Tree felling vids

[Marc-Antoine]

For one, trimming the root-flare makes easier the shaping of the butt for transport, as we don't cut above the flare usually (for logging). For two it allows the access to the center on the big trees with the too short bars, reducing the apparent diameter to the useful one. It is just a matter of preparing the tree's butt before the actual felling. Then, you cut out the face as per the book.

I agree with the critical point being the hinge thickness. A dutchman increases it virtually by as much as the mismatch. But the length of the hinge plays a part too by determining how wide the split has to develop to separate the trunk. A small notch means a small hinge and therefor few fibers have to sustain the massive tension. Exactly like splitting difficult firewood by taking a small chunk of the outside instead of the full diameter.
As for the position of the cog relative to the hinge, i don't see that as a determining factor in the baberchair (beside increasing/decreasing the leverage) all things equal otherwise.

 

[SeanKroll]

If the COG is far to the side (and up) from the hinge, it will want to split more due to increased leverage.

 

[Altissimus]

Forward , Center , Aft ...

 

[davidwyby]

Imagine someone is trying to push you over from behind. You will brace with your toes, maybe even move one foot forward to resist. Forward hinge. If the front half of your foot is removed, you fall right over.

 

[biggun]

I was always under the impression that the barber chair was due to tension in the centre of the log.

Species dependent, some are more prone to it than others.

A small face doesn’t address the tension.

A deeper face removes some of the tension.

If the species and characteristics of the wood make you think it may BC then bore out the middle of the hinge thus removing the tension.

 

[davidwyby]

Totally agree. Getting a deep face in a fwd leaning tree can be a trick. Gutting the hinge and plunging not so much.

The fella in NY I referred to has been small scale logging on and off for himself and others for 50 years. Shallow vertical face, gutted hinge, little stump shot plunge and trigger. No chairs, no fiber pull every time.

That being said, those methods are slow and fiddly when you compare to a western long bar running square skip and a Humboldt. Three cuts from one position and she’s down.

Different strokes for different trees…and folks.

 

[davidwyby]

Here’s some sketch…if it’s a head leaner and direction doesn’t matter, why have a hinge? Cut in from the front, set a wedge on each side of the cut, cut all the way thru to the back. If you back bar ream, the kerf fills with sawdust preventing pinch. I have done it on small spars.

 

[Trains]

Yeah, not gunna do that.

 

[davidwyby]

“Question for you, since you handle a lot of the crappy desert hardwoods: Any tricks on not getting dead by dropping big rotten leaning cottonwoods? I dropped one that was not rotten on the only part that mattered - the holding wood. Everything else was rotten. I wanted to do a bore cut with trigger, but it was almost impossible to bore into the stringy live part. The tip just wanted to kick back because cutters were lodging into the sponge. The others were even more dead looking - you could see through one of them. Another was decently alive but leaning at more than 45 degrees. This stuff kinda scares me.”

 

[davidwyby]

*someone asked me.