This is my weapon.

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a353/100T2x3/P3210001.jpg

These are my targets.

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a353/100T2x3/P3210007.jpg

This is the beginning of the aftermath.

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a353/100T2x3/P3210004.jpg

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a353/100T2x3/P3210002.jpg

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a353/100T2x3/P3210003.jpg

For those of you who would say, "Why would you cut down all those trees?", the answer is simple: We want a yard for the kids to play in, and there's about 1000 acres of trees behind the house. Our house borders the town land trust, so there will always be woods behind us.

I will say this though: It's fun to drop trees, but man, clean up is a BITCH.

And, these pictures are a couple days old... I just bought that chainsaw, but it was running hot for some reason, so I took it back and got a bigger one. Now I have a 20" 46cc model. It cuts that shit like buttah. I'd say a good 1/3 of the trees still standing in that pic are gone now.

you can just cut down trees at will and no one cares?

you might be in for a surprise

Yep, I sure can. Why wouldn't I? That's our property. That's where our front lawn is going to be. The land trust is out back. We have 3 acres, and only about 3/4 acre is currently cleared.

Edit: You edited your post after I quoted you. That's not town property, that's ours. We can go hiking through the land trust, but nah, you can't do shit back there. There's tons of dropped trees in the land trust, but it's all from lightning strikes or storm damage.

Looks like fun, You planning on saving any of that wood for a bonfire?

Looks like fun, You planning on saving any of that wood for a bonfire?

Well, we're saving a bunch for firewood, and I'm renting an industrial woodchipper (at $255 a day, ouch), but, whatever doesn't go through the chipper is getting burned. Once I get a big enough area cleared, we're having our neighbor come in with his tractor (12 ton bulldozer/back hoe thing) and yank the stumps out of the ground, and we're gonna have a big ass fire. I told my girlfriend that the way it's sizing up, we'll need about 30 bags of marshmallows, it's gonna burn for days. You can't really see it in the pics, but other than all the pines, there's something called "mountain laurel" which is a very hard, very kinked tree/bush that just fucking sucks. I don't know if I can run them through the chipper or not, so worst case, all that mountain laurel is getting torched.

And yes Mark, we'll get naked and dance around it. :rolleyes: Moron.

ok, it wasn't clear from the first post you owned the land

hack away and be happy :)

Yeah, that section is between our house and the road, it's about 250 feet by 200 feet.

I'm clearing to within 30 feet of the road, no closer because there's some serious power lines there, and I want to keep up a decent border. I have to put up some fence though, because the labradors are suddenly being assholes and going out in the road. Even though there's maybe 30 cars a day that go by, it seems like every time they want to run off, it's when a car is coming.

Anyway, after this is all done and cleared, I'm building a 20 x 12 foot shed in that area to house our outdoor equipment, including the new lawn tractor/mower we're getting, and a 20 x 20 sandbox for the kids... I'm going to also build them a playhouse in the sandbox, probably shaped like a ship or something... It needs to have a steering wheel for my son, because he has a steering wheel obsession. Go figure. He turns two a week from tomorrow.

So, other than working on the FB, there's my spring/summer/fall projects.

Turn one of the holes that a stump came out of into a fire pit. That would be bad ass....

Mark knows more about chainsaws and tree falling than anyone else in the world. His dad was a Canadian lumberjack and taught him to use a double-bitted axe when he was only 4.

Too bad the only thing he's "logged" is a toilet... :bigthumb:

You could always sell some of the wood off.

lol

good ol Jim

lol

prideful arrogant ol Mark

He does actually make a decent point there however, a Stihl saw is much better than Poulan.

Well, I already upgraded my 18" Poulan for a 20", and the one I got was the biggest model of any chainsaw my Home Depot sells.

Mark knows more about chainsaws and tree falling than anyone else in the world. His dad was a Canadian lumberjack and taught him to use a double-bitted axe when he was only 4.

Too bad the only thing he's "logged" is a toilet... :bigthumb:

Yeah. And, he has a big ox named Blue. :rolleyes:

Um, ok.

And, fwiw, the chainsaw you put up is a bit too much saw for my needs. That's a heavy duty professional saw that can handle a 59" guide bar. I don't need anything that big, and I doubt I could handle it safely. 20" is plenty for what I'm doing.

Well, the one I have meets the needs of what I'm doing, which is knocking down 70 foot pines. We have a 14" electric chainsaw for trimming and pruning, so we're good to go.

You can't really see it in the pics, but other than all the pines, there's something called "mountain laurel" which is a very hard, very kinked tree/bush that just fucking sucks. .


