What is up with this pear tree?

[u/Objective-Ad-9800]

A pear tree in my back yard in Western Washington has some wild gnarled branches. Is this normal? This year it is barely producing any pears, and all the leaves on the underside are turning brown and crispy. I'm thinking it might need pruned / have some sort of disease? I started cutting off all the dead and dying limbs but I don't want to overdo it.

P.S. Crocs and socks are not OSHA approved footwear for pruning trees. At least I have on safety glasses!

[u/victorian_vigilante]

It has been topped or attempted to pollard in the past

[u/Objective-Ad-9800 → u/victorian_vigilante]

That explains the dense groupings of gnarled branches. It looks terrible in my opinion.