Felling Wedges, what ones do you guys like.

[James Arsenault]

When I lay out a cut, I plan the cut according to the general lean of the trees in a section. Simply put, most areas, there will be a general lean to the majority of the trees. Not all, of course, but setting up the cut to take advantage means fewer trees to fight with. If my yard is to the north but a section tends to lean south, I make a swing road to turn the wood, rather than fight every tree over. I don't have time to use wedges on every tree. Remember, I'm talking logging, not tree removal, where the game changes.

Most contrary trees I take over with the skidder, or play dominoes.Occasionally a push pole. Saftey gurus might puke, and it's definitely not a game for beginners.

I think a wedge is a good tool to know how and when to use, but I would find it's use on every tree far to time consuming, and, for me, unneccesary.

 

[UN Hooker]

My "wedge" is right on top of the arch!!    UN
 

 

[mad murdock]

I rarely used wedges felling trees in the northern great
Lakes area, when I came out to Oregon, I got some wedges, and find that more often than not, they are needed out here moreso than where the ground is gentler. Maybe it's the lay of the land, I think it has more to do with the trees, almost all doug fir.

[Ianab]

Well I got to use mine again today. Not on any big impressive trees or anything, more an overgrown hedge   

Port Orford Cedar trees that had been pruned into a hedge about 40 years ago, then left to grow. Multiple leaders, interlocking branches etc.  Make things more interesting, put them on the side of a hill, above a road, and actually above some high voltage power wires. Then a glasshouse, various fences and the washing line on the other side.. 

So basically we had one slot they could be felled into, irrespective of the lean of the various leaders, they all had to go the exact same direction.

Didn't actually wedge them over, we had a steel cable and a tractor to provide some encouragement there. But I was tapping them in to stop the saw pinching on the back cut of the back leaners. Did manage to pinch the saw one time, but I had set a couple of wedges, so was able to give them a whack with a branch and release the saw. Didn't want to start winching as the branches were making funny twisty things happen as they came down, and I was stuck on the bad side making the cut. Set it all up, then get clear, THEN signal Jason to pull.

Not taking any risks, but no room for mistakes.

Actually did recover some useful logs out of the mess, will make another post later about progress with those.

Ian

[1270d]

Are the comments referring to "pullling" trees referring to the dutchman or soft dutchman style cuts?  Or just skidder assistance?   As far as the swing style notching (which I like to do) this would get us dropped by our insurance carrier.  If the stumps don't show a decent hingewood (ie 80% w and 10% thick approx)  you get a few warnings and that's that.    At the same time im sure a few here and there wont hurt.   This is why we use wedges.  8 and 10 inch plastic btw.  One of each

[Magicman]

Most fellers here do not use wedges.  They just hang a $800 saw, take a smoke break, and wait for a $100K skidder to un-hang them.  And think that it is funny.   

[JOE.G]

I found a set of Husqvarna Ones cheap, I ll try these ones out see how they hold up. I am enjoying the info.

[John Mc]

I'm mostly using 12" wedges, even though they would bottom out against the back of the hinge on a good number of the trees I'm felling, if I weren't careful.  When I come to a small tree with back lean, that is likely to need the wedge driven in all the way there are some tricks (boring the center of the hinge, for example) that allow longer wedges to still be used.

The more gradual taper of longer wedges makes them easier to drive in (and possibly less likely to spit back out ??). Also, a good number of the 8" wedges I've seen are not as thick on the fat end, meaning you don't get as much lift out of them when driven fully in.  I recently saw some 8" and 10" wedges that were as thick as my 12"... I'll probably switch one or both of the two wedges I carry to that size in the future.  The easier driving I mentioned above is not that big a deal, since I seldom run into really large trees in my area.

[James Arsenault]

My "wedge" is right on top of the arch!!    UN
 

 (Image hidden from quote, click to view.)

A tinkerer is always thinking. You think a lot like Dad!!!!!

[lumberjack48]

When I lay out a cut, I plan the cut according to the general lean of the trees in a section. Simply put, most areas, there will be a general lean to the majority of the trees. Not all, of course, but setting up the cut to take advantage means fewer trees to fight with. If my yard is to the north but a section tends to lean south, I make a swing road to turn the wood, rather than fight every tree over. I don't have time to use wedges on every tree. Remember, I'm talking logging, not tree removal, where the game changes.

Most contrary trees I take over with the skidder, or play dominoes.Occasionally a push pole. Saftey gurus might puke, and it's definitely not a game for beginners.

I think a wedge is a good tool to know how and when to use, but I would find it's use on every tree far to time consuming, and, for me, unneccesary.

 

Thank you James you saved me some typing.
 When i got on a new sale the first think i would do is walk though it to check out the lean of the timber, its just like parting your hair. You want to make sure your working the patch of timber the right way. If your not working with the lean of the trees your not logging, you can't fight with trees an make money. In a good stand of Aspen i could lay down 60 to a 100 trees an hour, it was more fun then going to the fair.
 When i pulled on the job and there was a pretty good wind, this changes everything again. The skidder operators and me would plan a new battle strategy for the day, you have to fall with the wind.

UN Hooker i had a wedge justed about like yours on my S8 on till the wife broke it off, i never got it welded back on. That was on my list, to-do-job i never got it done.

