Osceola Chainsaw Course Pt 2

[JaxHiker]

This past weekend most of the students from the bucking & limbing course reunited for the felling portion. We worked the same area again and actually ended up setting up logs for the next b&l course in Jan.

Disclaimer: We were cutting down dead trees (ie fire, insects, disease). No live trees were cut down during this exercise.

The cut we were doing is an open face. A traditional cut consists of a 45* and horizontal cut to create the wedge. With an open face you cut two angles. This creates a greater degree of control as the tree falls.


L-R: Traditional, Humboldt, Open face

Of course, it wouldn't make much sense to start cutting down 80' trees without practicing your techniques first. After using the stumps from our B&L class to practice our face cuts it was on to the bore cuts. Our instructor cut a stump leaving two 6-8" wide strips. We had to bore through the width of the tree without coming out the side. Here's what it looks like.



This will give you a little idea of how much wood we had to go through.



After making the face cut and the bore cut (this includes cutting the right amount of holding wood) you still have a backstrap. Even with so much wood removed, the tree is still sound. Unlike the traditional or Humboldt cuts, you can walk away from the tree with an open face and it's still a safe tree. You don't have anything to worry about until you release the tree by cutting the backstrap.

So after some practice cuts it was on to the trees. This is me making the face cut on my first tree.





And the aftermath. The key about this image is that my target was the burned out snag. You might notice that the tree I cut down is laying right next to it. Remember, this is the first tree I ever cut down. Unfortunately, what you can't tell from this image is that I actually nailed the snag. I broke off the top 4-5' and then it got deflected to the left.



The fibers sticking up are part of the holding wood or the hinge. This helps control the tree on its way down. Notice that I have fibers all the way across. That's good holding wood baby. Here's a better view. Notice the nice face cut, near perfect holding wood, and a level back cut.



So there ya go. We had a great time and look forward to using our skills to maintain the Florida Trail.

[walkin' wally]

Nice pics Jax.
No face shield required?

[nitewalker]

great job with the cuts..watch out for the tip of the saw when near the stock of the tree. if your not ready when it hits the tree u could experience some of that kickback if contact is not proper...be carefull and good luck taking care of the trail..

[mudhead]

I really could use a course of this type. I can usually put a tree where I want, because I cooperate with what it wants to do for the most part. I am sure I do some unsafe stuff.

[Yukon]

Next chance you get, try bringing some wooden stakes with you and see how far you can drive them into the ground. We do this sometimes for a little added fun, and for bragging rights at the end of the day. You simply pound the stake into the ground about an inch (enough to hold it) then drop the tree on it to see how far it goes in. It inevitably brakes the stake but you can dig it out and see how much went in...pretty fun.

[JaxHiker]

wally, no shield required. The USFS doesn't use them at all. Some of the guys had the Husqvarna helmets with the integrated shield.

nitewalker, you're absolutely right. I used to be worried about kickback but now that I really know what to expect and I'm ready for it it's not a big deal. On the bore cuts you just have to start on the bottom tip of the bar, not the top. Once you start into the wood you can bring it around and continue on through.

mud, I think it's great training for anyone working with trees. It's one thing to take advantage of a tree's natural lean to put it on the ground. It's a different matter entirely to put it somewhere it doesn't want to go. You may have to avoid potential snags in the canopy, ground structures, etc that lay in the natural path. Knowing how/where to wedge to convince it to fall in a safer area is crucial.

Walter, I thought we were going to do that, actually. Instead we just used safety tape to mark our target. I need to find some trees to cut down now. The neighborhood better watch out.

[mudhead]

It's a different matter entirely to put it somewhere it doesn't want to go.

It is an art.

Like watching a guy who is good with a backhoe.

[The Solemates]

it still seems pointless to me to cut down all these trees. i cannot believe hikers are advocating it as legit work.

[mudhead]

Valid point. Perhaps they are in a small corner of a large hunk of woods.

The health of the trees was in the first post. Can't imagine they cut that many down, some must have been left. But I was not there.

[Yukon]

Walter, I thought we were going to do that, actually. Instead we just used safety tape to mark our target. I need to find some trees to cut down now. The neighborhood better watch out.

Head up to NY then, with this ice storm there are PLENTY of trees that need to be cut. I did it all last weekend, actually wore out one of my chains (it was it's time anyway).

