Am I a wuss?

[thattreeguy]

i think you may be a bit low,
when you figure the cost of the chipper stumper and box plus your labor
i'd hit it with a 3 man crew
to handle the rigging, should be able to do in a day, finish the wood on day 2 when ya do the stump
redirects may be handy, looks like it has a great shape and plenty of height to get a high tie in on so you can walk out pretty far
good luck, dont sink it

 

[Al Smith]

OK, pics. And I said 56"DBH, not across!!!

Aha,the rest of the story .

 

[No_Bivy]

looks easy. 2500 seems a bit high for it. Looks like a honey locust....is it a really thorny one?

 

[SkwerI]

Check your clearance on both sides and flop it towards the street. EZPZ
And that sounds like good money for that tree compared to these parts. Around here that would go for less than $2K, I'd have it brushed out and on the ground in 2-2.5 hours using the bucket.

 

[MasterBlaster]

1000 bucks +/- 200 around here.

 

[blue]

After seeing the pics, yes you are a wuss

 

[PCTREE]

yup Im with MB, Id be at about $$1200 to wreck it and haul + $200 for stump but Im cheap and looking at a picture

 

[woodworkingboy]

Andy, Black locust has good wood for a hinge, the fibers fold well. Should be no problem flopping it where you want it to go, asssuming no or minimal rot.

 

[sotc]

I'm with John, bark looks honey locustish

 

[Ax-Man]

Andy,

If your not comfortable with your climbing skills hire it out. A Honey Loucust is not a tree for a novice climber. The wood is tough and hard to spike. Ever climb a dead tree like an elm or ash, same thing. Your more or less just walking around on the points of your spikes. Your chances of a gaff out and slipping increase compared to other midwest trees. The main stem can be rough and gnarly. The main limbs slick and smooth.

They are not hard trees to climb per say and offer many good rigging points for a removal. They are just hard to handle as the wood is heavy, tons of crisscrossed dead limbs everywhere in the crown. The limbs themselves like to hang together and fight you till they come free, it is like they have fingers on the end them. Locusts are aggrivating trees to work on.

I thought 56 DBH was a little big for Kansas. Glad to hear it was circumference. They can get that big but a loucst that big would be a timber tree and more in the way of a common H. loucust with those nasty thorn thorns a foot long.

4k's is way out of line for that tree. Even some of the prices quoted seem a little steep, from what I have seen of the pics. 2K would be a darn good price for a yard locust for a complete removal. If you can get your equipment in close to it without a lot of dragging and wood carting.

I'd hire your climber buddy if he is good and you and another person keep the ground work moving with your equipment. You can recoop your climber cost back in the winter selling the wood. Locust wood is right up there with oak and hedge . Trouble is trying to sell it that way as people have never heard of loucust as being a good firewood. Don't keep the wood over a year it draws bugs that makes it unsightly to sell.

Go for the job, it isn't that bad. Sounds like a good deal for you. Just make sure your saws are good and sharp.

I don't know if this helps or not but just my 2 cents worth.

 

[Blinky]

I'm with Skwerl, looks like you can flop it toward the street... maybe take some of the sides first.

Around here I would probably price it for about $1725 after rake up. $925 for climber and groundie plus $800 for cleanup, chipping and hauling.

If it's honey locust you may be able to get some wood turning guys to pickup the rounds if they aren't cut too short.

 

[Banned by Squirrels]

Yeah $4000 is a Hawaii price...

 

[sawinredneck]

Been thinking about the flopping it over ideas. There is an awful lot of weight going towards the houses. I THINK I would have to remove some of this to get it over.
It will also block the street for a bit, not a biggie. But I am not sure how far it will get into the yard accros the street, but I am thinking quite a ways. I don't know them nor do I know hwo they would feel about that. Has this ever been an issue with any of you before?
I can get a fulsize Bobcat (763) to pull with if needed, I don't think the mini will be enough with that much back lean/weight on it.
Am I missing something simple and just overthinking this?

 

[SkwerI]

Pace it off. How tall is the tree, 60', 70'? Start at the trunk and pace off 20-23 paces taking normal length steps (36" stride).

As far as the back lean, I'd be very precise with my notch and back cut. I'd also have a line set as high as possible and tied off to a solid anchor (or a Bobcat) and several wedges handy to bang into the back cut. Read some of Burnham's threads for more info on wedging trees over against the lean, he's the f***ing internet expert.

 

[brendonv]

It really doesn't look that tall, but after all-it is a pic.

I've flopped things in the street quick, have on guy on the saw and one on the mini to get the tops out quick.

 

[sotc]

I wouldn't flop it in the street if it couldn't be cleared tootsweet. I definatly wouldn't drop it in the yard across the street without permission from them. If it will reach into that yard i doubt you will have it out of the street in short order

 

[Banned by Squirrels]

Not to mention craters in the lawn.

 

[SkwerI]

The top 10' of the tree won't make craters in the neighbor's lawn. And flopping the tree whole will usually make a lot less craters than chunking everything out.

But then you knew that.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Drop the chunks into a brush bed.

 

[Stumper]

Candy Andy!

 

[Al Smith]

How you get it down is up to you,just a comment on the wood .

Honey locust is really good burning wood but it splits a tad tougher than black locust and it is heavy .Once it lays around the bark starts to fall off faster than most trees and under the bark is where it draws bugs . It is resistant to rot but once again not as much as black locust which is nearly as good as osage orange .

Usually a honey locust has nasty thorns hither and yon that look like a small elks antler .

If you get the job,don't dilly dally splitting and stacking the firewood .

 

[Blinky]

If you flop a big tree in the street, you might want to notify the local EMS that the street will be temporarily blocked. You probably shouldn't put any wood down in the neighbor's yard with permission.

Even with the weight over the house, the tree is still balanced over the stem. It's a big lever and the hinge is the fulcrum. Get the rope high and you'll have lot's of MA to work with. As long as the wood is sound you should be able to leave a beefy hinge and break it over with a stout bull rope and the bobcat. Keep those wedges handy.

 

[woodworkingboy]

We flop a lot of trees in the street, or I should say that the crane usually lays them down there. Street closure or not depends on the amount of traffic, and if a patrol car is likely to come by . Getting a closure permit entails yacking with the police, and a permit fee is required. They can be problematical. Some memorable incidents come to mind when no closure was obtained, with the local residents and their cars. I like to space the cones at just a distance apart, where a car can squeeze through, but it makes the driver think that maybe they don't want to. It's a bit of a self regulating system. Trucks and delivery vehicles get a quick friendly response from the tree guys, though.

 

[Paul B]

Trucks and delivery vehicles get a quick friendly response from the tree guys, though.

I do the same when I block lanes etc for materials like topsoil piles, I cone them off but will hustle out to the lane if I hear a diesel chug along or an air brake purge, dont want to block a fellow thats trying to make a living. Impudent car pilots, on their own.

 

[sawinredneck]

It's looking a little better. The chipper, a 6" Vermeer is $205 a day. The rolloff is $185 dropped, picked up and 2 tons. It's $55 a ton after that.
The grinder is $175 a day or $65 three hours. Not sure if I can do it in three (I'm a newbie ya know).
That leaves money for the climber and hopefull I can work with him and learn more in the proccess of this, and still make a little cash!