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S0046 Cutting trees using a bucket of rocks


Glenn
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    How to cut trees using a bucket of rocks.

S0046 Cutting trees using a bucket of rocks. 2017
by Glenn Conner © 2017

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Copyright 2002 - 2017 IFORGEIRON, All rights reserved.
 

There was a tree that needed to be cut down. It measured about the diameter of a 55 gallon drum, and calculated to be about 70 to 75 feet tall. It also needed to fall a certain direction to avoid damage to a building and some other things. This was not a big issue as the tree could be notched and encouraged to fall to where it needed to hit the ground.

Before starting a chain saw I insist that there are no animals present at the event. No matter how smart the dog is, he knows nothing about cutting trees. Tie him up or we go home. The second rule is no cameras. People think they are the worlds best photographer and or the worlds best film maker of all time. They will move to any location, at any time, with no regard for their own safety or the safety of others, in order to get what they think might be the perfect shot or the perfect camera angle. They will stand under a tree to record it falling, not put the camera in position and leave, but actually stand there under the tree to record the tree falling. No youtube, no Funniest Home Videos, no $10,000, no cameras, period.

First order of business is safety. We do it every time before the chain saw starts. For instance, only the people than are actually needed at the event are present. Everyone else at least one zip code away.

There is a minimum of three people on the crew, the chain saw operator, the fellow on the pull line and a safety guy to oversee the entire operation. His job is to watch everything and call a full stop to the event if anything is out of place, like a dog showing up or someone with a camera.

The safety guy is instructed to hold his arm out full length, the chain saw operator holds his arm out at full length, and there is 18 inches space between their fingertips. This is the minimum distance the safety guy can be from the chain saw operator at any time. If the chain saw operator turns, he can not injure the safety guy. The safety guy has a flag to wave to get the chain saw operators attention. And lastly, the safety guy can not cross over the fall line of the tree, at any time, for any reason, period. Everyone knows who is responsible for what, and everyone is up to speed with safety instructions.

We went to the truck, the safety guy gets the flag, I get the chain saw, and the pull line guy gets the pull line and a come-along. As the chain saw is fueled up, the safety guy checks for dogs and cameras and the zip code boundaries. We locate a solid tree to pull against, mark the tree being cut for the direction of fall, and the notch, and get ready.

The pull guy is instructed to go to the truck and get a blanket to throw over the pull line. This will act as a parachute and slow down the pull line if it were to brake. He is then told to go back to the truck and get the bucket of rocks, the 5 gallon plastic bucket that is half full, or more, of rocks. He turned his head sideways and gave me that look

We put the pull line as high up the tree on the tree being cut as was convenient, put the bucket of rocks about the middle of the pull line, and attached the pull line to the come-along and a stout tree. Slack was taken out of the pull line and the bucket of rocks rode the pull line up and into the air. 

One last safety check to choose the best path to run when the tree starts falling, clear the path of any limbs, rocks, etc for the chain saw operator, the safety guy, and the pull line guy. The safety guy would wave the flag to alert everyone when the tree started to fall, and when he dropped the flag, everyone was to transport out of harms way, read into another zip code.

And then there the pull guy could not stand himself any longer his injuring mind wanted to know. He raised his hand and ask, "Why the bucket of rocks?"

The two part answer is simple. The bucket of rocks is attached to about the middle of the pull line. If the pull line were to brake, the bucket of rocks would immediately slam the pull line to the ground. The pull line would then have to fight its way along the grass, along the ground, etc and expend its energy as it traveled. This would take all the energy out of the pull line before it could harm anyone.

Ok you said a two part answer as to why there was a bucket of rocks. What is the other part?

The bucket of rocks is suspended on the pull line. When a tree starts to fall, it groans, snaps, pops, and makes all kinds of noises. People think this is a good indication the tree is falling, but it is not. It is an indication of the tree complaining about being cut.

The pull line encourages the tree to fall in a certain direction.  It is the pull line guy's job to keep the pull line taunt with encouragement. The pull line guy may feel the come-along attached to the pull line crank a bit easier, maybe, maybe not. 

The bucket of rocks is suspended on the pull line. When the bucket of rocks starts to move, loose altitude, it is the visual indicator that the tree is falling. When the bucket of rocks starts moving, it is time to energize and transport, immediately, as the tree is actually falling. 

The bucket of rocks moved before the safety guy / flagman could alert anyone. That is unless you consider throwing the flag up into the air, and running at warp speed, a warning sign.

The tree fell and hit the bucket of rocks, crushing the bucket.

 

Now fast forward a bit. The pull guy was visiting out of state and ask to help cut a tree, about the size of a dinner plate. He agreed and took charge of the safety talk, no dogs, no cameras, and who had what job. The other fellow insisted on using the chain saw, so the pull guy set up the pull line. He would be right back as he needed to get a bucket of rocks. He what ?? A bucket of rocks??

The bucket was attached to the pull line and everything went as planned, only this time the tree just missed the bucket when it landed. 

Ok, thank you for your help, but why the bucket of rocks.

The pull line guy said, when the bucket starts down it is a visual indicator that the tree is actually falling. I learned that trick from a blacksmith. Works every time.

Edited by Glenn


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Glenn: How about you edit this article so it shows up when you select the link? As it is now it just blinks and you're looking at the original "articles" page. It's no wonder nobody knows what you're talking about when you talk about felling a tree with a bucket of rocks, it's too hard to find the story. If you hadn't called this morning I wouldn't have scrolled down a couple pages. 

You really need to clean this one up or it's a waste of space.

Jer

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There are some 1000 entries behind the pages tab. The tories section has almost 50 stories at present. The bucket of rocks was the last store posted to this section.

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