Inexperienced Cutter Needs Advice

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I believe Tim posted on this forum about falling and landing with his hand right on the chain.
 
How long would it take you to use 1.8 gallons of 2 stroke mixed gas? I made the mistake of buying a little too much last night. Looks like my Toro snow blower will be getting some Stihl synthetic 2 stroke gas mix this winter. I want it all used up within 6 months.
Add some SeaFoam to the fuel, 2 ounces to a gallon. Then don't worry about the fuel. I've done that for the last 15 years and never had gas issues to this date. 10 year old Stihl has all the original fuel lines, carb parts , etc. "Stihl" runs like day one! I say just cut on the ground like mentioned above. Flip the log over after 2/3 rds through. Once you get comfortable I just stick my running bar up under the cuts and pull the saw through, no chance of hitting the dirt with your chain. Of course I've got 30 plus years behind a saw, being a climber for some years as well. Good luck, wear your safety gear! Cost you nothing to do that! I've never been cut but have witnessed people do it first hand.
 
I am also pretty much brand new to chainsaws and here's what I did:
So far so good... trying to get comfortable while maintaining a healthy respect for the tool. Also never saw alone, or at least be within ear shot of someone who knows you're out there sawing.
 
Went to the Stihl dealer on Friday afternoon and picked up a helmet/muffs shield combo, chaps/pants, gloves, glasses and boots. Also got a new wedge a sharpening kit and it totaled $450. Cheap insurance for sure! Thanks for the recomendations guys, cant wait to get back out cutting. I scored 7/8 MASSIVE dead standing maples and a couple big oaks on my father inlaws farm, not bad for a first scrounge LOL. I am having pro's come out to drop the trees because they are way out of my league!
 
maple1.JPGmaple2.JPG
 
I measure with the saw. After awhile, it becomes second nature.

Before you start this I suggest you measure the saw bar. My "16 inch" chainsaw actually has close to 14 inches of bar extending beyond the body of the saw. I have a couple of year's worth of 14 inch splits before I bothered to actually measure. Now a 14 inch split looks normal to me but my stove will take 18 inchers.
 

Are these the trees that you think are out of your league? C'mon, you own chaiwsaw chaps! What could go wrong? Get out there and give it a go and take video.

p.s. I think that maple is Sugar Maple - great firewood. I am not sure how big your saw is but you might want to have the pros cut those trunks to stove length for you. Even if your saw bar is long enough it will take a long time to cut those big trunks into rounds.
 
Before you start this I suggest you measure the saw bar.

Good point. Measure from the tip of your bar to the desired length, then make a mark there on your saw with a Sharpee or some other marker. I cut my wood 24 inches, so on my 346XP, it goes from the tip of my 16-inch bar to where the back handle attaches to the rest of the saw. I'm not all that picky about the length, so two inches either way works well for me. I'm sure it averages out to about 24 inches.
 
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Are these the trees that you think are out of your league? C'mon, you own chaiwsaw chaps! What could go wrong? Get out there and give it a go and take video.

p.s. I think that maple is Sugar Maple - great firewood. I am not sure how big your saw is but you might want to have the pros cut those trunks to stove length for you. Even if your saw bar is long enough it will take a long time to cut those big trunks into rounds.

The tree's along the road I do believe are sugar maples, and I am deffinatly having pros drop them as they are all dead standing. They have been dead for a couple years so bucking them shouldn't be too bad. This is going to be fun and a lot of work, there are 8 or 9 trees around that size to come down!! :) I might even get lucky and take delivery on my new loader before I get started. I am just itching to get out and start my stacks.....
 
You've gotten a ton of great advice in a very compact format. Glad to see you taking it all in. About all I can add of any value is to have some sort of tool/supplies kit to take out in the woods with you. even a milk crate or a five gallon bucket will work. Besides your spare chains, sharpener kit, and wedges, include a hatchet and a stiff brush. Besides using the hatchet head for the wedges and small limbs, it's great for chipping bark away that has dirt imbedded in it. Removing dirty bark goes a long way to improving chain life. The stiff brush will remove dirt and snow on smoother bark. I also keep a couple quart oil cans full of bar oil in it. Much easier to pour from in super cold weather and less waste too. as your confidence builds think about a spare bar and chain. On bigger logs you will eventually encounter a pinch that the wedges won't fix. (speaking from experience here)

Re the fear comment, I like to think of it as a real healthy respect, and a good thing. Overconfidence will get you into trouble every time. Head the advice about preplanned escape routes. For me this is rule #2, right behind PPE!
 
