rbtree

Continued

OK, so, as I said we'd do, Mike climbed the hemlock and set a block. I'd thrown a line in at 60 feet, from the roof, and Mike set the block, through a retrievable. But I felt it wasn't high enough to give us a good line angle, so asked Mike to climb up and set the rigging higher, which he did. Meanwhile, I'd been on the roof, removing much of the branches, and making sure there were no stubs under the trunk. Threw them off, and tossed a second line to the ground, opposite the side we'd be lifting. Eric and Mike moved the GRCS to the live hemlock, and I cut in the hobbs to the snag. Then I climbed the snag, shot pics and filmed, while directing Andy and the homeowner to hold tension on the back lines while Eric cranked the butt up, and Mike the tip. She came off easy and smooth as could be. Granted it was a small top, but it was 59 feet long....and we'd cut off 27 feet or so that overhung the deck. The snag was 40 feet, so the tree was ~125 feet tall.....and maybe 16-17" dbh. That's one spindly tree! They grow tall at Lake Tuck!! Some firs are approaching 180 feet!! Few are over 28" dbh..... We'd not started till nearly 12:30, as we hoped the drizzle would let up. Mike drove the wrong road, got stuck in the deep slush, so Bill, the homeowner, had to go pull him out. Just as I put the cameras away, and cut a few sections out of the snag, it commenced to rain. It took us a fair bit of time to derig the trees, and put the gear away. Got done as it was getting dark.... We'll go back when the snow is gone to clean up the brush, and probably remove another hemlock, which is right next to the failed tree.

Day 2 video, warning, it's 49 mb....and I'm talking way too much.....

That's funny. All arborist climb lines are pretty much static lines. In fact, many lhave ess stretch than most so called static lines, which are primarily made for rescue, caving, and top rope rock climbing. Snake Bite, I believe, is a very low stretch static line. And New England Safety Blue (the first 16 strand climb line-I got my first in the late '70's) stretches 3% under body weight. Blaze and Velocity are two of the lowest at 1.1%. That's low. Don't fall on them!! Full static lines, made from spectra or dyneema (High Molecular Weight Polyethelene)have near zero stretch. They're not for climbing, but lifting, winching, and pulling.

Maybe, but I've climbed on Blaze for a couple years now, and like it. Just got some Tachyon, and like it even better. I find it to be a tad stiffer than Blaze. They both work very well!

Here's Ox's words, cross-posted from da Buzz Oxmans video <embed id="VideoPlayback" src="http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docid=7403712154812395151&hl=en&fs=true" style="width:400px;height:326px" allowFullScreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"> </embed> Here's the storm damage call that came in today, Saturday. Roger's truck is directly under the Hemlock top in the opening scene of the video. The broken section of treetop is lying horizontal on the roof. We walk thru a foot and a half of snow around the back of the house to the see the skinny hemlock broke off about a third of the way up. It's about 25' feet away from the deck, and the top is lying up on the 3rd floor roof. It spans most of the length of the 5,000 sq ft house, well balanced across the spine of the roof. A minor gable over the 2nd floor windows cradles the base of the top securely. 2 skylights are precariously located just down slope of the log. Icicles are draped over the rain gutters, with high 30's temperatures warming the snow, causing drips from the eaves. Looks like it landed flat, which probly saved the peak of the roof from some of the impact. Roger starts the ball rolling by setting a line with the throwball about 50 feet up a large adjacent cedar. I climb the stub and hang a pulley. We are able to lasso the stub with the lowering line and cinch it down with a porta-wrap as a stabilization measure. The log on the roof is stable, but it doesn't hurt to make sure. On the traverse over to the Cedar where Roger has hung my spare climbing line, I am able to reach over and snip off 2, four foot long logs from the butt of the foot in diameter Hemlock top. They easily miss the deck, falling clear. This leaves about 15 feet of the top hanging off the roof. We proceed to hang a block about 75' up in the cedar. A lowering line runs thru it to the GRCS. The other end is tied to the top, 5 feet from the edge of the roof, about where Roger can reach it from the ladder. Before coming down, I hang another line in the Cedar about roof height and Roger ties it to hold down the piece that will remain on the roof. When I hit the ground, an additional line is tossed from the front yard, over the roof, ant out to a tree on the opposite side of the house. Just for safety. Roger climbed up on the roof, then up onto the log, and tied in. He reached over the edge of the roof and made the cut. We lowered the log that extended off the roof in one piece, held by two ropes. One rope was in the porty, the other was in the GRCS. Piece of cake! No problem with that deck at all. A lot of weight was relieved off the roof. We replaced the lowering lines on the log on the roof. We cranked up the winch to the max, but nothing moved. The hoisting line was stretched tight, too tight. The fairlead route from the winch to the neighboring cedar was not quite straight, causing binding on the pigtails. Rog has a plan, however. The next step is to substitute the Hobbs Lowering device for the Port-a-wrap, so we can pull from two directions. Since it was now pitch dark, we decided to call it a night. Never mind the half-mile driveway with the rollercoaster blanket to get out to the road. Tomorrows another day. -------------------- Arboreally yours, http://treedr.net

