A weird trick for getting a clean cut on a tight back leaner

Had a job yesterday with a big maple leaning hard over a fence. The usual notch and back cut was a no go because of the angle, and I didn't want to risk it barber chairing into the neighbor's yard. I remembered an old guy at a training in Boise talking about using a shallow plunge cut from the back first, before the face notch. Sounded wrong, but I was stuck. I made a really shallow plunge about two inches deep on the compression side, right where my back cut would go. Then I cut my normal open face notch on the other side. When I went to finish the back cut, the tree sat down on the hinge like a dream, no splitting. It felt backwards, but that little relief cut stopped the fibers from pulling apart. Has anyone else tried something like this on a nasty leaner?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_lucas2mo ago

That Boise method sounds like a great way to get a saw pinched.

-2

river_burns2mo ago

Depends on the wood. It's a softwood trick that gets real sketchy in hardwood.

stellac9710d ago

The whole getting a saw pinched thing is actually the opposite of what you'd think with the Boise method. That technique is specifically designed to keep the kerf open behind the cut, not close it up. You're supposed to undercut the log on the bottom first, then come down from the top, and that gap prevents the saw from getting squeezed. I've done it in some pretty gnarly tension wood and it worked fine as long as the log was properly supported. The real problem is more about kickback if you don't commit to the cut, not pinching.