High Back Cut, Burnham Style!

[Jed]

"Stump Forensics." Beautiful term Stig!!! I think we need a stump forensics thread that feature the shots of all of you guys intelligent enough to be able to post pictures of stumps that stump you. I know I've had a few over the years.

By the way guys: as regards the quarter cut--so you make the second back cut a bit below the first one to avoid hitting your wedges? Man--I've really got to be brought up to speed on the weird stuff. Not in Jerry's book!

 

[sotc]

The wedge will 'snap' the little fiber as soon as you smack it with your axe, neat trick for sure

 

[Jed]

Got it! Will try it. God willing!

 

[Bermy]

You have to make sure the back cuts overlap all the way up to the hinge, if you inadvertantly leave an uncut 'triangle' deep inside behind the hinge it's a complete bugger to get the tree over, you all know how much strength a few uncut fibres can have!

 

[Burnham]

Point well made, Fiona.

 

[gf beranek]

Burnham, look at the pictures again.
That stump is 1½ foot high.
Anders cut it and he is about a foot shorter than me, so it is a real high stump for him.

And I always set high stumps when I do hazard falling.

Actually, the way I read it ( I love stump forensics!) it was not rootflare as much as twisted trunk that caused it.

But then why only on one side of the tree?

Beats me.

In a twisted tree the grain runs in a spiral. And so with a face and back cut in the stump, in corner of the hinge the grain will run into the stump and in the other it will run into the face. In the latter case it is the least holding corner.

The stump tells the story. And talk about a good example of a twisted tree.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Whoa!!!

 

[CurSedVoyce]

THAT is awesome. I bet that would make for interesting lumber

 

[sotc]

Hard to stack though

 

[woodworkingboy]

Make for weak lumber. Probably warp like hell during drying. The best use for that wood is in the living tree.

 

[Bermy]

Point well made, Fiona.

Thanks B...point learned from experience, even on my tiddler trees that 'triangle' can hold and hold and hold!!

 

[stig]

Whoa!!!

I'll second that!

Thanks Jerry, I didn't think of that. Of course one won't notice the twist in the corner where it runs into the tree instead of into the face.

 

[Burnham]

I third that, smart guy, this Mr. Beranek .

 

[Jed]

Thanks Jer: But why didn't you put that in your book?!!!! Bad hero!!

 

[murphy4trees]

I'll second that!

Thanks Jerry, I didn't think of that. Of course one won't notice the twist in the corner where it runs into the tree instead of into the face.

That's funny... I thought you were a self proclaimed expert on reading the grain of a tree... anyone that is paying attention to their stumps knows that one of the problems with a high backcut is that you'll lose one side of the hinge's width with any twist in the grain..

 

[Burnham]

This thread has enjoyed a pretty good run...revived a couple or three times, lots of good stuff has come under discussion. Way to go, 'Housers!

 

[murphy4trees]

<iframe title="YouTube video player" width="480" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/HM52FXtF9LY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

At the end of this video there is a quick explaination showing how stumpshot can casue the hinge to thin out on one side and thicken it up on the other.

 

[gf beranek]

Thanks Jer: But why didn't you put that in your book?!!!! Bad hero!!

you'll find it in pages 251-252

 

[gf beranek]

It's odd though that the twist can run right or left in the same species.

 

[Jed]

Thanks so much for the reference Jer:

I really needed to re-read those pages anyway. I don't know if it's the smell of the paper or the weight of the thing in my hand or--what is more likely--the astonishing photographs, but I just "get something" out of that book that is simply just not available over the internet and never will be. My own experience in the woods (which still isn't the same thing) would be the closest thing to the uncanny sense of longing I get when I see those black and white photos.

The shots of the undercuts in the woods are so enchanting they almost--if you could ever understand me--hurt in a weird way. But I'll even take the technical shots. It is largely due to your magnified shots of the square ground chisel-chain that I spend as much heartache as I do trying to manually (with the double-bevel file) reproduce the same angles. When and IF I do, the efforts are rewarding. My little 440 blows huge chips out of the case like a gift from God! STRAIGHT cuts too!--just like you claimed. I'm kinda surprised more guys don't make the effort.

The "bad hero" omission I chided you for was the remark that you made--or is it only in my weird little brain--about the twist in the grain producing a stronger hinge on one side of the tree than on the other: a comment that I thought you made in one of these threads. If it's not true you'd better set me straight: I brought it up in one of our company safety meetings a couple of weeks back! The boys gave me tons of credit like I really knew what I was talking about!

 

[gf beranek]

About the time we think we got it all figured out something happens to prove that thought wrong. Exceptions abound in the natural world!

 

[Jed]

Yeah, I guess that's what Burnham means by his avatar quote. Something about confidence engendered by not fully understanding the situation.

 

[gf beranek]

Truly words of wisdom.

 

[sappy1]

Great cut,but most importantly-great escape. Sappy1

 

[MasterBlaster]

Welcome to the TreeHouse, Sappy!