Falling experts, how would you handle this hanger??

[Woody Stover]

The trunk of this Pignut is rotted through, not much appears to be holding it on the stump. I'm wondering how you guys would safely handle this a) if you had any equipment you wanted at your disposal and b) if you had what I have to use which is a Ford 8N tractor, fairly long chain, come-along winch. I thought maybe hook the chain around the trunk and pull it off the stump with the tractor, but what if the trunk rides the stump, and shoots out toward the tractor?!! :grrr:

As you can see, the tree is "crotched," so I guess that'll keep it coming straight down the trunk of the tree it's hung up in.
There is a tree to hook something to maybe 100' from the stump...

http://i1108.photobucket.com/albums/h407/2bnator/004-2.jpg

http://i1108.photobucket.com/albums/h407/2bnator/002-2.jpg

http://i1108.photobucket.com/albums/h407/2bnator/001-7.jpg

 

[smokinj]

Long rope and winch or truck....Would not want to be around that one. Just nothing there.

 

[WoodPorn]

Call me crazy -or- Stupid... But I'd be cutting the tree it's leaning against and get a 2 for 1 deal.

 

[smokinj]

Call me crazy -or- Stupid... But I'd be cutting the tree it's leaning against and get a 2 for 1 deal.

Oh Thats a risky deal....I hate this kinda stuff.

 

[lukem]

Call me crazy -or- Stupid... But I'd be cutting the tree it's leaning against and get a 2 for 1 deal.

I'll call you both. That's how people get killed. Good friend of mine died that way.

I would (in order of likelihood):

1.) Pass on it.
2.) Let nature takes it's course. It will come down eventually.
3.) Winch/pull the base of the leaner.

 

[Creekyphil]

I'd chain run the chain at a right angle to the direction of lean, and then pull with the come along. No tractor required.

 

[Woody Stover]

Call me crazy -or- Stupid... But I'd be cutting the tree it's leaning against and get a 2 for 1 deal.

No, thanks! I'm not a stunt man! :lol:

 

[Woody Stover]

1.) Pass on it.
2.) Let nature takes it's course. It will come down eventually.
3.) Winch/pull the base of the leaner.

These folks have given me quite a bit of wood over the years. This kind of stuff bugs her, so I'll go after it...and getting some Pignut is always a bonus.
I don't really want to leave it, that could be dangerous as well. As Jay pointed out about the trunk, "just nothing there." They're running rotary cutters and mowers close to the tree; If they bump it by accident, or the wind is blowing that day, it could be bad.

 

[lukem]

If it's not your first rodeo with this type of tree, I'd give it a couple tugs with the old Ford. My dad has a TO-30 about the same size as yours and I'd say there's a 50/50 chance it would come down. Could whittle it down a little with the saw and try again.

Edit:

Highly doubt it would come into the tractor, but pulling perpendicular to the lean will eliminate that concern. What will prob happen is the butt will dig into the ground when it comes off the stump.

 

[Thistle]

Parents first told me about this Shagbark in late 2008.It was hit by a small twister or something several months before.Weird though because every other tree nearby regardless of size was untouched.When I took these pics it was June 2009 there was about 10% of it still green.Main stem was 20"DBH & 30ft to the folded over part.Finally brought it down Oct. 2010,had to throw a weighted choker cable between the split part,pull that part down & do the same with lower split piece.Then felling the stem in the normal matter.Made me a bit nervous for a while, I was watching very closely.Just didnt want to be under that sucker in case something changed....Its probably the cause of my few grey hairs lol :bug:

 

[smokinj]

Parents first told me about this Shagbark in late 2008.It was hit by a small twister or something several months before.Weird though because every other tree nearby regardless of size was untouched.When I took these pics it was June 2009 there was about 10% of it still green.Main stem was 20"DBH & 30ft to the folded over part.Finally brought it down Oct. 2010,had to throw a weighted choker cable between the split part,pull that part down & do the same with lower split piece.Then felling the stem in the normal matter.Made me a bit nervous for a while, I was watching very closely.Just didnt want to be under that sucker in case something changed....Its probably the cause of my few grey hairs lol :bug:

Wow!

