- Thread starter Screwdriver
- Start date
Screwdriver
Member
- Messages
- 10,550
Sharpen that saw and make life easier, I'd have notched the bottom of those and finished them off with a push they are not much more than a stick
Yes but I couldn't just let them fall. The shed is no more than 2m away on one side, it's right next to my neighbours new garden and I didn't want to break any of the other surrounding trees. One of which is a giant fir tree which would split open if I dropped a tree on it. It just had to come straight down.
Next time I'll make up some retaining brackets or hoops to make sure the rest come straight down too. But you're right, they are tall but thin. I might even be able to bend them to the ground first.
The stupidest thing I did was to try and use a knackered chainsaw blade. Been told off for that already by PM!
pedrobedro
Man at Matalan
- Messages
- 12,988
- Location
- CX near Chesterfield
Its called a chain not a blade.
Keep the bar oil topped up and get a spare chain, northern arb supplies have some cheap enough to be disposable if you don't fancy sharpening just make sure you get the correct gauge and number of drive links.
- Messages
- 22,517
- Location
- Birmingham
Or if you happen to have a winch on the front of your Land Rover
I put a chain round the base of some 40mm self seeded Sycamores and the winch did the rest! 
Screwdriver
Member
- Messages
- 10,550
No danger of getting a truck or a van in there. Is there a simple design for a removable ground anchor?
- Messages
- 22,517
- Location
- Birmingham
I couldn't get to my trees so butted the front bumper against the house and ran the winch wire along side the house and up the garden.
Selection of winching ground anchors
arther dailey
Member
- Messages
- 6,555
- Location
- England
I just use ladder and top out by hand,using shorter ladders as you go, tricky with basically over grown shrub/laurel small trees etc as they are so skinny like yours,depends on how agile you are up at 25foot really. if you cut odd branches so that weight is one sided you can drop it exactly where you want it, gravity is your friend here. just use a hand saw up the ladder though !Arther
Screwdriver
Member
- Messages
- 10,550
I climbed up the first time. Up a ladder, with a chainsaw, cut it off above my head. How I wasn't ksi I don't know. Won't be doing that again!
Will a winch really do me any good with the root ball being so spread out. There were eight trees there....
I don't have a manual winch, just a couple of 500kg electric jobbies. I may give it a try while they are still long enough to give me some leverage but I don't hold out too much hope. Looks like I'm gonna have to dig.
S.
Will a winch really do me any good with the root ball being so spread out. There were eight trees there....
I don't have a manual winch, just a couple of 500kg electric jobbies. I may give it a try while they are still long enough to give me some leverage but I don't hold out too much hope. Looks like I'm gonna have to dig.
S.
- Messages
- 22,517
- Location
- Birmingham
Another option if you expose the roots is the put a chain round them one at a time and use a hi-lift jack to pull/break them.
Screwdriver
Member
- Messages
- 10,550
Hmm. That sounds doable. I could even stick a jack in between the stumps.
arther dailey
Member
- Messages
- 6,555
- Location
- England
dont know what ksi means but guess its not healthy, hence I stated use a hand saw !! re stumps,dont cut the tree down to the roots leave it 4 ft above ground to use as leverage.Arther
gaz1
Member
- Messages
- 19,285
- Location
- westyorkshire
i kinda just used a handsaw to cut them all down made sure ladder was where i wanted it and felled them at certain heights until down at the bottom
normally with any tree im getting out it has a good 5-6ft trunk to swing on for rocking motion and dig down around the base using the trunk as leverage against its own roots weve got many a tree out that way and quickly
as goes for coreing it get one of theses drill bits http://www.screwfix.com/p/armeg-wood-beaver-drill-bit-32mm/91676 theres a 3 and thats a 4 please note it pulls into the wood so hold tight to the drill
Screwdriver
Member
- Messages
- 10,550
KSI is a biker specific acronym: killed or seriously injured.
I will be using a hand saw because I don't have a decent edge on the chainsaw and the remaining trees are so spindly. They are leaning over a huge amount. One of them must be a good 15 metres high and most of it is hanging over the neighbours garden at a crazy angle.
If its a nice day tomorrow, I may even video the attempt. Must get a copy of the Laurel and Hardy theme tune, or maybe Benny Hill for the full effect.
S.
