chain.

 

[TheTreeSpyder]

Hard to imagine all the places and types of metal in trees.

We just usually end up using the braille method with the saw, trying to watch cuts.

One time we found a crowbar inside, try plotting, moving saw, or guessing you might've cut through enough of that!

The other hard to beat one was a dead 4' DBH oak. It was residential, but had been part of a cattle farm. It was used several times over the years as a corner post for barbwire; in diffrent directions! All this wire not just running thru, 90degreeing around this corner. Then inches/years later, going around another corner direction.

Yikes!.

 

[jokers]

How`s this for metal in residential wood. It looks like a tree step, but it was in a tree in the city of Oswego, and there was absolutely no witness mark or outward sign. think of what the guy at the mill would have to say if he wasn`t in the habit of running a metal detector and you slipped this one by on him. Might make for a colorful coversation. Russ

 

[nelly]

I ran into a stone near the crotch of a tree. I was cutting firewood and I could tell I hit something but finished the cut. Only the right side of the cutters were bad, must of just grazed the thing. It took a little (lot) of hand filing to get both sides the same again.

 

[John in MA]

Ouch, that is metal. Has anyone ever had a (the saw's) violent reaction from hitting something in a tree? I've heard of a big saw grabbing a nail and taking off for greener pastures.

 

[JimL]

I do alot of fence row clearing, If they are going to be saw logs I cut them 6" above top of fence wire. If not then I do it about 12" above top wire. Gives me plenty to grab onto with the dozer.

There have been a couple times where I have hit ceramic fence post insulators. Makes a hell of a racket and doesn't feel to good either.

 

[rahtreelimbs]

I knew someone who found a jar of nails in a tree. Seems years ago someone put the jar on or in the tree and forgot about it. Rich.