Impressive! and 50 years before Dan Osman started his speed and jumping stunts.

Thanks to Andy, (lakeside_53 at Arborist Site) we were called to remove 80 feet of a hemlock which failed onto a multi-million dollar home, from the snow load. This is at Lake Tuck, near Duvall, where there was 2 feet of snow on the ground, or more, from 6 different snow events. A bit less now, as it had finally climbed above freezing, and rained a bit as of last nite. The roads are barely passable, even with 4wd, even after their private gated community has been plowed twice. So, a crane was out of the question. We arrived late today. Mike Oxman climbed the snag, set a block, and cut off a couple pieces. The line was fixed to a porta wrap. I had set a line in a well positioned cedar. Mike jugged up it, and set another block, which was set to be retrievable from the ground. Our static line was rigged, and I tied it to the 25 foot portion of the tree overhanging the deck. We tensioned it with each rope, and I cut it free. It immediately swung clear and they lowered it down neatly. I had accessed the roof via a 32 foot ladder, tossed my lifeline over to the tree and pulled myself to it, via a 45 degree steep section of roof. Then, I went up the main roof and tied a mid line to the tree, and threw it to the ground opposite the side we'd be attempting to lift the tree. It was tied back to keep the tree from swinging sideways too fast when we lifted it. Mike had been concerned that the tree on the roof might move a bit, so he had tossed me another line to tie past where we cut the overhanging section off. He'd run it around the cedar at 30 feet. Turns out the tree stayed put, so we pulled that line out and retied it closer to the top, and tossed it over the roof on the side as we'd be lifting, in case we needed to help the tree swing clear of the house. I got the static line back and tied it 25 feet from the tip, and tied the butt line back to the 30 foot snag. Then I came down, and we tried to lift the entire remaining 45-50 feet off. No luck, the line angles were too extreme, and the tree is weighted down with the snow on it, plus a branch or two could be stuck in the roof. So, we'll go back tomorrow. There's a perfectly placed hemlock which we'll set a block in and another static line, attach that line to the tip, and remove the first static line from the tip and tie it to the butt, where it will be well placed to lift the butt up. We'll get rid of the line and block at 30 feet in the snag. And add the Hobbs to the hemlock so we can lift each line in unison. The back line will still allow us to control the sideways movement. It should hang clear of the roof and be able to be neatly lowered to the ground. It may be raining tomorrow, but I hope to be able to be up the snag, taking pics and video of the operation. I'll get Andy to replace me while I'm filming.

