#59 Cutting Firewood : Stihl 461 Destroys Ash Tree !!!
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ก.ย. 2024
- #cuttingfirewood #woodwarriors #firewood
Today Im using my Stihl 461 chainsaw to try and practice/learn how to cut down large trees. This video is not for the faint of heart and these tree cutting techniques should not be practiced at home as they were only marginally successful. I hope your all having a good day and thanks for watching.
Equipment List :
one middle aged man
One Stihl 461 chainsaw
One Bobcat E35 mini excavator
One Iron Bull dump trailer
One Fiskars axe
One beautiful and talented wife/videographer
As a veteran faller, there are to many safety issues here to even start to talk about. No PPE, congested falling conditions, dead tree, no escape route, not considering the path the tree will fall, I could go on and on. Please folks, if you watch this video use it as tips on what not to do. This gentleman needs to stick with wood already on the ground.
There are many fatal mistakes here.... If you dont have the mentor, its worth your life to find one. Trees are not forgiving, this isnt a get out and learn on your own activity.
You have many valid points and I tip my Hat to you. By the same token I don't want to live in a world ruled by safety natzis. If man wants to drop a tree and no one else is at risk then I say let him drop the tree.. I'm guessing you are the type of guy that also believes strongly in gun control laws
Im not a safety nazi, i would just be nice for a guy like yourself to be able to wake up the next day and be able to continue what you like to do. Its not just about safety, its about using your head, the moment you dont respect the saw or the forest it will get you. And for gun control laws, you have me all wrong, my gun control is being able to hit my target.
Anyway, I know you'll continue to do what you do and thats great but as my only advice to you as a content maker is lead by example.
@@steverhodes467 well said. I think you beat me on this one
If a man wants to fell a tree let him fell it if he gets killed by it oh well it’s his fault but don’t go worrying about other peoples business.
I noticed that you didn't leave any holding wood for your hinge, on a dead tree you need to leave a wider hinge than on a live tree. You almost had that tree go the opposite of your face cut, and had it had branches it probably would have. Be careful with this in the future.
I"m in the same league as you Ben. Enjoy your videos and your honesty.
First of all Ben, quit worrying about what somebody is gonna say in the comments. You don’t need the distraction when running a chainsaw.You could do everything right and there’s still gonna be someone who says you’ve done it wrong. Keep watching videos and learning and applying what you learn. Be safe and keep cutting buddy!👍🏻
Lol. Thnx man. Thats for sure
Always always use your wedges when felling trees because it only takes a little breeze or perhaps the wrong cut and bam the tree comes back and pinches your saw and possibly falls on top of you so please just remember wedges are your friend and they give you alot of control over the tree and where you want it to fall. Cheers
Good job Ben, the tree is on the ground and no one got hurt, i call that a success. It's too bad the tree is so far in the bush to drag bit out for firewood, but you got the practice you were looking for, so everything worked out. And hello to your awesome wife and beautiful new baby.
Thanks man
You did fine, yeah the was a few things you could of done differently But you recognized them and hopefully you'll do them in the future ? I'm not an arborist or logger , I used to dropp trees for friends but I am fairly decent at it ?
Good luck and be safe , learn as much as you can from doing or your local saw shop .
The best experience you can get on a job is doing the job itself (carefully ) ! ! !
I've just watched this video and I read most of the comments too.
Here's my comment :
1) You have lots of potential and it appears you wish to learn. That's great.
2) The best thing you could do is search here on You Tube for the 17 part series called "BC Faller Training Standard". Watch it all and take notes. When you've watched it all, watch it again. It's a good training resource.
3) Go to BBR and look for his video Play List and find the one about how to deal with Leaning Trees.
4) Remember Compression then Tension. That's 90% of falling.
5) Look Up and Live.
When you were making your back cut I was like “drive a wedge… drive a wedge… DRIVE A WEDGE!” Lol. No biggie though
The plastic wedges are so useful for this. On these bigger trees you can use a few of them and drive them to get the tree to go over. When you are dropping trees and no one gets hurt and nothing gets wrecked you are doing a good job.
