What YOU Need to Know: Tree Spikes Vs Pole Gaffs - Can you climb your trees?

[@902hand7]

Great info Oakie, thanks for sharing 👍👍

[@oakiewoodsman]

Hey, thanks for watching sir! Hope it helps someone

[@JohnStanton-pr2ju]

That was an answer to my question about Pine Trees and Gaff size. Very instructive. I get to see it with my own Eyes. Deeply appreciated.

[@oakiewoodsman]

So glad I could help John. I appreciate you watching and then taking the time to let me know you were here and how it helped.

[@aaronpowell4885]

Great PSA! Only reason I heard there's a difference is because I have a friend who was a lineman. Thanks for sharing! Vid could save a life or atleast some "down time"👍🏻

[@oakiewoodsman]

FOR SURE! Burning a tree would not be fun! They always say to push away. I am not sure either option is very good and if you were too high up it might be better to have them be pulling splinters from hugging the tree on the way down. I dunno, just a bad deal overall! Thanks for watching friend!

[@mikewallich5216]

Should be stated that gaffing trees are used when removing, rescuing or there is no other alternative. Rope climbing is far less injurious to the tree than gaffing. Gaffing damages trees. Great intro point for insects, bacteria, and diseases. Palm climbers that still gaff end up rotting out many palms and shorten the lives of palms. This can also happen to Conifers and hardwoods as well. Please see videos on rope climbing trees. Stihl has many of these.

[@oakiewoodsman]

Thank you for sharing, I know that rope is preferred for sure.

[@Mofm-tl8ov]

Great public service! Thanks. Who knows how much harm you’ve prevented, but you have for sure.

[@oakiewoodsman]

Thank you for watching and sharing. Good to get information out as we learn!

[@ChippyOutdoors]

Stumbled on this, but this was a great explanation showing rather then explaining why not to use pole gaffs in trees. Your making really good informative videos keep up the great work

[@oakiewoodsman]

I sure appreciate that! I don’t ever want to be seen as an expert just a fellow man sharing my learned life experience with you and everyone else. I love this stuff and I love interacting with everyone. Have a good one and be safe!

[@TheRustyGarageandHomestead]

Thats a big difference between those two gaffs. Thank you Joe that could be a really bad day using the wrong gaff. Thanks for showing us the difference between those two.

[@oakiewoodsman]

Yes sir! I sure think that on some really tight bark or thin bark, you could likely get away with the pole gaffs. But, interesting to look at for sure buddy! Thank you again

[@emzzzz992]

As Reg Coates says, just wear and endure Tree gaffs for a week or two and you’ll never go back. That’s what I did and only wear Tree gaffs.

[@oakiewoodsman]

When I used to climb often for work in utilities, I was unaffected and needed no extra padding and just simply got used to being on hooks. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment.

[@emzzzz992]

I do like pole gaffs on limb walk. White oaks are great to climb with pole gaffs. Buck makes hybrid gaffs which are a nice compromise between pole and tree gaffs. However, I prefer Tree gaffs because they are angled out more and tend to have a narrower profile. Really it’s coming down a spar that tree gaffs really help. Thanks for the video.@@oakiewoodsman

[@oakiewoodsman]

hahahaha... I have never done a limb walk because if it doesn't look like a pole, I don't touch it! It is the way I stay alive out here. I look at all the rigging and my brain spins out of control. I would really like to learn it however and there is lots of info on KZbin for sure. Thanks for watching and sharing buddy! @@emzzzz992

[@GreatWhiteSquid]

I've watched that same video. And per usual, Reg is 100% correct!!!!!

[@oakeymt.outdoors]

Good info !!!!

[@oakiewoodsman]

Thanks for watching man! We sure had some storms the last couple days. 6 inches in 48 hrs! Whew baby!

[@Doc-Cole_Trickle-of-Chainsaws]

@@oakiewoodsman brought us some cooler weather but we didn't get any of the rain.