Mountain laurel Produces a very nice flower and makes nice walking sticks.

To make your job a bit easier and save the chipper cost. As you limb each tree put it on a burning pile. You may burn for days that way but it keeps the cluter down and gets rid of it as you work.

Wet Dirt covered stumps dont burn.

Mountain laurel Produces a very nice flower and makes nice walking sticks.

This is true, but I still hate it, because it's fucking EVERYWHERE here.

To make your job a bit easier and save the chipper cost. As you limb each tree put it on a burning pile. You may burn for days that way but it keeps the cluter down and gets rid of it as you work.

Wet Dirt covered stumps dont burn.

LOL, the problem is, we already have about a 30 foot by 30 foot pile, and if I tried to burn it now, it's waaaaaaaaaaaaay too close to the house. That's why we're gonna push it into the middle of the area I'm clearing to burn, but I have to finish clearing it first.

It's a catch 22.

Home Depot

WTF! You need to be shopping at Lowe's SON.

On a more serious note, I hate Home Depot.

Why didnt you just cut a trail to the middle of where you want the clearing to be and cut your way out?

LOL, the problem is, we already have about a 30 foot by 30 foot pile, and if I tried to burn it now, it's waaaaaaaaaaaaay too close to the house. That's why we're gonna push it into the middle of the area I'm clearing to burn, but I have to finish clearing it first.

It's a catch 22.



Move away from the house and start a small fire, Then start feeding it using the larger pile, Keep it at the size you want. Being that it is friday, I say a 6 pack and a lounge chair would be approprate. Drank my first "Dad Beer" on an afternoon like that.

Move away from the house and start a small fire, Then start feeding it using the larger pile, Keep it at the size you want. Being that it is friday, I say a 6 pack and a lounge chair would be approprate. Drank my first "Dad Beer" on an afternoon like that.

The fire will burn for weeks if I do that. Seriously, weeks. I need to go put up new pictures of the piles.

Still, it's a good idea.

Move away from the house and start a small fire, Then start feeding it using the larger pile, Keep it at the size you want. Being that it is friday, I say a 6 pack and a lounge chair would be approprate. Drank my first "Dad Beer" on an afternoon like that.


That story is just beggign for some meat to cook. I'd make a party out of it, invite the neighbors if ya got any.

man, i wish i had a fuckload of trees to cut down around here.

edit: legally, that is.

The fire will burn for weeks if I do that. Seriously, weeks. I need to go put up new pictures of the piles.

Still, it's a good idea.

Ice storm in 92 took down 35 Pines in our lower bottoms. Took 3 days for them to become a pile of wood to be split, and 3 very large piles of ash.


That story is just beggign for some meat to cook. I'd make a party out of it, invite the neighbors if ya got any.


Nothing like a big fire, cold beer and Hot dogs on a stick.

Nothing like a big fire, cold beer and Hot dogs on a stick.

Well, my little guy has learned to appreciate s'mores, so I think that's what we'd have to go with.

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a353/100T2x3/P3210004.jpg

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a353/100T2x3/P3210002.jpg

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a353/100T2x3/P3210003.jpg


Update: Here are pics taken from the same location as the ones above:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v282/$100T2/PB100022.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v282/$100T2/PB100023.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v282/$100T2/PB100025.jpg

We have almost 3. Right now, I'm only clearing the area in front of the house, which is about half an acre. We just had the stump grinder guy over yesterday, which is why it looks so torn up.

I gotta get a pic of his machine, it kicks ass. 24" rotating wheel driven by a 50 hp diesel engine... It rips the shit out of all the stumps.

I have to get started clearing almost 3 acres of pines, lucky for me they were thinned last year, then a bit track hoe to rip the stumps up.

I have to get started clearing almost 3 acres of pines, lucky for me they were thinned last year, then a bit track hoe to rip the stumps up.

I'm clearing mostly pines, and it's better to get the guy with the grinder for us... We had a stump pulled, and the hole it left was amazing. We're just getting them ground out, then we're gettting a bulldozer in to level it before we bring in loam.

You betcha. My new chainsaw kicks major ass, too. :D

didn't you break down and buy a Stihl after we gave you crap about you old pos Poulan?

No, I broke down and bought a Stihl after the other 5 saws I bought (and subsequently returned) shit the bed. I took 2ndgenrocket's advice and got a nice 16" Stihl. Of course, the guy who comes over to help me with the trees (who does it for a living, and has done so for 27 years) tells me that Husquavarna is better, but I like my Stihl.

