There's yer sign.

[Haywire Haywood]

At least that's what spectators of me felling trees should be saying. I need a sign that says "Stay back 500 ft, rank amateur at work, call EMT if I stop moving for more than 1 minute."

Was dropping an oak today that was 20ish at the base. Used FHCW's trick of putting a 6" level on the bar to make sure the face cut was level. Worked out great. Made the top cut and they met well. Went to make the back cut and ended up 1" below the face cut somehow. Anywho, I had my felling wedge (1) driven in flush and was just about to go get my splitting wedge to supplement when it went over just where I intended. I gotta do better than that. I need more felling wedges too. This tree was about 10' off a pond.. if it had fallen the wrong way there woulda been a splash and an embarrassed weekend warrior.

btw, the level is still over there around the stump somewhere, pick it up for me if you see it.

Ian

 

[Husky137]

Go slower and take your time. The back cut issue could be a problem with the bar and/or chain but more than likely you thought you had the saw level and really didn't. Experience will help you with that issue. Just don't cut off more than you can chew. Make sure you come to the tree prepared. Leaving the stump while the tree balances precariously,half-wedged is the wrong thing.

 

[Rydaddy]

Felling

Haywire, I have been in your shoes before. And I'm sure I will be there again... I'm getting much better just paying attention how to start my cuts. I drop more standing "dead" trees than live ones, and they can get pretty frustrating. At least live trees usually don't talk back as much.

Good Luck on you next drop! I broke down and bought a handful of wedges and a very expensive rope from Bailey's to help talk to the trees.

 

[Urbicide]

Yep. I ordered a couple of aluminum wedges to try out. Still have a lot of standing dead elm that don't want to lay down in a cooperative manner. My plastic wedges have been pulverized and I need to replace them too.

 

[Lakeside53]

I'm no expert, but the way I try to do it is make the face cut, then two side marks from it in the bark (with the saw) towards the back cut (and if they don't meet level, adjust them) then the back cut. I've been a lot "more" accurate on larger trees since I started doing this.

 

[John Ellison]

I think you are doing well and are on the right track because you know the basics and recognized your mistake. A lot of guys would be thinking it was perfect and not realized what was wrong. Even when you know what you want to do it takes practice to make the cuts the way you vision them.

 

[Haywire Haywood]

Da Stump, face on left.

Da butt... top face cut wasn't as good as I thought :bang:

 

[SawTroll]

One reason that I like the saws to be balanced, is that I want a level back-cut......

 

[adkranger]

It looks to me like your saw was "walking" in the cut a tad, not cutting straight. Did it feel like that to you? This can happen if one side of cutters on the chain are sharper than the other, uneven cutters or rakers or chain is sloppy in the bar track. Check your bar/chain. I could be off base though, maybe seeing something that's not there in the photos.

That cut is not horrible, seen worse and more importantly like someone else said, you recognized you can do better. Be safe, happy cutting.

 

[ASEMASTER]

bulls eye level

that's where the idea of the bull's eye level afixed to the start cover of the saw would help to some degree (no pun). I'm now looking for a good sorce in which to buy them .
I also on critical cuts make my bottom cut level and plumb then do a plunge cut from the front to the rear in the center , insert my wedge , make my face cut then make my back cut above my wedge , this gives me a refrence point and a place to keep the wedge close ,of corse this depends on all other veriables .

 

[Haywire Haywood]

The thickest stack of feeler gauges I can get in the groove is .062. This is a .050 gauge bar. It does need to be ground I think, but I am fairly certain that most of the error was mine.

Ian

 

[ericjeeper]

for the bullseye level

Check out an RV dealership or online supply.. They sell them to place on the floor just inside the door of an rv, should not be over a few bucks a piece.

 

[ASEMASTER]

Check out an RV dealership or online supply.. They sell them to place on the floor just inside the door of an rv, should not be over a few bu
cks a piece.

thanks for the info on the level

 

[John Ellison]

???? But a level would only work on a perfectly straight tree. I think something like a framing sguare welded to the bar would work better.

 

[ASEMASTER]

no

???? But a level would only work on a perfectly straight tree. I think something like a framing sguare welded to the bar would work better.

the level gives you an equal refrence point to the tree on your bottom and back cuts, if the tree is leaning you still cut parallel , unless you use the humbolt . but it still is used as a equal refrence ,yes I know this comes easy with experence (just like typing) but for some newbies this my help them in felling trees.

 

[65x55BPD]

http://news.webshots.com/photo/2661893520087271510mNtqLm

for a youth im not the most tech savy guy, so i couldnt figure out how to post the picture. but heres the link. that little orange stihl pouch is awesome. ive got it attached to my webgear, but you can put it on a belt or on some chaps. they'll hold 3 wedges, scrench, stump vice, flagging and the kitchen sink. i modified mine a little it because i was having problems with the wedges falling out of the pouch. sew on a little strap and you're golden.

P.S. thats on a picture website of a volunteer group my team is working with in Mississippi. skilled sawyers are urgently needed down here. all of the trees knocked over the katrina are gone but the ones she killed are up and rotting. in the last 3 weeks i have seen trees through FEMA trailers, onto vehicles through newly constructed houses. its really bad down here. Perseverevolunteers.org can take volunteers if any of you are so inclined. please only safe, experienced sawyers. I am currently in Pass Christian(leaving on the 21st), MS but the towns of Waveland and Bay St. Louis also need help

 

[musch]

Aw hell, not to be the maverick here, but the guy acknowledged his known errors, and the golldarn tree still went the right way.
Good on ya, and better luck next time!!!

 

[Monkeyhanger]

Hi Haywire,

good for you that things went well in the end. Anyway the face cut is a little too deep, it only needs to be about 1/5 of the thickness of the tree. The hinge looks OK though, a little narrow but evenly thick from what I can see in the pictures.

To cut level at the right height it helps if you make "splint cuts" left and right of the face cuts (these are fairly shallow horizontal cuts that are meant to stop splitting but also help to get the falling cut right), you can use these sort of like aiming marks for your back or falling cut.

It also helps when doing horizontal cuts to operate the gas trigger with your thumb rather than your finger, it's much easier to hold the saw level that way.

Hope I explained what I'm trying to say in an understandable way for you. Practice makes perfect but keep safe when you're practicing!

Bye

 

[rb_in_va]

Da Stump, face on left.

Da butt... top face cut wasn't as good as I thought :bang:

I'm not an experienced faller, but just curious. Why did you use a Humboldt notch?

At least it fell where you wanted it to go.

 

[John Ellison]

Ian, I think you are doing fine, just need practice. Everybody makes a funny looking stump occasionally.
But since we are picking apart the pictures,,, I was just kind of kidding about the square. If you are talking about using a level the way I think you are, it would not be a good thing if the tree had any side lean. The cuts should be at 90 deg. to the lean and not the ground. If you are talking about being level the other way it is not really critical, its the amount of opening that counts. As in an open face, neither cut is level. Agreed that the back cut should be parallel to the face cut.
Also as rb asked, curious as to why the humboldt, or was it an open face?