I will be using a hand saw because I don't have a decent edge on the chainsaw and the remaining trees are so spindly. They are leaning over a huge amount. One of them must be a good 15 metres high and most of it is hanging over the neighbours garden at a crazy angle.
If its a nice day tomorrow, I may even video the attempt. Must get a copy of the Laurel and Hardy theme tune, or maybe Benny Hill for the full effect.
S.
arther dailey
Member
- Messages
- 6,555
- Location
- England
Good idea setting up the video, it might end up earning you a few sovs on one of those shows..so dont forget set it on wide angle so if you go for a purler its caught on camera ! 
Screwdriver
Member
- Messages
- 10,550
Things are getting a bit tricky now. The remaining boughs are leaning over a long way and will drop onto a thick hedge or the neighbours garden.
They are thin and spindly at the top and it's a LONG way up a ladder to get 1/3 the way up there.
The root ball is huge and despite a lot of digging, immovable.
There was once a fox burrow in there and I have a faint memory of possibly blocking it up in the dim/distant past...
The plan is to tie off the tops just under the cut so it falls and is retained by the rope while being pulled to my side of the garden. Possibly by a length of bungee.
Wish me luck.
S.
They are thin and spindly at the top and it's a LONG way up a ladder to get 1/3 the way up there.
The root ball is huge and despite a lot of digging, immovable.
There was once a fox burrow in there and I have a faint memory of possibly blocking it up in the dim/distant past...
The plan is to tie off the tops just under the cut so it falls and is retained by the rope while being pulled to my side of the garden. Possibly by a length of bungee.
Wish me luck.
S.
pedrobedro
Man at Matalan
- Messages
- 12,988
- Location
- CX near Chesterfield
Are you on your own ? Tie a rope on them where the ladder reaches to then get someone to pull them sideways while you cut through the bottom. If you are cutting them higher up be sure to tie your ladder on as they will probably spring back under tension when the weight of the top is released. Get a cheap 21" bow saw with a green wood blade if you are doing them by hand, they cut like a knife through butter.
arther dailey
Member
- Messages
- 6,555
- Location
- England
I use a small bow saw, its tapered in at the far end to let you get in gaps, brilliant tool,dont think bungey rope is good idea can see that might work initially to get tension but unsure how it will react when dropping from that height would imagine it will bounce the cut tree all over the place, as said above do make sure your ladder is tied at the top and someone holding the bottom.
If you cut a large v out of the side you want it to drop ,angled downwards of course more than you would normally, then cut the side you are on,above and down to the v, make sure at this point you are head and shoulders above it because if it kicks back through hitting another tree or similar you will be smashed in the face for sure, have a rope tied onto another secure tree to grab for balance/safety.
All joking aside above all take care.Arther
If you cut a large v out of the side you want it to drop ,angled downwards of course more than you would normally, then cut the side you are on,above and down to the v, make sure at this point you are head and shoulders above it because if it kicks back through hitting another tree or similar you will be smashed in the face for sure, have a rope tied onto another secure tree to grab for balance/safety.
All joking aside above all take care.Arther
Crater Creator
Member
- Messages
- 443
- Location
- Aberdeen, Scotland
Like Arther says - from experience, don't be in the way when it lets go if you are up the ladder. It hurts when it gets you on the top of the head.
Screwdriver
Member
- Messages
- 10,550
In the second picture above, you can see the (second) ladder I was using at the time is tied to two trees. The front ladder isn't being used in that shot. Tied to a single tree it moves around like a fairground ride and at that height, light finger pressure moves the whole tree about a foot!
This is a long telescoping ladder, I haven't dared gang them up yet but I may have to to get a decent height.
Just me, on my own but I was going to tie the tops with rope and use some bungee (I have about 25 metres of it) to stop the treetops from destroying the hedge or landing on my head. Like I said some time ago, I do wear a helmet but the first tree spotted that and decided to smack me in the face on the way down instead.
S.
This is a long telescoping ladder, I haven't dared gang them up yet but I may have to to get a decent height.
Just me, on my own but I was going to tie the tops with rope and use some bungee (I have about 25 metres of it) to stop the treetops from destroying the hedge or landing on my head. Like I said some time ago, I do wear a helmet but the first tree spotted that and decided to smack me in the face on the way down instead.
S.
