Removing Seattles largest hardwood tree

[Colonialgirl]

Are you "wood workers" here on the forum like me and would love to see this taken to a lumber mill and had boards and chunks cut from it?
I bet they would have been beautiful.
Watch the guy up in the tree doing the cutting; He kept those knees straight while standing on his gaffs; that's what the Army taught me to do while up a telephone pole !!

Enjoy this seven+ minutes :

https://vimeo.com/81240461

 

[Rick Courtright]

Hi,

WOW!

I'm gonna bet this wasn't the first day on the job for either the climber or the crane operator... there aren't enough ropes, cables and tethers in the world to make me want to trade places with that guy up there! He'd probably make a 60 foot telephone pole look like a trainer, wouldn't he? :shock:

Rick C

 

[Big Old Boy]

And he never got the bar stuck. He was real good. I wonder how many board feet was in that tree?

 

[SAJohn]

I checked out the company website. They turn these massive old hardwood trees into beautiful solid wood furniture made in the U.S.A. That tree will be turned into about $2M of fine furniture.

 

[Colonialgirl]

I checked out the company website. They turn these massive old hardwood trees into beautiful solid wood furniture made in the U.S.A. That tree will be turned into about $2M of fine furniture.

SIGH !!! :roll: :roll: :roll:
And probably WELL OUT OF MY PRICE RANGE !!
:roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:
:wink: :mrgreen:

 

[JohnBoy]

Great to know the wood will be put to good use! The right tools for the job - and necessary skill set - make all the difference! Those guys are pros! Jon

 

[Viking Queen]

Just like a well orchestrated ballet.....that was fascinating to watch.

VQ

 

[Jimbo357mag]

I love when the guy puts his saw on top of the tree and takes out his cell phone for a panorama of Seattle from there.

 

[rugnelli]

Cool.

 

[Sagebrush Burns]

That sawyer and crane operator are both artists of a high order.

 

[Rick Courtright]

I checked out the company website. They turn these massive old hardwood trees into beautiful solid wood furniture made in the U.S.A. That tree will be turned into about $2M of fine furniture.

Hi,

I haven't checked the website yet, John: do they talk about any financial arrangements to obtain the tree and take it down? Quite a few years ago, I met a fellow in Warsaw, MO who had a couple of very large black walnut trees on his property. This was when the Fajen's and Bishop's gunstock folks were separate companies, also in Warsaw, and he told me one or the other of them had contracts with just about every property owner around for their trees when it came time for them to come down, including his. There was a REALLY nice price tag attached! Wonder if this company had a similar arrangement concerning this tree?

I have no idea how many board feet are there, but was wondering about just the sheer weight of some of those pieces coming down. I thought I heard someone, maybe the crane operator, say something about "8,000" as they lowered the second or third to last piece. Does 8,000 pounds sound reasonable for one of the bigger chunks?

Rick C

 

[Jimbo357mag]

I have no idea how many board feet are there, but was wondering about just the sheer weight of some of those pieces coming down. I thought I heard someone, maybe the crane operator, say something about "8,000" as they lowered the second or third to last piece. Does 8,000 pounds sound reasonable for one of the bigger chunks?

Average US mid-sized car weighs about 4,000 pounds so I would say yes. 2 cars worth.

 

[Mega Twin]

I worked for Asplundh when I was a pup,and climbed many trees that tall,although not that big,with never a second thought.Now,I don't even like being on a step ladder!
At that time,I was in the best shape of my life,too.That is very demanding work,climbing and also using a saw that large.

 

[dougader]

Way cool video.

 

[powder smoke]

That was amazing! My son in law is a chopper, I'm forwarding the vid to him I think he'll enjoy it. ps

 

[Cooperhawk]

I have some really tall trees here in our woods and a few years ago one died that was towering over my shop. Now I've cut down a lot of trees in my day but this one was going to fall on my shop no matter what I did, so I hired a tree expert company to take it down.

The Boss man himself decided to tackle it and climbed up about sixty feet in this red oak tree and strapped himself to the tree. He then tied off a section above him and the idea was to cut it loose, let it fall a few feet on the rope, and then slowly lower it to the ground. Well when it fell it hit is arm against the trunk and broke his arm. :shock: Now he was hanging there in his straps and he passes out from the pain. :roll:

His crew and I were milling about under him wondering what to do when he came to. He asked for a cold drink which we tied to a rope and he pulled up with his good arm. After drinking a Pepsi he was able to slowly climb down and then he went to the Hospital.

He came back the next day with his arm in a cast and let his younger crew members finish the job.

 

[roarindan51]

And he never got the bar stuck. He was real good. I wonder how many board feet was in that tree?

I counted 3 times he got his saw hung up. Each time I said " I feel much better now""
Only difference 'tween him am me is he has a crane to help get his blade out. me I'm with the wedges and the hammers and the swinging and swearing, slippin, slidin....