Reg
Branched out member
- Location
- Victoria, BC
I've been on a large co-dominant oak removal for 2 days. It split at 10 ft and grew like two separate canopies there above. It was situated between 2 properties, but we could only access it through 1. Just me and another guy. So, the whole tree had to be bought down into one side. All rigging.
The near side was straight forward enough through day one. But we couldn't retain or use the rigging point to swing the back half of the tree around, because they'd be too much momentum and the limbs would hit the house. So, we removed the whole thing, and selected a new rigging point on the back half of the tree. Problem was, it wasn't quite hanging over the property line, so a tag line would be needed to remedy this. Then again, we only had one guy on the ground, Darrell. A good ground worker can lower and tag both at the same time to an extent....but this wasn't the tree or situation for that. So, we used the rig/wrench throughout ie Darrell would initially hold the rigging line while I made the cut, then I'd take over while he guided it with the tag line, and so on. I had to take the tail end of the rigging line around the tree with me and would set it through a redirect tied off to within an arms reach of where I was cutting each time, so I could take over from Darrell but remain at my perch each time. It worked very well indeed.
In hindsight, I don't think there was a better available system we could have utilized to rig that tree down with just the 2 of us. Sure, there's plenty other ways to create friction whereby the climber can take over the rigging line in such situations....but the frictionless Haulback that the rig/wrench provides really sets it apart. Very impressed. Full marks.
Sometimes when you purchase a purpose-specific piece of hardware, and you have it there to hand....options and opportunities present themselves that you wouldn't have thought of previously. This is one of those items. I would highly recommend one to anybody.
The near side was straight forward enough through day one. But we couldn't retain or use the rigging point to swing the back half of the tree around, because they'd be too much momentum and the limbs would hit the house. So, we removed the whole thing, and selected a new rigging point on the back half of the tree. Problem was, it wasn't quite hanging over the property line, so a tag line would be needed to remedy this. Then again, we only had one guy on the ground, Darrell. A good ground worker can lower and tag both at the same time to an extent....but this wasn't the tree or situation for that. So, we used the rig/wrench throughout ie Darrell would initially hold the rigging line while I made the cut, then I'd take over while he guided it with the tag line, and so on. I had to take the tail end of the rigging line around the tree with me and would set it through a redirect tied off to within an arms reach of where I was cutting each time, so I could take over from Darrell but remain at my perch each time. It worked very well indeed.
In hindsight, I don't think there was a better available system we could have utilized to rig that tree down with just the 2 of us. Sure, there's plenty other ways to create friction whereby the climber can take over the rigging line in such situations....but the frictionless Haulback that the rig/wrench provides really sets it apart. Very impressed. Full marks.
Sometimes when you purchase a purpose-specific piece of hardware, and you have it there to hand....options and opportunities present themselves that you wouldn't have thought of previously. This is one of those items. I would highly recommend one to anybody.
