How would you [safely] take down this tree?

radios1 · May 20, 2020

civilian said:
I found the page in chapter 3. Why take the time to set up explosives to drop trees when a chain saw would be faster? Did not look for a date of that publication. Prior to the invention of chain saw, possibly? Jon

it's a lot safer to use explosives from a safe distance, than use a chainsaw close to the danger zone!.

I've taken down many 60 foot+ oak trees, but a hanger like the OP has is extremely dangerous!..

RSR · May 20, 2020

Who would think a post about taking down a tree would get 100 responses?

The tree still stands. My tractor hit 50 hours last week, so I am waiting to do the service, but filters are slow to ship, etc. right now. Then I realized I needed to buy a larger strap wrench to get around the hydraulic filter...more days waiting for UPS to deliver.

The plan for now is to pull from afar. If that doesn't work I'll explore other options.

Shooting it down is actually appealing but I don't own a gun (shocking, I know) and there are a number of houses that would be in the line of fire across our pond.

Burning it is another interesting approach. I would need to Daisy chain a number of hoses to have water close by. I just heard of a friend this past weekend that lost two cars and some hay bailing equipment in an outdoor fire burning some old barn wood that got out of control.

Once the tractor service is completed, I'll keep everyone posted on what ends up working.

cqaigy2 · May 20, 2020

Sigh, now we have to wait.

Industrial Toys · May 20, 2020

Shooting stuff isn't like you see in the movies.

I once came home, the proud owner of a new SS S&W 645 (.45 ACP). Chambered a round and fired into a pile of firewood. Split second later round came back and hit me in the shoulder! Now according to Hollywood, that whole pile should have exploded!

radios1 · May 20, 2020

Industrial Toys said:
Shooting stuff isn't like you see in the movies.

I once came home, the proud owner of a new SS S&W 645 (.45 ACP). Chambered a round and fired into a pile of firewood. Split second later round came back and hit me in the shoulder! Now according to Hollywood, that whole pile should have exploded!

maybe because you didn't use the .45 Magnum Auto??..

rekees4300 · May 20, 2020

RSR said:
The plan for now is to pull from afar. If that doesn't work I'll explore other options.

Just make sure "afar" is far enough. Countless folks have been killed (squashed) using tractors to pull down trees/limbs. Generally speaking it's always best to use the right tool for a job, not doing so can have unintended consequences.

MossRoad · May 20, 2020

civilian said:
I found the page in chapter 3. Why take the time to set up explosives to drop trees when a chain saw would be faster? Did not look for a date of that publication. Prior to the invention of chain saw, possibly? Jon

Because explosives are much more fun than chainsaws. sheesh! :laughing:

deezler · May 20, 2020

RSR said:
Who would think a post about taking down a tree would get 100 responses?

The tree still stands. My tractor hit 50 hours last week, so I am waiting to do the service, but filters are slow to ship, etc. right now. Then I realized I needed to buy a larger strap wrench to get around the hydraulic filter...more days waiting for UPS to deliver.

The plan for now is to pull from afar. If that doesn't work I'll explore other options.

Ummm... bud, this isn't really acceptable. Like you said, you now have 100 people waiting to see how this gets resolved. You won't hurt your tractor by putting 1 more hour on it. Shoot, it will probably only take you 6 minutes of actual engine running to do this.

ericm979 · May 20, 2020

Industrial Toys said:
Shooting stuff isn't like you see in the movies.

Yea. I had a job for a while whose duties included shooting pine cones off of trees. Or the whole top if we wanted- the trees were not going to be used again in the program so it didn't matter if we damaged them. I was a pretty good shot with a rife then and it was still remarkably hard to do, and not really much quicker than climbing the tree like we normally did.

civilian · May 20, 2020

ericm979 said:
Yea. I had a job for a while whose duties included shooting pine cones off of trees. Or the whole top if we wanted- the trees were not going to be used again in the program so it didn't matter if we damaged them. I was a pretty good shot with a rife then and it was still remarkably hard to do, and not really much quicker than climbing the tree like we normally did.

So why were you shooting the pine cones off? Jon