Switched from spikes to a rope wrench for removals, still second guessing

I spent 8 years climbing with traditional spikes on every removal, but last month I watched a guy do a tall pine in Spokane with a rope wrench and never touched the bark. He showed me how it saved the tree for a potential client who wanted the wood milled, and honestly the control felt smoother than anything I've done. For those of you who made the jump, do you keep spikes for certain jobs or go full rope wrench now?

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ben43624d ago

Spikes have their place, but once you feel that wrench on a clean removal, going back feels like cheating yourself. The bark stays intact, the saw work gets easier, and clients notice the difference when they see the log pile. I keep spikes for storm damage and gnarly leaners where you need that solid bite. But for anything where the tree has value, rope wrench all day. Takes a few weeks to trust it, but now I only spike when I have to.