45 Trees, 3 climbers, 3 weeks of residential logging.

[Jomo]

Bugz Eye mesh screen safety glasses are the only glasses I can stand to wear while climbin n cuttin.

http://www.baileysonline.com/shop.a...143736531385&gclid=CIH2zPzk6MkCFcRffgod8AoABA

Had an interesting conversation about PPE with a 3rd generation logger, an LTO, with a huge portable sawmill, gigantic, on site, on a landing adjacent Lake Arrowhead, big dude, walked with a limp, and was indistinguishable from his foreman n fellers, beat up ford 4X4, 3 different kinda fuel tanks in the bed along with kit n big stihls.

I was asking him about PPE for the groundies n grunts on my strategic removal crew, sorta razzin him about the logging world's lax attitudes about safety on the job. But he didn't find it funny as he stared me in the eye stating had he not been wearing his full logging muffled n shielded helmet?

He'd have heard the squealing tires of the car sliding through his traffic control cones that knocked him off the highway, crippling him, making climbing something he could no longer do.

Kinduva better deaf than dead rationalization that he was pretty serious about. To his credit though, he supplied the PPE I'd requested the very next day.

Not wearing gloves or safety glasses is my greatest sin against ISA rules n regulations. I too am a squinter who looks 70 in his 50's!

Bugz eyes are better than nothin, eh?

Jomo

 

[Jed]

He sounds more Californian than I do

That's not really, necessarily a Good Thing, Stephen.

Shoulda said, "Nor-Cal". Because... SoCal... Oh, Brother...

 

[biggun]

Interesting job well done.

Some great pictures, I have trawled through in a couple of sessions today. Thanks for taking the time to post up.

 

[CurSedVoyce]

Maybe post some more up later. Only the first week in pictures thus far.
It does thin out in quantity from here out. Just the two big trees and milling to go.

 

[BOTS]

Stephen, nobody with a self log loader in your area to pick up timber?

This is the guy I use in my area.

 

[CurSedVoyce]

Nope.... none for hire current

 

[sawman]

that's a nice set up your guy has there BOTS
I sub a guy with a skid steer and a triaxel dump.
He is a god sent on big jobs!!

 

[BIGTWIG]

Great work and footage, Stephen! I'm sure the sena headsets were a big help keeping the big job running so smooth.

 

[BOTS]

Nope.... none for hire current

Bummer
Its like having a fairy with a magic wand, he waves it and it all goes away lol

that's a nice set up your guy has there BOTS
I sub a guy with a skid steer and a triaxel dump.
He is a god sent on big jobs!!

Thanks saw, this guy is awesome, he be there that same day or next to pick em up most of time!

 

[CurSedVoyce]

Some more little clips.....
<iframe width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ivAkYXfOlkk" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[sawman]

nice got half way there it will watch the rest later.
grease that cat!!

 

[CurSedVoyce]

Each climber got to have some part of "The Beast".
Multiple top marm tree that was the gift that just kept on giving..
Dave did some limb stripping in it on one side after Mike had set some lines and rigging with me the afternoon before. Then he set a high zip line point and prepped it some more.
Eventually the tree would have two zip line on two vectors to handle the brush.
165' or so high and 44 DBH. Right in front of the house... Over a septic system and leach field, yard art with lights, and a tree HO wanted to save right square in front of it. I thought I had more pictures of Dave in this one, but guess not.

Since the crane only took part of the morning, I then had Mike fell the tree on the back corner of the property that Dave had stripped. Had a bit of lean toward the house. Propane tank target as well. I had the excavator provide a little MA. Mike has been working with me on his felling skills. This one was a bit scary for him, but I knew he could pull it off. I just made myself available to over see his face and set up, then had him fall it..

 

[squisher]

Lol. In those last couple it looks like that spar is going to get the hoe. Glad to see the last pic that it's all at a safe distance.

 

[Mick!]

Hi Stephen, I pop in and out of this one, good stuff.
What's a "schoolmarm?"

 

[Peter]

One with a tight crotch.

 

[Mick!]

Ok right, thanks.......seriously?

 

[squisher]

Yup. Loggers are rude dudes!

 

[CurSedVoyce]

It actually led to all of us having a giggle.....
Don thought it fell a tad too close for his liking
I gave the boys 250 feet of rope and they did not use all of it
Anyway... I had looked it over, he was in a safe spot. It was just going to make a thud pretty near him.
So here is the picture of Don coming out of his cab (possibly thinking of changing his shorts) hollaring .......
"You F**N tree fallers are all alike, always trying to hit my G** D*** tractor!!!!!!"
He said it looked a lot closer a call than it was from his cab
Of course he was still smiling...

 

[CurSedVoyce]

Nice to be able to pick up a whole tree and move it out of the LZ and into an area for bucking to be moved again to the mill staging area or log deck for loading.

 

[CurSedVoyce]

So now my turn at the "Beast"
Dave was having some stomach problems and I told him I would take over. Mike was still nursing his ankle a bit after the crane work. I was fresh and headed on up. From now through the next day I would be the one aloft tearing down the two largest trees. The General Dave had stripped will need to be a gin pole and then blocked down. The Beast is all mine from here. We'll use two zip lines and then a gin pole to finish her down to felling size.

 

[cory]

Bots, that is a sweet self loader log truck, indeed that makes alot of wood vamoose quick!

CV, I'm sure you know what is what in your area but its still hard to fathom there are no log trucks nearby, if I understood you correctly. How are you getting rid of the logs, aside from milling? My bad if this was already discussed.

 

[BOTS]

Bots, that is a sweet self loader log truck, indeed that makes alot of wood vamoose quick!

CV, I'm sure you know what is what in your area but its still hard to fathom there are no log trucks nearby, if I understood you correctly. How are you getting rid of the logs, aside from milling? My bad if this was already discussed.

thanks Cory!

 

[treebilly]

Dang Stephan, how did you get Sam Elliott to buck logs for ya? White hard hat a few posts ago.
Really enjoying this job. The pics really show comradary amongst you guys.

 

[CurSedVoyce]

This next picture, now you can see the third co-dominant lead .....

 

[CurSedVoyce]

CV, I'm sure you know what is what in your area but its still hard to fathom there are no log trucks nearby, if I understood you correctly. How are you getting rid of the logs, aside from milling? My bad if this was already discussed.

There are log trucks, just none available. All booked. No local self loaders. Only self loaders right now belong to the big guys and are not for hire.
We had two flad bed trailers, one 16 foot tipper and one 20 footer equipment style move logs. Some wood rats came and took some fire wood. Some logs went to hobby mills and some to our mill in the yard. Some firewood got dumped on families in need. Some odd ball stuff just caught fire a couple evenings
Some odd ball stuff is down on my flat corner being picked at with chainsaws of neighbors that need wood. We used all means at our disposal to remove it from her place. Every load on truck or trailer had to be paid for by the client to be removed. Helped pay for my dump trailers.
Stuff that left the site like free lumber from the Lucas mill and some fire wood gathered by the wood rats were no charge to the client. The job was cut into two money amounts. One budget for getting trees down and cleaning up the debris associated. The other for wood removal, milling and clean up from those operations.
Clear as mud?
There is a picture earlier of the 16 foot trailer Dale brought to the table in this thread.