Pull down a high widow maker.

[two_bit_score]

This what the forestry guys said works. 3/4 diesel, 1 part gas. I had already figured this out, but it was nice to have that confirmed by the experts.

That is a drip torch mix. There is some question about which ratio to use, when.

Who Mixed the Fuel?

This post is about the complications involved in making good drip torch mix.

wildfirelessons.wordpress.com

 

[two_bit_score]

Wouldn't adding gas to diesel increase the risk from flammable vapors?

Here is what it says in the FS Health and Safety Code Handbook-

Select the best fuel mixture ratio for each burning job. AUTHORIZED
mixtures are:
a. 1 gallon (4 L) of gasoline to 3 gallons (11 L) of diesel.
b. 1 gallon of gasoline to 4 gallons (15 L) of diesel.
c. 1 gallon of gasoline to 5 gallons (19 L) of diesel.
Caution: 1 gallon of gasoline to 3 gallons of diesel fuel produces a
very volatile mixture. This mix should be used only in appropriate
fuel types and during periods of high humidity.

 

[ning]

Another later solo rope saw cut I set up a pulley so that it was more like the 2-person method, just solo. Less getting stuck.

I'd be grateful to hear more how you did this.

Basically set up a pulley at the position that a helper would take, such that when you throw the rope saw over the branch, "his" end of the rope goes to the pulley and then back to you.
One of your hands is acting on the rope that goes from you up from you to the branch, and your other hand is acting on the rope that's horizontally going from you to the pulley and then up to the branch on the other side.
Pull with one hand and let the other hand just go out, then pull with the other hand etc. Don't try to maintain tension on the non-pulling hand, that's just working against yourself. This goes for partnered rope saw cutting as well - when you're pulling, your helper should totally just let the saw go by actually raising their hand so you're not having to pull their hand up, and then when they pull down, you should raise your hand deliberately and not make your partner pull your hand up.

Make sure that whatever rope you use to extend the rope saw for this is as low-friction as you can find, and not stretchy at all. I didn't have any but para cord should work pretty well; for a pulley you can go simple like a carabiner or if you have a snatch block or other pulley that's even better.

Thing to understand is that the rope saw works the very best if it's fairly flat over the top of the branch. You don't want the saw portion to be cutting lots of wood at once by having it hug the whole branch (well, like 3/4 of the branch) by curling around it because that will be way too much friction & effort. Kinda like a pole saw, you want easy cutting and just take your time. Also as the branch droops if the saw isn't fairly flat on top of the branch it'll get pinched.

It should go without saying but definitely positively make sure you don't stand under the branch...

 

[2manyrocks]

Thank you for such a good explanation. I intend to give it a try.

 

[Runner]

This solution isn't for everyone, but I'll just throw it out there. I have these broken branch, "widowmaker", type situations all the time and have tried free-climbing, roping, ladders, etc. Finally, I decided to invest in some tree climbing gear and learned to climb.

I'm not a daredevil and not especially fond of working at heights, but feel safe enough doing it with the right gear and safety equipment. I only go up in situations where I feel personally safe and believe that I won't be endangering any property or other people. I am in no way an expert or professional and know my limitations. There are jobs I won't do and still hire professionals when deemed necessary.

That being said, I have used my gear and techniques quite few times to remove snags and it has been worth the investment in time and money for me to learn how to climb. Here is an example of a snag I recently removed this way.

Notice the branch hanging down almost parallel with the trunk about 20 feet up on the left side. It is about 8 inch diameter and 10 feet long. It had apparently broken off in an ice storm or wind storm years ago, but was still hanging by a few fibers at the break point.

If you zoom in on the pic, you can see that the whole tree is actually split from the top of the broken branch, down several feet. So, my job was to attach my climb line to the big part of the trunk coming toward the camera, about 5 feet above the top of the broken branch (and the split). Then, I went up and cut the broken branch out of the tree from the top, where the break was.

Turned out, the fibers holding it at the top were so rotten, all I had to do was give it a couple of good kicks while hanging on the rope, and the branch fell out without much cutting with the saw. Anyway, it’s done and now looks a lot better. I was a little worried about tying into the tree above the split, but it is a big hedge tree and pretty tough wood, so it held me just fine.

Again, this isn't for everyone, but I'm 65 and just learned how to do it in the last several years, so it's not out of the realm of possibility to do it.