Thanks to Andy, (lakeside_53 at Arborist Site) we were called to remove 80 feet of a hemlock which failed onto a multi-million dollar home, from the snow load. This is at Lake Tuck, near Duvall, where there was 2 feet of snow on the ground or more, from 6 different snow events. The roads are barely passable, even with 4wd, even after their private gated community has been plowed twice. So, a crane was out of the question. We arrived late today. Mike Oxman climbed the snag, set a block, and cut off a couple pieces. The line was fixed to a porta wrap. I had set a line in a well positioned cedar. Mike jugged up it, and set another block, which was set to be retrievable from the ground. Our static line was rigged, and I tied it to the 25 foot portion of the tree overhanging the deck. We tensioned it with each rope, and I cut it free. It immediately swung clear and they lowered it down neatly. I had accessed the roof via a 32 foot ladder, tossed my lifeline over to the tree and pulled myself to it, via a 45 degree steep section of roof. Then, I went up the main roof and tied a mid line to the tree, and threw it to the ground opposite the side we'd be attempting to lift the tree. It was tied back to keep the tree from swinging sideways too fast when we lifted it. Mike had been concerned that the tree on the roof might move a bit, so he had tossed me another line to tie past where we cut the overhanging section off. He'd run it around the cedar at 30 feet. Turns out the tree stayed put, so we pulled that line out and retied it closer to the top, and tossed it over the roof on the side as we'd be lifting, in case we needed to help the tree swing clear of the house. I got the static line back and tied it 25 feet from the tip, and tied the butt line back to the 30 foot snag. Then I came down, and we tried to lift the entire remaining 45-50 feet off. No luck, the line angles were too extreme, and the tree is weighted down with the snow on it, plus a branch or two could be stuck in the roof. So, we'll go back tomorrow. There's a perfectly placed hemlock which we'll set a block in and another static line, attach that line to the tip, and remove the first static line from the tip and tie it to the butt, where it will be well placed to lift the butt up. We'll get rid of the line and block at 30 feet in the snag. And add the Hobbs to the hemlock so we can lift each line in unison. The back line will still allow us to control the sideways movement. It should hang clear of the roof and be able to be neatly lowered to the ground. It may be raining tomorrow, but I hope to be able to be up the snag, taking pics and video of the operation. I'll get Andy to replace me while I'm filming.

It's "outdated" and no longer made, but the Canon Powershot Pro 1 is one of the best compact camera yet made. Mine was stolen, and I just got another on ebay. Here's a link to all currently offered...but that's the US ebay site... http://photography.shop.ebay.com/items/Digital-Cameras__W0QQBrand3d75b67ZCanon3dde98fQQProductType42be380bZPointShoot290704d5QQMegapixels950ad1bfZ80to89MP3b42fb7fQQOpticalQ5Aoomf6c2bf3bZ7x721QQ_dmptZDigitalQ5fCamerasQQ_flnZ1QQ_mdoZCamerasQ2dPhotoQQ_pcatsZ625QQ_sacatZ31388QQ_ssovZ1QQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em282 It offers raw shooting, has a Pro lens, and a nice 7-1 zoom...and is about as wide angle as the come. Current offerings that are good, and in your range include the G-9 and G-10 Canons....and the SX-1, not available in the US, but will offer HD video and a really wide zoom range. The SX-1 is an upgrade from the S-5, also a very good camera. All these offer full manual control, and most or all allow an external flash to be mounted. As you can tell, I'm a Canon guy......they're number one for a reason....but Nikon is trying to catch up....at least in the SLR market.... The small cameras don't handle action that well, due to shutter lag and slow motor drive performance. They also aren't very good in low light. Their sensors, though smaller, have plenty of megapixels, even too many too close to together and so aren';t up to their SLR counterparts in overall quality...but will still produce great images.

We had 6 firs to log out of a wild area, and had a fair bit of room. Had to top 4 and felled two. We wanted the brush close to the landing, so the less limbing the better. Trees were 110-160 feet tall. Set pull lines in the topped trees, then used them as 'reverse"speed lines to yard out the brush and a fair sized log. GRCS with Milwaukee Super Hawg right angle drill did the deed. [ame] [/ame] The below vid is from a different job. The wood from that tree is gone, but Thursday, we did two across the street, one had been lodged in another tree for nearly two years, and a dead fir. I have at least two log truck loads to yard out from all the jobs, this Tuesday. 8000-9000 board feet...... [ame] [/ame] that's my 11 year old 3120 at work, needing sharpening. It's on its second set of rings, is woods ported, and seems back up to the 13 or so horsepower that it was after I had the work done......

Your title had me conjuring up something a tad different....

