Which axe for felling dead trees?

R

RedWolf4

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Oct 20, 2019
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Am gonna be doing a significant amount of dead standing tree felling. I'm looking for the best axe for this. Ideally 30" handle range.

I'm a little confused on what kind of bit thickness/profile I should be looking for. I'm under the impression for dead logs/ really hard stuff I want a thinner profile with a stouter secondary bevel?

If anyone with more knowledge than me could fill me im on the best profile for dead wood that would be much appreciated, as well as recommendations for axes under the $150 mark.

Thanks
 
Square_peg said:
Dead trees are dangerous to fell. They may be unsound and upper branches or trunks may fail and fall on you. The impact of chopping may induce failure. A chainsaw would be safer. You'd be under the tree for less time.
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I appreciate the info, I am aware of the risks. Howevwe I'm doing a project without powertools, so I will be using axe and saw, no chainsaws.
 
RedWolf4 said:
I appreciate the info, I am aware of the risks. Howevwe I'm doing a project without powertools, so I will be using axe and saw, no chainsaws.
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Good answer. I've worked in wilderness areas where combustion engines, including chainsaw, are forbidden.

For those who aren't aware of the risks as you are, I'd offer that they should wear a hardhat and sound the tree before beginning to fell it. And I'd recommend having a spotter watch the top of the tree all during the work. If they smelled or felt punky wood during the cut I'd suggest they stop and re-evaluate the situation. That punky wood will clog your gullets and your crosscut will pull harder. If the rot is severe then there may not be enough hinge wood to control the fall. Such a tree is best left alone to fall on its own. Odds are it will fall when no one is around. If a tree like that is next to a campsite then the Forest Service will blast it down from a safe distance.
 
definitely agree about standing dead trees being a hazard. definitely wear a hard hat at a minimum.

30" is also my favorite handle length. I think any decent 3.5 - 4lb axe would work fine as long as you keep it sharp. Hard to find new axes with short handles. Council has a classic jersey with a 32" handle. That might be about as close as you can get in a new axe. otherwise you'll have to pick up a vintage axe head and put a handle on it yourself.
 
Square_peg said:
For those who aren't aware of the risks as you are, I'd offer that they should wear a hardhat and sound the tree before beginning to fell it.
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And to this, might I add that an EN 12492 compliant hard hat is the way to go. Most helmets we see are ANSI Z89.1 compliant, which protects from a direct strike from above. But if you get thrown, or if a branch comes from an unexpected angle, you may need front/back/side impact protection, and only the Euro standard of EN12492 addresses protection from multiple strike angles.
 
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I would be looking at these types of solutions.

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I almost always rig my snags, sometimes in two or three stages. I believe that having the option of pulling or slacking tension adds a lot to my safety and has sometimes saved my bacon when, like SP mentioned, the hinge wood is unreliable. And I frequently use a “rigging cut”, only sawing 80-90% of a sketchy back cut, for example, and then using tension from afar to pull the rest. And I wedge like hell won’t have it.

All that said, if I couldn’t use a chainsaw, I’d use a two handed log saw or buck saw for less vibration than an axe. Arborist supply companies carry them.

Once had a good friend who was a paraplegic from a snag that let go too soon. We used to sit and discuss felling geometry, and his insights made quite an impression on me.

Parker
 
Reading this thread I just have to say something. I have not felled any dead trees with an axe, but the comments about helmets are so true. I was struck by a very large widow-maker almost 10 years ago when felling a cottonwood that had some dead limbs. I thought I had enough room and that the tree was stable enough to fell. As I was just finishing cutting a wedge a couple of feet off the ground with my MS362, an approximately 20’ limb crashed down striking my helmet and knocking me out momentarily. I felt like a cue-ball and was surprised I was able to move my limbs. I was leaning over on uneven terrain and if my head had not been lifted up so that the helmet absorbed the blow I would have been killed. My wife thought I had gotten killed as she saw it happen. Seeing photos of the limb that struck me, I got a second chance. I have cut thousands of trees, but that was one to remember for sure.

Assess thoroughly, plan, clear a ‘getaway’ route, avoid windy days, and stay safe. Best of luck on your project.
 
RedWolf4 said:
I am aware of the risks.
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They don't call them "Widow Makers" for nothin' ! :eek:

Unless you have a burning death wise , think this one through several more times .

When I was much younger and dumber and full of _______ , I cut a lot of standing deadwood and damn near killed my fool self several times .

