Crane removals

[arborworks1]

I think I'm getting lazy. All we have been doing is crane removals lately. I have gotten to the point were I don't really want to climb removals anymore. I have talked more people into paying a little extra to let us kill it with a crane. Its still alot of work but its not hard work like rigging each limb and then letting a top rigged down.

I always ride to the top and then tie back in and rappel to my next cut.

Do you do much differently?

 

[No_Bivy]

2 climbers can be better...one rigs and raps.....the other cuts.

 

[MasterBlaster]

I don't always ride the ball, once I'm in the tree. I like to be waiting on the ball at the place I wanna place the sling for the next lift.

2 climbers can be better...one rigs and raps.....the other cuts.

Not always, in fact in less occasions.

 

[arborworks1]

I think 2 climbers works better on large spreading trees. IMO

 

[woodworkingboy]

What we generally do is put a large shackle around the crane cable above the ball, and attach the lifting cable that hooks to the tree to that. The climber sets his safety around the hook, gets lifted into the tree top where the tree gets cabled off. Then by way of the crane cable sliding through the shackle, the climber can get lowered down to the cutting location to attach himself. The cable gets pulled up and the shackle bottoms out on the top of the ball. Then, all ready to rock and roll. It's a very quick way.

There is some concern where the crane cable above the ball gets angled and kicked out in a funny way when the shackle bottoms out against the ball. Our crane doesn't really have a ball, instead it's a large collar, but pretty much the same deal I think. With the cable on the 24 ton crane we use, it's not a problem, but I always examine the cable at that point to look for stress.

With regard to riding the ball, ANSI regs get very specific about it. Our method is a nono, if there was such a thing as ANSI here. We've used this technique successfully for years, on some big motha trees.

Crane best practices in tree removal, a lot of information here:

http://www.aandatreeservice.com/images/guides/safety/Crane_Best_Practices.pdf

 

[MasterBlaster]

I dunno about all that, Jay.

 

[woodworkingboy]

What's your hesitation, MB, the stress on the cable where the shackle goes around it?

 

[MasterBlaster]

Your first paragraph eludes me.

 

[arborworks1]

After we hook everything up. I rappel down, I use the shackle above the ball with a friction saver through the shackle. The 4 part block on the 40 ton crane we use has a eye welded on the side, a shackle fits perfectly in there. Have to zip tie the fs to make sure it stays out of the pulleys.

 

[woodworkingboy]

OK, I'll try again:

There's the point where the crane cable attaches or goes through the ball. Right above that is where the large shackle gets attached around the cable. One eye of the 8 meter lifting cable gets attached through the shackle, the other end gets wrapped around the tree and attached with another shackle. That way, the hook with climber attached, can get lowered with the crane cable sliding through the shackle, and the tree is still cabled off. After the climber attaches himself to the tree and removes his safety from the hook, you can wind up the crane cable and hook, and when the shackle at the top of the tree contacts the top of the ball, the tree gets pulled up snug.

I can't draw and I'm bad at explaining things.:roll:

 

[MasterBlaster]

Lifting the load from the shackle above the ball is the funky part, to me.

HuH?

 

[top hopper]

2 climbers is the best way IMO. None of that up down business. Of course we have pretty wide trees here. We generally use 20-25 foot slings so after one climber sets it he can hop over to another lead out of the way. Then the hook comes in and the sling is long enough for the climber doing the cutting to attach it to the ball, then make the cut. By the time the hook comes back the next lead is slung ready to hook and cut.

 

[MasterBlaster]

For sure! On the long, sprawling limbs that's the way to go!

 

[top hopper]

Lifting the load from the shackle above the ball is the funky part, to me.

HuH?

Agreed. No crane operator here would allow that for sure. The load gets hooked to the ball, not around the cable above the ball.

 

[Mr. Sir]

I've done it Jay's way many times. No problems, but on heavy lifts I prefer to move the cable back down to the hook.

 

[MasterBlaster]

I've NEVER seen anyone do like that.

 

[Mr. Sir]

We be unique!

 

[top hopper]

Me either, and I bet the operators dont like it either.

 

[Mr. Sir]

Actually, it was the operator who showed me that technique. Saves a lot of time if you have a lot of up and down rigging and cutting to do.

 

[MasterBlaster]

I've never had an operator show me diddly, and I worked with a lot of em. Usually, it's me showing/telling them what to do. And I would never do that 'above the ball' thang.

 

[top hopper]

Id just skip all that, and put another climber up with me.
Its a good oppurtunity to "school" beginning climbers on crane work. Direct them thru the tree to set the slings and leave the cutting to the seasoned climber.


of course, there isnt always a second climber available.

 

[MasterBlaster]

And I'd skip THAT and just do it meself.

 

[top hopper]

You wouldnt if you had a squirrel like climber available to do all the running. Then you just sit in the bole and cut.

I love it, "young" climbers always wanna set the slings. I say have at it. I'll park my ass on the trunk and fire up the saw for a dozen cuts.

 

[MasterBlaster]

In my world it's all about production vs manhours.

 

[top hopper]

Twice as fast with 2 climbers= the same amount of man hours as 1 climber taking twice as long. Cant get better production than that. Just means more production by days end, with more man hours.
A wash either way