Technical difficulties...

[ScotO]

Several months back a good friend I went to school with called me up and said that her and her husband had a very large tree that needed removed from their yard, and asked if I would come and look at it. So I did....

Turned out to be quite a brute of a tree. A very large, mature double trunked chestnut oak. The double trunks were around 30" diameter at chest height, the main trunks were around 20' tall, one with a forward lean and the other with a backward lean. Atop each one of the trunks were (9) 45-50' tall sub-trunks. Two with heavy leans over the neighbor's service and cable lines, and two with heavy leans over the main power lines which were mere feet away from the tree.....a daunting task that normally I would walk away from, but with the experience that I've gained in proper climbing techniques and rope/cable rigging, I was up for the challenge.

The tree before it's demise......in the first picture you'll notice the heavy leans that the branches on the right have, they look small but they are actually around 16" diameter where they meet the main trunk, and span almost 40' feet off of the trunk! Second pic below is when we got started on Saturday around 11am. Started by knocking down the straight drops (ones that didn't need rigged) first.....which only amounted to 2 sub-branches......


In this set of pics you can see where we got the one heavy leaner out of the way. We rigged a cable through a high crotch and a pulley on a 5,000lb rated sling and lowered the leaner down like a crane. It's a very tricky technique as you need to be able to judge weight and center of balance on those big limbs....it went very well though...



we then rigged our cantilever trunk, it was time to drop the one main. Went perfectly. Didn't get many pics as by this point it was close to 6:00pm and we were frazzled. High heat and humidity coupled with no lunch, and we were ready to wrap it up for the day...



This morning, we got started around 9:00am. The only picture of this mornings work was this one that the homeowner's wife took.....notice me around 40'' up in the tree. I was rigging the other heavy leaner up when she got this photo. She was worried sick about us. But we've done this a time or two.....



I ran out of daylight this afternoon, was dark when I finished bucking up the trunk and I had a dead phone to boot, so no pics of the aftermath. I'll get some pics of my cache of wood tomorrow, when I go and pick it up . I have to drop two pines tomorrow morning, one is a DANDY too....covered in poison ivy!! On my way home from that job, I'll pick up my large pile of rounds.

All told, the homeowner ended up with close to a cord of wood, my partner in crime ended up with around a cord and a half, and I ended up with around a cord and a half......of that wonderful chestnut oak!!

 

[NortheastAl]

Good job, Scott. Lot of work you got done. If it was as hot and humid as it was here I feel really bad for ya. Hope you can get some of the day off tomorrow.

 

[ScotO]

Good job, Scott. Lot of work you got done. If it was as hot and humid as it was here I feel really bad for ya. Hope you can get some of the day off tomorrow.

I have those two pines to drop, and then stop and pick up my cache of wood, then come home and unload it.....that'll be it for the day. Oh I do have one estimate to do on the way home tomorrow too....

Maybe I won't get a break after all!!

 

[NortheastAl]

I have those two pines to drop, and then stop and pick up my cache of wood, then come home and unload it.....that'll be it for the day. Oh I do have one estimate to do on the way home tomorrow too....

Maybe I won't get a break after all!!

You'll have just about enough time to get some sleep and start all over again on Tuesday morning. Hey, work hard while you're still young. Cause you won't want to do it when you are old.

 

[infinitymike]

And what were the technical difficulties?

 

[BrotherBart]

I got the laundry done today.

 

[ScotO]

I got the laundry done today.

you wouldn't want to see my laundry from the last two days, BB!

 

[ScotO]

And what were the technical difficulties?

Crap, I thought I had it in the first post....on the very last drop of the day today, we clipped a decorative fence along their patio with the very tip-top of one of the last tops.....a four foot section of fence was the only casualty!! Which, don't get me wrong, I was pizzed off about it. But they laughed at it......

So, I will be replacing that piece of fence and deducting it......they said they wouldn't have it, but I don't roll like that. I will be fixing it....

 

[hobbyheater]

Interesting project and rewarding in the satisfaction of a job well done! Plus some good firewood.
In this corner of the world, if you have a tree that is threatening power lines, you call the power company. The power company then happily for free hires a company like you but usually with a bucket truck to take it down. They also clean up the mess and if you want, give you the fire wood.

 

[ScotO]

Interesting project and rewarding in the satisfaction of a job well done! Plus some good firewood.
In this corner of the world, if you have a tree that is threatening power lines, you call the power company. The power company then happily hires a company like you but usually with a bucket truck to take it down. They also clean up the mess and if you want, give you the fire wood.

View attachment 110113

A guy I know has a bucket truck that he will rent out relatively cheaply, it's a 60' boom with outriggers. Trouble was, it has a blown hydraulic line and we had this job scheduled for the weekend.....so the truck was out....
I didn't want to move this job to next weekend because we have another big job (7 locust trees and a red maple) next weekend....and another big job the weekend after that.....busy, busy BUSY!!

