So has anyone here removed any fairly large trees from their property? I don't really want to pay someone to do it and my dad owns a chainsaw which I have used a good bit before just not to take down a tree. He has taken down some medium sized trees but this is on the larger size. Looking for some pointers as we plan to do this this weekend hopefully.

As you can see in the pictures the tree is already starting to fall over on its own. I am not really sure if it is the roots that are holding it up or the branches from the trees it is leaning on more but it has been this way for over a month now. It has started leaning more in the past 2-3 weeks though.

 

With it already leaning, I'd assume that you could just cut & let it fall, then chop it up from there. If, there is nothing that it's going to damage on its way down.

 

watch youtube!
I like the channel "Wranglerstar" his channel is mostly about homesteading and wood working with GREAT TIPS! and his teaching style is superb!
get you some wedges and some steel protective chaps/pants

 

I agree with this but at the same time not sure I just wan't to assume with something so large. Only thing it will hit are other trees on the way down.
Cool I will check his channel out

 

Main thing, no tree cutting experience here, I'd be concerned with would be the bottom kicking back once it starts to fall.
We took down a decent sized tree in my dad's back yard (1/4 acre lot with a 2 story house) but it was close enough to another tree that we were able to tie them together & lower the dead tree bit by bit as we cut logs from the bottom.

 

these are the ones that I had watched and when you made this thread; i immediately thought about

 

This. Based on my very limited experience with tree cutting, if you were to just cut it and let it fall, it would for sure kick back. This is why trees are notched at the bottom before they knock them over. That tree is leaning so far that you'd almost have to winch it up to vertical before notching it otherwise you'll get your chain stuck with the compression.

 

Hmmmm that sounds like a lot of work having to winch it back up and all. Couldn't you just start making small cuts until you got a bigger notch so you would not be putting the blade under pressure?

 

Wow, all of your trees seem to have a pimp lean.

So it sounds like there isn't much in the way, I'd just maybe watch those videos and get after it. I've cut down probably 40 or so trees, some bigger and some smaller but they were in the middle of an empty field so I wasn't too concerned. With that, I'd do as you suggested, notch, make a bigger notch and as you get past the middle, start cutting from the other side. If you find the notch wants to keep falling in on itself, cut from the opposite side of the lean and with all the weight learning, it will start to fall more. Once it does cut some more until you're through it.

I could be 100 percent wrong but this is what I've done with great success.

 

did you watch the vidz!??
you need wedges and or hydraulic pump!

 

I have an axe and two 6in wedges. Might try and go at it without the hydrolic pump though. Infact they seem like the exact wedges in the first video you posted.

 

i'd just use a dremel...

 

get a pet beaver!

 

From my long list of trees I've cut, which is 2, this is how I would tackle this tree. I would notch the left side, or the side its leaning, then cut from the other side. This will reduce the risk of it pushing back. Do you have a way to pull it when it is cut? I have a feeling it will be hung up in the other trees when it comes down.

 

Here's mine.
about 3' at the base... about 5' from my foundation.
A bucket truck, a crane, a log truck, a chipper w/ truck, and 4 crew.... $2400


I have since had one more large tree trimmed and another removed. It's not fun having to spend money on the house when it doesn't add equity.

 

Damn. Mine is not that big. By big I meant it is a really tall tree. I don't think it is more than 1.5ft wide.

 

That is kind of what I was thinking. I have a Tahoe I would just need something to attach to the tree itself. My neighbor also has a bobcat so maybe we could use that.

 

that's a shame...girth is what they're after, man.

 

Yup, exactly how'd I do it. As for pulling it out of the other trees, I'm always amazed when I wrap a chain around a tree and tighten it up by pulling it with a truck. You barely need anything to "hook" it on to around the tree, just wrap, hook to Tahoe, SLOWLY pull.

 

Yeah you could do that too, just remember to add wedges after your saw to keep it from pinching. The hardest part with something like this is that you don't know how dead the tree is inside. If your notching causes it to fall, it could be uncontrolled.

 

Very good point. Be careful and be alert. Worst case, saw gets pinched, drop it and get away and let gravity follow thru. A saw is cheaper to replace than yourself or medical bills.

 

Something that small you could easily fell, assuming you know what you're doing. I would do cuts similar to what Breezy marked as well

 

Ok so tree is down. Have some pictures to post later on today. Tree was not small. It was 1.5ft wide trunk and 50ft tall pine. It also did not come down as planned but we did get it down.