Thanks man. I appreciate it
go watch buckin' billy ray smith
Keep at it Ben the only way to learn is to do it. Every tree is different so you will never stop learning.💪
There are a lot of good videos on TH-cam on how to cut trees, I like buckin Billy rays channel, I’m still learning myself, but you need to be careful they will kill you, I do enjoy your channel, I cut a lot of firewood myself
When you get your back cut in go ahead and put your wedge in to help control the tree, check out buckin billy ray
not even wearing chaps 🙄 and not putting the break on after every cut and not even immediately looking for an escape route. wow WTF!
G'day from Australia Ben. Like you I'm learning each time I go out and cut me some firewood.
Australian eucalyptus trees are an extremely hard wood to cut, but worth the effort for heating my home. Every wood cutting trip is a learning exercise, but safety is always the number one factor. Thanks for the videos and have a great day.
Thanks man. Do you have to travel very far to get your wood ? Is it plentiful or hard to find ? Australia sounds like a cool place to me
Get most of my wood within about ten miles. It is getting harder to find the really good trees, but still enough for heating the house. I don't get snow here in winter like you do. It can get down to 26 or 28 at night, but usually around 48 to 52 through the daytime.
@@brucemckenna7035 thats cool. I try to stay close as well. So far I've gotten all my wood this year within about 5 miles
I appreciate your humility and acceptance to learn from others on here. That tree was a big undertaking with many things that could have went wrong and you did get lucky. Every logger knows that they will eventually have an accident - that time will come but the amount of damage done varies - and I mean that damage done is to the logger. Every logger has a pair of chaps or saw pants with teeth marks in them - or stitches in their leg, I recommend saw any with protection right up to the belt - most only cover partial up the thigh which is useless. Good luck with your endeavours im subscribing! Im dropping many ton of ash right now with my son and it's a war zone!
Good job
Where is your PPE? Hardhat, ear protection, chainsaw pants/chaps?
At home. They were no benefit there I agree
I'm glad you survived cutting through the hinge with no clean escape. On thing is for certain that 461 is no joke. 👍
I have a couple vids here lately where I'm dropping ash trees. I'm building a log cabin and dropped a bunch.
Those hollow ones can get ya. Holding wood is your friend. It's also hard to wedge when they set back on ya and they are rotten. Get that wedge in as soon as you can. I ran into some of them. Sometimes when they set back things will fall out of the top.
Good work.
Thanks man. I got a lot of learning left to do
@@survivingcountrylife7069 We all do. 15 or 20 years ago if I had a camera watching me. Lol. The only thing I get pinched on now is twigs. Hehe. Still learning. Your miles ahead of me from years back and I suspect it's resherch. You made some good points in this video. Practice makes ya good. Like riding a bicycle the first time into your uncle's convertible mustang, you won't forget. I've smashed saws into pieces not knowing what was gonna happen when it did. Knowing it all a few years ago I backed over a saw with my truck. Just when I thought I knew it all, I got an education. Faster I go the behinder I got. Lol. Good thing I didn't film it. Lol.
Why are you doing this kind of work without PPE?
I'm in the same boat as you. Learning as I go. Some video's are very good but nothing beats real experience.
I agree. Just practicing and learning. I need a part time job working for a tree company. Haha
One thing you can do to determine if the tree you are getting ready to cut down and questioning if it is solid, or hollow, or as you called it - punk. Use your saw and drill trough the tree with a vertical cut (like going to rip cut the trunk) and look at the sawdust coming out of the saw and the feel of the saw running trough the tree. As long as it it is not where you are planning to cut the tree off and or in the opposite orientation to the face cut / back cut, it will not affect the tree for felling it. just something I have learned from years of sawing and watching my mentors cutting.
Hi Ben!!😀😀
Glad to hear that you learned a little from your mistakes. One thing is when you put your felling wedge in early to hold it from setting back. Be very careful not to cut off your hinge wood.
If I lived closer to you I would love to be your mentor. But the best I can do is try and give you a few pointers as we go forward.
Where are your chaps??
Take care and work safe my friend!!😀😀❤
Logger Al
I forgot my chaps yesterday to be honest. Not good I know. That log was pretty well rotted it turns out. Feel free to give tips. Haha. Im a work in progress. Hope your having a good memorial day !!!