 

[schlot]

Nice work....something tells me you've cut a couple trees down before....just a wild guess, but I'm pretty sure I'm right.

 

[WellSeasoned]

Good job scotty! The tree looked unhealthy from the pics. I feel your pain. Heat, humidity, only a bowl of cinnamin life this morning and I was half dead after stacking. I can only imagine how pooped you were. Job well done, love the pics.

 

[Locust Post]

Good job my friend...stay safe.

 

[Paulywalnut]

Good job Scotty. I'd be a good ground man. That climbing around in the trees is not for me.
Be careful anyway.

 

[Paulywalnut]

A guy I know has a bucket truck that he will rent out relatively cheaply, it's a 60' boom with outriggers. Trouble was, it has a blown hydraulic line and we had this job scheduled for the weekend.....so the truck was out....
I didn't want to move this job to next weekend because we have another big job (7 locust trees and a red maple) next weekend....and another big job the weekend after that.....busy, busy BUSY!!

Oh yeah! Locust!

 

[Richie]

Several months back a good friend I went to school with called me up and said that her and her husband had a very large tree that needed removed from their yard, and asked if I would come and look at it. So I did....

Turned out to be quite a brute of a tree. A very large, mature double trunked chestnut oak. The double trunks were around 30" diameter at chest height, the main trunks were around 20' tall, one with a forward lean and the other with a backward lean. Atop each one of the trunks were (9) 45-50' tall sub-trunks. Two with heavy leans over the neighbor's service and cable lines, and two with heavy leans over the main power lines which were mere feet away from the tree.....a daunting task that normally I would walk away from, but with the experience that I've gained in proper climbing techniques and rope/cable rigging, I was up for the challenge.

The tree before it's demise......in the first picture you'll notice the heavy leans that the branches on the right have, they look small but they are actually around 16" diameter where they meet the main trunk, and span almost 40' feet off of the trunk! Second pic below is when we got started on Saturday around 11am. Started by knocking down the straight drops (ones that didn't need rigged) first.....which only amounted to 2 sub-branches......
View attachment 110102 View attachment 110104

In this set of pics you can see where we got the one heavy leaner out of the way. We rigged a cable through a high crotch and a pulley on a 5,000lb rated sling and lowered the leaner down like a crane. It's a very tricky technique as you need to be able to judge weight and center of balance on those big limbs....it went very well though...

View attachment 110105 View attachment 110106 View attachment 110107

we then rigged our cantilever trunk, it was time to drop the one main. Went perfectly. Didn't get many pics as by this point it was close to 6:00pm and we were frazzled. High heat and humidity coupled with no lunch, and we were ready to wrap it up for the day...

View attachment 110108 View attachment 110109 View attachment 110110

This morning, we got started around 9:00am. The only picture of this mornings work was this one that the homeowner's wife took.....notice me around 40'' up in the tree. I was rigging the other heavy leaner up when she got this photo. She was worried sick about us. But we've done this a time or two.....

View attachment 110111

I ran out of daylight this afternoon, was dark when I finished bucking up the trunk and I had a dead phone to boot, so no pics of the aftermath. I'll get some pics of my cache of wood tomorrow, when I go and pick it up . I have to drop two pines tomorrow morning, one is a DANDY too....covered in poison ivy!! On my way home from that job, I'll pick up my large pile of rounds.

All told, the homeowner ended up with close to a cord of wood, my partner in crime ended up with around a cord and a half, and I ended up with around a cord and a half......of that wonderful chestnut oak!!

 

[TimJ]

Scotty, I like the way you roll

 

[Freeheat]

Wow thats a job well done. Will you process all the wood you from all the jobs?

 

[ScotO]

Good job Scotty. I'd be a good ground man. That climbing around in the trees is not for me.
Be careful anyway.

I was over 40' up in that tree around 14 times in two days.......I do it so much I'm used to it. I kinda enjoy doing it.

 

[ScotO]

Scotty, I like the way you roll

 

[ScotO]

Wow thats a job well done. Will you process all the wood you from all the jobs?

my cutting partner and I split the loot on most jobs. But I'm so far ahead I only take the really good stuff right now. This particular tree, we gave some to the homeowner as well.......and it being chestnut oak, I made sure I got some too!!

This chestnut oak smells almost as good as white oak......it is in the white oak family, I believe......walked out to unload my truck this morning and the driveway has a nice, vanilla smell to it!!

 

[thewoodlands]

Nice job S.O., it looks like a tough job that was handled real well.

 

[basod]

walked out to unload my truck this morning and the driveway has a nice, vanilla smell to it!!

Beats the smell of red oak that's wafting around my yard
Maybe the downpour this morning washed it away

 

[blujacket]

As always, great job Scotty! Stay safe. Don't forget to post the Locust porn.

 

[Trilifter7]

Wow!! Great job Scotty! I can see why you are busy, good honest work is hard to find! Stay safe out there my friend