Widow makers

[SpringHollow]

Normally, I am not in a spot where i can pull with the tractor. I usually use my gas powered portable winch with a long rope and a pulley to change the direction of the pull so that I am well out of the way and not in the line of fire in case something goes bad. If they are small, 8" or less, I section them but i probably should pull them down more often.

Ken

 

[logan97]

Friend of mine told me about cutting down big oak on his property. The tree was leaning wrong direction so they climbed up and attached pretty long rope quite high to the trunk and tensioned it with a F250 truck in direction they wanted the tree to fall. It fell the opposite way and pulled the pickup like it was a toy.

this is why the tensioned point needs to be chained (not roped) to another large enough tree.I just finished taking down a dozen trees these past few day's with this method everyone fell exactly where they were planned. My friend who has been a logger for many years taught me this method and it works.Knock on wood.

P.S. the slack is removed and tensioned with a come a long.

 

[LBrown59]

But what if the tree is large and the tractor is small??

Get a smaller tree.

 

[Egon]

Get a smaller tree.

But the smaller tree isn't being cut???

 

[beenthere]

In the woods this morning cutting some ash trees, and one hung up (not enough weight in top to push down through the canopy). Took some pics of getting it off the stump (with forks), and pulled out of the crotch of the tree that was holding it with log chain.

 

[beenthere]

After pulling the ash tree out, it was bucked to 90" lengths to carry out on forks to log pile awaiting bucking to 18" and splitting (then stacked on pallets for drying).

 

[merrickvilleguy]

I had some fun this morning with some small pines, 4-6" dia and under 20' tall, was just cutting them flush with the ground and going. They were tight together so when the last one was cut the whole lot just came down around me ... no biggy since they were small trees ... but I can tell you would not be my fave situation to be in if they were larger trees ...

 

[ccsial]

But what if the tree is large and the tractor is small??

You bring your wife out and show her why you need to buy a larger tractor.

 

[rdoiron]

Having become educated about widow makers, I took a walk around my property and noticed dozens just waiting to fall. All remnants of the 1998 ice storm. There was one particularly scary one that hangs directly above a path that I drive on regularly.

Scary stuff!

 

[jimmysisson]

this is why the tensioned point needs to be chained (not roped) to another large enough tree.I just finished taking down a dozen trees these past few day's with this method everyone fell exactly where they were planned. My friend who has been a logger for many years taught me this method and it works.Knock on wood.

P.S. the slack is removed and tensioned with a come a long.

Logan, I can't quite picture how you do this in the woods? From a ladder? Or with climbing spurs? You'd chain the tree to another in the direction of fall, with enough slack to allow a safe fall? If I picture it right, you're felling a tree toward a bigger one?
Thanks, Jim

 

[blackie65]

thought I would post a pic of my widow maker. This is over one of the trails the kids, wife and I frequent.

 

[Treemonkey1000]

I can't tell much from your picture blackie as to how hung up that is. I think the first thing that I would ask if I were looking at it is can I cut the tree that it is hung up on? If the answer were yes then I would see how much the leaner was pushing the vertical tree and which way. Then try to drop the vertical tree in what looks like an open spot there.
The biggest concern is the escape route if I were going to cut it. There is a lot of pressure on the vertical tree. So if you were to cut it the possibility of a "barber chair" is fairly high. A good face cut a sharp saw and lot's of adenaline along with a spotter to let you as the cutter know that things are happening... Sounds like a fun job!

 

[brin]

thought I would post a pic of my widow maker. This is over one of the trails the kids, wife and I frequent.

blackie - there are two ways I have cut trees in that situation.. The first way would be to start about 3 ft. up from the base of the tree and cut a V on the underside and then cut through from the top and let the base fall and then just keep repeating this procedure cutting the tree from the bottom until it is down or more manageable..The second way would be to use a long chain and fasten it around the base of the tree and pull, keeping your chain on your tractor low to the ground, and pull away from the lean of the tree...this should result in the tree falling and you would be nowhere around...

I have used both methods and I am still alive..

 

[Treemonkey1000]

Brin I have done what you described and lived to tell about it. But it is one of the higher risk methods to chop sections like that. And it is a real easy way to pinch the bar of your saw.
Pulling the butt up in the air with a tractor is a safer method from a distance with a cable or rope.

