A way to drop wood

[Treeaddict]

Is there any inherent danger to this scenario?

A 16” leader leans at 30* in the direction you want it to fall. You come in straight from the back side and slice all the way through. It falls off tearing out a little sapwood and bark from the front. No face cut at all.

Obviously the ring of death is a concern and in this scenario the climber isn’t tied in below the piece being dropped.

 

[lxskllr]

Barberchair. Depending on the exact setup, it could come back and hit you. Generally unpredictable.

 

[stikine]

Is there any inherent danger to this scenario?

A 16” leader leans at 30* in the direction you want it to fall. You come in straight from the back side and slice all the way through. It falls off tearing out a little sapwood and bark from the front. No face cut at all.

Obviously the ring of death is a concern and in this scenario the climber isn’t tied in below the piece being dropped.

Why not put a little undercut in prior to the release cut? Doesn't have to to be a full undercut.

 

[Treeaddict]

The reason for no undercut is the difficulty of that situation where it would have to be done blind from the backside. If you went to the side on such a leaner, you’d flip to the underside quite easily.

 

[stikine]

I'm just talking about a little kerf cut to prevent the circle of death scenario. Maybe I don't fully understand your situation?

 

[SeanKroll]

A 540 degree lanyard wrap might help for the undercut.

 

[Brock Mayo]

A choked climb line in addition to your lanyard will keep you on a side leaning spar all day long. Maybe what Sean means? 50/50 chance you choke it the right direction to hold you in place. I think wrap your rope toward the lean and you end up with adjustable side control. SRS device is the best because your also on rappel if shit goes sideways

 

[friedrich]

i think one passing in certain situation is a good thing (speed, safes gas/batteries, might manipulate the piece in a certain way) but not to cut corners and because you are not able to put in a gob. and it might be a good idea to practise on small pieces..

 

[flushcut]

Make a notch and snip the sapwood on either side of the hinge lanyard clipped to the same D on your saddle, climb line below it all. Smaller cuts are better than big.

 

[Treeaddict]

Good stuff guys. I like the lanyard wrap idea to keep you sideways on a heavy leaner. That would sure make it easier to face for longer pieces (more than firewood size)

 

[stig]

The micro notch seemed to work wonders for Murphy.
You might consider one of those.

Apart from that, I'm with the rest here.
540 wrap, reach around and set a face.

Might want to chain the top if it is heavy.
A locking chain over and one under your cut, and there is no way it can barberchair.
When I throw big tops on hazard trees, that is my modus operandi.

In that case, you don't need a face cut.

 

[Treeaddict]

Thank you all for the education. It is much appreciated!

 

[SkwerI]

Seems like a perfect situation for a Coos Bay cut. Boy, have you got some reading to do! Mr. Beranek and Mr. Burnham will gladly lead you in the right direction.

 

[stig]

Kinda hard to put in a Coos bay, when the tree is leaning so much, you can't hardly get to the side of it.

 

[SkwerI]

Kinda hard to put in a Coos bay, when the tree is leaning so much, you can't hardly get to the side of it.

But isn't that the point of the Coos Bay? You can do it from above, no need to get on the side.

 

[Treeaddict]

The coos bay is a good point. I know how to execute it but never implemented it. It would help it that situation and not allow the barber chair.

 

[Bermy]

I had something similar...I went away and hired a tower truck came back, did the job.
I had good access though.

 

[Eric H-L]

Read this thread with great interest. I have been hoping to find a lower risk opportunity to practice the Coos Bay cut. I re-checked The Fundamentals of General Tree Work and realized that what I was thinking of was closer to what Jerry calls an Improved Jump Cut. I have a 8” Hackberry leader going up at a 45 degree angle about 30 feet long over my parking spot. I was able to get a high tie in and good work position to cut the leader near the main trunk. I cut a narrow shallow face without any pinching. Then the sap cuts and moved promptly to backcut. I had read or heard somewhere that it’s important not to dilly-dally and I think I rushed a little and did not get much of a sap cut on the far side. It still worked like a charm.

 

[Nutball]

Why not bore in and backchain until it snaps?