A match made in heaven I'd say. Often times I use these machines together. We have a long driveway, and after a storm it's not uncommon to find trees have fallen across it. Also, if felling a tree close to a house or barn I use the backhoe as a little insurance if you will as to the falling direction. After cutting the tree into firewood, I'll use the backhoe to transport the wood to the wood rack. Who else uses their backhoe with a chainsaw?
That's pretty much all we use our Backhoe for is cutting and moving trees
sounds like a plywood saw holder on the hood would be a good addition.
That's a real good idea. My backhoe has a metal hood too, so it could be magnetic and easily removable. I just sawed a dead hickory tree and used the backhoe to help. I put the saw on cardboard next to the drivers seat which works, but your idea better.
I like to make them out of plywood because the chain is hard on everything and everything is hard on the chain at the same time lol.
Welcome to HEF, Hppyglmr !
Yup. I work for Costa Rican lumberjacks a lot also, that's almost a sector of my clientele. That is, when I'm not the lumberjack. Pulling saw logs out of the woods and loading the truck. And then all the basic trees on the farm stuff too in my personal life.
They make a good working couple. Tie off to the hoe. Cut, then fish out of the water. As with everything, be cautious. They do try and get revenge. There’s battle scars to prove that.
A lot of my property is hemlock rainforest and not backhoe friendly, too soft for the big machine, but once the wood gets skidded out and processed the hoe is my main firewood transport because it also has the biggest bucket and when running a large portable sawmill the 580C has no problem moving 24 inch saw logs up to 24 feet long which is the limit of the mill..We don't cut stuff that big very often but we had to see what both machines were capable of...
I've used mine for a fair amount of lumberjacking as well. Makes a lot of the work much easier. I have a couple pretty big trees that need to come down, likely this summer, and I'm also hoping to use the hoe to help direct the fall, either by pushing a bit or tying a rope off to and pulling a bit from a distance. From what I've done my best help has been to drag entire trees to a pile where I store them or let them rot away.
Well I have some chainsaws but no back-hoe! Closest thing to a back-hoe is a 1947 Farmall BN. As most of the trees I have access to for firewood are on the smaller size my main saws are a couple Homelite Super 2's with 14 inch bars also have a 16inc Poulan. Kind of sucks right now as I have a torn rotator cuff in right shoulder and will probably not be in shape to do much work with any of these till late summer/early fall. Lucky have enough firewood cut, split and stacked for at least one more winter! OH! and yes welcome to the forum to Hppyglmr!
Backhoes and chainsaws.....are for sissies. .....and I.....am a sissy! Wife's cousin (who lives next door) had a tree that was within striking distance of his house.... wanted to take it out. It's behind the house....what to do? I went over, looked at situation, made a suggestion and down it came. I have a 'home' for my 24" chainsaw. Front left corner of the cab (who's glass is missing) so I put the blade out the 'window' so it's out of the way of everything. I have not yet figured out a way to easily carry around my extending Stihl pole saw. I might rig some form of hooks on the passenger side of machine so I can hang it there when using it and carrying it around. I'm very nervous on putting it into the bucket...... at least once in my life I had something in the bucket that I was carrying and ended up dumping it when something caught my eye that I wanted to move and I forgot it was in there.
guilty here, one time I quickly grabbed some bedding, with a stihl pipe saw in the bucket ( DOH emoji) I luckily did not hurt it.
I had my Stihl 044 out in the field, (had some trees piled up to burn) Was working with backhoe.... put chainsaw "over there" so it's out of the way. Yep....forgot about it, as I was backing up, the machine felt like it went over a... well, felt like it went over a Stihl 044 chainsaw that some dumbazz left in the field. Picked up saw... bar was bent about 90 degrees. Handle smashed, pull handle assembly smashed. Ordered new parts and it's back like new. NOW, I'm pretty OCD about "setting it down" BACK INTO the cab of the backhoe so I can't crush it again.
@Coytee that is the first time I've seen that tree tipping method in a picture and for whatever reason I didn't quite understand it previously. Now I do. Pretty slick! Thanks!
You're welcome. When I down a tree I'd prefer to pull the stump out. I can cut the tree then dig and dig and dig on the stump. Or, dig on three sides letting the 4th side act as an anchor to help hold the tree. Fortunately for this tree, the tree appeared to have its weight on the "away from the house" side which dovetailed nicely with the hinge to help it fall away rather than towards. I am however, always on pins/needles when dropping any tree. Even right now.... There is a tree that has essentially fallen but is hung up that needs dropped. I'm trying to get the weights back on my hoe to wrap my grade 100 chain around the tree to see if I can wiggle/wrestle it down. It's going to domino at least one pine (which is falling in the away direction) It's on TVA land and I've called them. His "panic over the phone" voice doesn't match them actually getting out here to see it.... since it's going to fall over our right of way to get in/out, I'll let them do it BUT, if I get my weights back on my hoe first, then I'll do it. You can sort of see the pine tree that's bending because of this one being hung up on it. Not getting anywhere near it with my chainsaw!!!
