Back when I started trimming I fought every limb from the bucket. I would muscle through stuff that was clearly out of reach, trying to get that perfect cut. Then about three years ago a guy named Pete up in Portland showed me how to rig a throw line. He had me set a rope in the canopy on the first toss. Now I just send the rope up, tie a running bowline, and pull the branch down from the ground with a pulley. Saves me at least 20 minutes per tree and my shoulders don't scream at me the next day. Has anyone else ditched the bucket for a throw line on smaller jobs or am I just lazy?
Used the same old three-strand rope for years. Figured it was fine. Then last weekend I tried a 3/8 inch throw line on a big white oak in my buddy's yard. Got my line set in half the time and didn't fight any friction knots. Anyone else make the switch late like me?
My old boss swore by squirting that spray foam into potted trees to air prune the roots. I thought it was the dumbest thing I ever heard, figured it would just rot the whole root ball. Got a big job last spring planting 40 maples for a new housing development outside Denver and the supplier recommended it. Did half with the foam, half without to prove a point. Dug them up three months later and the foam trees had way more fine roots, no circling at all. Hate being wrong but that stuff actually worked. Anybody else tried this or got a different method for container trees?
I always used a standard rope guide for my SRT setup and kept fighting rope drag on every pruning job in Richmond. A old timer at a local workshop showed me how a notched guide keeps the rope centered and cuts friction by half. Has anyone else swapped their gear mid-season and noticed a big difference in how smooth their climb feels?
I was at a job site in Portland last week and saw another crew putting spikes on a mature oak they were just pruning. I get it if you're taking the tree down, but that bark damage stays forever and opens the tree up to decay. Had a customer call me out 6 months ago after a different company did this to their maple and now it's got cankers forming. Why do some guys still think this is ok for pruning work? Anyone else run into this?
My old boss used to say you should never spray dormant oil on maples before a hard freeze, that it would cook the buds once things warmed up. But last year I sprayed a row of red maples in late February before a cold snap, and they came out perfect with way less scale than usual. A buddy of mine insists timing doesn't matter as long as the tree is fully dormant. Anyone else seen mixed results with dormant oil and maples?
I was out on a job in St. Paul last spring, pruning a big red oak that had some bad crossing limbs. The owner came out and said 'I thought you were gonna tell me to cut it down, thanks for keeping it alive.' Made my whole month. Anyone else get a random comment from a client that just sticks with you?
I was cabling a 60-foot red oak with heavy decay in his backyard, and he came out screaming about how I was ruining the 'natural aesthetic' while the top was already half dead. Told him the tree would be on his garage in the next windstorm if I didn't remove the failed co-dominant stem, and he just walked back inside.
Had this huge pin oak limb that was all twisted up at the crotch, took me way longer than it should have to figure out the right cut to keep it from binding on the saw. Anyone else find themselves wrestling with weird grain patterns on oaks more than other trees?
I was working a removal job in Marietta, Georgia on a big red oak in someone's backyard. Everything looked fine from the ground, no rot or cracks I could see. Got about halfway through my back cut when the tree twisted hard and split right up the middle. The bar got pinched so bad I had to leave the saw in there and winch the piece off. Took me an extra 3 hours to clean up the mess and finish the job. Has anyone else dealt with a tree splitting unexpectedly like that and have a better way to spot it ahead of time?
I was at the diner last week and overheard this arborist telling his buddy that he hates when people plant trees like they're decor pieces. He said he pulled a Japanese maple out of a tiny yard where it was 3 feet from the house and already rubbing the siding. That got me thinking about all the Bradford pears I see crammed into little strips by mailboxes. I deliver mail in a neighborhood where someone planted a silver maple right under power lines, and now it's a mess every storm. Made me wonder how many of us see these bad placements daily but just shake our heads. Do you ever point them out to homeowners or is that crossing a line for you?
I usually go straight for the chainsaw but that branch was in a tight spot between two fence posts. The silky cut through cleaner and faster than I expected, and I didn't have to clean up sawdust everywhere. Has anyone else swapped to hand saws for certain jobs and stuck with it?
