True Blue Sam the Travelin' Man: Disappearing Acts

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Disappearing Acts

I can think of half a dozen old barns/and or houses that have been torn down and burned around us in recent months. I drove by this place on nearly a daily basis, and it is down to just a small pile of lumber that will soon be burned. The top photo was taken two years ago, and I took the one below just yesterday. (Photo Credit for the first picture goes to JimH.)

The face of farm country is changing fast, and the family farms we like to envision really do not exist anymore, except in the Amish and Mennonite communities. One of the things that bothers me is that the barns I see being knocked down and burned are usually better than the one I am working on. This barn is over 100 years old, and raising it up out of the termites is a never-ending task.

Our current focus is on the southwest corner, which had no sound wood holding up the roof. The footer was poured during the early 1950's, and for some reason it has a kink in it. The south wall leaned out to meet the rafters, and we poured a new foot for the corner, which we think is lined up pretty well. Lining things up is sort of a relative thing in a building with no parallel lines or right angles. As we put new wood back into our barn we are mainly shooting for less whopperjawed-ness.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...: Sad to see old familiar buildings disappear but, I suppose, these days, liability is a major factor in the decision to take them down. These don't appear to have been habitable for- perhaps- a while; but I can't help but wonder about past occupants and their lives. I'm glad you thought to take the picture two years ago.

- gsc1039; October 29, 2010 at 1:11 AM
David aka True Blue Sam said...: These old buildings are liabilities for the owners, and are also attractive nuisances, so taking them down makes sense. If you look around in a house trashed by racoons you will want to strike a match rather than try to clean it up. Most landowners do not fill in old cisterns on these old farmsteads, and that is something you have to think about every time you are woods-walking. I am pretty good at sniffing them out, and many landowners are unaware of these man-traps until I point them out. I have almost (but not quite) fallen down two because I was looking up at trees.; October 29, 2010 at 9:15 AM

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Rules To Live By

Firearms; Col. Jeff Cooper's Rules
1. All guns are always loaded.
2. Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy.
3. Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to shoot.
4. Be sure of your target and what lies beyond it.

Knives
1. Never cut toward yourself.
2. Always cut away from yourself.
3. Never cut yourself.

AND
If you drop a knife or gun, let it fall!

Chainsaws

1. Always wear your safety gear when running your saw: hard hat, eye, face, hearing protection, cut resistant protection for your legs, heavy boots, gloves (depending on work conditions).

2. Safety devices on the saw must be in working order: front hand guard,chain brake, chain catcher, throttle lockout, and right hand guard.

3. Hold the saw on the ground or lock it between your knees for starting. No 'Drop Starts.' Set the chain brake before cranking.

4. The engine must idle reliably without turning the chain.

5. The chain must be sharpened properly, including properly set depth gauges.

6. The chain must be adjusted to remove slack and still run freely.

7. The operator must understand the forces on different parts of the bar as the saw runs: push, pull, kickback and attack.

8. Both hands must always be on the saw when the chain is running. The thumbs must be wrapped around the handles. Both feet should be firmly planted on the ground.

9. The operator must always know where the end of the bar is, and what it's doing.

10. Don't let the upper (kickback) corner of the bar contact anything when the chain is running unless the tip has been buried with the lower corner.

11. Let off of the throttle before pulling out of a pinch on the top part of the bar.

12. Make a plan for every tree you cut. Assess hazards, lean, escape routes, forward cuts, and back cuts. Evaluate the forward or backward lean, and the side lean of every tree you cut. Know your limits.

13. Clear your work area and your escape path of brush, vines, and other hazards that can trip you or catch your saw.

14. Escape from the bullseye when the tree tips. 90% of accidents happen within 12 feet of the stump. Go more than 15 feet, and stay out of the bullseye until things stop falling.

15. Keep spectators away more than twice the height of the tree in the direction it will fall.

16. Don't cut alone.

17. Keep your body and the swamper's out of the line of the bar in case of a kickback.

18. Set the brake when taking over two steps or when moving through tripping hazards. Keep your trigger finger off of the throttle when you are moving.

19. DO NOT operate a chainsaw from a ladder! Operating with your feet off the ground requires special training.

20. Do not cut above your shoulders.

21. Springpoles must be shaved on the inside of the apex between the ascending and descending sides. If the apex is higher than you shoulders, stand under the springpole and cut it low on the descending side. It will release upward, away from you.Leaning and heavily loaded poles that are too small to bore cut for a hinge should be shaved on the compressed side until they fold.

22. Do not cut a tree that is holding up a lodged tree. Do not work under a lodged tree. Think about a mouse trying to steal the cheese out of a trap.

23. Instruct your swampers and helpers to NEVER approach you from behind or the sides to within the reach of your saw when you are cutting. If you pull out of a cut with the chain running, or have a severe kickback, the swamper can be killed if he is coming up behind you!

24!! Quit When You Are Tired!

25!! Pause and review; reflect, when you are being pushed. You may be pushed into danger. Do not let pressure cause you to ignore safety rules!

Cutting dead and rotten trees is extremely risky, and your safety always comes down to basics and following the rules. Build a good hinge, even if there is just a thin shell to work with. Support the back side of the hinge with wedges if the tree is punky or hollow before you cut out the back. Don't fight side lean or back lean when cutting unsound trees. Release it quickly and get away from the stump. Tell your co-workers what your steps are before you crank your saw. You will live long.

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Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Disappearing Acts

2 comments:

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