Tree felling vids

[Tucker943]

Mulberry goo's my saw and gear up with pure white sap. I don't do many of them, but the few Ive whacked were a real mess. Id like one in my yard though.

 

[pantheraba]

They are just a word to me...can't say I have ever seen one but they sound pretty desirable. I'll have to check into them.

 

[NHlocal]

I've heard of 'em, never saw one other than pictures and video.
I don't think we have 'em up here.....?
I here the fruit is supposed to be good.....

 

[woodworkingboy]

We call it Kuwa over here, and the leaves are what they feed the silkworms. I still see the Kuwa plantations around as this was an important area for it, trimmed to low bushes to better allow leaf harvesting. Unfortunately, mostly unkempt now.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Is that one of yours, Jay? It's spectacular!!!

 

[cory]

WOW, that is incredible grain! Mulberry is a widespread weed tree here, I think of it as wet, heavy, and junky, but then I had never seen the above picture...

 

[woodworkingboy]

Some species variation, Cory. The tables have it listed as medium hardness, along the lines of Cherry. Works well and takes sharp details, nice shine to it as well.

 

[woodworkingboy]

Not mine, MB, done by a guy that specializes in that type of work, an old traditional trade called sashimono. Small boxes for scrolls, or small cabinets of one sort or another. A few of those guys left now. Prideful work, generally all concealed joinery, not showoff, but with tremendous integrity. I'll admit to an interest in it, and have done a few pieces . I got ambitious with some Purpleheart here, a low desk. They would call it Sashimono, not furniture, though the purists would frown on the exposed dovetails at the corners. Those guys revere Mulberry, looking through old photos of such work, you often see that wood as the choice.

 

[cory]

Seems like fine woodworking is a specialty in the jap culture? sorta like the warriors doing non warrior stuff like calligraphy and flower arranging and writing haikus, cultivating their other side, like the yin/yang thing?

Those pieces of woodworking look they were made with total disregard for time/effort/care required, just worked to make them as good as could possibly be made by the human hand. In other words, more a work of art than simply some fine woodworking. Impressive.

 

[NHlocal]

Master craftsman work, really beautiful stuff.

 

[FJR]

Red and White Mulberry are all over the place here. The White is borderline invasive and both are typically seen as fairly undesirable.

 

[woodworkingboy]

That's true, Cory, crafts were taken to a high art. Carpentry much so as well. Common people couldn't afford the real quality work by a long shot, but there were always patrons that supported the best craftsmen. It's pretty complex reasons within the context of the culture why the level of manual skills was developed to such a high degree. If you had to pick a one sentence cause, I guess it would be extreme self discipline and work being thought of with something similar to religious fervor. Once when I got to the shop when an apprentice, I said to one of the older craftsmen, "It sure is a beautiful day outside". He looked at me somewhat incredulously and said, "What's outside has got nothing to do with us, so don't trouble yourself over it". A small verbal exchange, but embodied in that response is a whole lot of stuff, and where else might you hear similar being said? In practical terms they also understand wood very well. It's a wood culture, is said. Rice fields and timber constituted much of the wealth of feudal lords, samurais were generally paid with rice, and wars were fought over forest possession.

 

[MasterBlaster]

"What's outside has got nothing to do with us, so don't trouble yourself over it".

I'd have said "Don't be such a grumpy Gus! Where's the saki???"

 

[woodworkingboy]

I felt that way about the grumpy part too, but i do find some meaning in his remarks. Saki was after 6:30 PM, though at least one guy might sometimes come to work already with a belly full. Not sure what the shop chief thought, but other craftsmen just looked the other way.

 

[cory]

Great, well written post, Jay.

You say the culture revolves around wood and you speak of "the level of manual skills being developed to such a high degree." Does that extend to the procurement of wood by logging, and tree climbing/trimming? Or is the level of skill about the same there as anywhere else?

 

[woodworkingboy]

Cory, quite a number of years ago I had a lady customer that asked me to build a tall chest from a Paulownia wood tree that her mother had planted in the home garden. Her mother was not well, and she and her brother wanted the chest made for themselves before she died. You can dry that wood quite quickly, and I promised delivery in a year. It was pretty much before I started doing tree work myself, so I hired someone to do the removal. Their old house was in Tokyo, and though they had like a little oasis going in the midst of the very congested surroundings, chainsaws weren't allowed to be used. Might have been the day of the week or that particular area, I don't recall, but loud noise use was prohibited. A guy with his helper came and they disassembled a fairly good sized tree with handsaws and the most uncanny array of rope tricks to get the sections down. He had this thing going where he could lower heavy sections by having the rigging rope laid across his shoulders to contend with the weight and control the lowering while stooping over. I remember some thick natural fibered ropes.

I wish I could have been more in tune with the work at that time and had a video of the methods. It was the one and only time I have ever seen such a thing. It makes me think that there was once traditional tree work that had developed to very skillful, but it has now become extinct. I know they at one time logged mainly with horses, much similar to in other countries. Timber frame construction was for so any years the mainstay here, and the forests are often on steep terrain, I would have to think that all the long history trades pertaining to wood were highly developed. I haven't come across any logging museums or anything like that. They are such nuts about working in general, especially during the old days. Now, young people don't want to get their hands dirty.

 

[NHlocal]

I agree, well written, well said.

 

[woodworkingboy]

Thanks.

 

[cory]

"uncanny array of rope tricks," sounds fascinating! Hard to imagine that rope-across-the-back thing though

 

[woodworkingboy]

A method of lowering while up in a tree. Seemed effective too.

 

[MasterBlaster]

I'd like to see it.

 

[canadiantreeman]

Better than burning your hand, I guess, but you wouldn't want rope burn on you back!

 

[cory]

Maybe Paul was trying that technique and it led the picture he posted in the other thread!!

 

[woodworkingboy]

I wondered that too?

 

[NHlocal]

I don't know if anyone can help me out? I figured this was the best place to ask.
I've been trying to find a video of a guy who dropped a "good sized" tree between
a shed and a mobile home(I think). It was an incredibly tight drop zone and the
man's response after it fell was the memorable part, he spun around, faced the
camera, fell to his knees, raised his hands to the sky, and might have even said
"praise the Lord!!!" or something like that.
Does that ring any bells with anyone??? I'd love to see that one again!

Thanks!