I am a Husqvarna guy. I have a T435 top handle with 12" bar and a 576XP Autotune with a 20" and 36" bar. https://www.husqvarna.com/us/products/chainsaws/t435/966997203/ https://www.peninsulapowersports.co...dotna-AK-c4fcf4ef-26ae-499c-b2e3-a9dd00527995
Yeah, looking at that method, and thinking about a couple trees I'd like to use that method on makes me feel the same way. I feel like while it's probably pretty effective I'd hate to see a tree come back in the direction of my hole, or not being able to get to the roots enough for it to fall when I push. Or rain down limbs when I go to push... The biggest tree I have right now to take down is a dead ash and while it's not going to ruin anything too badly regardless of which way it falls it does have a twist or two below the half-height point that makes me nervous because I'd like for it to fall one way. I've also recently read some horror stories of experienced fellers having issues with ash trees and that makes me a bit more nervous. I've knocked over or cut down quite a few of them without major issues but every tree is a new kind of scary.
Side comment....I'm originally from Ohio (Hamilton) My mom was from Piqua and my dad, Findlay. (That and .35 cents will still not get you a cup of coffee)
@Coytee that is a widowmaker for sure. My neighbor had a dead one leaning on another dead one, both aiming out to a lawn that he mowed. It made me crazy with worry. One day after a job I brought home the 120 excavator, unloaded it and sneaked it in there and laid them both down in minutes. It took far longer to chain and unchain it. That shop in the picture thread I was protecting? I knocked down a few trees with the "cut the near roots and send it" method with the 120, preparing for that build. there was a tree right by the corner of the house to go, and a really narrow path to hit with it. A faller I am not, but it went where I directed it with the 120. There were a couple of rockery beds to thread it between, and 'nailed it'. We are all pumped with the results, and this squirrel pops out of the wreckage and gives us hell for knocking down the nest. Oops!
I usually put a pile of dirt next to hole where the tree is going lay. When it goes over the stump will rise up out of the hole. Then I can put dirt under the root ball before I cut it off the trunk.
@Coytee I spent a couple years of my childhood in Hamilton as well! We lived right on Main Street, a couple blocks northwest of the river and downtown.
For those looking for a way to transport their saw, check out the ATV chainsaw mounts. This would function great or build one to match. I like the clamp version myself but to each his own. Something like that could be mounted on the exterior of the cab and be safe there.
I like the chainsaw mount idea. I have 15 acres of heavily wooded land. I need to clear a spot for a house, shop building and driveway. I like the chainsaw mount idea. I could weld one to the fender. Thanks for the idea.
I make a plywood box that fits it tight, with plywood around the bar. That way you just drop it in and go, like a rifle scabbard.
If its close to a house, I like to get a chain as high as possible to control, cut the wedge, pull on it, then make the back cut. Attaching the chain this way is probably not OSHA approved..
Then call a neighbor to come and get the bigger sections
Just be careful when you are pushing over trees and the stumps come out. I ran over the side of a stump and it stood up about 12 ft of leftover tree and smashed out my side window.
I got a new chainsaw. It's kinda heavy and loud but man does it CUT!
I got a herna just thinking about it!!...LOL
That must be for limbing a tree. My saw has the proper number of cylinders.......
maybe that hardley motor will leak oil on the chain where it needs to be instead of on the exhaust pipe or ground!
NH that saw would be even more impressive if it was a panhead edgephoto I don't see a turbo on your saw, that's all that's missing...obviously both of you kids went to the Tim Taylor school of saw repair oh oh oh....
Not quite like the 2 above but I'm always amazed at when I see the death trap saws on what I assume were the '60s and 70's. I'm not huge into being a safety nazi and all that but those things looks scary just sitting there.
My father grew up on a farm in Texas. For extra money they would harvest the pines on the property. To do this they used a chainsaw with a bow instead of a bar...Fast forward to when I was young, my dad purchased the old saw from his parents, and my brother and I were the new operators, as we used wood to heat the house. This was the heaviest saw I have ever seen as it was all aluminum. But, put the teardrop against the wood and raise the handle, and she would EAT...Eat like no other saw I have used. I don't know what ever happened that that old saw. This these pics are from the internet, but this is the saw for sure
I stihl have a pair of Stihls from before brakes in my shed. We got them new in 1980. It is odd because we had a Mac 55 in 1975 that had a brake on it.
I have a homelite 410 with no brake, and same vintage homelite 540 with a brake (late 80's saws). @Swetz that thar be a 'bow saw'. There was a great write up some time ago on arboristsite about bow saws. They were designed as a pinchless chainsaw, ideal for cutting pulpwood.
Did someone say Tractors & Chainsaws! Here is some XXX rated equipment porn
That tractor is tough it's a weight lifter!
Not only that, but if you're mowing and feel the urge for a workout, get after it off the front of the tractor.
LOL...That is my low cost front weights. When I put the mower or brush hog on, it needs weight...so, I went to new holland. They wanted hundreds of $$ for a rack and the weights, and get this, it was not available for the foreseeable future. So, I had the idea to add regular weights. I was at Wall Mart and they had a pickup truck bumper hitch marked down for clearance. Then I bought the receiver, but made sure it was 1" like most weights. Found a piece of 1" threaded rod that I purchased when a Sears Hardware was going out of business. Last thing was to go on Craigslist for the weights. I got lucky enough to find a guy right by my house that was getting rid of tons of weights. I really didn't want them all, but he wanted them gone, and they were free. I now have a lot of extra weights sitting by my container, that I really have no use for...LOL Anyhow, I played around with the weights until it felt right (no more wheelies).
LOL... The only urge I get to workout is 12oz at a time...curls
List the extras on Craigslist or Facebook marketplace. $1 per pound. I've been looking for a nice used bench and weight set and can't find anything I'm willing to pay for. Used prices are almost as high as new around here.
I rigged this puppy up out of what I think was a poulan bow about ten years ago. I haven't used it much, but it sure is neat.