Day with the bucket truck felt endless, then a crane showed up

Worked a massive white oak removal in Portland last Tuesday. Seven hours of rigging and the crane operator finished in 45 minutes flat. Any of you guys ever switch over to crane work or stick with climbing?

3 comments

3 Comments

lucashart19d ago

Ever used a crane before? I used to think climbing was the only real way to do tree work, that cranes were cheating or something. But after watching one knock out a job that would've taken me all day in under an hour, I don't see how you can argue with that efficiency.

jamesm4819d agoMost Upvoted

Whoa hold up, you gotta think about the tree itself though. Everyone talks about the worker's time but nobody mentions the stress on the tree. When you climb you're picking your way through the crown, making cuts that let the tree slowly relax. A crane just rips chunks off, and I've seen it twist bark and crack limbs in ways climbing wouldnt. Plus all that heavy equipment driving around compacts the roots way worse than a guy with spurs.

thomas_martinez15d ago

Fair point but cranes just save your back in the long run. Not everyone wants to beat themselves up for 40 years.