Saw a massive oak in Portland with a cable system that looked 30 years old

I was checking out a job near Irving Park last week and noticed this huge oak had a cable setup up top that was completely swallowed by the bark, looked like it was installed back in the 90s. Has anyone else run into old cable systems that are still holding strong, or am I just lucky to have seen one that didn't fail yet?

3 comments

3 Comments

morgan_king361mo agoTop Commenter

Huh, that's wild. I used to think those old cable jobs were all ticking time bombs, just waiting to cut through the bark or snap under a heavy snow. But seeing one that's been swallowed up like that and still holding makes me rethink it a bit. Guess if they were installed right in the first place, with the right hardware, they can actually last way longer than I gave them credit for. Not sure I'd trust one that old on a busy street though.

jakewhite1mo ago

Agree with you @morgan_king36, those old cables really surprise you sometimes. I've got a buddy who took down a thirty year old install last summer and the steel was still solid, no rust or fraying. The real trick is they used galvanized cable back then that holds up way better than the cheap stuff you see in big box stores today. But you're right to be cautious about busy streets, that extra vibration and salt from winter roads can eat through anything faster than you'd think. I've seen too many failures happen on main roads where nobody bothered to check the hardware every few years. So yeah, a well done cable job can last decades, but it's smart to keep an eye on them anyway.

logan_mitchell1mo ago

Man that's actually really cool to hear about a cable job that's been holding for that long. I've always been the type to assume anything in a tree that's been there more than ten years is just waiting to fail, but seeing stories like yours and reading what @jakewhite said makes me think the old timers really knew what they were doing. Probably helps that they used real galvanized steel instead of the junk we get at hardware stores now. Still though, I'm with @morgan_king36 on being careful near busy streets, that road salt and vibration is no joke. Feels good to hear about one that's still working though, gives me a little more faith in the work people did back then.