Any suggestions on falling a tree for the first time?
I've used a chainsaw many many times but only cutting firewood that was already on the ground
>my life insurance is current
Chain and come-along are your friends.
Cut as low to the ground as possible to avoid having Mr. Tree hop the base and cleave your leg off.
>>917814
My first idea was to use my winch attached to a rope around a high branch with a very little pressure on it then just cut a wedge out of the tree and cut along the backside. Is this right?
>>917813
Reading things like this make me happy I can afford to pay people to do shit like this.
Or at least afford to rent a jlg to take it down piece by my self
>>917813
you need to make a gob cut (cut horizontally onto the tree about 1/5 the depth of the trunk. Then cut down from Above that to make a mouth shape.) on the face of the tree in the direction you want it to fall. Then cut in from behind in a straight line to meet up with the gob cut. This causes the tree to fall in the direction you want. If it's a small tree having someone pull on a long rope you have tied high up in the tree in that direction is also good. Watch a YouTube video to give you an idea.
>>917815
Like this. The tree I'm falling is yellow, rope is red, other tree is green and my truck blue
>>917815
More or less. I've found it to be safer to notch the tree, cut most of the way through the back, and then pull it over with the come-along. Always be ready to drop your saw and run if things go south.
Don't use rope. I've had trees with a rope under tension that have rebounded and done all kinds of wacky shit. I've found chain to be much more predictable, even if it is a pain in the ass to haul up a tree.
>>917819
i don't know about a winch
i did exactly this but with a ratchet strap on a towbar just to keep the tension
up until the tree is ready to fall it will drag your vehicle rather than topple the tree, if extra tension is enough to finish it off then probably a few mm of cut would have done the same plus you get to be behind the tree fall direction is a bonus
tow vehicle was a scrapper, i wouldn't have anything i cared about anywhere near it. height is one thing to judge but fucking width man, trees are huge on the ground.
takes 3-10x longer at least to chop&dispose as it does to fell it
>>917821
>Don't use rope
Meh, you should always use one if the job is questionable. You make a correct notch and backcut not cutting through the holding wood, then you pull it over.
Usually you use a throwball to set the rope.
>>917815
That's the right idea, and take er really slow, if you are getting stressed out about it make the notch and some of the backcut, then sleep on it.
cut in this order. Try to aim it with the lean of the tree so it falls properly
>>917853
b8
first, make horizontal cut perpendicular to the line of falling, next make 45-50 deg cut to cut the wedge, and the last cut has to be horizontal, not oblique like this fag says, cut slightly lower than the first cut, and you can't cut all the way through, after third cut bout a tenth of width of a log has to be left uncut
>>917813
Take pictures of the tree. What kind of tree? Any dead bits? How big? Are there structures near it?
>>918022
This but the last cut has to be slightly higher than the first cut, not lower.
When the tree starts to fall get (carefully) as far of the tree as possible.
>>917853
Winner! Just remember some green trees bounce or roll if large enough. After it starts going drop the saw and get the hell out of there. Exp. I've good a outdoor wood burner for the house that must be fed
>>917813
Make your angle cut first, with the angle sloped towards the bottom of the trunk. Then start from the other side of the trunk for your fall cut
>>917853
This is wrong and dangerous. This will cause the tree to fall towards you. Instead just make the cut straight across
>>917813
check which way i'll fall then notch that side(pic related) then cut straight across from the back. make sure you watch it closely and the second the tree starts moving get the fuck out of the way
it would help if i knew the size of the tree but honestly i wouldn't be cutting anything very big till you get some experience
>>918959
>>918961
if the tree already has a big lean you can just cut it straight across but it's a lot safer to just notch it
Get in the habbit of turning off ur saw and knowing ur way out when the tree starts to go over. If the tree starts doing something stupid and gotta you gtfo it helps to have a path picked out that you know you get thru in a hurry. Turning off the saw is also a matter of safty. If u gotta bail and you trip and fall on your running saw its gonne suck a whole lot more than if u woulda fell on a dead saw. Ive seen it happen. The dude who fell on his dead saw lived. The other guy did not.
>>917813
Autism but it's "felling" not "falling". Stupid I know but that's English for you.
>>919147
stop apologizing for English, other languages are worse
>>919147
Among professionals it's usually "falling", at least in the US and Canada.
