TIP Failure

The question that this discussion brings to my mind is "What does a TIP failure look like mechanically over time?" Why did the branch not break when my partner and I hung on the line and bounced (just to clarify the 2 man bounce was more of a hang than a bounce. We got the rope stretch out and then just kind of hung in the line for say 5-10 seconds. I use the term "bounce test" generically.)? Why did it break out after the peak load was applied? I would think that if the mechanical attachment of the branch to the tree was compromised it would break immediately. So, is this a situation where load cycles caused a failure? I am just curious to hear all of your thoughts on the when aspect of this incident.
 
Same here, Paul. It's amazing what angles will do to your vision, especially if you can only see out of one eye, like me...
 
Agreed. Limbs that look vertical from one perspective often are anything but from a different vantage point. I've climbed lots of sweet gum and find the wood to be fairly brittle. While it may not flex much the testing may have started breaking fibers that led to the failure.
 
I have a large sweetgum in my front yard. I keep it pruned and baby that bitch, cause it's my only hardwood tree. This year we have had extensive rainfall / storms galore. After almost every storm I am finding broken out limbs- not just little limbs, large limbs-6" plus in diameter 20 ft or more in length. This has never happened before - I've lived here for more than 12 years. Do you think the abundance of rainfall has contributed to the weakness of the wood? I know the Va/ West Va areas have experienced above average rainfall as well, so I'm just hypothesizing.
 
I just keep close to the trunk on the majority of my ascent tips. It just seems prudent to me. If in doubt I pull out the monocular. If i'm still in doubt I pull it. I don't feel like I need to prove anything to anybody about how small I can ascend on or what I can do at the tippy top of a tree. I'll just reset when I get there. I'm fairly conservative and always have been.
 
BEH2202 said:
The part that got me was the branch was almost vertical. My guess is that it was no more than 10 degrees from vertical. It wasn't in the orientation that you see on the ground. So where I tied in was probably offset 4" from where it broke. It felt really solid too. It didn't bend much at all when me and my guy got on it. I was confident. That's the part that is scary.

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I'm speculating and creating a story to fit the facts: What if the vertical branch was not acclimated to high loads because of its vertical orientation? It would grow to support itself less... What is implicit is that we expect vertical limbs to have the same strength as horizontal limbs. They don't need as much strength. Perhaps the tree directs development in response to "empirical" stress found in real life circumstances...
 
LimbLoppa said:
I have a large sweetgum in my front yard. I keep it pruned and baby that bitch, cause it's my only hardwood tree. This year we have had extensive rainfall / storms galore. After almost every storm I am finding broken out limbs- not just little limbs, large limbs-6" plus in diameter 20 ft or more in length. This has never happened before - I've lived here for more than 12 years. Do you think the abundance of rainfall has contributed to the weakness of the wood? I know the Va/ West Va areas have experienced above average rainfall as well, so I'm just hypothesizing.
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So, Ed Gilman has categorized sweetgums as fairly structurally sound, on his website at the University of Florida. My experience, which is limited to about three years of looking and lots of sweetgums in north Florida, is that whole trees don't fail, but branches pop off regularly.
 
Something I find interesting is that it wasn't the union that failed. If it were a bad union the branch would have pulled out at the crotch. It looks like the branch was overly strained as it broke out above the crotch but still in the heavy wood. From the photos it does indeed look like the branch was fairly vertical. It is scary when the reality of climbing a living organism with undetermined limits and capabilities gives us a reminder that we can never be too sure. I am glad you are safe and unharmed. Thanks for sharing.
 
That was a close one, glad you were not injured. That limb was heavy in fruit which could have been a contributing factor.

It is instances like this that make me thankful that SRT allows for the implementation of a base tie with multiple points of suspension in the canopy. I use one virtually all the time and feel that benefits of multiple points of support far outweigh the perceived dangers associated with the base tie. You can always top anchor once you get up, while still maintaining the multiple points of suspension in your system.
 
Can't see any in the photo, but any sign of squirrel damage on the tension side of the limb? I know they beat up the sweet gums here, and the sap sucker too. More than once I've found damage that I'm. Not comfortable climbing past, let alone rigging.
I trust sweet gums marginally, but I don't let them out of my site and stick to tie ins at unions, not beyond. X2 on heavy fruit, glad to hear you're alright. Big limb.
 
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