Saws that Sing: A Guide to Using Crosscut Saws

Preparation for Bucking and Felling, Continued II

Single Bucking With Bottom Bind: Top Cutting

When there is bottom bind and too little room to get the saw underneath for an undercut, all the cutting will be done from the top. The main problem with bottom binds is that standard wedging does not help. In addition, when the log is severed, sections of the log may drop or roll, possibly damaging the saw blade.

Cut the log as explained for top cutting with single bucking. Place a small plastic wedge snugly at the top of the cut. Do not drive the wedge in.

When this wedge starts to drop into the kerf and the kerf is beginning to open, drive two fan-shaped metal hanging wedges across the kerf at the 10 and 2 o'clock positions to slow the opening of the kerf and keep the log from settling or rolling.

As the kerf opens at the top, the uncut wood is under more and more compression. If the force becomes too great, the uncut wood may slab off, possibly damaging the saw. To prevent slabbing, the sawyer needs to keep sawing or even speed up sawing to keep the kerf opening and relieve the compression pressure. When the log is sawed through, the log's weight may pull out the metal wedges, allowing the log to drop and roll.

Perhaps the best technique to reduce the effects of a bottom bind is to insert a stick into the opening saw kerf just before driving the hanging wedges. A straight, finger-sized limb about a foot long can be inserted (figure 51) into the opening kerf at the top of the log (do not use plastic wedges).

Figure 51--A stick dropped into the kerf on a log with bottom bind will
serve as a pivot when the log is cut through. This is a lost trick that is very
practical and can prevent damage to the saw.--Now You're Logging, by Bus Griffiths,
with permission of Harbour Publishing, Madeira Park, BC, Canada

As the kerf continues to open, the stick slides into the kerf. The stick will not drop to the back of the saw because it is too thick. As the cut is completed, the two halves of the severed log will hinge on the stick. The bottom opens up, allowing the saw to drop free.

Single Bucking With Bottom Bind: Underbucking

If you have bottom bind and can get under the log, make the first cut from the bottom. In this case, wedging is not as critical. If the first cut is from the top, fan-shaped metal wedges can reduce the speed with which the kerf opens. A stick can be inserted into the opening top cut if the log is large enough for the stick to fit into the kerf.

Finish the top cut, trying to match the bottom cut exactly. Offset cuts are not used unless you are finishing with an undercut.

Single Bucking With End Bind

If more than one cut is being made on a log, as is often the case during trail clearing, I usually make the first cut at the largest diameter, especially if it is uphill. This reduces the amount of end bind pressure on the second cut.

If you are cutting down directly from the top, use more plastic wedges around the cut, especially as the cut progresses below the centerline of the log. The wedges will reduce the possibility of binding.

Single Bucking With Side Bind

This is one of the most difficult and hazardous binding situations.

If there is room below the log for the end of the saw to clear, cut the side with compression wood first. The finish cut is on the side with tension wood. Alternately saw and chop out wood with an ax. The saw should be in a nearly vertical position. Always find a safe position before making the finish cut.

If the log is on the ground in a side-bind situation, options are limited. For trees larger than 20 inches in diameter, the only options are to place a cut beyond the side bind area or to cut out the area with an ax.

Double-Bucking Techniques

New sawyers should master the skills of single bucking before learning double bucking. The reasons to double buck include:

• Large logs can be sawed more easily by two sawyers.
• Two sawyers can transport equipment more easily than one.

Attach both saw handles before removing the sheath. Do not use a saw with damaged handles or handles that are difficult to remove. After the sheath has been removed, the uphill sawyer normally hands the saw to the downhill sawyer by grasping one handle and the middle of the saw blade with the teeth facing away from the downhill sawyer who is receiving the saw.

Usually the uphill sawyer (the primary sawyer, who will finish the cut) lubricates the saw and positions a guiding hand on the back of the saw for the first few strokes.

If you are planning to roll the log out of the way, be sure to make a compound cut. The goal is for the sections of log to have as little surface resistance against each other as possible. The larger the log, the more careful the planning needs to be for the compound cut. Make the cuts where you will be safe and you will be able to move the log.

Your dominant hand (the power hand) should be placed firmly around the saw's handle. Your other hand can rest on top of the handle to guide the saw and to help you maintain your balance. Your dominant hand pulls the saw straight back to the side of your body. Sawyers often grip the non-power handle too tightly. This tends to pull the saw across their body.

As one sawyer pulls, the other sawyer keeps a relaxed grip on the handle. The sawyer neither pushes nor holds back. Holding back is called riding the saw, which makes it harder for the other sawyer to pull. Your partner will not like this.

If you momentarily relax your grip, the saw will reposition itself in your hand for the pull stroke. Relaxing your grip also increases circulation in your hands and reduces fatigue.

If one sawyer needs to change body position (to drop to a kneeling position, for instance), the other sawyer needs to adjust the angle of the saw to accommodate the change.

Wedges should be placed as soon as there is room to insert them behind the back of the saw. Usually for large logs, two wedges are inserted at the 10 and 2 o'clock positions and driven firmly until they are snug. If the wedges are not snug, the saw could be damaged.

Be sure the saw travels into and out of the kerf in a straight line. Look down the saw toward the other sawyer to make sure the saw is traveling in a straight line.

If the log is going to be finished up by single bucking, whenever either sawyer determines it is time to stop sawing, both sawyers stop. If you are on the downhill side, you should quit sawing and leave whenever you feel you are in jeopardy. Do not allow your judgment to be swayed by your partner. Each partner must honor the other's request without pressure.

On flat terrain, be sure that the arc of the saw remains parallel to the ground. Do not raise one end of the saw higher than the other.

Usually the bottom bark has not been removed. Carefully look at the shavings. When they change to the color of the bark, the log has been severed and only the bark is holding it. If the log falls on mineral soil, the impact can force rocks into the bark. The rocks can dull the saw's teeth. Usually the cut is stopped when wood-colored fibers are no longer being removed.

When the cut is finished, or when it is being finished by single bucking, remove the handle on the downhill side of the saw and allow the uphill sawyer to pull the saw free. Make sure the downhill sawyer is in a safe location before the uphill sawyer continues the cut.

Do not remove the wedges before removing the saw. The wedges may be holding the log in position. If they are removed first, the severed log may shift, binding the saw. If the wedges are loose enough to be lifted straight up, it is safe to do so--but do not wiggle them out. Once the saw is free, the wedges can be removed safely from the uphill side. Be prepared for the log to move.

Crosscut saw cuts need to be made where the cuts are safe and in a manner that allows the log to be removed. Sawyers may need to make additional cuts to meet the visual or trail clearing width objectives once the log has been removed.