The Hobbit Hole III - Journey to the Cross-roads!

[HairOfTheDog]

Welcome to The Hobbit Hole!

Journey to the Cross-roads
The Two Towers Edition

Come on! Come in! -if you would like to have some seedcakes and a pint and relax a while. (If it is a special occasion, we still have a few bottles of the old wineyards left!)

Our first thread ( New Zealander builds Hobbit hole ) reached 4,100 posts, and we thought that was big. Our second thread (The New Hobbit Hole ) held us for over 48,000 posts, and we loved it dearly. We talked about moving to a new thread for the last 38,000 posts, but we are really slow to muster! Finally, the time has come. Tomorrow (at 12:01 am, to be precise!) The Two Towers comes out, and we start a new chapter.

[Overtaxed]

Thanks! I'll check out the 16".

[LowOiL]

Hope I don't cut my foot of with the blasted thing

and you wonder why they call me "LOWoil"? Just kidding.. Going to church, catch ya later..

[HairOfTheDog]

You're gonna cut your foot off.

[Overtaxed]

See ya!

That should have been "cut my foot off with the blasted thing!"

[HairOfTheDog]

Hullo LowOil! Good to see you around these parts on a Sunday!

[osagebowman]

OT: Mine's 14 inch 12amp, make sure you get an extension cord but check the owner's manual for correct amperage first. This is important. You'll probably also need chainsaw bar oil, there's a little reservoir that holds lubricating oil, keeps the chain running smoother. I wouldn't try cutting up anything much over one half the thickness of the bar. It's not a logging saw, but they are the handiest darn things.

HOD: Moracea, Maclura pomifera. The tree has a fascinating history, was originally in a small area of OK and AR, was transplanted by the Osage Indians for bow wood, then early settlers for hedges, all through the midwest in the days before barbed wire. Locally called Hedge, and bodark, the latter is the Americanization of the bois-de-arc french for bow-wood.

[Overtaxed]

Heh...I hope not.

[HairOfTheDog]

Is this it?

I found it on a page called Building the Osage Bow , curiously enough!

[Overtaxed]

I have a 100' extension cord that I use with the string trimmer but I'll have to check the specs on it to see if it'll handle a chainsaw. I haven't finished my "chainsaw research" yet.....got as far as price comparisons and weights.

[HairOfTheDog]

Well, I hope not too! - But chainsaws are very dangerous!

My Dad said one thing about them (when he was trying to talk me out of getting one) that probably rings true. He said the small chainsaws are actually more dangerous because people don't take them seriously, and the lightweight ones lull you into the idea that you can use them one-handed, which is where people get in trouble. So be careful, use two hands, and never cut anything that is over your head!

[Overtaxed]

I know they're dangerous! I don't really want to use one at all. But then being on ladders is dangerous too and I still use them to clean the roof off.

[Sam Cree]

Not that I am very experienced with chainsaws, but a primary danger with cutting up trees is that when a large branch is severed, the stored spring energy within it may be released with unexpected results, like the branch springing at you and knocking the chainsaw into your body or face. Another thing to look out for is burying the tip of the blade into something, this can cause a kickback, throwing the saw at your face.

Had to buy a chainsaw after the hurricane of '92.

[2Jedismom]

[Overtaxed]

I've been doing branches with a hand saw. So far I haven't sawed anything bigger than 4". I've got an oak tree that is about 14" lying across my driveway and some maple trunks maybe 8 to 10" I'd like to cut up for firewood. Then there's the top of that pine tree that's about 12" wide and some smaller trees (4 to 6 inches in diameter) that are bent over with broken bark that need to be taken down.

Thought I'd get professionals to take the bigger stubs down.

[osagebowman]

OT: Yup, like Hair said, they can hurt you. I like the lectric since it is electric, not gas. When you release the trigger, it's off, it's not idling. It's great for trimming and cutting up storm debris, once POWER comes back on. :-)

But unless you feel comfortable with a circular saw and power tools of a similar ilk, stick with a bowsaw. It's even quieter. I like a "Swede Ax" or swede brush cutter for trimming branches off logs and trees. Used one a lot in Oregon, brushing out fire lanes through vine maple, (gad that was a long time ago.) but it is a lot safer than a hatchet or ax.

Hair, yup that's it. BTW your dad is right,

[HairOfTheDog]

A safer and handy (for other projects too) alternative for limbs up to six inches could be a sawzall with a wood-cutting blade on it. Mine is a cordless DeWalt brand. They are more expensive maybe, but they do have enough power for most of the cleanup you need to do... and you don't want to buy it, you might be able to rent one.

[HairOfTheDog]

should be "and IF you don't want to buy it, you might be able to rent one."

[Overtaxed]

I don't really like power tools outside of my electric screwdriver! Wonder how long it'll take me to get that tree off my driveway with a bow saw?

[HairOfTheDog]

Cool pic 2J! I got your email with the rest of them too! - Looks like a fine show day indeed. (Why haven't you made a snowman?)

[Sam Cree]

A 14" diameter tree is plenty large enough to cause the problems I mentioned, IMHO. If you are going to use a chainsaw, I'd wish that you might do a little research on technique, to try and avoid danger.

Could you just pull it out of the road with your car?

Was there another ice storm, OT?