windthrown
361 Junkie
Face cut a notch in that tree!
As others here have said, notch face cuts and then back cut with a hinge will give you far more control in dropping a tree. A Humbolt cut is fine. Anything bigger than 8 inches and I face cut a notch 1/3 the diameter of the tree, and then make a back cut one to two inches above the notch to make a hinge, and fell that sucker right where I want it most of the time. In leaner situations where the bar might get pinched or you need more control where it might get hung up or roll out, use a bore cut instead of a simple/single back cut and leave some hold wood on the opposite side of the notch. Then cut the hold wood when you are ready to drop her. Watch out for dutch cuts (overshoot of top or bottom face cut into the tree). They can cause problems.
Here is a site that I found from our friends in Canada that made it simple and easy to follow using diagrams on how to fell a tree in various situations, and what we are referring to in cutting here:
http://www.gov.mb.ca/labour/safety/treefelling.html
I tested several of these methods on stumps that I wanted to lower and some large diameter snags and spars that were about 10-20 ft tall. The more cuts you make the better you will be in the long term, and the more likely you will live to tell about it. I dunno about your father... man... what can I say? Around here they say that you are not an experienced sawyer until you cut a tree that spins completely around, falls 180 degrees of where you wanted it to land, and hits the ground exactly where you laid the chainsaw down. Maybe he should watch the movie, "Sometimes a Great Notion?" One barberchair is all it takes... then again, I guess you could nail his arm to a logging barge and head to the mill?
As others here have said, notch face cuts and then back cut with a hinge will give you far more control in dropping a tree. A Humbolt cut is fine. Anything bigger than 8 inches and I face cut a notch 1/3 the diameter of the tree, and then make a back cut one to two inches above the notch to make a hinge, and fell that sucker right where I want it most of the time. In leaner situations where the bar might get pinched or you need more control where it might get hung up or roll out, use a bore cut instead of a simple/single back cut and leave some hold wood on the opposite side of the notch. Then cut the hold wood when you are ready to drop her. Watch out for dutch cuts (overshoot of top or bottom face cut into the tree). They can cause problems.
Here is a site that I found from our friends in Canada that made it simple and easy to follow using diagrams on how to fell a tree in various situations, and what we are referring to in cutting here:
http://www.gov.mb.ca/labour/safety/treefelling.html
I tested several of these methods on stumps that I wanted to lower and some large diameter snags and spars that were about 10-20 ft tall. The more cuts you make the better you will be in the long term, and the more likely you will live to tell about it. I dunno about your father... man... what can I say? Around here they say that you are not an experienced sawyer until you cut a tree that spins completely around, falls 180 degrees of where you wanted it to land, and hits the ground exactly where you laid the chainsaw down. Maybe he should watch the movie, "Sometimes a Great Notion?" One barberchair is all it takes... then again, I guess you could nail his arm to a logging barge and head to the mill?
