Wide Across Hinge for Side Lean

[TheTreeSpyder]

When there is lean to the side of the fall, it is important to take the hinge through the widest part of the stump, and not shorten either side. For the hinge will always invoke a pad of compressed fiber as prescribed by the lean, under the lean. The farther from this pivot that the whole tree sits on (bearing weight, so compressed area of hinge fiber), the rest of the fiber stretches to hold the tree on the pivot of compressed fiber can get, the more leverage against the offending lean the hinge can grant.

So taking the hinge through the widest part of the tree, then not shortening it from either side will give most leveraged aid to fight lean. So, once taking the hinge at the widest point, then would not cutting in from either side.

Not allowing hinge material as far out towards lean as possible, also gives slightly more lean than tree had, for it had a closer pivot (of fibers compressed under it's weight) to the pull of the C.o.B. than the hinge is now allowed. Shortening either side, lessens the amount of leverage to fight the lean, once the pressures take their pivoting fiber share, and leave ya the rest to work with.

 

[ORclimber]

Here's one I did recently. Had lean toward left corner of house. Labor ready was 2 hours late so did it solo, no pull rope. Tapered hinge, wide opposite lean. Wedged tree over w/ multiple wedges, keeping a wedge in backcut on lean side.

 

[ORclimber]

Stump shot.

 

[Stumper]

OR, Just my personal $.02 but on any tree that isn't leaning hard away from a "target" or small enough for me to move in one piece I set a line. Doesn't matter if you don't have a helper (I seldom do). Set the line. Pretension. (I like 100% nylon ropes for this since a tensioned nylon rope will "bungee" a few feet taking up slack as it occurs). I usually cut till the kerf starts to open or I have the hinge as narrow as I think it should be ,shut off the saw and go tail onto the rope. Wedges work great but nothing beats a high set tagline for control and cheap insurance.

 

[TheTreeSpyder]

i do both when i can, i don't think that the tree can tell a C.o.B. pull from a rope pull force wise, in fact look at the C.o.B. as a lil'man or motor pulling tree to ground with rope at that point as the power source, and the hinging as the machine for that is powered by that pull. If that pull is off target, i must supply push/pull corrections to neutralize

i think that is fair advice Stumper gives, the stretch/loaded force in line is a plus. Using both the line and the hinge to work to direct, is more positive as it places some of the load on each strategy. Also, as a passive force the hinge leverage is self adjusting to the pulls, so augmenting with rope direction wouldn't throw anything off, they would work together.

i think a 5000# lean to NW can easiest be corrected to fall N by a matching 5000# pull at equal leverage to the NE. 5000# pull E would oversteer, therefore 5000#pull N would understeer. Hinge pulls from E rear, needs less pull than N rope...

Also pulls from the rear of movment, self tighten (like self tightening rig)as movement proceeds, the longer stretched fibers are a result of that, line pull forward slackens power as tree moves forward faster than pull, so correction lessens as motion proceeds generally with line pull. As integral in the hinge itself, i think you will find most correction lasting as long as the hinge (especially in wide face) to be the hinge? Wedgeing and line pulling specifically unless directly fighting the hinge over a wide sweep, characteristically lend immensely less correction as motion proceeds, they are also active/non self adjusting forces.

i try to steer with hinge, and strentghten hinge with line pull, so that they both work in tandem. Direction is of the ultimate importance. The hinge steers it, and the line makes the hinge stronger to steer better. Automatically, any part of steering that the hinge didn't do the line would, but if pulling to target would take lots of force from strengthening hinge as the cost of diretction adjustment(?).

Of course under side lean, a straight strip/non tapered hinge will automatically assume a stress pattern of the tapered hinge. Making the hinge in the tapered shape polishes/accentuates that tendency finer and acknowledges/places the fibers in the support positions depended on by nature in the hinge most; immediately capitalizing on the physics.

As always, the tree system naturally assuming the path of least resistance (most power-full physics) to the task. For these things work for the same reason that devastating accidents happen; physics makes no mistakes, takes no holidays!

i think Eric did purty good, but let me look at it like i cut it myself, things happen so fast etc.; some of looking at such things is not just understanding what is going on, but adjusting perceptions of cutting etc. to your own tendencies to adjust that too. 'least that is how it goes fer me!

Or. something like that!
:alien:

 

[SilverBlue]

Good post as usual KC!
OR. That looked like a really nice tree, why the removal?

Did a 60 ft spruce a day before Isabel hit us, 2 ft away from side of house, slight lean. Reminds me of RB Tree’s nice takedown in small scale.
i left a wide hinge and fell it perfectly where it was supposed to go, tip top of the tree landed within 2 inches of the back yard fence as calculated.

 

[ORclimber]

Stumper, I agree with you on the tagline. I've been leaning on wedges more in the last 6 months. The wedges work as well as a tagline as long as the hinge doesn't break. If the hinge started failing the tagline would seem like VERY cheap insurance.



Silverblue, It was a very nice tree. I tried to sell them on pruning, told them it would look like a big Christmas tree once the deadwood was out and added value too the property. They wanted it gone.

 

[TheTreeSpyder]

Thanx SB,

i think that the active forces of wedging and line pulling are only going to help during the moment(s) of flexing the hinge, as these active forces are pitted against the passive force of the hinge. If in jacking/wedging from rear or rear lean side or the 180* diagonal strategy of line pull to the front or front non-lean side challenges the hinge till the spar moves all the way to the ground, or fairly extended period; that would be the only time those strategies IMLHO would have long range effect beyond what the imbued at the moment of flexing of the hinge.

The passive forces (reflects back other forces pull, pull 100# a passive foce pulls back 100; pull 500# passive force pulls back 500#, drop line-passive force gives 0 pull; therefore self adjsuting strategy to use in balancing pull to pit agianst own self automatically....)of hinge pull and dutch lift are much more powerful generally, fro they are powered buy the massive wieght, leverage and speed of the tree itself; generally the largest available on site power source IMLHO.

Notice how nature gives us all kinds of mixtures of choices to direction adjsutment 2 passive, 2 active, 2 forward, 2 rear; 2 under lean lifts/pushes, 2 away from lean/pulls... 1 passive forward lift, 1 active rear lift, 1 active forward pull, 1 passive rearward pull etc. for us to maximize to situation to our needs.

Or somethinglike that.....