>>918961
This is exactly how I did it, wedge and all. Tree was 24" diameter and I used a 14" electric chainsaw from harbor freight. Gotta say I'm impressed with the thing.
>>919192
Had to cut one side, then the other since it's only a 14" bar
>>919194
I did use a wedge to encourage it to fall forward. $10 harbor freight wedge and a sledge hammer. This pic is zoomed out but the tree is hella huge and I literally can't move it. Cutting it down would take forever. Anyone got an idea how to get rid of this thing?
also never cut with the tip of the saw. as the chain rolls around the tip it's far easier for it to get caught which causes the saw to kick up and will fuck you up
>>919195
not sure where you live, but in most places, firewood that is reasonably cut up (into 12-18" long pieces) is readily removed by putting a picture of it on Cragslist.
If you're motivated enough to split, stack, and dry it, it'll sell for a non-trivial amount of money, which varies by where you live, but ~80/face cord around these parts.
>>919207
i get $150 a truck load including delivery. usually pull in around $5000 a year
I fell trees professionally when I'm not in school.
Some good advice in this thread.
If your tree needs some encouragement to fall the way you want it to a rope with one or two friends on the end of it will work just fine.
Typically your face cut (notch) is 30% of the diameter and horizontal back cut is 60% leaving 10% for holding wood.
Keep yer head up for widowmakers in the crown, hardhat recommended.
>>919223
Firewood margins are slim
>>917813
And coincidentally I have the same saw as in the op
>>919207
I meant the actual huge part of the tree, I'm keeping the firewood. The base is way to heavy to move and I'm trying to come up with a way to get rid of it, like maybe setting it on fire somehow without burning down the fence. I'll save it for last with the electric chain saw so if it craps out it's all good at least it did what I needed it to. Any suggestions is welcome.
>>919223
That's dope, wish I had a truck. Only have an SUV here.
>>917813
>Any suggestions on falling a tree for the first time?
If the tree's radius is greater than the width of your bar, then cut a wooden wedge from a 2x6, pallet, or somesuch. The thin edge should be slightly thinner than your bar.
When sawing through the tree tap the wedge in behind the saw bar. This prevents the tree from springing down and locking the bar into place. You make it out of wood because it's cheap, saw safe, and you can cut it out if shit happens.
>>919263
Can't stand Stihl saws etc. They get hard to start as they get old
I own a tree farm. I heat my home with trees I cut down. Make a wedge cut on the side you want it to fall towards. Take your time on the first cut so your aim is true. First cut is always a flat cut straight in. Then do a 45 upwards angle and remove the wedge. Move to the back of the tree and cut straight in. Dont get in a rush on bigger trees while doing the last cut. Go in about 1/3 of the way and stop. Shut off the saw and listen. It takes a little time for the tree to start to fell. This give you time to listen and get out of the way. Just my 2 cents. Take it for what its worth. Works great for me.
Oh and smaller trees. Just blast through them. Put a little angle on it. Im talking 4 inches or less. Ever tall birch trees you can blast through. I cut up to 3 inch with my weed wacker that has a saw blade on it. lol
>>919260
i seem to do alright. my house is wood heated so i cut a lot anyway but most of it just comes from clearing old trees around my fields. i'd be cutting it anyway and if i couldn't sell it it'd just sit and rot at the side of the field so whatever i can get out of it i'm happy
>>919263
have had bad lucky with husky recently. 3 scored pistons and 2 years and the price to fix is nearly the price of the fucking saw. ended up getting a Stihl to replace one of the huskys so we'll see how long it lasts
>>920293
those small trees are good to learn and practise notching tho. i used to watch my grandfather cut trees of all sizes growing up so i kinda learned from him then i just started trying it for myself on small stuff till i got confident enough to tackle bigger trees
Learn your shit before starting. Very important. Here's some links to start. Find more yourself.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRwkL7Nd9ys
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKzvkRnCF58
>>918098
This.
Also, spend some time clearing the brush around the tree so youhave a clear exit path when it falls.
>>920306
The stihl ms200t is a great saw to get first because you can add a slightly larger bar to it and it will run fine for felling and bucking fairly large trees. It's kinda pricey but if you need anything bigger you are probably out of your league anyway.