Ya I see it was punky from the dust lol. Glad you are wanting to learn. I ain't a expert either but here is some Little tricks I learned over yrs, tap the tree with your axe head first if you aren't sure if it's a sound tree. Make sure you keep your face cut clean and even across. Like you said use wedges. It looked like your first cut wasn't parallel to the ground, looked like it angled back?. But it is fun cutting down trees 🤘🤙
I enjoy trying to learn. Thanks for the tips man !!!
nice
cuts like a hot knife n a butter💪
Straight forward. I like the videos and the approach !
Thanks man
I wouldn’t take any advice from this fella
A good way to avoid pinching your saw is to walk around the tree before you cut looking up to see which way the tree is leaning. If the tree is leaning in a particular direction, that is the side you should cut your wedge on. Also if you make your back cut a few inches above the front cut, it will reduce the chances of the tree kicking out as it falls.
Please Please please always clear a escape route. If something would happen you would be trapped. Husqvarna has amazing videos on safty and procedures. Other than that the tree fell and everyone is ok. Keep up the videos and cheers.
Great attitude!! Ride tall !!!
I’ve been cutting for 15 years, I’m no expert. But I too noticed a few things that weren’t safe.
A; your PPE. Chaps, helmet, safety glasses, hearing protection. All of which can either save your life or a trip to the ER. Remember PPE is cheap compared to the ER.
B; clean your standing area first & foremost. Nothings more dangerous that a rogue tree falling & you have no clear escape route.
C; your face cut is angled up too high as shown at 9:20. That affects your fall. So does the cleanliness of the face cut. You also want a hinge too 1-2” would be sufficient. Always start your back cut 3/4” above the face cut, that allows proper movement of the hinge. And like others have said too, plastic wedges are very valuable so the tree doesn’t sit back on the saw, soon as you get a few inches into the back cut you wanna sink a wedge or two so that doesn’t happen.
But like me, you’re learning valuable lessons as you go along. But people’s #1 mistake is not wearing proper PPE. Save your legs, wear some good, high quality chaps.
Good save bud I hate when they set back like that well done bud. I guess I need to buy another saw lol. Stay safe out here bud.
Thanks man. I appreciate it
I think Buckin would also say, that if you want to learn and get good at this, then you gotta get in there and get behind the saw... That was a pretty good tree to practice on. Of course, if you watch enough BBR, he’ll have you dragging that tree out, cutting the rounds, and splitting em just for the exercise...🤣
Haha. Bicking Billy is awesome. Also I can't believe he does all that stuff without a loader or excavator
I pinched my saw a couple of days ago too. On an Ash tree also, haha
Did you have to wedge or pull ur tree back over as well ? .....
@@survivingcountrylife7069 lol, I had a back up chainsaw 800m away in my car. After the walk of shame, I had to drop it in the opposite direction I originally intended. Right into another tree, so my Ash was at 45 degree angle. I cut 4ft pieces out of it until it was upright again, then it toppled over in the right direction. All because my concentration lapsed for a second. The landowner drove by the tree when I was getting the other saw, he just chuckled when I got back.
Mate Nice.😆
Happy memorial Day! Thank you for the video. Yes, I liked your face cut - the one you made is a "common face cut" or a conventional face cut with the angle cut above the horizontal cut. A Humboldt cut has the angle cut below the horizontal cut. See more about face cuts later in this comment. The two major safety issues I saw were #1.) no holding wood left on the hinge - several others have commented including you - with dead punky wood there is no bending of the fibers, so you need a wider than normal hinge and as was mentioned, the wedges need to go in once there is space for them. And #2.) not clearing the ground of logs and then walking towards the fall - see the log fly up around 9:10 when the stem hit the ground and the debris log didn't hit you and the stem rolled (luckily the roll was away from you - that might have been from the concrete pile). Last, as others had stated, you were too eager to drop that tree and missed putting on your chaps or forgot to bring them. In past videos you have shown us that it only takes a minute to put them on. Back to the face cuts, the common face cut leaves a flat stump and the stem can get shot out a few feet further. The Humboldt leaves a flat end to the log (required for logging for lumber) and there is no propelling the stem log further out. The open angle of any face cut determines when the face closes, which forces the hinge to break. The more open the face, the longer the hinge is directing where the tree will fall. Stay safe. Keep the videos coming.
