Great job editing together all that footage and the narration. To be honest, as a dabbler I consider some of those situations above my pay grade but it's interesting to see how you handled them. I agree with leaving the sketchy snags for the animals unless there's a good reason to take the risk.
East Coast Canadian here. FYI, there are lots of broadleaf hardwood forests in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Though it's not on the coast, southern Ontario has some too. Maybe I'm too primitive, but a strategy I use that I never see anyone else use: after cutting a tree as close as possible to its tipping point, chuck a 3-4' log at it (I usually go for 6" diameter ones). If the weight of the log and the cut are right, it can be knocked down from a safe distance if you're strong enough to throw a heavy log. I don't like dead branches raining down on me as something hung up starts falling apart up above. Some rotten ones literally explode when they hit the ground too. Safety gear is absolutely essential when cutting these risky ones. I prefer to keep my distance. (I obviously use this strategy in the woodlands and never near any power lines or buildings).
The last one was stupid. The whole time I kept saying why are doing this? Let the wind blow it down. Do you have a death wish lol. But I also knew I could do it.
Hey there, I've been a firefighter for over 30 years in Northern California. I've cut tons of trees in the worst conditions on forest fires. That said, my whole focus is safety versus productivity. When walking a hung up tree down cut the tree at a better angle from the tension side typically the bottom to allow it to slide down better. It looks like your cutting the tree at a 90° angle and that can cause you to have more bind and pi ch your bar. The other thing with that is, you don't have to tickle the last bit of the cut with the tip of the bar. It will fall more easily. If you do continue to cut with the tip of your bar, wrap your thumb around the handle bar because you will continue to get kick back. Check the video, your thumb is not wrapped.
Man, I am so glad I somehow got your channel to flash again. They probably don't like the word deesobeedient. The lot I just bought has a lot of cedars and spruce, Good news is that it's been logged enough in the past to not have insane gnarlies like that. I'll start out on the small diameter trees first and work my way up eventually. Or hire a dude for the hard stuff. . The physics of all that is mind boggling. I could probably endure about an hour with a chainsaw, That type of noise fucks up my nervous system , even with the earmuffs . And the vibration . But thanks , lots of great content here. I do miss the old philosophical ramblings though.
thank you for showing scenarios. I'm 7 cords into my woodlot this year, lots of dead standing. It's been decades since I worked with my gandfather and that experience is deeply in the past. I feel like I'm playing catch up and videos like this really help create reminders and recall so when I'm in situations, the physics are easier to visualize...
WRONG : (( respectfully)) i am a West Coast, Oregon 1 man tree service man with many decades of firewood, logging & now climb & trim experience. At least 1/3 of my felling consists of hardwood Madrone / Arbutus, plus Oak . The Madrone grow up past 100 ft and twist, leand, crook & bow plus tangle into the neighboring tree crowns. I spend a LOT of time with stuck hangups. I found You need to plan ahead were it will all go , and get ready to run as no seeum widowmakers are double what you experience in other felling. The guest video advice You show here is spot on. PS a winch or at least a Massdam type continues rope puller hand crank winch is a great light weight portable adition to Your kit
Thanks, I’m unclear what you’re saying I’m wrong about here? Do you mean the generalization between east and west coast styles? It’s just a generalization, and it’s true insofar as it applies more often than it doesn’t. Mostly hardwoods here, mostly soft woods there for lumber. I’m aware you have twisty arbutus out there. And we have softwoods over here. Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Good stuff here. As you mentioned, it is educational to go back and rewatch the videos of pros after you've had some experience. Many times what they do is more nuanced than you realized on the first (or second) viewing. Ugly stumps... On those rare occasions where I have an ugly stump I cut them off clean so they look neat. I don't like leaving embarrassing evidence behind. 😉 A peavey or cant hook can be useful for rolling a cut off limb-locked trees so the branches disentangle and allow the object tree to fall. I saw an interesting technique recently where when you have the likelihood of a falling tree's limbs hanging in another tree's limbs don't use a hinge at all if it's falling to its natural lean. Having no hinge allows the object tree to roll as it encounters the resistance of the obstacle tree whereas one with a hinge is likely to get stuck. I haven't had an opportunity to try that yet but anticipate doing it at some point. Vines... ugh. Glad to see that I'm not the only one who has to contend with them! I've got a Stihl HT131 pole saw and a Stihl PP900 pole pruner with an extra pole section. With them I've been able to remove branches and cut vines that otherwise would have given me grief. Yes, that slows me down. However, nobody is paying me for my time... It's either on family owned properties or I'm doing volunteer work on land trust properties.... The time is my own to waste and its cheaper than medical bills and funerals. The dead ash have gotten more and more dangerous over time. Even if they aren't stuck or don't hit anything I've had the trunks break into pieces on the way to the ground. Using clear escape routes quickly is very important!
