Tree felling vids

The tree was on a little rise too, which aided the jump. The undercut didn't seem all that shallow, but I guess compared to your usual one? More forward velocity with the tree when it does break the hinge?
 
More forward velocity with the tree when it does break the hinge?

That's the way it seems when throwing tops.. a shallow notch puts the hinge forward, which gets the top moving further and faster, when the hinge breaks... I think the humboldt & snipe combination act to break the hinge quickly, rather than by creating an inclined plane... all speculation of course... but it does make sense... the faster and easier the hinge breaks, the more energy is left to take the tree forward..
 
With the humboldt and snipe effect occurring as the hinge is breaking, it would seem to put in the result of grain being weaker from the tree presumably sliding somewhat horizontally as well, so the hinge fibers will snap quicker across the grain, as opposed to primarily mainly only folding over until they break. To what degree a humboldt allows the horizontal movement to occur before the hinge completely goes, seems somewhat difficult to define. Also, boring the hinge and then having less of it, would reduce the time for it to break, it seems. A slow motion vid of the effects at the base with different cuts would be cool to see.
 
A slow motion vid of the effects at the base with different cuts would be cool to see.
Agreed.. 300 frames per sec, like they used at the world series...
I've given the subject a good bit of thought.. It seems from watching my slow motion videos and just paying attention, that a humboldt will create hinge failure earlier than a traditional of the same degree openness. Looks to me like the trad face when it closes ends up using energy to push the but of the tree backwards, due to all the force of gravity on the tree pushing down and the inclined plane of the top of the face directing that force backwards into the hinge... whereas the humboldt stops the force from pushing back at the hinge and therefore since less force is pushing back, there is more to tear the hinge... This has many important effects, especially when falling tops, as there will be less push back and earlier release from a humboldt... That is probably common knowledge to most west coasters.. more later
 
Notice you don't check the face on many of those humboldtds to make sure they're clean... Are you that good to just know that they're perfect, or do you figure they're good enough to get the job done, even if they're not perfectly clean?

I usually do, it just does not show up that way on the helmet cam. Usually if I am off it is on the far side and high...because that can be easily corrected without throwing my gunning cut off. If I don't clean one that is not precise...I don't really care if it lays in a precise landing.
 
Nice! you got some good videos.. lots of cool tricks to pick up... loved how you used the plunge to gut the hinge and set the height of the back cut..
Tough to tell from the vid with all the dust, but that tree looked like it jumped a long way... once the butt hits ground, does the tree's momentum continue to drag it forward? and does the way it hits other trees effect the forward momentum? I just didn't think you could throw them that far from the ground.. trying to figure it out.. thanks..

Gravity did most of that...although the camera did not show, but that was fairly steep ground...and yes hitting the other trees did slow it down, but I just needed it to get well below the fire line. I was hoping for a little carnage hitting those snags but they are red fir and so they were pretty sound...a guy may as well have some fun while working!

One reason I plunged the holding wood was because yellow pine have stubborn heartwood, so it was easier to control how much sapwood to leave and get the "snapoff" effect I wanted off the stump...but like I said, gravity did most of it. This is how I have done with many trees when trying to get them to a road or layout that is downhill of it. Another reason I gutted the hinge, was habit...I like pretty butts, and pretty stumps...mostly pretty butts :) Especially when they are right next to a trail where the big wigs are gonna be walking...because I am far from perfect and can't match my cuts up all the time!


The tree was on a little rise too, which aided the jump. The undercut didn't seem all that shallow, but I guess compared to your usual one? More forward velocity with the tree when it does break the hinge?
The Idea in my mind is to have the undercut close abrubtly and then have a nice snapping action, off the stump...I have done it this way a million times and it could just be in my head, but I swear, with some trees, it does help a little! These are just ideas and techniques that some of the old mossbacks that I have had the privilege to work with have shared with me.
 
Another one...let me know if these are boring.
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+1
Cody, keep putting them up. Always good to watch some good felling in the woods dude. I wish I could have started this part of my life sooner and worked the lines back in the day.
 
I dont understand what you were doing. Thats a sizwheel right? The idea is to turn the canopy as it falls?
You do understand :) Although that was a big, heavy leaning, rotten White Fir, so I was hoping for a little more than I got...I wanted it to lay nice and pretty in that gully.
Not boring! Keep em coming! :beer:

+1
Cody, keep putting them up. Always good to watch some good felling in the woods dude. I wish I could have started this part of my life sooner and worked the lines back in the day.

Thanks guys, I will keep em coming :)
 
Boring, absolutely not. It is always fun to see some other kind of trees than what I'm used to.
Feels kinda perverted, though, to come home from a day in the woods and get off on watching someone else fall trees:lol:

Excellent demo of a whizzy/sizwheel /whatever. You are right that it could have worked better, but sometimes you just don't get lucky even if you set it up right.
I think the way you set it up and described it clarified it a bit for those members of the more urbane kind, who don't get to use it in their work.
The steak comparison was totally lost on me BTW:lol:
 
So then that's an alternative to a tapered hinge ? Well now I've had them twist but not because I wanted them to .Once gravity takes over all you can do is run --quickly .
 
Boring, absolutely not. It is always fun to see some other kind of trees than what I'm used to.
Feels kinda perverted, though, to come home from a day in the woods and get off on watching someone else fall trees:lol:

Excellent demo of a whizzy/sizwheel /whatever. You are right that it could have worked better, but sometimes you just don't get lucky even if you set it up right.
I think the way you set it up and described it clarified it a bit for those members of the more urbane kind, who don't get to use it in their work.
The steak comparison was totally lost on me BTW:lol:
Thanks Stig :) To explain my comparison...cut steak with the grain it is tougher, against the grain, not so tough...I think of wood the same way. That first bore cut for the sizwheel was angled toward the left of the screen because I was keeping it parallel with the grain of the wood. If I would have severed some of those vertical fibers, it would have taken some of the effect of the sizwheel away...at least that is my idea when doing that.

So then that's an alternative to a tapered hinge ? Well now I've had them twist but not because I wanted them to .Once gravity takes over all you can do is run --quickly .

Not really an alternative...This was a swinging dutchman, where you actually cut the far side hold wood off and use that side as your compression wood side to push the tree around to where you want it to go, and the holding wood side to pull it, with the sizwheel maximizing the holding wood. Here is probably a better demostration of what I am talking about. After this tree hits the ground, look at the stump, and you can see where I cut the wood off on the compression side, and also how good the wood held on the holding side...

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After looking at that last vid I see how it works and well at that .I have some reservations of how well it would work in our fuller canopied hard woods though .Then again conditions dictate methods so the point is moot .Nice job .
 
Cody, I'm enjoying your vids. I dunno, but I'm thinking that your saw could maybe use a new plug. Just the vibe, nothing scientific.
 
Thanks guys. Al, the only hardwood I have put one on is a Cottonwood, and it sucked, compared to a Red Fir. Stringy tough fibrous wood works well. My chainsaw has a lot of miles on it...little scoring on the exhaust from not keeping my filter clean enough. I have four 066/660's and the ones that I ran on the fires were my oldest, most tired. Actually had new plugs, and filters on it though. I decided not to run my best as I did not want to ruin them with all the ash, and dust, and we were day waging anyhow :)
 
I mostly fell beech, and the whizzy works fine on those.
But then, they are reasonably strong fibered trees.
Trying it on a mature oak of the kind we have here would be ridicoulus.
 
There is that technique to roll trees around with the series of kerfs one above another that causes compression at the stump. Very cool when it works. What was it called, the something dutchman?
 
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Here's another:

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