Removing small dead trees - best way to pull

[masseyrider]

When doing that kind of work I pull with the drawbar and have the rear blade on. Chain goes under the blade. If the tractor does start to lift up it should sit back on the blade and not flip. Should!

 

[rScotty]

The safest way I know to deal with large trees with shallow roots like your Leyland Cypress is to use a backhoe to dig next to the tree in the direction you want it to fall. Then go around to the other side and use your FEL bucket up about six feet high on the trunk to push it over. Doesnt always work, but when it does the root ball comes right out of the ground.

But this method - good as it is - works best with a tractor twice the size of a Kubota L3200.

 

[WranglerX]

Good post but whether using a chain or a cable and the drawbar, you ALWAYS drape a blanket or heavy tarp over the chain or cable between what you are pulling and the tractor so if the chain or cable breaks or comes loose, the blanket or tarp will 'subdue' the whipp9ng chain or cable and eliminate the 'whiplash' entirely. Modern tractors all have the drawbar located well below the center point of the rear axle so the chance of pulling the tractor over backwards is basically totally eliminated.

Way back in the day when I had my very first tractor, a Farmall A, it had no drawbar but had a forged steel loop to pull from and that loop was in line with the centerline of the rear axle and I could pretty easily loft the front end if using it to pull from. I could never loft the front end on my M's. Impossible to do. The drive wheels would break traction first.

Yes with CABLE always use blanket or whatever "dampener"...but not necessary with chain.... CABLE will be like a "whipsaw" if it breaks or comes loose, but chain will just lose tension and drop like dead snake.... Chains do not store energy like a cable...

 

[bcp]

A chain WILL whiplash if the pull is hard enough to break it. I've seen several videos of it, and done it myself. In each case it was the chain that broke, not the load breaking loose.

Watch at about 2:00+

Bruce

 

[koshari]

The safest way I know to deal with large trees with shallow roots like your Leyland Cypress is to use a backhoe to dig next to the tree in the direction you want it to fall. Then go around to the other side and use your FEL bucket up about six feet high on the trunk to push it over. Doesnt always work, but when it does the root ball comes right out of the ground.

But this method - good as it is - works best with a tractor twice the size of a Kubota L3200.

similar to this except use a winch or block and tackle to pull, i find you get more purchase as the tractor simply spins. use all the leverage you can get, ideally pull the tree from as high up the trunk you can get a decent attachment to, if you can use 2 nearby trees run tree protectors around them and run a tether between them, then place a sheve as close to ground level, to change the pull angle so the opposite end is pulling at an angle close to the ground plane which minimises lifting the pulling machine off the ground, or use another tree trunk,

 

[lman]

Actually, after reading this I will probably just avoid bolt-on or welded hooks altogether, yank these first with the drawbar, then remount the box blade for pushing. This may also help me make it to my next birthday.

https://ag-safety.extension.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/English-Task-Sheets-Group-6.pdf

Wow, I never knew they had a manual for that stuff since it was common knowledge learned by all teens working on the farm when I was a kid. Back then we didn't have manuals for that stuff and learned by following the adults.

 

[mikester]

I prefer to push trees using a root rake. Push the tops over and away from the operator station, then grab the roots and push out.

 

[Mark_G]

I leave my box blade on, raise it and run my chain under it from the drawbar to the tree to pull. There is no reason to remove it. The extra weight of the box blade helps with tracton, and when I need it to push or snag and pull side roots out a bit, it is on and ready. I do use the box blade at times, with the rippers down, to pull roots just inside the dripline. THey are usually small enough to easily rip out, but as the number increases as one moves out from the trunk they collectively hold the tree down. I find it is often a help to get some of the side roots pulled when having trouble pushing or pulling a tree down.

 

[eddieirvine]

Bull doser

 

[sdef]

"The reason I asked the question is a I see a lot small tractors with grab hooks on the FEL, either bolt-on or welded. Is it just good marketing spin from the seller or is it really a legit way of pulling?"

I have bolt-on or welded grab hooks on all of my FEL attachments so chains can be used to stabilize a load that is being carried in or by the bucket. I would find it difficult to work safely without these hooks.