Sand in my trees? Any good solutions?

[Fishin' Rod]

Clearing Siberian Elms yesterday and was going through sharp chains like crazy. As the sun started going down, I did start noticing a few sparks while cutting. I examined the first tree to spark, no fencing or any sign of human intervention. I actually think I was hitting sand grains.

Background: I was cutting elms just above waist-height and then treating with Remedy/diesel while the sap is going down. This is by far the sandiest ground on our farm. It is between two branches of the creek, and any big flood deposits a fresh layer of sand.

Question 1: Is sand the likely culprit?

Some of the sand is very fine, and can certainly get air borne during a stiff wind. These are "piss" elms and weep from every broken branch, etc. Could wind-blown sand stick to the truck and eventually be incorporated inside the tree?

This area does flood. I was cutting above the high water mark from our big flood three years ago. However, I suspect over the past 50 years there may have been an even higher flood. Would sand on flotsam during a flood have a chance of being incorporated inside of a tree?

Questions 2: Any advice for making my chains last longer before they start making sawdust?

I used both a new chain and some old hand-sharpened chains. Oiler was working fine. However, the cut was "wet" since these elms start weeping massively even this late in the year. (Just running Oregon 91VXL chains - Low Profile – Semi Chisel.)

Thanks for any advice.

 

[NSEric]

The sand is usually stuck in the bark and not the wood itself. If you peel the bark off it will save the chains but that's so much work you might as well sharpen the chain often.
Not many people tackle big elm trees with a small saw with 3/8 lp chain. Full size semi chisel chain holds up much better than the low pro stuff.

 

[Fishin' Rod]

Thanks for the reply.

I think(?) the material causing the rare sparks was within the tree trunk.

I thought the low profile chain was better for dirty jobs? (I cut a lot of smaller trees off at ground level where I might be driving equipment in the future.) Gets dull faster, but also easier for me to dress back up to reasonable sharpness.

Oregon doesn't even make a full chisel chain for my little Echo 400. However, Woodland Pro does make one with a full chisel cutter. (WPL 63RC62)

I was saving it for when I do have to tackle a some of my very large elms. Sounds like I should have used it on this job!

I have plenty more trees to clear in the same area. I will try the experiment with a slightly more aggressive chain, since that is all I can do without upgrading my saw.