New Career

[StihlPowerr]

I think I am going to take it. I will let you know.

 

[StihlPowerr]

Hey if there is another opening for 'lumberjack' let me know.



I always wanted to be a lumberjack!

Will do. Lol!

 

[StihlPowerr]

I think my next thread will be about the History of the Lumberjack since some of you guys don't understand what a lumberjack really is.

 

[Currently]

I think my next thread will be about the History of the Lumberjack since some of you guys don't understand what a lumberjack really is.

Methinks you need to take a ride to a major logging operation to see how mechanized it is today. They cut three shifts, 24 hours a day. You will walk away quite humbled at the amount of work done without human effort.

Operators make good money when working. The stars however are the maintenance people.

 

[Gologit]

I think my next thread will be about the History of the Lumberjack since some of you guys don't understand what a lumberjack really is.

Oh?

 

[StihlPowerr]

Methinks you need to take a ride to a major logging operation to see how mechanized it is today. They cut three shifts, 24 hours a day. You will walk away quite humbled at the amount of work done without human effort.

Operators make good money when working. The stars however are the maintenance people.

I know. Machines are taking over. There killing jobs.

 

[expertech]

Almost 40 and wanting to start in the trees? Man, I hope your ready for some abuse. I was a foreman on a power line crew at 17. Lied about my age. Grew up in this biz and the owner of that company knew my dad and he gave me a crew, he knew how old I was and knew I was trained by the best. That was 28 years ago. You got a long hard road ahead of you if you want to be competent enough to do it all. One thing you can do if you want to run your own biz. Do your homework and find a competent company to refer your clients to if a job is something you cant handle.

 

[brody]

Your nuts dude

I ve been in the industry for ten years,and theres not enough money in it for all the bs. Your talking 2-300 dollars a day working for somebody else. Thats nothing for the miles your gonna put on your 40 year old body. Didnt you learn anything from bret farve? Your too old to start in this biz. I started when I was 19 and it was still a nighmare working so hard you can hardly breathe for 15 an hour. After a year I was carved out of wood and the work became much easier. Its amazing what you can get used to. Do you really want to get to that level? Stick with sales,educate yourself in horticulture,and learn what it takes to complete a tree job. Sales are a big part of the tree industry. Work smart,not hard

 

[expertech]

I ve been in the industry for ten years,and theres not enough money in it for all the bs. Your talking 2-300 dollars a day working for somebody else. Thats nothing for the miles your gonna put on your 40 year old body. Didnt you learn anything from bret farve? Your too old to start in this biz. I started when I was 19 and it was still a nighmare working so hard you can hardly breathe for 15 an hour. After a year I was carved out of wood and the work became much easier. Its amazing what you can get used to. Do you really want to get to that level? Stick with sales,educate yourself in horticulture,and learn what it takes to complete a tree job. Sales are a big part of the tree industry. Work smart,not hard

Got to agree with you. Monday I have a huge Cottonwood to rope off a house and I gotta hook it. It will take all my years of experience to do safely but my 45 year old body screams at me every time I leave the ground, especially in the big stuff. The 900 bucks makes it worth it to me but man, to be green, at a later age, and have to learn this stuff, making 15 an hour, OR LESS? No way! No way! No way! Take it from us old pros, climbing is definitely a young mans game. In my mid 20's I dragged 6 foot saws hundreds of feet into the air doing massive conifers in California. We were busting out dead tops for the power company and forest service. I couldn't do it today. Just too old. Hate to admit it but facts are facts.

 

[Gologit]

.... In my mid 20's I dragged 6 foot saws hundreds of feet into the air doing massive conifers in California. We were busting out dead tops for the power company and forest service. I couldn't do it today. Just too old. Hate to admit it but facts are facts.

6 foot saws? Hundreds of feet in the air? Aw, c'mon.

 

[treeclimber101]

I used to carry 19 ft saws 200ft in the air , soooooo ha!

 

[expertech]

6 foot saws? Hundreds of feet in the air? Aw, c'mon.

In some of the big conifers 200 feet is nothing. I did one big Doug Fir and it was 125 feet to the first branch and it was as big as a car. The big tree veterans here know how big things can get. My saw of choice was an 084 and I dragged it up trees that took me at least 6 hours to climb. If you doubt it then there is an area of expertise in this business that you have not been exposed to. And that's O.K. because there isn't a whole lot of work up in the really big stuff. Only so many guys ever get to do it. At one point in my career I specialized and trained climbers to do the big stuff for a company based in Grass Valley, California. The majority of climbers who tried the really big stuff quit. A few had what it took, most didn't. Most people here probably never climbed a tree 15 foot thick and 300 feet tall, but some of us have.