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Been using saws since I was 15,felling trees since I was 17.Over 30 yrs. Even now I feel the hair on my neck stand up when I start to drop a big one.You should never lose your respect for certain things or act in a careless manner no matter how much experience you might have.That's when accidents happen.I've had a couple close calls ( few hangups,a small barber chair or two & a pinched bar) but nothing that endangered me,others,any property/equipment. You learn from any mistakes & do what you can to prevent any in the future.

Wedges are a must IMO,both in felling & bucking.Sawbucks are great for rounds/poles up to 8" - 10" diameter also.Much easier for me to carry out 3 to 9 ft poles,load trailer or pickup & cut them on sawbuck later then constantly be leaning over cutting 1 piece at a time then have to bend over AGAIN to pick up & carry 4-5 times as many pieces to the trailer or pickup.
Like the hardhat...I have to get pouches like the ones you have, I carry a hatchet on my hip and an oil can in a fanny pack with wedges and the tools I need, not too handy.
 
You guys living in the USA get goods and services for so much cheaper it makes me cringe.....It's just not fair :confused: I will report back the retail prices for Stihl PPE here in good old land of the fee aka Canada
At least if you get a boo-boo you have free medical...oops just found out about all the taxes I guess the land of the fee you were referring to.
 
You should always set a wedge in the groove when you get, say, 1/2 to 2/3 of the way through the cut. Basically, do it when there's enough room to get the wedge in without hitting it with the saw. That way, it won't set back on your saw. If you don't use a wedge and it does set back on your saw, there's usually no way to get a wedge in. And even if you could, it's probably not going to do much to help you. So, use a wedge even if you don't think you'll need one, because you'll sure wish you did if you do.

Set-back trees are pretty dangerous. The best way to deal with one of those is to get another saw and make another felling cut above your saw to drop the tree where it wants to go. Yes, this means leaving the scene to find another saw. Don't put yourself in that situation.

You can do a lot with a wedge, but it's not going to put a big tree where it doesn't want to go. What I do is eyeball the lean of the tree, then figure out the best place to aim it in that general direction. Life is full of compromises. It's usually wise to compromise with something as big as a tree.

While we're on the topic, if there are smaller trees and saplings growing where you want this tree to fall, cut them down first, because they can become spring poles (bent over saplings under stress) which are very dangerous to work around. You want to create the safest working environment you can.

Son, that is some great info...thanks. My prob is there are a few large BL leaners 2 of which are resting on relatively small cherry trees. I'm sure it would be hard to give advice just on a picture of a leaner. Cut one near the base and the tree just jumped off the stump and ended up on a bigger angle. I have 100' rope I plan on heaving over near the top and try pulling from the side. Like the info on not cutting the hinge till the tree starts to fall. All of the video I've seen the hinge is cut with the wedge in place and tree not falling.
 
How long would it take you to use 1.8 gallons of 2 stroke mixed gas? I made the mistake of buying a little too much last night. Looks like my Toro snow blower will be getting some Stihl synthetic 2 stroke gas mix this winter. I want it all used up within 6 months.
That's a lot of gas. I use a synthetic oil with fuel conditioner in it. I think it's called OPTIMAX-2. It claims to be good for any ratio of 2-stroke mix.
 
All of the video I've seen the hinge is cut with the wedge in place and tree not falling.

We may be confusing our terminology. In the following photo, you can clearly see the hinge. If you cut that before the tree "commits" to a direction of fall, then it can fall anywhere & you've lost control of it. Quite simply, you aim the tree's fall with the notch, you get it to start falling by making the back cut, and the(intact) hinge forces the tree to fall where you aimed it. Add a wedge or two to help the process along, and you're probably looking at a successful felling operation.

hinge.jpg
 
When I cut a whole tree I always start by cutting the branches first, and I start cutting each branch at the smallest part I plan to take for firewood, which is pretty small. Pick away at the easy to reach parts first. While the branches are still attached to the tree they are easy to cut, so I cut them to stove length right there and work my way down to the trunk. I keep going until the only branches remaining are the ones that are pinned under the tree or holding the tree up off the ground. This not only is a good way to cut branches, but it also lightens the load on the trunk so it is less likely to shift positions while I am trying to cut it, and makes it easier to get to the trunk and move around the trunk.