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Woody, if you can get a chain around it, don't pull it straight down. Pull at an angle and it should come down okay. The tough part is getting the chain around it. That does not look like much holding it!

 

[Wood Duck]

I'd pull on it at a right angle to the lean - that is, I'd pull sideways and see if I can pull the trunk off of the stump. If the chain is long enough that doesn't seem too dangerous. After the tree is pulled off the stump I think you'll have to keep pulling it, so try to attach the chain to the tree securely.

Take this advice with a grain of salt - I have never tried anything similar to this.

 

[smokinj]

I'd pull on it at a right angle to the lean - that is, I'd pull sideways and see if I can pull the trunk off of the stump. If the chain is long enough that doesn't seem too dangerous. After the tree is pulled off the stump I think you'll have to keep pulling it, so try to attach the chain to the tree securely.

Take this advice with a grain of salt - I have never tried anything similar to this.

150 hank of bull rope! You can drop a truck over a cliff and if your anchor good it will hold..............

 

[thewoodlands]

[quote author="Woody Stover" date="1305931103"]The trunk of this Pignut is rotted through, not much appears to be holding it on the stump. I'm wondering how you guys would safely handle this a) if you had any equipment you wanted at your disposal and b) if you had what I have to use which is a Ford 8N tractor, fairly long chain, come-along winch. I thought maybe hook the chain around the trunk and pull it off the stump with the tractor, but what if the trunk rides the stump, and shoots out toward the tractor?!! :grrr:

As you can see, the tree is "crotched," so I guess that'll keep it coming straight down the trunk of the tree it's hung up in.
There is a tree to hook something to maybe 100' from the stump...






I had one just like that, parked the truck next to it (never noticed it until I went to move the truck) left it for mother nature which she took down over the winter or early spring. Mine was bck in the woods and not around the house.




Zap

 

[Thistle]

I'd pull on it at a right angle to the lean - that is, I'd pull sideways and see if I can pull the trunk off of the stump. If the chain is long enough that doesn't seem too dangerous. After the tree is pulled off the stump I think you'll have to keep pulling it, so try to attach the chain to the tree securely.

Take this advice with a grain of salt - I have never tried anything similar to this.

150 hank of bull rope! You can drop a truck over a cliff and if your anchor good it will hold..............

+100

 

[Woody Stover]

Parents first told me about this Shagbark in late 2008.It was hit by a small twister or something several months before.Weird though because every other tree nearby regardless of size was untouched...had to throw a weighted choker cable between the split part,pull that part down & do the same with lower split piece...Its probably the cause of my few grey hairs

Yikes!! On the plus side, some of the trunk was pre-split for you. :lol:
I'm probably older than you are, and have had more chances to almost kill myself. I have lots of grey hair. :lol:
As has been mentioned, pulling it off the stump at an angle seems like the way to go. I don't want it shooting off the stump into the back of the tractor. It's not my tractor, but still... :lol:

Speaking of weird twister events, my neighbor had only a couple of smaller limbs come down but a quarter-mile down the road there were a bunch of trees taken down. In the other direction, a communications tower rated for 90 mph winds had its top bent over, pointing to the ground.

 

[Thistle]

Yikes!! On the plus side, some of the trunk was pre-split for you. :lol:
I'm probably older than you are, and have had more chances to almost kill myself. I have lots of grey hair. :lol:


Speaking of weird twister events, my neighbor had only a couple of smaller limbs come down but a quarter-mile down the road there were a bunch of trees taken down. In the other direction, a communications tower rated for 90 mph winds had its top bent over, pointing to the ground.

lol I'm 47.Worked construction for 27 yrs & part time in the woods & occasionally for hire since I was 17.Worked for local tree service from age 18-20.Had more than a few close calls over the yrs.Tore left knee cartilage late 1991,serious back injury in 2000,scaffold collapse + falling 20 ft in 2002,bad car accident in late 2004 where some ahole run a red light & t-boned me.Most days I feel OK,others its miserable.I just do what I can,dont try to push myself anymore.Stop when I get tired etc.