Yup!!! <object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTfdWHxrbI8&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTfdWHxrbI8&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>

yup...I have two 335 Cali's...same 45 cc doggy motor as the 338.....they're OK once I add a second port to the muffler (far bigger than the stocker at 9/16th inch) and have lots of torque, but I still prefer the standard 335/338. Currently, my US source gets me the CS2139T Jonsered--same saw save for pretty colors and some plastic for $75-100 less than the 338.... These saws work well...it took Husky till a couple years ago to iron out all the problems....but they have a winner now. Once ported, the saws will beat a 200T that has had the screen removed---a tad less chain speed but a lot more torque... see my youtube video comparing the 2139 before and after muffler modding, a ported 192 and a 200T with a bad chain.....same user name....

This one shows how shallow the root plate can be sometimes....

I have had two 346's, both fully woods ported. Am getting an NE soon, but it's going straight to my saw builder. Stock is slow...and boring.....I'm told it will outcut my ported Dolmar 5100S. my old 346's cut as much as 50% faster than stock. Likely the gains will be a tad less with the NE. Watching a Johh Deere CS 62 on ebay. Brand new, it is an Efco 162...pretty much the equal of a 357 or 361. If the price stays under $375, I'll go for it. As if I need it, as a friend has gone out of biz. I'm buying a 357 and 372 from him to replace two of the same that were stolen. All saws modded by ehp (Ed Heard). I'm also getting another 372, but it's been worked over a bit too much for hard use like constant firewood cutting or chunking in a tree. But it'll be fun to race with at events, and he's sending me a tuned pipe to go with it. I've some videos on Youtube....user name is the same.

Yup, and for returning from a limb walk, do the same. Slick trick!

That's a US thing....and no belay either..... and 90 foot poles.

Schweeeeeet!!! I like! A bud uses a Ropeman, attached directly to those special rings that come apart that are on the Petzl Sequoia. I like your set up as well....I think the extendable bridge is even slicker than Chris Cowell's way of moving the whole hitch assembly up, or Rich Hattier's Anchor Bridge.

Drove up to find a Jap maple that I'd forgotten to prune last fall. gotta find the guy's phone number. The tree is 21 feet wide, 13 feet tall, one of the largest in the country..and prolly worth $50k....I have another one almost as large to prune as well! Just across the street, this upright maple still is in its glory Then, my lucky day, two houses away is an awesome copper beech that I've admired for 25 years, or since I first spotted it. It has never been touched. The original owner's (deceased 10 years ago) daughter was out raking leaves. I'd never been able to talk to anyone there before. She was happy to speak with me. I suggested that the tree be considered for our Seattle Heritage Tree Program. I'll nominate it. The tree is over 4 feet dbh, and 100 feet tall. Prolly the largest in Seattle. I've rec climbed the largest in the state, which is just under 6 feet dbh, and 115 feet tall, in a cemetary in Everett.

It snowed all the down to 2000 feet yesterday. This is the Cascades behind downtown Bellevue. 520 mm lens equivalent on the ID Mk ll A foot or more fell in many areas! I saw some videos of people who hiked for their turns in the Wasatch above Salt Lake City today...it was super deep and blower powder! Others were skiing up around Mt Baker today. I was working....: Spotted this venerable old 5 foot dbh oak a few days ago. Had a tiny job nearby today, and shot some better pics of it. Left a card with a caregiver. The owner is 96...won't be getting any work from them.

Doubtful. There's no French saw mfr's, that I'm aware of. Euro brands are Efco (Italy) Stihl and Dolmar (Germany) Husky and Jonsered (Sweden) The Solo 637 has been out for a few years....I've not heard much about it, save that it's slow for its 400 cc motor.

It has been glorious....only a tad bit of rain, has allowed the colors to really pop...lots of cool clear nights too, just the ticket. This is a slide show....you can navigate out of it and back to the set or my main flickr page....

I have a B'ham PW1, don't think the tube angles are that sharp...... modded it to make it kinda like the short lived PW 2....but didn't do it right....no worries, the PW 3 came out, the design of which is superior....

See if you can find out what the Customs charges will be, and let us know. Several of us are interested in the TM, but don't much like the $570 pricetag...