You may think you know what you're doing , but there is no way to predict how those trees will come down or break apart up top .

The best helmet , etc in the world will not help much if a tree ,or even a large piece of branch, falls from on high .
 
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beeinak said:
Reading this thread I just have to say something. I have not felled any dead trees with an axe, but the comments about helmets are so true. I was struck by a very large widow-maker almost 10 years ago when felling a cottonwood that had some dead limbs. I thought I had enough room and that the tree was stable enough to fell. As I was just finishing cutting a wedge a couple of feet off the ground with my MS362, an approximately 20’ limb crashed down striking my helmet and knocking me out momentarily. I felt like a cue-ball and was surprised I was able to move my limbs. I was leaning over on uneven terrain and if my head had not been lifted up so that the helmet absorbed the blow I would have been killed. My wife thought I had gotten killed as she saw it happen. Seeing photos of the limb that struck me, I got a second chance. I have cut thousands of trees, but that was one to remember for sure.

Assess thoroughly, plan, clear a ‘getaway’ route, avoid windy days, and stay safe. Best of luck on your project.
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Glad you survived , with your brains mostly intact ! ;)

When I first started out cutting deadwood with a chainsaw , I wore the best of every possible safety gear available .

The time a huge tree almost ended me , I had so much safety stuff on that I couldn't hear , see or move with speed and agility ( kevlar chaps ) .

I won't speak against any safety gear . because it can obviously save life and limb , in some situations .

But , just personally , I never wore anything again that would slow me or blunt my senses , at the moment of felling a widow maker .

But I also became much more selective in what I attempted to cut at all .
 
Reading some of these stories I'm glad you all are ok jeez! I'm fortunate enough to never have had an accident cutting dead trees, but I may consider investing in higher quality safety gear after reading some of these posts.

In terms of the original question - I've looked at the council jersey, but have seen some not so stellar reviews on the thickness of the head, some people saying it's "not a real jersey" but a replication of one that doesn't cut as well. I don't know, I've enjoyed the one council hatchet I own thoroughly. What do you all think of the hultafors 32" felling axe? I could go the vintage axe head route too I guess.
 
I'd definitely invest in a throw line and a 12 or 16oz throwbag, along with a good quality 3 strand rope (I'm partial to Samson and Yale cordage) of 120 foot minimum. A collapsible cube to keep the throw line in is convenient, and helps keep the line from tangling in debris on the ground. Plus it saves you from coiling it around something, which causes issues with a smooth throw (dyneema has memory). Just flake the line back into the cube when you're done and between throws. It takes some practice to become proficient with, but the additional safety factor is well worth it in the long run.

Personally, I'd rather be climbing over a million dollar lake house than be doing any amount of felling in the woods; never cared for the lack of control in those situations.
 
Heh, I’m just the opposite. You can keep your lake houses, with all the jetskis and Coppertone.

I like a 100-acre timber sale, with a 10% slope and a road all the way around it. Used to, anyway - now my 11 acres of woodlot kicks my ass some days.

Parker
 
A nice mature stand isn't bad, but I always seem to find myself in the cut over snaggy stuff, and with the advent of the EAB and how infested trees behave when cut, things can get spicy in a hurry.

Now as far as bumming around I'm with you all day... Love me some woods bumming.
 
I guess I didn’t realize how big a problem the ash borer is for you guys. Here in Washington, the department has a bulletin about it, but I wonder how much of that is chicken littling because Ash is kind of an ornamental here. We certainly don’t have any sizable even-aged stands.

They eat the cambium layer, right? Any evidence of them infesting other species?

Parker
 
Yes they destroy the cambium layer it's pretty bad here locally, but really nasty in the urban areas because of the urban forestry demographic. So far there hasn't been any signs of cross species infestations like with the ALB. Ms. Wild Willie has been doing some bio control work at the state park she works for involving parasitic wasps, but when I left utility tree work back in 2016 the projection was 100 percent ash fatality within the next decade or so. Always makes me cringe when I get calls closer to Rochester or Buffalo for work, lots of ash trees in the sub developments (not to mention I hate taking the bucket truck into congested areas). Most of the yard trees around me are maples, spruces, or pines with the occasional smattering of other species. The ash stands we run into tend to be secondary successional areas near field edges and less maintained yard areas, not usually large dbh wise, but tall*.

*East coast tall, obviously you guys out there have real trees. Anything over 80 or 90 feet here causes me some real butt pucker, because at that point if there's anything under them I need to climb out of the bucket to top them out.
 
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