+1

that's been my strategy forever ....well.....37 years
 
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What a great thread. I am a future wood burner and new to using a chain saw. I used to be quite fearful of them-I think that has more to do with Halloween, but I digress. I've been out cutting up logs (no standing trees yet) with my uncle. He's a seasoned woodsman and it giving me little tips on how to cut properly and such. I've been out cutting about 4 times now (3 with Uncle and 1 alone) and I feel pretty good with the saw so far. Dad gave me a lot of basics using other saws so I have a good foundation to build on. Didn't have a kickback yet, but I always plan for it and do what I can to prevent it if possible. When I say "alone" it is in the view of neighbors. I always let them know when I am doing something sort of dangerous like working on the electrical or something like that, just in case they don't see me for many hours they can come check. When I start going to the state forests to cut I will probably buy one of those GPS rescue thingys and carry it with me. I have chaps, but I need to get a hardhat! Once again, great thread..thanks for all the tips guys.
 
We may be confusing our terminology. In the following photo, you can clearly see the hinge. If you cut that before the tree "commits" to a direction of fall, then it can fall anywhere & you've lost control of it. Quite simply, you aim the tree's fall with the notch, you get it to start falling by making the back cut, and the(intact) hinge forces the tree to fall where you aimed it. Add a wedge or two to help the process along, and you're probably looking at a successful felling operation.

hinge.jpg
Nice Hinge wood... I use to work on DOT's tree crew, we took care of 8 counties from Essex down to Green County. Taking down some big nasty hazard trees at times. I remember my boss would always check my hinge wood after felling any good size trees, ,,,, he wanted them even or holding wood to one side if needed. He'd let you know if you screwed up! He made me a competent feller. That's why your still around;lol I like your Tin Bill cruiser hard hat;)
 
Went to the Stihl dealer on Friday afternoon and picked up a helmet/muffs shield combo, chaps/pants, gloves, glasses and boots. Also got a new wedge a sharpening kit and it totaled $450. Cheap insurance for sure! Thanks for the recomendations guys, cant wait to get back out cutting. I scored 7/8 MASSIVE dead standing maples and a couple big oaks on my father inlaws farm, not bad for a first scrounge LOL. I am having pro's come out to drop the trees because they are way out of my league!
See if they are County tree's, they might take them done for nothing. I had a good size declining sugar maple out by my road, at the edge of my driveway,,, was starting to shed limbs. I called, they came and measured the road set back,,,, sure enough it was their tree. They came and took the tree down and left me all the wood, they chipped up all the brush. Was an easy 800 dollar removal. I gave them 100 dollars to buy everyone on the crew lunch. Saved me renting a chipper , etc.
 
I'm trying to figure out why that tree fell 90 degrees from where it was was supposed to based on the location of the hinge. Maybe the tree rolled after it fell, but I finf that very unlikely. Also, it looks like the hinge is crushed on the end in the direction of the fall.

Just trying to understand.
 
I'm trying to figure out why that tree fell 90 degrees from where it was was supposed to based on the location of the hinge. Maybe the tree rolled after it fell, but I finf that very unlikely. Also, it looks like the hinge is crushed on the end in the direction of the fall.

Just trying to understand.

I see 'em flop over a bit quite often when they fall, especially if there is a big branch on the side that hits first.
 
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Yes, it flopped when it hit the ground. Good catch. One of those big trees unfortunately hit a rock when it hit ground, ruining part of an upper log--might have been this one. That might be what caused it to twistfelling.jpg around.

Here's what it looked like as it was falling. It went right where he aimed it.
 
Dropped a medium sized (10" x 50 ft tall) Bur Oak snag yesterday morning,had a very slight lean uphill in opposite direction.Double stacked my wedges,it rolled a tiny bit coming down but still landed where I wanted - right between 1 large White Oak & a scrub Black Cherry about 8 ft apart.
 
Dropped a medium sized (10" x 50 ft tall) Bur Oak snag yesterday morning,had a very slight lean uphill in opposite direction.Double stacked my wedges,it rolled a tiny bit coming down but still landed where I wanted - right between 1 large White Oak & a scrub Black Cherry about 8 ft apart.
Any critical trees going the wrong way ,,, I'd always used a throw ball to set a line up high and tied them off ,, then pulled them over leaving a good amount of hinge wood . On one tree crew we used what was called a Bigshot,,, a giant sling shot to shoot up a throw ball nearly 80 ft. Once we got good it was actually faster to set a pull line then to set our bucket truck up to set a line, plus it saved all that wear on the bucket truck. We use to get a lot of stuff from The Sherill Tree Company. I use to set my climbing line as well with the throw-ball, that way your tied in from the start and also allowed a way to enter the tree without climbing spurs during pruning operations, I'd body thrust up. Now they have a lot of nice rope ascenders.
 
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