I had a guy call me out on an 80 year old red oak in Portland, said it looked sadder every year after I trimmed it. Turns out I was taking off way too much live wood, thinking I was being proactive. Another arborist showed me how leaving more canopy actually keeps the tree stronger. Has anyone else had a client call them out on something that changed your whole approach?
I spent a whole Saturday last month cleaning out a 12-inch chipper on a job in Maple Ridge... took me 45 extra minutes at the end of the day. But the client's neighbor had a fallen ash tree scheduled for the next morning, and I was worried about leaving wet chips in the drum over Sunday. Guy I work with says he never cleans it unless it's been sitting for over a week, claims it saves him hours a year. But I've also heard horror stories about rust and dull blades from leaving debris in there. What do you folks do when you've got back-to-back jobs with a short gap?
Got a call last week to take down a 60 foot live oak that had that oak wilt starting. Brought my usual Corona saw for the limbing work but the homeowner handed me his Silky Zubat to try on a 8 inch branch. That thing cut through like butter compared to my Corona. I mean the Corona does fine for smaller stuff but on anything over 4 inches the Silky made me look like I knew what I was doing. Has anyone else switched to a different brand after trying one out on a job?
Been clearing dead oak limbs on a 2-acre lot in Eugene for a client last week and grabbed a Silky Zubat on a whim. The reduction in cleanup time was huge no chips or sawdust everywhere, just clean cuts. Has anyone else switched to a manual saw for certain jobs and found it faster in the long run?
I used to run a Stihl gas pole saw for trimming high oak branches. After fighting with mixing oil and pull starts for years, I borrowed my neighbor's Milwaukee battery pole saw for a weekend job. Cuts just as fast, no fumes, and I didn't have to run back to the truck for mix. Put a down payment on my own battery setup the next day. Anyone else made the switch and noticed a big difference?
Was helping my mom out in her backyard in Austin last Sunday. Her pecan tree had a dead branch about 15 feet up, nothing crazy. I figured my basic fiberglass pole pruner could handle it. Got the branch caught on the way down and the whole head twisted and broke off at the joint. The thing was only rated for like 1 inch diameter cuts and that branch was probably 2.5 inches where I cut it. Learned my lesson real quick about matching tool specs to actual branch size. Anybody else ever wreck a tool by trying to push it past its limits?
He used to climb in the 80s with a leather belt and a rope wrapped around his waist, no harness or anything. I pulled out that old saddle and the leather was cracked but the hardware still felt solid. My first thought was how much safer we have it now with modern gear and fall protection. Has anyone else run across old school equipment that made you stop and think about how far things have come?
Bought a 150 foot Yale kernmantle last week and a jagged branch edge cut through the sheath on my first real job in Bellingham. Had to cut off 20 feet and splice a new eye. Anyone else had bad luck with new ropes from a specific batch?
Last Wednesday in Lansing I had a huge cottonwood stump I was dreading. Rented a grinder and spent 4 hours making barely a dent before giving up. Called a guy named Dave who runs a one-man operation and he showed up at 7 AM, finished it in 45 minutes. Charged me $150 cash and left the site cleaner than when he got there. Anyone else got a go-to contractor they call when the job gets too big?
Blew a hydraulic line on the knuckleboom right as I was setting a 50 foot oak log over a house. Oil everywhere, had to hand rig everything down with block and tackle, took me 4 hours extra. Client was cool about it but my foreman was not happy. Has anyone else had a hydraulic failure throw off their whole schedule like that?
Snapped a 30 year old rope at the top of a 50 foot oak in a backyard in Royal Oak last Tuesday and now I replace any gear over 5 years old no questions asked, anyone else ever have a close call like that?
Last week I was trimming a big oak near Austin and realized I've been rushing my cuts for years. Three years ago I would just hack through branches to get the job done fast. Last month a customer pointed out some stubs I left behind and it really made me think. Now I take an extra 30 seconds per cut to find the collar and make a clean angle. Has anyone else found that going slower actually saves time on callbacks?
He said my small saw was getting beat up running full chisel on residential trees around Pittsburgh. Switched to semi chisel for that saw and the cuts are smoother and I file half as often - has anyone else found it makes that big a difference?