Nearly lost a spar last week from a bad notch cut

I was up in a big red oak in Portland last Tuesday, doing a takedown over a garage. The homeowner wanted me to piece it out, but the guy I was groundie for that day cut a notch that was way too deep on the back side. The spar started splitting before I even got my saw out, and I had to bail off my lanyard fast. Anyone else ever had a groundie mess up a notch so bad it nearly cost you the tree or worse?

3 comments

3 Comments

fionafoster19d ago

Last season I had a groundie cut a face notch so lopsided I called it the "college try" notch before I even got up the rope. Spar looked like it was doing the limbo before I could even untie my lanyard. Guess we both lived to tell the tale though, barely.

stella2219d ago

Ngl I've been there too. What finally worked for me was just sending the new guy over to watch a couple proper fellings and then having him practice on some smaller stuff where a lopsided notch wouldnt end up with the tree doing the limbo like yours. Also made sure he knew to stop and ask instead of just guessing. A little training upfront beats chasing a bad hinge any day.

daniel_cooper3419d ago

Heard a guy at a safety meeting say a bad notch is like asking for a hospital bill you didn't plan on.