Widow Maker?

BigDave · Mar 17, 2003

I agree 100%, I'm not putting anything of value anywhere near a tree that I'm going to fell. I like my tractor too much. I'll get to use the tractor for debris clean-up. If I need to remove a tree that is within striking distant of the house, then I'm hiring a pro.

P.S. I can never get that precision point right on the wedge cut, I don't cut the down slope steep enough. I guess, I need more practice. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

BigDave · Mar 17, 2003

Pictures can be deceiving. Being somewhat lazy, I took this shot with the zoom lense. Notice the tree is in focus, but the misses isn't. I estimated the tree to be 75' before I felled it, and the deck was over 120' away. The hottub at the near end of the patio was in a potential danger area, but with the way the tree bent, I didn't think there was much of a chance for the tree to hit the tub. I didn't realize that the speed at the top of the tree would cause sticks to go flying when it hit the ground.

rmorgan · Mar 17, 2003

Beenthere--

I wasy trained by my dad decades ago to use the method you describe, with the addition that whenever I can, I use a rope lasso'd as high up in the tree as I can get it down to the truck or tractor in the direction I want the tree to fall . . . among many other times, I used this on 9 trees with 8-16" trunks to clear space for the new barn last Fall, with very pleasing results . . . In your opinion, is there any compelling reason NOT to use a line, so long as the truck/tractor is out of the way (for example, that it might put too much tension on the trunk and make it less controllable)?

beenthere · Mar 17, 2003

I think the rope is a good safety plan especially on the size trees you mentioned, but there is a possibility that you can put too much tension on the tree. When making the backcut, if there is too much pull in the direction of desired fall (either by the tree leaning a lot or from a lot of pull on the rope) then the tree can pre-maturely split up the middle, causing what is known as "barber-chair". The split piece can kick out suddenly and has been known to catch a feller under the chin if not standing to the side. The cure (besides not putting too much pull on the rope) for a leaning tree is to "plunge cut" when making the backcut. This is sticking the nose of the bar into the tree leaving about 2-3" of uncut wood on the back side (away from the lean). When the backcut is finished toward the hinge, and the desired hinge is in place, then the 2-3" of wood is nipped away, causing a leaning tree to break loose and drop suddenly. This description may be hard to comprehend the way I've stated it, but it can be found in the literature as a safe way to drop leaning trees.
Here is a site that will help on felling trees.
Tree felling
I sometimes rope a tree, and even use a snatch pulley to allow pulling at an angle that doesn't expose the tractor or truck in case the rope is not long enough or position is a problem.

beenthere · Mar 17, 2003

Dave
It is a matter of practice, for sure. I found this site that shows the method I use (taught in a tree felling course I attended years ago) where I stand with my left shoulder against the tree, facing the direction I am going to fell the tree. Then with the saw at the angle that I want to make the top of the wedge cut, I sight along the handle of the saw (which is perpendicular to the bar) to the exact place I want the tree to drop. I then make the downward angled cut until I am into the tree with the bar about 80% of the tree diameter. If the tree is 16" then stop the cut when the bar is cutting 12-13". I then pull the bar out and make the bottom cut without moving my feet, meeting the cut at the point that I stopped the first cut. With repetition, the second cut can be watched to see that neither side cuts deeper than the first cut, ending up with a clean wedge being removed.

This is the site that talks about the wedge cut (lousy pics).
wedge cut

There are additional tips on this site, that you may want to review. Hope this helps.

BigDave · Mar 17, 2003

Thanks for the tip, I'll give it a try next time.

jtn · Mar 18, 2003

I am glad you pointed out that the notch should not be more than 1/4 the diameter of the tree. If it is cut too deep the tree falls too quickly and if it is hollow, as in this case, there is a lot less hinge material left. I would also add that the notch should be as wide as possible, idealy 90° so the tree can fall to the ground without breaking it. Also when you are cutting trees nobody should be within 2.5 tree lengths of you.

By the way, I thought a widow maker was a tree that was cut but got hung up in another tree. We always called dead trees snags.

JT

beenthere · Mar 19, 2003

<font color="red"> Widow maker- A loose limb, top, piece of bark or anything loose in a tree that may fall on a logger. </font>

I agree with you, and this is a definition that is in a loggers glossary.

Anonymous Poster · Mar 19, 2003

We always wrap a log chain tightly around the trunk of a hollow tree or those that have a heavy lean. Has held many trees together for me. Cut a 48" hard maple last week that only had 8" of wood in a "c" shape around the outside. You could climb in and stand inside of it...tree also had a good 10 degree lean. Hard to keep those from splitting. Happy yours came out OK. House looks too close for me, maybe the pic is deceiving.