 

the older I get, the less I'm inclined to want my wood to come down.
Glad you got it done safely, J.

 

I was going to ask for pics, but after J's comment, I'm not going to ask...

 

You should just wait for the video. It really captures the emotion of the moment.

 

So my dad having cut down lots of trees and also owning a chainsaw came down to help. Putting in the notch cut to start things off.



At this point things didn't really go as planned and because of this I have no more pictures of the process which I regret. We apparently didn't cut a large enough V in the tree for the fact the tree was already leaning or for this size tree. This resulted in us getting the saw blade stuckin the tree once we had cut full through it. So pointer number one. MAKE SURE YOUR NOTCH IS ATLEAST HALF WAY CUT THROUGH THE TREE. We tried using the two wedges he had to get it unstuck but that didn't work as they were not thick enough or long enough. (Insert jokes here). So pointer number two. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE RIGHT SIZE WEDGES FOR THE TREE YOU ARE CUTTING DOWN. At this point we unbolted the chainsaw from the bar so we atleast didn't damage the saw itself. If we lose the bar or the chain so be it. We had a spare of each. We tied a rope to the tree and were able to ourselves pull it off the stump. Well great the bar as unstuck, the trunk came straight down and stuck in the ground on top of the chain and oh it was still standing. Now what to do. Tried using the rope we had attached to my dads suburban to pull the bottom out so it would fall. Nope, the rope snapped. So off to the store I went to get a two strap and some large couplers.

So we backed the truck up. Wrappd it around the bottom of the tree and hooked it to the chain hookups for a trailer on the back hitch. After dragging the bottom of the tree 10ft it feel from the tree it was caught on.



Finally the tree is down. Damn thing is huge.






Had to get a picture with the good old STIHL that helped us take it down.


A quick count but might not be exact shows the tree is 65 years old. Sadly there is insect damage or I would cut some nice slabs to make some cool stools out of for our bar inside.


I did however cut two nice size sections right off the bottom to use as seats at my firepit. Going to seal the top and bottom of them with something to try and help them last a little longer out in the weather.

 

 

wow...that's a big job!
thanks for sharing, man.

 

Looks like you could make a great splitting log! You have plenty of firewood for a little while now.

Glad it came down with no injuries.

 

You mean, that's some big wood

 

Why does everythingI say have to get twisted and tugged?!?!

 

Because you're the forum bicycle

 

Wow, i have never paid more than $1000 including stump removal.

 

Yeah the first piece I cut off from the very bottom I can to use as a splitting log. The tree plus all the firewood I already have I should have enough for a few years

 

just have a fire pit that burns all the time!

 

Guy at my work cuts wood all the time. He said he has enough wood to last him 7 years if he stops cutting today.

 

Called it, mostly because I've done it myself several times.

Glad you got it down safely and without much incident or damage. Stihl saws are the only ones to get, I love mine.

For the slabs, you might be able to find a mill that can cut out the rot and get you something that's a bit cleaner in the long direction. For sealing those for outdoor use, I'd get some outdoor epoxy and coat the hell out of it. It's going to be hard to do a really good job as you'll be on end grain the whole way but apply some, let it soak in and dry before doing another coat.

 

Wow, much bigger than it looked and good call on taking the bar off.

Hope you didn't get sprayed with the sticky stuff [sap].

 

It was definitely an event that thankfully took place safely Was a good learning experience.

I agree I love Stihl products and want to get my own Stihl saw at some point. My dad though doesn't want me to own a chainsaw. Thinks they are dangerous and only he should do it. Except he is turning 68 this year. I think it is time for him to pass the torch on it full time. I have been using his since I was 20. His has lots of issues though with its being over 20 years old. The chain doesn't always stop when you let off the trigger. The emergency brake works full and I always just use that when ever I need to more around. With all the trees on my property I have been looking at some of the higher end Stihl saws and will probably pick one up in the next year or so.

Hadn't thought about having someone cut something in the long direction for me. That might be a cool idea to do. I know coating the stools won't be perfect but anything that gets them to last longer than they would normally will be a success. If they were perfect without rot I would make a full end table out of it. Appreciate the tips and suggested product to use as I had no idea what to use/

Thankfully didn't get sprayed with sap at all. Still have to cut up about 30ft of the main trunk still.