Thanks man. Ur right on a number of things. I had forgotten my chaps. Also that concrete pile wasn't much fun to walk on or maneuver. Thanks for the helping advice man.
Nice job. thanks for the mornin. video guys. have great memorial day. Take care. FLY THAT FLAG.
Absolutely man. Fly the flag high
Welcomed to the jungle.... That's the truth!!! 😂Just love the videos Ben!!Ben, put# buckinbillyray experience on your video...that's the guy that you need to critique your work friend. Keep em coming 👊👍💚🌳💚
If I put that tag on there does it link me to his stuff ? Thanks for the comment. I love watching buckin. He is awesome !!!!
Hey Ben, just a heads up.... leave yourself more holding wood/hinge wood. Not need to make a deep face cut. Thats the reason the tree sat back on you. Start your back cut and drive wedges to control your tree. Also, you will in a dangerous spot when you did your back cut. You were on the "low side"... get away from the concrete. Leave yourself an out. Get on the opposite side. You would have pinched off and could have been a bad scene. Great video and stay safe!
Thanks man. I've got to keep practicing and learning
@@survivingcountrylife7069 If you look back at Buckin Billy Ray, Logger Wade. They will show you different techniques.
Put your wedge in before the tree sits back
You dont do too bad for a novice tree cutter, I'm in the same boat nowhere near considered a professional but I manage to lay them on the ground where I want them to lay and nobody gets hurt or dies and no property is damaged so I fair pretty well as do you
Thanks man. I agree. I talked to a buddy of mine the other day that worked for a tree service for a couple years as his job in the past. He never even really sharpened his own chain nor owned a chainsaw and still doesn't. So it just depends on the guy and how much knowledge they've got i think
That out fit to clean to be cutting down trees 🌳
Haha. Thnx
Nice ms461 there Ben.. Now where did I see one last.. Oh yeah it's in my shed with a little dust on it.. Hahaha been using it so much the last few days my arms are vibrating as I am relaxing in the house..
Also nice tree to practice on as well just take it 1 at a time and you will get better at it..
Thanks man. How do you like your 461. I love mine
@@survivingcountrylife7069 : I love it, still can't wipe off the smile I have on my face..
if your just learning please wear full safety kit with that saw as your talking about being lucky it might not be so easy the next time please wear chaps at least and this is definetley not safe
Men, you risking your life! Put the lock on after everry cut lol That tree was abput to fall the opposite way.
Was that tree a “stub” (missing it’s top)? I had to learn everything on the fly myself. I could tell it was slightly punky when I saw the dust.
Yes it was missing its top. It turns out it was very punky. I didnt know that to start with but a good tree to practice on I think. Fun to cut on. It threw dust like crazy for the thumb nail. Haha
Not sure what your first name is... I may have caught it before, but I have the memory of a goldfish. If you are looking for the best tutorial for dropping trees, check out Bucking Billy Ray Smith's videos. As far as I have seen, he has forgotten more about dropping trees than what most of us would even know. I find him to be brilliant. Of all the trees he has dropped, I figure 99% are within 1/2 of a degree of where he intended and even then, I figure wind is his only unpredictable obstacle, which is never consistent. Main thing is to keep enjoying what you are doing. Congrats on the baby... it will seem like your Mrs. is feeding her Miracle grow!
Lol. Thanks man. I agree. Bucking is awesome. I try to watch him alot. My baby is growing like a weed and doing well. She's really becoming more alert and expressive
I'm in your boat. I have cut down a lot of little stuff, just starting on the larger stuff. Trying to learn as much as I can from videos and friends. The one thing I learned so far, I don't like dealing with rotted trees, but it has to be done.
I betcha any one that’s cut many trees down have got there bar stuck! Because as good ole Buckin Billy Ray is and we all know he’s better than good he’s stuck his bar before. 👍
It just happens more often to me than it does to him. Haha
And me! Lost count of all the badones.best lesson I learned was have a extra bar,chain or saw! Most guys won't show mistakes to durn proud to admit them.thankz for sharin!
🔥👍🤠
Is your saw modified at all or stock?
Just completely stock
Joe from joes premium firewood gave you a shout out in his video today. Which was very awesome
I just saw it. That was pretty awesome of him. I like watching his show. He has good content really good i feel like
Yes it was.
