[Scott G]

Ditto for Rick’s comment.

[Scott G]

Contact Plowden. He’s ‘been there. done that’ with exactly the set-up you are looking for. He’s also developed a neat arch/forwarding trailer combo specifically for this type of harness. Great system.

[Scott G]

Its very hard to lose a good dog and your best Buddy. I’m with Jean, it seems as though they are still right beside us. You can’t replace him, but given time, another bundle of loyal & loveable fur will fill your life once again. Hang in there friend…

[Scott G]

I’d put my money on Waverly if you can make it. Fall sale should be coming up in a couple of weeks or so. You could easily find transport back east if you need it.

[Scott G]

Anyone who is even remotely interested in logging, and lives in the northeast, should attend this. It doesn’t get better than GOL for a structured saw training program.

[Scott G]

Love to Jen, and I sure will miss seeing you guys this fall but unfortunately its not in the cards. Like I mentioned to Jean though, you’re more than welcome to come visit us in VA come mid-October…just sayin’. 😉

[Scott G]

“”Oats’ll get you in the ditch, corn’ll get you out”.”

… and alfalfa & sweet feed will get you hot, bothered, & upside down in the brush. :rolleyes:

I’ll go with Mitch as far as going light and often, specifically early & late in the day while saving your harder pulls for mid-day (before lunch & mid-afternoon if you’re working them that long). Slowly work your way up to what your horse can handle and work on conditioning. Every horse/team are different as individuals. Being tuned into your horse’s capabilities is far more important than running off of a weight conversion chart.

You want to take advantage of every possibilty to most efficiently utilize your horse(s) for the job. The biggest advantage you have is to use your brain to efficiently layout the harvest specifically to the advantage of your animals. “Listen” and be dialed in to your horse(s). They will let you know what works and what doesn’t. While you don’t want to develop a consistent “dishonest underachiever”, about the worst thing you can do is either stick or consistently overload your hitch and end up with balky horse(s). Developing/maintaining the “can do” attitude with heart is paramount.

As far as devices, ranging from the most simple go-devil up to a wagon/forwarder, the less friction you have the greater the hitch/load capacity and easier on the horses. Often, especially in my part of the country, the issue isn’t hitch capacity as much as it is slowing it down when your headed back down the mountain… :rolleyes:

My two cents…

[Scott G]

Yeah, unfortunately being clocked by fire-weakened/beetle-kill timber is becoming much more common.

In my area/property snags are pretty much raining down from the sky to the tune of dozens per acre. Especially the beetle killed timber since the base/roots burned out so much more readily than the residual green timber.

Definitely not a healthy choice to be working in these stands when the wind is blowing, even slightly. These snags can come down fast with absolutely no warning, or wind, as it is anyway.

I’m getting tired of looking like I work in a coal mine everytime I go out to fell timber now…

[Scott G]

Relieved to hear, Geoff. You’re normally such a “quiet kinda’ guy” I thought it was a bit off that we hadn’t heard from you! Hope the smoke is starting to clear from your lungs and you’re back in the saddle. I agree,… I think everyone needs to come out here to get together for a change! 80)

[Scott G]

Thanks for everyone’s concerns. I came out the other end but it’s been a helluva ride even for someone like me that has worked a lot of fire over the years. I was able to save the homestead… other than Dad’s place on the back forty and the woodyard. Most of my neighbor’s places weren’t as fortunate but they didn’t stay around to defend. I’ll call this pic “The morning after”. More pics to follow once I get a few things sorted out…

[Scott G]

Geoff, let’s start off by asking what size of collars, pads, and hames your team uses…

[Scott G]

Damn Geoff!

Not quite sure what to say other than to keep us in the loop as to whether or not we can help you with anything. We know your head is spinning just let us know when it comes into focus…
Our thoughts are with you, man

[Scott G]

From a logger’s unbiased perspective…pretty cool. You gotta’ like the modular system. Most of all, I really enjoyed the synthesized version of ‘Old McDonald had a farm’!! 😯

[Scott G]

@Robert MoonShadow 34250 wrote:

Scott – any idea how these compare to the ‘regular’ types? I’m curious about the benefits/drawbacks on these versus the other type(s).

Sorry Robert, I lost track of this one. Not much time for forums as the woods have opened up and the days get longer…

Unless you can maintain a “set”, normal tongs have a tendency to fall or slip off. This is especially true if there is no resistance to help set the tongs (i.e. downhill skid) or if you are dealing with smooth bark tree species. Regardless, without tension and/or a rough surface to get a bite on, they will often slip. Tristan’s tongs are fabricated much like the Sandvik hand tongs which I’m a big fan of and always have on my wedge-pouch belt. The double action allows for a more consistent bite. What is really unique about his tongs is that offset bend. That allows you to lay the tongs on the top and have the bite close to the middle. Better lift and less slip.

[Scott G]

@Baystatetom 34449 wrote:

… but still have 6-7 mbf of cherry logs I can’t seam to move. The one local guy who wants it can’t pay enough to get my attention. I just started trying to track down a Canadian market for it…

Tom, do you guys have issues with staining leading to degrade if your sawlogs lay around in the woods and/or landing for a extended period of time?

[Author]

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