How would you [safely] take down this tree?

[radios1]

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]

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]

Sigh, now we have to wait.

 

[Industrial Toys]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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

 

[pmsmechanic]

While we are waiting for the tree to fall down here's a shooting story for you guys. My brother had asked the power company to remove a yard service pole and transformer. Ya ya they would come and do it. Meanwhile it was spring and the irrigation pivot couldn't irrigate because this power pole with a transformer on it was in the way. So my brother decided to remove the power pole himself. He shot off both the ground wire and the service wire right beside the next pole and pulled the yard service pole out of the ground with his front end loader. When the power company showed up several weeks later the power pole c/w transformer and wires was laying neatly on the ground for them to remove. Ya there were words and yes a letter was received about how dangerous it all was but in the end all that happened is that the power company was a lot more prompt about removing abandoned services.

 

[radios1]

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.

you do realize that a rifle round can travel more than a mile, and kill someone when it comes down, right?.:shocked:

 

[rekees4300]

you do realize that a rifle round can travel more than a mile, and kill someone when it comes down, right?.:shocked:

The title of this thread includes the word "safely". Those who speak of using firearms or explosives aren't being prudent. Wrong tools for a job could result in unintended consequences.

 

[4570Man]

The title of this thread includes the word "safely". Those who speak of using firearms or explosives aren't being prudent. Wrong tools for a job could result in unintended consequences.

A 12 gauge loaded with birdshot will only travel a couple hundred yards. That poses pretty much no risk assuming its safe for that distance.

 

[Skeans1]

The title of this thread includes the word "safely". Those who speak of using firearms or explosives aren't being prudent. Wrong tools for a job could result in unintended consequences.

Just curious how do you think hazard trees are removed from industrial settings? They blast them if they’re deemed to dangerous to fall that normally they’ll be dead old growth snags.

 

[rekees4300]

Just curious how do you think hazard trees are removed from industrial settings? They blast them if they’re deemed to dangerous to fall that normally they’ll be dead old growth snags.

That thought has NEVER crossed my mind. I assume the folks doing the blasting in industrial settings are professionals, therefore in that case the word "safely" would be true. However, the picture from the OP (an amateur) certainly doesn't look like an industrial setting so your analogy is apples-to-oranges.

 

[cqaigy2]

That thought has NEVER crossed my mind. I assume the folks doing the blasting in industrial settings are professionals, therefore in that case the word "safely" would be true. However, the picture from the OP (an amateur) certainly doesn't look like an industrial setting so your analogy is apples-to-oranges.

In an industrial setting, i'd just take the nearest loader and knock it down.

 

[rekees4300]

In an industrial setting, i'd just take the nearest loader and knock it down.

Yes with today's heavy duty machinery trees aren't much of an obstacle.

 

[Skeans1]

In an industrial setting, i'd just take the nearest loader and knock it down.

Yes with today's heavy duty machinery trees aren't much of an obstacle.

There’s still stuff too big and there’s places too steep to send a machine down even on a line.
One of the smaller snags that got left on that job.

 

[cqaigy2]

There’s still stuff too big and there’s places too steep to send a machine down even on a line.View attachment 656770
One of the smaller snags that got left on that job.

Sometimes nature is a viable option.

Or det cord and some nitroglycerin stick.