When I was younger I did a bit of "back woods" surveying and we used a Stihl to clear lines with. That saw was tought as hell. I got dropped more times than I can count and actually rolled down a couple of nasty hills. The only thing we ever had to replace on it was the chain from normal wear and tear. When I built my cabin in the woods I had to do a bit of clearing myself so I went and got a 16" Stihl and was completely happy with it. Where the cabin sits was mostly medium to old growth oak trees and it cut thru them as you said "like butter". My closest neghbor had a Husquavarna and had a lot of problems with it. Now I have no opinion about them myself, but he was realitivly proficient when it came to mechanical things and after I let him use mine a few times he went and got one for himself.

As far as the chipper is concerned do you plan on building anything on top of any of those stumps? If so I would strongly suggest getting at least those stumps taken completely out. I have seen people use those chippers, then build on top of whats left and every single one of them has problems with their foundation now. And that's with taking the stump down a few feet below the surface. You would be suprised about how resiliant stumps are. It may take a few years but the roots will continue to grow. If you would like I could share some of my experience with you via pm's so I don't have to make long posts like this one.

Stihl is where it is at but I like a Johnsond red also.

I will be making a garden out of my patch so I need it all up and I have the toys to take care of the holes. I may dig the stumps myself just to see what the little hoe can do.

Stihl is legend in the chainsaw business

Wonders never cease to amaze me....This is about the only thing that I actually agree with Yzf on.

And that's with taking the stump down a few feet below the surface. You would be suprised about how resiliant stumps are. It may take a few years but the roots will continue to grow. If you would like I could share some of my experience with you via pm's so I don't have to make long posts like this one.



Dad had a ceder stump Come up on him, He cut it about 6 years ago close enough to the ground so the bush hog would not hit it, This spring the hog hit it enought to cut the stump, We dug down and cut it off again.

Stihl is where it is at but I like a Johnsond red also.

I will be making a garden out of my patch so I need it all up and I have the toys to take care of the holes. I may dig the stumps myself just to see what the little hoe can do.

Man, I tried that and if you don't mind having to weed out little saplings every so often that's cool, but it's a bitch to dig stumps out by hand. And just to subdue anyone from making any "your a pussy" comments here...know that the foundation for my cabin is built completely out of very large stones that I hand dug and laid by myself. The smallest one was IIRC about 1 1/2-2' x 3' x 4'. Frickin' bomb proof foundation.......

Dad had a ceder stump Come up on him, He cut it about 6 years ago close enough to the ground so the bush hog would not hit it, This spring the hog hit it enought to cut the stump, We dug down and cut it off again.

Yea that's always an option, and as far a a garden is concerned it probably wouldn't matter to much other than it's a pain to have to deal with every so often, but when it's your foundation at stake I wouldn't take any chances. Foundation repair is friggin' expencive and definately not good for sheet rock and such.

Man, I tried that and if you don't mind having to weed out little saplings every so often that's cool, but it's a bitch to dig stumps out by hand. And just to subdue anyone from making any "your a pussy" comments here...know that the foundation for my cabin is built completely out of very large stones that I hand dug and laid by myself. The smallest one was IIRC about 1 1/2-2' x 3' x 4'. Frickin' bomb proof foundation.......




when I say by hand I mean with the JD and my hand on the stick :bigthumb: .

But I do have a railroad jack that they say is very handy in digging them with the Chinize Backhoe.

when I say by hand I mean with the JD and my hand on the stick :bigthumb: .

But I do have a railroad jack that they say is very handy in digging them with the Chinize Backhoe.

LOL oh ok! I'll tell you what tho...I've seen some stumps pull the back end of a large backhoe off the ground. It's amazing how deep some trees roots are. I heard some where once that a trees roots are supposed to be as deep as the tree is tall. Now I don't know how much I actually believe that especially since the trees where my cabin is are 100'+ and it's on top of a bluff line so the bedrock definatly isn't that deep, but I would be willing to bet that the roots are sprawled out horizontally easily that much.

LOLERZ I think I just got that "chinese backhoe" thing......der de der der

Shovel.

LOL right.

here's the ticket

http://www.stihlusa.com/chainsaws/MS880.html

This is the one I got:

http://www.stihlusa.com/chainsaws/MS290.html

Does anybody make a 4 stroke chainsaw?

30 more trees went down today. :D

Damn you are a fast tree cutter... Must be gettin paid in teh sex'inz

Here's the guy with the stump grinder... That machine is fucking awesome. It's on tracks, and has a 50 hp diesel spinning a 2 foot wheel that just mows through shit... Next time he's by, I'll get a better shot.

Very nice.

I moved about 1 ton of rock and picked up a car Saturday. Maybe I can get pics of it up later this week.