The first thing I want to know is how much you are planning to cut out, and how big and old the specimen is - with most kinds you do not want to do a lot of volume reduction to a mature tree, regardless of the time of year. Otherwise, yes, maples may bleed when pruned during the winter - the time when this could be expected to be the worst would presumably be the same period as when sugar maples might be tapped. November might be too early in the season for much bleeding, and it wouldn't be expected to hurt the tree anyway. Unless there is going to be so much cutting that a whole bunch of sap comes out. But again there the main problem will be the amount of wood and potential foliage that is taken away, rather then the bleeding. It always depends on the specific details involved but in general if a tree looks quite dramatically different after pruning it has been pruned too much.

i see no need at all ... there are very few rules which depend on the tree itself.. a tree is a tree ... what changes.. is what your goal is ... e.g.: height as i noted in your other post??? .. we dont really prune.. on a calender.. or for no real reason ... define your goal ... and how and what you prune becomes apparent ... i might pull the mulch back an inch or two from the trunk itself .... in any soil.. other than my 100% mineral sand.. you dont want any retained moisture on bark ... its not made for such... as roots are ... where are you.. that z6b looks so toasty.. it was 3 degrees in MI this morning .... ken

That is a very small tree to be attempting much in the way of training or pruning! I'd give it another season or two until it developed a bit more size then follow the directions in the attached link for structural training of shade trees. Be sure you are looking at the area devoted to trees with a decurrent habit. FWIW, red maples - and ones of good size - are available anywhere (like your local Home Depot!!) and most certainly in CA where they (or in neighboring OR) grow the bulk of all landscape material sold in the US. So I wonder at your reasoning for purchasing such a common and tiny tree online?

I would NOT be in any hurry to remove either of the highlighted branches!! Japanese maples often start branching very low to the ground - it is one of their common features and what typically keeps them to a smaller size (less clear 'trunk' = less height). Removing either branch will result in a tree with a lopsided growth habit.....removing both will result in the loss of more than 50% of the tree!! There IS a limit as to how wide the tree will spread, so even heading back those branches may be unnecessary. And heading back a JM properly and aesthetically is a skill that takes time to develop, so not something you can easily pick up online or from a video. Most sources and authorities on JM's will caution you to prune JM's as lightly as possible, never removing more than 1/5th of the canopy volume at one time. Two main issues are typically emphasized: do not attempt to prune to control height and prune only to enhance the natural growth habit, not to alter it. You can (and should) remove any dead wood when it becomes visible and adjust for crossing or rubbing branches. And you can remove smaller, lower branches that would interfere with clearance (never remove a branch that is more than half the diameter of the parent stem). Other than that, just some crown thinning or developing "layers" of branches is typically all that is recommended.