How'd it go today?

Busy couple of days -- bunch of pruning yesterday morning, then on to the main gig: a property outside of town, dropping two Siberian elms (one co-dominant) flanked by Osage oranges, so it was a crispy clump of yuck. Got the leaders down & chipped, then on to pruning a large pin oak over the driveway, and lifting the canopy of another oak. Ran out of daylight, so back this morning. We lifted the canopy on 2 more maples, climber took another maple off of the house roof and I trimmed off some lower limbs. Then I cut up an ash spar and took down the rest of the Siberian elm spars and chipped them up. Then a whole row of trees -- Osages and elms got a canopy raising. Done around noon.

Afternoon job was trimming a silver maple, trimming & deadwood 3 pin oaks, trimming a red bud and 2 more silver maples out back. We had a nice afternoon at the new golf course -- homeowner's property abutted it, we needed to drop a 14" silver maple leader into the course, as well as bomb some more maple limbs out on it. Then drove the chipper truck across the field (future green) and backed up to the pile, winched stuff in. Good thing the course is still under construction (still heavy equipment all about), or they would've been less than thrilled at our maneuvers!
 
Sorry Mick, I completely missed that, since we were talking about saws.

I have the TP 275's little brother, the TP 175.

I'm really happy with it.
My main problem with the other TPs I've had was that they rusted badly.
The factory has started using a new line of anti corrosion treatment and paint.
The finish on the chippers look WAY better now, and they claim to have fixed the rust problem.

The control bar is too sensitive for my taste, or maybe it is simply due to the placement.
On my other two chippers, it was above the chute.

Apart from that I really like it a lot.
 
Ok cheers, the Forst has been a disappointment build wise. I’ve had a quote for the TP. Not cheap but I’m looking to get a chipper to take me through to retirement.

We’ll see.
 
One thing about the TPs is they last a long time.

So they don't lose value fast.

When we sold our last one after 9 years, we got half of what we'd originally paid for it.
 
Resale value isn’t an issue.

I just want a machine I can trust. This thing chips great, but you’re always listening/ watching for the next failed weld or whatever.
 
Day started off ok. Loaded out the wood from that rotten removal yesterday first thing. The hollow log is at the shop for me to bring home tomorrow night. Started pruning a declining red maple and by the time I finished it I was starting to not feel to good. Dead wooded an oak and called it a day. I was home by lunch. Been feeling like shit most of the day now. Eating dinner might have been a mistake. Gonna try and keep it down and hope to sleep it away tonight.
 
Started a big 2 day removal today -- 20 white pines around the perimeter of a backyard and a mature ash by the back deck. Mostly drop-n-chip, leave the wood, but a few needed to be climbed & pieced out. Owner said it was fine to trash the fence or fell trees on the deck if we wanted to. Trying not to take him up on his offer, but the fence is pretty rickety -- posts, 2x4 top rail and coated chainlink. knocked a couple of top rails off -- should be easily fixed tomorrow. I dropped a couple of leaners -- one strong back leaner I dropped at 90 degrees to the lean, to get it away from the corner of the fence. Other one was about 45 degrees off the lean, beautiful lay, right where it needed to be. Still 2 loads of chips today with just the brush. Back in the morning for round 2, but at least we knocked out a good 2/3-3/4 of the job today.
 
This week I had an opportunity to turn my employee loose with the small bucket truck. I took a job helping out a buddy on an underbid apartment complex job. 384 palms to trim plus a few thousand dollars worth of oak trimming. My buddy had employees to handle cleanup so I brought both bucket trucks and Ron and I have just been cutting the last few days. This is Ron's first time actually running the truck for an extended period, including setting it up and moving it between setups. He did a fantastic job and really enjoyed it as well. I'm enjoying watching him turn into a real tree man as well as a valuable employee.
 
This week I had an opportunity to turn my employee loose with the small bucket truck. I took a job helping out a buddy on an underbid apartment complex job. 384 palms to trim plus a few thousand dollars worth of oak trimming. My buddy had employees to handle cleanup so I brought both bucket trucks and Ron and I have just been cutting the last few days. This is Ron's first time actually running the truck for an extended period, including setting it up and moving it between setups. He did a fantastic job and really enjoyed it as well. I'm enjoying watching him turn into a real tree man as well as a valuable employee.

Give him a raise
 
Did what I could to make lemonade with the lemons of a sick kid at home.

FF trainee guy (second working day) came over and we took care of a bunch of stuff, pruning a ton of deadwood and some storm-damaged, overcrowded limbs on an elm, since elm beetle season is over. Re-stacked a lot of lumber/ slabs in a higher, drier, tighter stacks, freeing up some hardened driveway space. Use of my field is going to come to a rapid decline soon, unless I figure where I want to gravel-in some driving space/ parking/ material storage. Rain coming. Cleaned this and that. Cleaned up a lot of leaves and the roof and gutters. Leaf season is almost over.

Has his head on straight. Good change of pace.






Mountain lion spotted nearby, not by anyone I know.
 
Sean, when you say elm beetle, are you talking about elm leaf beetle, or the bark beetle that spreads dutch elm disease?
We have elm leaf beetle here in Tassie, I prune all year despite it...
 
Elms are cool. We have a few enormous ones in this area. Periodically plenty of medium to large ones die of DED, but overall they persist. One old timer pointed out to me that they often seem to thrive in a street environment, and sure enough there is a 4 and a 5 footer nearby, one on US Rt 1 and the other on a busy local street.

Elms persisting after the major DED dieoff- perhaps Ashes can do the same despite the EAB onslaught. The older I get the more I love and appreciate trees.
 
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