Craftsman 358.341040 Operator's Manual page 9

• Weight and branches onone side.
• Surrounding trees a nd obstacles.
• Look f ordecay a nd rot. I fthe trunk i s
rotted, itcan snap a nd fall t oward the
operator.
• Make s ure there isenough room for
the tree tofall. M aintain adistance of
2-1/2 tree lengths from the nearest
person orother objects. Motor noise
can drown o ut a warning call.
• Remove dirt, stones, loose b ark,
nails, staples, and wire from the tree
where c uts are tobemade.
_'_"e Plan aclear retreat path
:t . ... U_ '- Direction ofFall
45 ° / ,_,
FELLING LARGE TREES
(6 inches in diameter or larger)
The notch method is used to fell large
trees. A notch is cut on the side of the
tree in the desired direction of fall. After
a felling cut is made on the opposite
side of tree, the tree will tend to fall in
the direction of the notch.
NOTE: If tree has large buttress roots,
remove them before making the notch.
If using saw to remove buttress roots,
keep saw chain from contacting
ground to prevent dulling of the chain.
NOTCH CUT AND FELLING TREE
• Make notch cut by cutting the top of
the notch first. Cut through 1/3 of the
diameter of the tree. Next complete
the notch by cutting the bottom. See
illustration. Once notch is cut, re-
move the wedge of wood from the
tree.
First cut _ 2" _ Felling cut here
Seco_)dcu._ j \ _inge
• After removing the wood from the
notch, make the felling cut on the op-
posite side of the notch. This is done
by making a cut about two inches
higher than the center of the notch.
This will leave enough uncut wood
between the felling cut and the notch
to form a hinge. This hinge will help
prevent the tree from falling in the
wrong direction.
Hinge holds tree on stump and helps
control fall
Opening
of felling
cut
Closing of
notch
NOTE: Before felling cut is complete,
use wedges to open the cut if neces-
sary to control the direction of fall. To
avoid kickback and chain damage, use
wood or plastic wedges, but never
steel or iron wedges.
• Be alert to signs that the tree is
ready to fall: cracking sounds, widen-
ing of the felling cut, or movement in
the upper branches.
• As tree starts to fall, stop saw, put it
down, and get away quickly on your
planned retreat path.
• DO NOT use your saw to cut down a
partially fallen tree. Be extremely cau-
tious with partially fallen trees that may
be poorly supported. When a tree
doesn't fall completely, set saw aside
and pull down tree with a cable winch,
block and tackle, or tractor.
CUTTING A FALLEN TREE
(BUCKING)
Bucking is tile term used for cutting a
fallen tree to the desired log size.
Al_ WARNING: Do not stand on the
log being cut. Any portion can roll
causing loss of footing and control. Do
not stand downhill of the log being cut.
IMPORTANT POINTS
• Cut only one log at a time.
• Cut shattered wood very carefully;
sharp pieces of wood could be flung
toward operator.
• Use a sawhorse to cut small logs.
Never allow another person to hold
the log while cutting and never hold
the log with your leg or foot.
• Do not cut in an area where logs,
limbs, and roots are tangled. Drag
logs into a clear area before cutting
them by pulling out exposed and
cleared logs first.
BUCKING TECHNIQUES
,i_ WARNING: If saw becomes
pinched or hung in a log, don't try to
force it out. You can lose control of the
saw, resulting in injury and/or damage
to the saw. Stop the saw; drive a
wedge of plastic or wood into cut until
the saw can be removed easily. Re-