Glad you took the time to take this course and learn the responsible way to do this type of work. I have seen alot of people just buy a chainsaw and go into their woods without a clue of proper technique...

[floridahikes]

it still seems pointless to me to cut down all these trees. i cannot believe hikers are advocating it as legit work.

They're dead trees, according to Hammock Hanger. Between pine bark beetles, fungus, and hurricanes, we get a lot of dead trees down here. Most of the time folks are using their skills to clear deadfall off the trail, not to drop dead trees on it.

Cheers, Navigator

[The Solemates]

They're dead trees, according to Hammock Hanger. Between pine bark beetles, fungus, and hurricanes, we get a lot of dead trees down here. Most of the time folks are using their skills to clear deadfall off the trail, not to drop dead trees on it.

Cheers, Navigator

the photos shown on this thread are not of dead trees, but rather vibrant living ones.

[nitewalker]

the photos shown on this thread are not of dead trees, but rather vibrant living ones.

look again. it appears to me that the tree he was working on is fire chared so i assume it is dead. some of the surrounding trees are alive... any dead tree is a hazzard waiting too hapen.

[beeman]

I have to respect that the trees were dead as stated. That being said, Fire charring on bark doesn't = dead tree. It simply means a fire went through the area. MAny coniferous trees have thick bark to protect them from the fires that mother nature routinely sends through a forest. If more fires were able to burn through the forests naturally, the ladder material on and near the ground wouldn't build up so badly and the overall forests would be healthier I believe.

[walkin' wally]

it still seems pointless to me to cut down all these trees. i cannot believe hikers are advocating it as legit work.

On the sites that I have taken my training on the landowner was going to cut the trees anyway for market and in one instance he was right there with us. Most landowners in these situations won't waste trees. One landowner was a sawmill company and the other was a farmer. Both were members of the Maine AT Club. Locations in Bradford Maine and Gray Maine respectively.

[general]

always carry an extra bar and chain at least. if you screw up your cut, or if something unexpected happens and your saw is pinned, you can always take the bar off, put the other on, and correct the mistake. and always carry 4 felling wedges, for those stubborn ones, and the ones that have to go the other way.

[JaxHiker]

the photos shown on this thread are not of dead trees, but rather vibrant living ones.

Goodness gracious. Not even a disclaimer is good enough for you.

As I stated in the OP, the trees we were working on were DEAD. Perhaps I should've taken close-up shots after stripping the bark so you could see the bore holes from the critters. There wasn't a single bit of green left on any of the trees. If somebody picked out a tree that was living they were told to pick another tree.

These were trees that the Forest Service had already selected for culling. We were just helping them do that while they trained us.

Little of the trail work we'll do actually involves felling, however, it does happen. Bucking and limbing is most of the work. The Juniper Springs to Hidden Pond section of the trail in early October was horrible due to the tremendous storm damage. There was a large section of the trail that was completely blocked by fallen debris with no real way to re-route. A chainsaw is the only way to get the trail clear. As I stated the last time, if you run a chainsaw in a Natl Forest you have to be certified. It's not like we're running around the forest with our hockey masks on and saws revving in the air.

If it helps, our practice cuts were made on the stumps left over from the previous course.

So please, if it bothers you so much, don't click on the thread.

[JaxHiker]

always carry an extra bar and chain at least. if you screw up your cut, or if something unexpected happens and your saw is pinned, you can always take the bar off, put the other on, and correct the mistake. and always carry 4 felling wedges, for those stubborn ones, and the ones that have to go the other way.

We did talk about that. I'm not sure how many saws generally go out with the trail crew. In the bucking & limbing class I got some good experience getting my saw stuck. I learned to really watch the kerf. As soon as I see it moving I drive a wedge in. No more stuck bars.

I did wonder about one of the guys at the end. We were clearing his work area so he could fell and he got pinched while bucking another tree that had been felled earlier. It was some work for me to get the wedge in for him but we were finally able to free it. It'd be nice to have another saw available though.

[mudhead]

Everyone should have a good story about a fetched-up chainsaw they were glad to get back.

Not that I would know.

[The Solemates]

look again. it appears to me that the tree he was working on is fire chared so i assume it is dead. some of the surrounding trees are alive... any dead tree is a hazzard waiting too hapen.

look again. the tree he is cutting is only slightly charred on the outside, and completely green throughout the entire core, from edge to edge. small fires, for pine trees especially, are stimulated by fires like this.