Peevy is definitely essential. Basically the technique I use when I cut hangups off the stump. I cut all the hinge except a little piece on the side I want it to roll to. It’s still a bit unpredictable, but usually gives you time to get your bar out and run away.
Hope you have a great day in the woods! I’m a buy once cry once when it comes to gear. I only bought the Neotech to get comfortable with a big, pro saw and see how much I would use it before I spent a few K on a 500i or a 572xp. The Pfanner helmet is worth every penny. I love how the muffs go up under the helmet, so as not to get caught on anything, and the Pfanner trousers are great for the winter, but why too hot for the rest of the year. The Clogger’s are sweet! Just got them.
Yesterday I cut a 6 foot branch with a wedge tip so I could wedge from that far away cuz of crappy footing. Had to use a sledge to get a enough pressure at the cut, but it worked
Bjarne Butler is from BC which you have to be certified to be a faller. It’s very expensive and the training/course that has to be completed is held to a very high standard. Work Safe BC also checks on certified fallers to make sure they are following the rules and have proper safety measures in place. Cutting corners or not following the rules can lead to big fines or removal of your certification. A big reason why you see fallers in BC doing everything by the book compared to other places.
Great job editing together all that footage and the narration. To be honest, as a dabbler I consider some of those situations above my pay grade but it's interesting to see how you handled them. I agree with leaving the sketchy snags for the animals unless there's a good reason to take the risk.
Yeah, best leave them be unless you’re confident you get get them down safely.
East Coast Canadian here. FYI, there are lots of broadleaf hardwood forests in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Though it's not on the coast, southern Ontario has some too.
Maybe I'm too primitive, but a strategy I use that I never see anyone else use: after cutting a tree as close as possible to its tipping point, chuck a 3-4' log at it (I usually go for 6" diameter ones). If the weight of the log and the cut are right, it can be knocked down from a safe distance if you're strong enough to throw a heavy log. I don't like dead branches raining down on me as something hung up starts falling apart up above. Some rotten ones literally explode when they hit the ground too. Safety gear is absolutely essential when cutting these risky ones. I prefer to keep my distance. (I obviously use this strategy in the woodlands and never near any power lines or buildings).
Yeah, I’m aware. I was just generalizing. Chucking a log is absolutely something I will try. Thanks
Love this vid! Narration was great through some of those sketchy falls. That last one was nuts!
(GO THE STIHL!! 😂)
👍👍🪓
The last one was stupid. The whole time I kept saying why are doing this? Let the wind blow it down. Do you have a death wish lol. But I also knew I could do it.
Hey there, I've been a firefighter for over 30 years in Northern California. I've cut tons of trees in the worst conditions on forest fires. That said, my whole focus is safety versus productivity. When walking a hung up tree down cut the tree at a better angle from the tension side typically the bottom to allow it to slide down better. It looks like your cutting the tree at a 90° angle and that can cause you to have more bind and pi ch your bar. The other thing with that is, you don't have to tickle the last bit of the cut with the tip of the bar. It will fall more easily. If you do continue to cut with the tip of your bar, wrap your thumb around the handle bar because you will continue to get kick back. Check the video, your thumb is not wrapped.
Thanks for the advice. I’ll definitely consider it.
Man… you’re videos are great. Thanks for posting
Thanks, makes it worth the time to video what I’m doing for guys like you.
Man, I am so glad I somehow got your channel to flash again. They probably don't like the word deesobeedient. The lot I just bought has a lot of cedars and spruce, Good news is that it's been logged enough in the past to not have insane gnarlies like that. I'll start out on the small diameter trees first and work my way up eventually. Or hire a dude for the hard stuff. . The physics of all that is mind boggling. I could probably endure about an hour with a chainsaw, That type of noise fucks up my nervous system , even with the earmuffs . And the vibration . But thanks , lots of great content here. I do miss the old philosophical ramblings though.
Glad you found it again. And congrats on buying a wood lot. And don’t worry, I’ll be back to waxing philosophical real soon.
thank you for showing scenarios. I'm 7 cords into my woodlot this year, lots of dead standing. It's been decades since I worked with my gandfather and that experience is deeply in the past. I feel like I'm playing catch up and videos like this really help create reminders and recall so when I'm in situations, the physics are easier to visualize...
Exactly why I made it. For guys like you and me. Be safe out there. This shit is dangerous.