Back in 68 when i bought my new TF, i hired a older friend of mine to fall, he was about 50, i was 20. He had did a lot of falling for pole skidders up at International Falls. The first day on the job, i could here him sawing, i headed out with the skidder. When i got there were only about 10 trees on the ground. He had said that he'd be way ahead of me, i asked him where are all the trees, he pointed at a tree that had a saw blaze on it, push that one. I gave it a push an it seemed like trees were never going to stop falling, it was the best dominoes set up i've ever seen.

In the 60's strip cutting, i always cut a long pole for a push pole just in case i had a tree set back on my saw. Again i always worked the strip with the wind and the lean of the trees.
If i did happen to stick my saw bad my dad showed me how to make and use a timber jack. It happed a couple times, i wasn't happy with myself, it was my fault, day dreaming.
If i did have a sky bound one i used to saw an push at the same time, this technique worked very good with smaller trees.

Nothing wrong with using wedges if an when you need to.

[Mark Wentzell]

Thanks for the info guys.

[James Arsenault]

When I lay out a cut, I plan the cut according to the general lean of the trees in a section. Simply put, most areas, there will be a general lean to the majority of the trees. Not all, of course, but setting up the cut to take advantage means fewer trees to fight with. If my yard is to the north but a section tends to lean south, I make a swing road to turn the wood, rather than fight every tree over. I don't have time to use wedges on every tree. Remember, I'm talking logging, not tree removal, where the game changes.

Most contrary trees I take over with the skidder, or play dominoes.Occasionally a push pole. Saftey gurus might puke, and it's definitely not a game for beginners.

I think a wedge is a good tool to know how and when to use, but I would find it's use on every tree far to time consuming, and, for me, unneccesary.

 

Thank you James you saved me some typing.
 When i got on a new sale the first think i would do is walk though it to check out the lean of the timber, its just like parting your hair. You want to make sure your working the patch of timber the right way. If your not working with the lean of the trees your not logging, you can't fight with trees an make money. In a good stand of Aspen i could lay down 60 to a 100 trees an hour, it was more fun then going to the fair.
 When i pulled on the job and there was a pretty good wind, this changes everything again. The skidder operators and me would plan a new battle strategy for the day, you have to fall with the wind.

UN Hooker i had a wedge justed about like yours on my S8 on till the wife broke it off, i never got it welded back on. That was on my list, to-do-job i never got it done.

Back in 68 when i bought my new TF, i hired a older friend of mine to fall, he was about 50, i was 20. He had did a lot of falling for pole skidders up at International Falls. The first day on the job, i could here him sawing, i headed out with the skidder. When i got there were only about 10 trees on the ground. He had said that he'd be way ahead of me, i asked him where are all the trees, he pointed at a tree that had a saw blaze on it, push that one. I gave it a push an it seemed like trees were never going to stop falling, it was the best dominoes set up i've ever seen.

In the 60's strip cutting, i always cut a long pole for a push pole just in case i had a tree set back on my saw. Again i always worked the strip with the wind and the lean of the trees.
If i did happen to stick my saw bad my dad showed me how to make and use a timber jack. It happed a couple times, i wasn't happy with myself, it was my fault, day dreaming.
If i did have a sky bound one i used to saw an push at the same time, this technique worked very good with smaller trees.

Nothing wrong with using wedges if an when you need to.

Very true with the wind. If possible, I shift to a section of timber the general lean favors the wind when the wind is strong, especially gusty. A strong wind can take some trees over against the lean, but a gusty wind makes it wildly unpredictable. Though when you have one mill ticket for the last load of whatever on the lot and the the wind comes up unfavorable, it's adapt and overcome time. These lean times and mill tickets for only X and Y, but no Z 'til next week or next month, make cut planning a pain.

When I chopped for hire behind someone else's skidder, I would cut a push pole in the morning, and throw it out of the way so if I needed it during the day, I had it. Didn't drag it around, but did try to make sure I had one not too far away. A maple sapling, 15 to 20 feet long and 3-4 inches on the butt, was my favorite. Maple was strong enough to bend only a little and not break. Amazing how large a tree you could push over with that pole caught under a limb or knot double or more a man's height up the tree. Get the tree rocking and one, two, three over it goes.

[treefarmer87]

i rarely use them but i use the timber savage brand. i use them so i can face all the butts to the skid road to make skidding easier.

[thecfarm]

Hey James,I see you have a birthday. Happy Birthday to you.

[James Arsenault]

Hey James,I see you have a birthday. Happy Birthday to you.

Thank you!

[Ed_K]

7 1/2 green flo from Bailey's.Today I cut a double hard maple 14"&16" first one w/o a wedge as it was leaning right (gota get it between the sap lines  )second I wedged,it was back leaning with rot on one side, landed right where the first did.If I didn't it was headed for 3 runs of sap line.Could have used the winch but wedge is faster.
I have 2 blue 12" from WJ Cox my insurance provider that I use on large pine,I don't like stacking,better to cut cookies don't hurt so much  .

[lumberjack48]

Ed working alone like you do, in a situation like that. i'd fall the leaner then precut the other one, hook chokes on both, get on the skidder an back in to it.

I worked alone a lot, if the wife wasn't working, i worked alone. I got less done having to watch out for somebody, making sure he went home to his family.