[@oakiewoodsman]

ah @@Doc-Cole_Trickle-of-Chainsaws

[@bfoutdooradventures]

Very cool, thanks for the info. I think it would be quite a spectal to climb a tree that way. Its on my to-try list. - Brittany

[@oakiewoodsman]

Very cool. Just practice down low and like most arborists, have a secondary line supporting you from above. Should you gaff out.

[@oakiewoodsman]

How is that new Mac working for you?

[@bfoutdooradventures]

@@oakiewoodsman The new Mac is so much better than the other pc we had. It makes the video proccess ten times faster and more enjoyable to work on.

[@oakiewoodsman]

@@bfoutdooradventures Davinci Resolve?

[@bfoutdooradventures]

@@oakiewoodsman Movavi

[@Sethhaun78]

Training new climbers is done on pole gaffs far more stable and less damage to knees.your life line and lanyard is what holds you

[@oakiewoodsman]

Thank you for sharing

[@Sethhaun78]

@@oakiewoodsman apologize wasn't trying to mean ..

[@oakiewoodsman]

@@Sethhaun78 your fine, thanks for sharing. I truly mean it. The comment section is full of wisdom but sometimes it isn’t. Also, sometimes people make comments before they know the whole story. This my friend, wasn’t that.

[@zeromark202]

Great information video, didn’t know about them

[@oakiewoodsman]

Thanks for watching! We are always learning together

[@krustysurfer]

I learned the hard way this weekend about using lineman gaffs on a massive white oak. I got up about 15 ft and my spurs popped out and got stuck trying to arrest my fall with my right foot, which caught and my knee ended up in my face... Lesson learned! 😐 I need to buy myself some real tree gaffs and practice on some smaller diameter trees before trying to climb a hundred foot oak tree... I think pine bark is softer than the oak I was going up and the lineman gaffs might have worked. Also the gaffs did not feel very sturdy, that leather that they used for the strap work is quite soft and kind of stretchy as well as the gaffa were not tall enough to end up right behind my knee, they were lower down on my calves... that's what I get for buying cheap gear off of Amazon which is so easy to do, to be misled by shoddy pics and descriptions 😪 thanks for the video, much appreciated 🎯

[@oakiewoodsman]

Oh man! Be careful out there. You can find good used equipment on FB market place. Certainly, get used to working down low before you go up high. You can always cut out no matter what even if you have all the correct equipment. I am certainly not an expert in tree climbing and really would like to get more appropriate equipment and really limit myself to trees that are essentially a pole. Thank you for watching and sharing your experience on here. This is the stuff that makes YT a great place to be and learn from!

[@krustysurfer]

@@oakiewoodsman thanks for sharing your knowledge and experience

[@oakiewoodsman]

@krustysurfer I appreciate that find it valuable and then even take the time to mention.

[@StoptheLie]

Great info for climbers!

[@oakiewoodsman]

Thanks for watching man!

[@norwegiantreeclimber]

Your heart is obviously in the right place here and I'm not saying it's bad advice, but I will have to respectfully disagree. I climb on short/pole gaffs exclusively and do a lot of pine trees, and I have never had bark get stuck or build up under my gaffs. Not once. What I will say is that on thick barked trees you do have to be a little bit more careful during the first few feet off the ground where the bark is thickest, as the pole gaffs won't penetrate as deep through the bark as tree gaffs. But on the plus side your ergonomics and positioning is so much better once you get up in the tree. I can stay in a tree for 6 to 8 hours on pole gaffs without any of the ankle or knee pain I hear tree gaff users complain about. Also on really small diameter trees the pole gaffs are superior for comfortable positioning. Trees will vary though, if the tree has very thick bark all the way up then tree gaffs might still be the wiser choice. I think the very best solution would obviously be to have both available and choose either one or the other based on the tree. 🙂

[@oakiewoodsman]

Thanks for sharing, and I never really thought about how the bark changes from the base of the tree upwards. I don’t know, those spikes are pretty darn short and while you are closer to the tree, I like having the additional spike length. I don’t find that there are any more or less comfortable to climb with personally

