Grandad
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Everything posted by Grandad
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Never had the problems some of you guys seem to have with groundies and I've broken in quite a few complete newbies. The secret is as some have said above: communication. I would say: friendly communication. Explain what you want in words, not signals, make sure they understand before you do the deed with the saw. Explain how to tie on a saw or working rope and see them do it before you ascend. If they don't do it the way you asked, do not proceed anyway, have them do it again properly. Remain calm and friendly and thank them for a job well done. It's all communication folks.
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I suppose it can happen on a beech but usually they snap off short, not a tree I would expect to split like that... It just goes to show that you can never be complacent, it's the unexpected that will kill you.
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A well known danger, and the familiar names crop up time and again, Willows, Pops, leaning trees... I heard a story from a guy I hired in to do some stump grinding for me: he had a friend killed while taking the top out of an Ailanthus altissima, it "barber-chaired" on him and killed him outright. I once took down a very tall woodland Fraxinus on a steep bank, all the weight right at the top, it had a lean, not too bad but it did lean slightly. I got less than halfway with the felling cut when it barber-chaired on me, boy did I move fast, not easy with a 45 degree muddy bank to climb with an 038 in my hand! Maybe I should have left the saw behind, do you think? Deer man has it right: severing the sap wood on either side of the mouth reduces the chance of a split and boring the centre can't hurt either.
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They last longer if you wear them under overalls, my Husqvarna trousers are years old. I reckon those chaps with Kevlar in them would be pretty tough, problem is a chainsaw will go straight through them. I know because I did a test with woven Kevlar, might as well have used damp tissue for all the chainsaw protection it offered.
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sounds like a good idea to me too, it would be good to meet some of you guys and see some of this modern kit you all rave about. John.
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No, sorry mate, I don't recall ever meeting him. I did do a days work with a fella from the Loughborough area once but I can't remember his name. Real nice bloke, had a spot of bother in years before and spent some time as a guest of her majesty, I didn't hold it against him, as I said he was nice to me and not a thief or anything nasty and kept me entertained with stories of the characters he met inside.
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Couldn't agree more. I could go back to it if I wanted to but I wouldn't want to work every day as I did back then, an odd day now and then might suit me better, I do miss it so... Problem is, I have been overtaken by the chainsaw qualifications that are now needed; cs38? Is that the one for climbing with a saw? I don't have that.
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That's marvellous, thanks for posting it. Dear old Barn owl, my favourite bird, wife and I walk our dogs just outside the village and see one regularly.
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You're an ex-pat then? You look very comfortable in your new situation. I live about ten miles from Melton Mowbray, but I worked in the Market Harborough area, had to commute about thirty miles each way. It was the drive that was the worst thing about it, added two hours to each day. Where were you? John.
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If I remember aright we borrowed another 084 and there were two of us blazing away.
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It was about 18/19 years ago. Saw was an 084 with 36" bar, not quite long enough to drop the tree with one blow. I reduced the width with the wedges at the sides as seen in the first pic. It took us a couple of days to ring it up. There was one of those big Hitachi excavators on site and it couldn't budge it at first. That's what the chain was on it for... It was felled over a brook too, it was growing on the bank. I had to cut the mouth while hanging from climbing rope. We pulled it down with a Tirfor. Tree was about 208 years old, damn shame but it was over mature and had dropped a few branches. Had to go to make way for a housing estate. Edit: Not a chain, a cable I should say.
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Ahh! I'm glad you can see it, it's just a link for me. Maybe it would be better as a jpg. I have a better pic of the same tree I will try to attach it here. Edit: Success at last!
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Here is a pic..., (I hope). Names John. Family 007.tif
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Good pic that, I've got one that I could post but it's too big and I can't yet figure out how to reduce it... I've got Linux and GIMP see, hardly ever use GIMP, be patient... Edit: That's me in the avatar though.
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I've started something now... probably get banned from the forum; why don't I ever see the double meaning until it's too late?
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I still have issues with that college so I won't name it; I did the RFS Cert Arb there. They promised us that we would be able to do all the practical exams as well as the theory, when it came down to it all we got was the theory exam, they never did arrange for the practicals, let us all down with no explanation... I decided to arrange to do the practicals privately, arranged the trees, dates everything. There was four of us who were going to do it; first one dropped out, then another rang me the night before the arranged day and dropped out, I had to cancel as it would have been too expensive for just the two remaining to pick up the bill. I never did get that certificate but I did at least pass the theory...
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You know, when I was at college they were still teaching the three knot system and they thought that it was ok to drain and fill cavities. I, the student had to put them straight on that, (the cavities). I don't think they held it against me as they asked me back to teach there.
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I have only a few pics and these on film, scanner not working so difficult to post the few I have. I will post some as and when... Bow saw? Bow saw? We couldn't afford a bow saw, we had a trained beaver...
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I knew a bloke who used to do a lot of forestry/tree work using a triple ladder and a McCulloch Powermac 6 saw, his safety gear consisted of a weightlifters belt and a heavy rope which came from round a boxing ring, (I'm not joking). If he judged it necessary he would put the rope around a handy branch and tie it to his belt, his groundie used to hold the other end of the rope. Most of his work was done from the top of this damn ladder. Made you sick to watch him but he'd been doing it that way for years.
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Feels like it sometimes mate.
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My first boss told me that the climber is in charge of the job and what he says, goes. I have worked on that principle ever since. We all know that a job assessed from the ground can change utterly when you climb up and see it close up and from a different angle. What looked like a simple job from the ground takes on an entirely different character when you get up there. A medium sized branch becomes a half ton monster close up. So the climber gets to say how a job will get done, not the gaffer on the deck. If he doesn't like it, he can do the job himself. There's enough opportunity for error without getting killed because of some impatient or incompetent boss's say so.
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We were called in to work on a Fraxinus at the end of somebody's garden once, it overhung the fence and behind said fence was a ratty old area full of scrap Saab cars. We spoke to the owner of the yard and asked if it was ok if the groundies stood in his yard. He was fine about it, pointed out the old Saab he didn't want damaged and said it was ok, even if we stood on the others as there was nothing to hurt; so we did use the old cars as access, did the job with no damage to the precious car and went on our way. Next thing we know, this cheeky chappie rang us up and accused us of breaking the windscreen on the car that he didn't want hurt. We hadn't and when we refused to cop to the crime he backed down, could have got nasty though but it was his word against ours and I think he had hoped for a quick cash hand-out to save any hassle on our part. What a git.
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Yes, fair enough but didn't want any misunderstandings, I realised I hadn't said my age and that it wasn't obvious just how old an old timer I was.
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Reading back over some of your replies I get the idea that some of you guys think I'm older than I actually am. I'm 58, not an OAP, just thought I'd better make it clear so that we don't get the wrong idea. (I am a grandad though and I am retired from climbing but could go back to it if I wanted to). Sorry for any misunderstanding...
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Well, I've got a few photos, non too exciting though, just run of the mill stuff. This was before the days of digital cameras and those glass plates are damn heavy. David Goss: We've all had to do these daft branch walks, at least it keeps the groundies entertained when the fork splits or you miss your footing.