 

[mayhem]

150 hank of bull rope! You can drop a truck over a cliff and if your anchor good it will hold..............

What's a hank? Is this like a face cord?

I'd say rope it and go around the closest sturdy tree and pull it with the tractor. Won't take too much pull to get it off that rotten stump and lay it down.

 

[smokinj]

150 hank of bull rope! You can drop a truck over a cliff and if your anchor good it will hold..............

What's a hank? Is this like a face cord?

I'd say rope it and go around the closest sturdy tree and pull it with the tractor. Won't take too much pull to get it off that rotten stump and lay it down.

Hank Is on piece of rope. Bull rope is used mainly for dropping big chunks of wood out of a tree to lower it to safety. My 9/16 inch bull line is rated at 12,500 tensile strength.

 

[firefighterjake]

I'd pull on it at a right angle to the lean - that is, I'd pull sideways and see if I can pull the trunk off of the stump. If the chain is long enough that doesn't seem too dangerous. After the tree is pulled off the stump I think you'll have to keep pulling it, so try to attach the chain to the tree securely.

Take this advice with a grain of salt - I have never tried anything similar to this.

I generally don't offer advice on how to take down trees since a) I'm not an expert and b) the last thing I would want to do is give advice to someone and have it go bad on them . . . but honestly, if this was my wood I would do what Wood Duck said as one of the safer ways to bring this down.

 

[smokinj]

150 hank of bull rope! You can drop a truck over a cliff and if your anchor good it will hold..............

What's a hank? Is this like a face cord?

I'd say rope it and go around the closest sturdy tree and pull it with the tractor. Won't take too much pull to get it off that rotten stump and lay it down.

Bull line is as strong as chain but will not kill you if it snaps!

 

[Backwoods Savage]

150 hank of bull rope! You can drop a truck over a cliff and if your anchor good it will hold..............

What's a hank? Is this like a face cord?

I'd say rope it and go around the closest sturdy tree and pull it with the tractor. Won't take too much pull to get it off that rotten stump and lay it down.

Bull line is as strong as chain but will not kill you if it snaps!

Right Jay!

 

[KarlP]

Bull line is as strong as chain but will not kill you if it snaps!

Huh?

I've got 3/8 G70 binder chain and 5/8 12-strand bull rope. I suspect those are commonly used sizes.

The working load limit and breaking strength of the chain is more than twice that of the bull rope. Also, 150' of binder chain will snap after it is stretched a tiny bit over its length. 150' of bull rope will stretch much more before snapping. More elongation at the breaking point = more energy in the line when it snaps.


(Unless you're talking about morons backing up their truck and yanking with chain instead of slowly taking the slack out of it. In which case I wouldn't fault the chain, hitch, bumper, frame, or tree for becoming a projectile. You can't fix stupid.)

 

[smokinj]

Bull line is as strong as chain but will not kill you if it snaps!

Huh?

I've got 3/8 G70 binder chain and 5/8 12-strand bull rope. I suspect those are commonly used sizes.

The working load limit and breaking strength of the chain is more than twice that of the bull rope. Also, 150' of binder chain will snap after it is stretched a tiny bit over its length. 150' of bull rope will stretch much more before snapping. More elongation at the breaking point = more energy in the line when it snaps.


(Unless you're talking about morons backing up their truck and yanking with chain instead of slowly taking the slack out of it. In which case I wouldn't fault the chain, hitch, bumper, frame, or tree for becoming a projectile. You can't fix stupid.)

When a chain snaps it is a projectile! Why you think it snap tensil or pull what makes it snap. (dont have to be stupid to break a chain or rope).......If you have 5/8 bull line that should be in the 18,000 tensile strength why would you use anything Else. Never see a tree company of any kind with a bag of chain. Oh and darn sure be pretty silly carrying 150 foot of chain...Just saying!