[@norwegiantreeclimber]

@oakiewoodsman You get your foot way closer to the stem with shorter spikes. Especially on say 8" diameter and smaller I would say it's a pretty big difference, or at least from 6" and down. But they both have their uses, and trees and locations vary a lot. My main point was really that bark getting stuck under the short gaffs is not really a problem at all, their main weakness is that they won't penetrate as deep through thick bark. 🙂 Cheers mate, climb high and stay safe. 👍

[@oakiewoodsman]

Could also the different species of pine make a difference as well? I have what is called as shortly pine, but as I have traveled around the country, I have noticed there are some pines with a much less thick bark. Thanks for weighing in on all of this.

[@billhowe4863]

I have a pair of tree gaffs and a pair of pole gaffs, 20 years of climbing i spent 95 percent of the time in my pole gaffs, even in pine. It boils down to personal preference in my opinion.

[@oakiewoodsman]

Appreciate you sharing! On thin bark trees, the pole gaffs would likely be just fine and I find they are more comfortable because of the distance the spike is away from you your weight is more comfortable IMO. Thank you for watching and sharing!

[@billhowe4863]

@@oakiewoodsman no problem. The only time I really wear my tree gaffs are punky decayed trees or booted palms where I need the extra purchase tree gaffs afford

[@oakiewoodsman]

@billhowe4863 awesome information. Makes sense on the pinky tree

[@gravewalker34]

Thanks and good to the point video.

[@oakiewoodsman]

Ur welcome! Appreciate you watching.

[@Doc-Cole_Trickle-of-Chainsaws]

👍🆙OW, good info!

[@oakiewoodsman]

Appreciate you being here for another!

[@Doc-Cole_Trickle-of-Chainsaws]

@@oakiewoodsman YW!

[@Doc-Cole_Trickle-of-Chainsaws]

@@oakiewoodsman Thanks 4 showing Oliver (Mr. Metsa) some support!👍🆙OW

[@oakiewoodsman]

I accidentally deleted your comment about the McCulloch thing. I think at least. Some platforms don't allow the tag to get it right to you. I wanna always reply using those cause I know it can be confusing. @@Doc-Cole_Trickle-of-Chainsaws

[@Joshman5000]

I switched to pole gaffs and never looked back! I almost gave up on climbing because tree gaffs made it feel so unnatural like on stilts, the closeness and stability of pole gaffs was a game changer and kept me in the game and improved my performance greatly. Everyone Is so worried about bark ridges as if you can’t climb a tree with deep bark ridges and pole gaffs, how about look down where your F’ing spike is going and spike the ridge it’s not that hard, also if it’s that big of wood to have gnarly ridges usually a mofo will rope walk past em or be working the tree from the top down if it’s a crane removal. For me I owe a lot to pole gaffs, probably wouldn’t be climbing if all there were was tree gaffs they suck to use!

[@oakiewoodsman]

On an oak tree the pole gaffs worked fine for me. On pine, I will NOT ever do it again. Sorry you had trouble but when you are work positioning, you really should only have to look that you are not going to stick a cable, rope or yourself. I want to put my foot where it is most comfortable. Just my thoughts but..... I come from pole climbing and not tree climbing. Thanks for watching and sharing

[@j.seanmeyers674]

I am a professional tree climber and prefer pole gaffs 95+% of time. I carry tree gaffs only for extra thick bark or rotted trees.

[@oakiewoodsman]

Thank you for sharing and watching. Stay safe out there! What region of the world are you working?

[@j.seanmeyers674]

@@oakiewoodsman Southeast (coastal) NC

[@oakiewoodsman]

Thank you much! Stay Safe!

[@xWiKeDxSaNaKeUtSx]

Where do you get your lanyard? Can we buy it online

[@oakiewoodsman]

I just made it out of scrap. I would highly recommend using the proper stuff especially if you are going to do it professionally. It is the right thing to do for safety and efficiency.