Stihl 056 Instruction Manual - Page 18

Before felling a tree, carefully determine the intended direction in which it is to fall. Check the natural lean of the tree, any unusually heavy limb structure, surrounding trees and obstancles. Clear the work area at the base of the tree. Then, establish a path of escape and remove all obstacles. This path should be opposite to the direction of the falling tree and at a 45° angle. An alternate path must also be selected. Place all tools and equipment a safe distance away from the tree, but not on the escape path. When the tree starts to fall shut of the power and quickly move away from the cutting area. First clear the tree base and work area from interfering 'limbs and brush and clean its lower portion with an axe. Remove all dirt and pebbles, as they could dull the saw chain. The more thoroughly you clean it, the longer the chain will stay sharp. Then, determine the placement of the felling notch. If the tree has large buttress roots, cut into the largest buttresses vertically first (horizontally next) and remove; smaller ones may be removed later. If you apply the first cut to the largest buttress, you will obtain uniformly high planes of cut. The first cut must be made low because too high buttresses may obstruct 16 hauling later on.