Chainsaw Repair

That was no small tree he was cutting either.

  I think your right Jim if the crane had not be holding it up off the ground then it would not have been moving around so much.

I learned about the root ball falling back into the hole "experimentally" by cutting from the top down, leaving me with this when it stood up:




Experience is what we learn doing things we are not qualified to do. 

But it's the norm, not the rule and it doesn't always work that way.  Many times the root ball just sits there on its side.  A couple of years ago a large white oak fell on a clear and still summer day, and the tree fell somewhat down hill.  I really wondered what the root ball was going to do and suspected it would not go back, and as I cut it started to move towards the trunk.  Fortunately I guessed correctly and wedged it so I didn't get the bar pinched.  It still sits there today - I tried to push it back with my FEL but didn't have the power.  This tree had been killed by something like oak wilt and the bottom was laced with some fungus.  I suspect the roots finally just rotted and over it went (it leaned down hill). 

That looked like a pretty tall piece that stood back up Chris.   I think I would have jumped about 6 feet when that thing stood up.

LOL - yeah, and if I recall it tried to take my saw with it.  Probably the weight of the McCinderblock I was using held it back!

It's not a mistake I will repeat. 

In the late 1990's I was climbing a large Monterey Pine tree that had fallen onto a two story house. Made a cut about 20 feet above the roofline and the tree righted itself with me along for the ride... scary!

I guess about the only thing you can do is to hang on.   Then have one heck of a story afterwards.   That had to have pumped some adrenaline into the ole blood stream.

Righted itself slowly but still terrifying! Lol!     

I can only imagine!