I like watching his videos to.
Hope you guys stay safe
You done good buddy but maybe just practice on trees that are in better locations so you don’t get hurt falling down and tripping on your exit 👍nonetheless you made it out to make more videos 😁
Haha. Thnx man. I appreciate it
He left no holding wood on his hindge
A MENTOR WOULD BE, BUCKIN BILLY RAY SMITH... HE IS A WEALTH OF KNOWLEDGE... IVE LEARNED A LOT ABOUT SHARPENING MY CHAINSAW CHAINS FROM HIM... I JUST CUT UP FREE FIREWOOD FOR MYSELF... BUT I HAVE A LOT OF IT, AND I AM 72 YEARS OLD..
GEORGE IN PORTSMOUTH VA... LOVE THE CUTTING UP TREE VIDS...
Good job. I hate when the tree sit back
Definately. I got lucky it worked out
You're really learning in leaps and bounds with the felling. Be careful of congested felling areas, when the tree comes down, tops and branches have a way of coming up! A 2" branch really hurts when it pops you in the kisser, or worse right in the mommy daddy button
Ash is a great wood for the stove we hav 12acres all my ash are dead it's a real dangerous place to be please wear a helmet when ever you are in the woods
Good morning Ben when is that Eastonmade coming?
It should have gotten shipped out this past Wednesday or Thursday. So should be on a truck now I'm just not sure where at
I've been prepping for felling my first 18" cherry trees and the only way this video would be comfortable to watch is if it were all CGI. No safety Nazi here either but unless you've got a death wish, basic precautions are important. Also, that clutter is begging for religious use of the chain break when doing gymnastics.
Very dangerous man
That could have easily fallen on him
That's not a humbolt
Ash is a very dangerous tree to cut. It is well known to barber chair. It is not a tree to learn on. You were lucky it was rotten in the center.
LOL
You didn’t even try to escape the tree could’ve rolled over to your side thank God nothing happened
I agree
Not an expert but your scrape was too deep. No more than a third of the tree, great finish to it though. Jump your back up up a few inches and leave more holding wood. Finish off with wedges in need. I always throw a wedge in as soon as my bar gets into the tree in the back cut. In fact I use one to stop the tree backing onto my bar but I also just sit another one in the kerf that will drop out as soon as the tree starts to move. An indicator to get out of there.
One thing to have is a clear exit if possible. Four o’clock and eight o’clock to the teees fall
I agree. Thnx man. I need more trees to practise on. Haha
baby wedges
Wow don't cut like this man
Follow Buckin Billy Ray and you will learn a lot. Until you learn maybe look up from time to time so you don’t end up as a spot on the ground... You scare me...
Wtf
I'm no expert either, BUT, I still have an opinion. Please take my comment as constructive criticism. I do like you, your work ethic, and your can do attitude.
I didn't see you really analyze the lean and the weight distribution from 2 sides before starting the cut. I'm guessing that might have been because of the clutter around the tree. Could you have dropped it the opposite direction, which might have been toward your property (I assume), since that was the way the tree apparently wanted to go? Also, it looked as though you didn't have a clear escape route available. You were very lucky this time.
I would not let my wife be within range of a tree I was cutting, especially with the cloud of dust coming from the rotten core. IF there was a tragedy, I wouldn't want it to happen to anyone but me.
I admire your courage to show your mistake. I probably wouldn't have, but I would have missed out on all of the good comments. Your face cut was truly beautiful. Good work.
Thanks man. Your right. I made several mistakes and probably must have misjudged the lean. I definately learned to get the wedges in quick. This was a good tree to practice and learn on. Definately punky and not even worth being firewood it turns out
Your face cut was a bit too big. Didn’t give you time to set your wedges or really prepare for the tree to fall. The face cut should be 1/3 size of the tree. I think yours was almost 1/2.
clueless
Real bad Cutting Technique and many issues. Please get you a pro logger for the Job if you cant do it right by yourself
Even though 95% of our views come from men there are a few ladies (PAMMMM isn’t a lady) that watch so you might want to come up with something other than “fellas” when addressing your viewers. Just a thought, I do it a lot myself.
Haha. I can try but its hard to teach an old dog new tricks lol