Since we got on trees a combo tree/tractor.
The Kubota had about 3 hours on it so although I had a few thousand hours general tractor experience it was new to me and I was unfamiliar with its capabilities. Was cutting a large oak in the edge of the woods within striking distance of my house. Had it roped to the base of a large tree away from the house with a 30K work strength rope so no way it could fall toward the house. Had another rope hooked to the tractor to pull it if needed.
My father was there to observe and advise. He had cut many, many trees and had little confidence in my abilities despite my time with a tree service causing me to have felled many more than him. Because we were dropping it toward the woods we had a very narrow window to drop it where it wouldn’t get hung up in other large trees. I made the face cut, looked it over, and told my father I needed to adjust it just a little bit as the original cut would hit the big tree on the right we were trying to miss. He said it looked good to him. We debated it a good 15 minutes and he finally convinced me to proceed without adjusting the face cut. Made the back cut and it wasn’t falling, which was no shock the way it was weighted. Pulled on it with the Kubota and couldn’t budge it. Was kind of disappointed in the lack of drawbar power. Wedged it over and it fell exactly where I said it would, hung up in the big hickory on the right. My father said, “You know, back when I wasn’t very good at cutting trees I’d use a trick where I’d put a rafter square in the face cut and wherever that rafter square is pointing is where the tree is going.” I asked him if he had a rafter square. He said he did. Probably the most disrespectful thing I ever said to him, but requested he go get his rafter square and shove it up his a$$ because it fell exactly where I said it would.
So then we had this tree at a 45 degree angle inexorably entangled and pulling more with the Kubota was doing nothing, so we finished cutting the hinge off hoping it would slide down. It didn’t. So then took the Kubota and tried pushing it off the stump with the loader. No good and still disappointed with the lack of power. Hooked my father’s alleged grade 70 1/4” 50’ chain to it to pull it off. Broke the chain twice (obviously not a 70). Moved up to a pair of 25’ 3/8” chains. Still no good. Used a 100 ton railroad jack against an adjacent tree and pushed it off the stump. It immediately jammed in the dirt, hung as bad as ever. All this took about two hours of screwing around with it after it was hung.
I was really disappointed in the lack of power my new tractor had in comparison to our old gassers, but we’d tried using the old Farmall H as well and it wouldn’t move it either. Then had a moment of clarity, looked at the range shifter and saw I’d had the dang Kubota in Medium the whole time. Got the H out of the way, rehooked the 3/8” chains, WOT, low gear, and plowed ditch with the butt of the tree until the whole thing finally came down. I was much happier with the max drawbar on my new tractor.
The tree came down, no one got hurt, no damage other than my father’s proof coil 1/4” chain and a little bit to the hickory tree. But there was a LOT of stupid going on that day.