 

[RandyMac]

In some of the big conifers 200 feet is nothing. I did one big Doug Fir and it was 125 feet to the first branch and it was as big as a car. The big tree veterans here know how big things can get. My saw of choice was an 084 and I dragged it up trees that took me at least 6 hours to climb. If you doubt it then there is an area of expertise in this business that you have not been exposed to. And that's O.K. because there isn't a whole lot of work up in the really big stuff. Only so many guys ever get to do it. At one point in my career I specialized and trained climbers to do the big stuff for a company based in Grass Valley, California. The majority of climbers who tried the really big stuff quit. A few had what it took, most didn't. Most people here probably never climbed a tree 15 foot thick and 300 feet tall, but some of us have.

pictures please.

I think I know someone in the Grass Valley area.

 

[imagineero]

6 foot saws? Hundreds of feet in the air? Aw, c'mon.

I gave a girl 12" of wang last night... I've only got 2 inches so we had to do it 6 times

 

[expertech]

pictures please.

I think I know someone in the Grass Valley area.

Man that was 20 years ago and I've been through hell and back since then. I wish I had pictures of trees I did last week! I don't know if I can name companies and people on here but I was a field supervisor for a big company out of Grass Valley for many years. Can't miss the light blue equipment parked everywhere. And, if you know the owner of that company tell him Jay Hansen says Hey, I'm still kicking and no, I won't go back to work for him!

 

[Gologit]

In some of the big conifers 200 feet is nothing. I did one big Doug Fir and it was 125 feet to the first branch and it was as big as a car. The big tree veterans here know how big things can get. My saw of choice was an 084 and I dragged it up trees that took me at least 6 hours to climb. If you doubt it then there is an area of expertise in this business that you have not been exposed to. And that's O.K. because there isn't a whole lot of work up in the really big stuff. Only so many guys ever get to do it. At one point in my career I specialized and trained climbers to do the big stuff for a company based in Grass Valley, California. The majority of climbers who tried the really big stuff quit. A few had what it took, most didn't. Most people here probably never climbed a tree 15 foot thick and 300 feet tall, but some of us have.

Yup, I've never climbed anything that big.

Man, 15 foot thick and 300 feet tall...that's a lot of tree. What did you do when you climbed it? Did you use a flip line and spurs? Were you hanging rigging for loggers and did you top it? It must have been a Redwood.

 

[Gologit]

Moved thread

If nobody minds I think we'll get this thread moved to the Logging and Forestry section.

There's some members there who'd really be interested in some of the information being presented here.

 

[slowp]

That explains how I missed this. Yup, I know 2 people who live in Grass Valley. They are very nice and knowledgable--she is, anyway.

Yup, and I have run many marathons in 2 hours, have been a billionaire, and then blew it all on running shoes, just lost 50 pounds in one week, blah blah blah.

Stay tuned. I'll look for miserable day pictures, but I didn't like getting my camera wet so there aren't many.

 

[paccity]

yup, don't know how i missed this one. thanks for moving it here.:msp_unsure:

 

[expertech]

Yup, I've never climbed anything that big.

Man, 15 foot thick and 300 feet tall...that's a lot of tree. What did you do when you climbed it? Did you use a flip line and spurs? Were you hanging rigging for loggers and did you top it? It must have been a Redwood.

Yes, we hooked them. These days most climbers shoot ropes into the trees and do tension climbs up ropes. We flipped em. Sooo much work. What you do is flip one side of your flip line up and step up and around. You only throw up the one side and always step up and around so you spiral up the tree. And when you come to a branch you use a second flip line and install it by hanging it over the branch then circling the tree to reach the snap and tie in. Then release the lower flip and continue up and around.

If this sounds like a lot of work, it was. The climbs were absolutely brutal. Plus, if you didn't drag your saw up you had to pull it up later, as some did. I preferred to take my saw with me and I usually carried a couple wedges and a hammer. I remember one I did, at about 20 feet up I was already wore out. I did most of these trees for a power company. We were busting out big dead tops back away from the transmission line right of way. Anything that could break out and hit the line had to come down. Another job was to bust out big tops so that the forest service could use helicopters and install eagles nesting platforms. Had to have 5 feet of wood across the top for them and in those trees the 5 foot target was a long way up. And no they were not Redwoods, they were Doug Firs and some huge Ponderosas. Them damn Ponderosas were the worst because the bark furrows were deep and the bark was hard as rock. Very hard climbing. We used 3 or 4 inch gaffs. Those were the days but I'm glad they are over for me.