 

[jml755]

blackie - there are two ways I have cut trees in that situation.. The first way would be to start about 3 ft. up from the base of the tree and cut a V on the underside and then cut through from the top and let the base fall and then just keep repeating this procedure cutting the tree from the bottom until it is down or more manageable..The second way would be to use a long chain and fasten it around the base of the tree and pull, keeping your chain on your tractor low to the ground, and pull away from the lean of the tree...this should result in the tree falling and you would be nowhere around...

I have used both methods and I am still alive..

brin, agree with your method. I've also used "chop-from-the-bottom" lots of times. My widow-makers are always in an area where I can't get a vehicle. I don't do an underside "vee" at first, just a straight cut up as the cut will open instead of closing as you go. There's no cut and dried rule, but usually when the tree starts to "crack", I'll just touch the topside a few times, not going deep enough to get the saw stuck and it usually snaps. Sometimes, to avoid a stuck saw, I'll make several cuts next to each other to get a wider saw kerf. That give me enough time when I see the kerf start to close to pull the saw. Haven't stuck one yet. (Knock on wood)

In my experience, as I get closer to the other tree (after a couple of cuts and the tree is more vertical) gravity helps pull the leaner down and out of the hangup. Found 3 leaners this past weekend that I need to bring down on Saturday. Each one is a little different. That's the main thing: expect the unexpected, be safe and minimize the risk. If someone wants to ELIMINATE the risk, put down the chainsaw, get out of the woods and take up golf. :laughing:

As an aside, had an interesting one this weekend. It was an 8" poplar (petty straight), not hungup, just a straight drop into an open area. Notched the front, got almost done with the back-cut and instead of it pivoting over on the hinge, it ROTATED on the stump coming about halfway off of it but staying vertical. I jumped back out of the way (always have a clear escape route), looked up and nothing was hung up. I just leaned on it and it fell where I had planned. Still, gotta expect the unexpected.

 

[czechsonofagun]

I had one like that, cut the supporting tree carefully and run back. It was fast and easy, but it took me four years to do it after we bought our place.

 

[easygo]

I don't mess around with hung up trees anymore. Once a small 8" or so white birch split as I was sectioning it after it got hung up. It was fairly easy looking hangup but I went at it with care as usual. I cut in about 1-2" from the top and then started the cut from the bottom. I was about 1/3 through the tree when it split along a 4-5 foot length and then proceeded to come down towards me. I ran for all it was worth. It was was more like an instinctive jump luckily in the right direction and I got away with just a scare.

Now if my tractor can't pull the butt end on the ground I rig up a 3 to 1 block and tackle. That pulled down any tree that I got hung up.

 

[brin]

I don't mess around with hung up trees anymore. Once a small 8" or so white birch split as I was sectioning it after it got hung up. It was fairly easy looking hangup but I went at it with care as usual. I cut in about 1-2" from the top and then started the cut from the bottom. I was about 1/3 through the tree when it split along a 4-5 foot length and then proceeded to come down towards me. I ran for all it was worth. It was was more like an instinctive jump luckily in the right direction and I got away with just a scare.

Now if my tractor can't pull the butt end on the ground I rig up a 3 to 1 block and tackle. That pulled down any tree that I got hung up.

Yours is the safest way without a doubt...:thumbsup:

 

[dmccarty]

...
If someone wants to ELIMINATE the risk, put down the chainsaw, get out of the woods and take up golf. :laughing:
....

But then some hacker may hit you with a golf ball and kill you!

Safer in the woods! :laughing:

Later,
Dan

 

[Car Doc]

I decided to drop some of the smaller (4" to 10") pines in what will be my front yard. After sucessfully felling 4/5 trees, a 8" pine did not fall as I thought and got hung up in a smaller tree. I could not push/pull it to get it to fall. Since I was going to drop the other tree, I decided to cut it hopeing they would both fall. I had my "safe" escape route planed and made my cut. I safely retreated to watch them fall. NOPE. They both hung up in a much bigger tree that I planed to keep. I kept undercutting the first tree in 4/4.5 ft lengths until it fell. I then attacked the second the same way. It was not fun. It was scary.
What is the best was to handle:
1. A single "widow maker" that the bottom is on thground and the top is leaning in another tree;
2. How do you handle the situation when you have two "WMs" together?

Norm

Climb it as long as the main tree is strong enough and trim down the leaners rope them if necessary w/o seeing it that's the best I can add besides be dang carefull and look up.