That were some extreme nasty snags. Run Forest, run! ;-)
Well done Kevin! Super nice explained! Stay safe!
WRONG : (( respectfully)) i am a West Coast, Oregon 1 man tree service man with many decades of firewood, logging & now climb & trim experience. At least 1/3 of my felling consists of hardwood Madrone / Arbutus, plus Oak . The Madrone grow up past 100 ft and twist, leand, crook & bow plus tangle into the neighboring tree crowns. I spend a LOT of time with stuck hangups. I found You need to plan ahead were it will all go , and get ready to run as no seeum widowmakers are double what you experience in other felling. The guest video advice You show here is spot on. PS a winch or at least a Massdam type continues rope puller hand crank winch is a great light weight portable adition to Your kit
Thanks, I’m unclear what you’re saying I’m wrong about here? Do you mean the generalization between east and west coast styles? It’s just a generalization, and it’s true insofar as it applies more often than it doesn’t. Mostly hardwoods here, mostly soft woods there for lumber. I’m aware you have twisty arbutus out there. And we have softwoods over here. Thanks for taking the time to comment.
brilliant video Kevin and incredibly humble and honest voiceover. Bring on the big saws!
They’re coming! 575 and 500i!
Good stuff here.
As you mentioned, it is educational to go back and rewatch the videos of pros after you've had some experience. Many times what they do is more nuanced than you realized on the first (or second) viewing.
Ugly stumps... On those rare occasions where I have an ugly stump I cut them off clean so they look neat. I don't like leaving embarrassing evidence behind. 😉
A peavey or cant hook can be useful for rolling a cut off limb-locked trees so the branches disentangle and allow the object tree to fall. I saw an interesting technique recently where when you have the likelihood of a falling tree's limbs hanging in another tree's limbs don't use a hinge at all if it's falling to its natural lean. Having no hinge allows the object tree to roll as it encounters the resistance of the obstacle tree whereas one with a hinge is likely to get stuck. I haven't had an opportunity to try that yet but anticipate doing it at some point.
Vines... ugh. Glad to see that I'm not the only one who has to contend with them!
I've got a Stihl HT131 pole saw and a Stihl PP900 pole pruner with an extra pole section. With them I've been able to remove branches and cut vines that otherwise would have given me grief. Yes, that slows me down. However, nobody is paying me for my time... It's either on family owned properties or I'm doing volunteer work on land trust properties.... The time is my own to waste and its cheaper than medical bills and funerals.
The dead ash have gotten more and more dangerous over time. Even if they aren't stuck or don't hit anything I've had the trunks break into pieces on the way to the ground. Using clear escape routes quickly is very important!
Peevy is definitely essential. Basically the technique I use when I cut hangups off the stump. I cut all the hinge except a little piece on the side I want it to roll to. It’s still a bit unpredictable, but usually gives you time to get your bar out and run away.
Those were some scary snags. Glad they all worked out in the end.
Great video Kevin!
Wonderful video Kevin! Lots of useful information and entertaining to watch.
Thanks, I errored on the side of more info than entertainment in case some poor soul like me is out there trying to learn via YT.
Love your content Amigo. Keep it up please
Thanks man, I’m glad it’s getting out to some folks anyway.
I can't wait to get out in the woods tomorrow. Love your gear choices.
Hope you have a great day in the woods! I’m a buy once cry once when it comes to gear. I only bought the Neotech to get comfortable with a big, pro saw and see how much I would use it before I spent a few K on a 500i or a 572xp. The Pfanner helmet is worth every penny. I love how the muffs go up under the helmet, so as not to get caught on anything, and the Pfanner trousers are great for the winter, but why too hot for the rest of the year. The Clogger’s are sweet! Just got them.
And... NEVER TRUST A TREE!!!
Yesterday I cut a 6 foot branch with a wedge tip so I could wedge from that far away cuz of crappy footing. Had to use a sledge to get a enough pressure at the cut, but it worked
Keep it up. Only way to learn is to do it!
Westside for life 🫡
You guys do nice work. I’ve learned a lot from you guys.
Close shave that last one las
First
You’re always first in my heart, Kurt. lol
@@KevinsDisobedience 🤣🤣
Bjarne Butler is from BC which you have to be certified to be a faller. It’s very expensive and the training/course that has to be completed is held to a very high standard. Work Safe BC also checks on certified fallers to make sure they are following the rules and have proper safety measures in place. Cutting corners or not following the rules can lead to big fines or removal of your certification. A big reason why you see fallers in BC doing everything by the book compared to other places.