Hello there,
A group of friends and I have been gradually chopping down some Cypress trees in my garden under instruction from my insurance company as they're causing subsidence in my house. We've been battling away with bow saws and even a hack saw and progress seems slow. From the start I was looking to get them down extremely cheaply and not involve expensive tree fellers costing me hundreds of pounds which I can ill afford. Chainsaws were mentioned but i'm looking for a more manual angle. The bow saws we have seem to take forever to slice through the bark, could anyone recommend something that could get the job done quicker, bearing in mind nothing electrical! Someone at work mentioned a 'tree saw' which is tougher than a bow saw, but I can't seem to find this tool. Would an axe do the trick? Diesel in the bark (drastic last resort if bow saw's the only option!)? Any tool that can slice through the bark quicker than a bow saw and get the job done in half the time would be exceedingly handy. Any ideas?
Cheers for your help!

Tone70 writes:

Hello there,
A group of friends and I have been gradually chopping down some Cypress
trees in my garden under instruction from my insurance company as
they're causing subsidence in my house.

Highly doubtful.

We've been battling away with
bow saws and even a hack saw and progress seems slow. From the start I

Hack saw? You're kidding right?

Do you mean one of these:

http://tinyurl.com/3faanb6

If so, wrong blade.

If you want to use this tool, you want one with teeth about a half inch
long. (1.25cm).

was looking to get them down extremely cheaply and not involve expensive
tree fellers costing me hundreds of pounds which I can ill afford.
Chainsaws were mentioned but i'm looking for a more manual angle. The
bow saws we have seem to take forever to slice through the bark, could
anyone recommend something that could get the job done quicker, bearing
in mind nothing electrical! Someone at work mentioned a 'tree saw' which
is tougher than a bow saw, but I can't seem to find this tool. Would an
axe do the trick? Diesel in the bark (drastic last resort if bow saw's

Diesel? You're kidding again right?

the only option!)? Any tool that can slice through the bark quicker than
a bow saw and get the job done in half the time would be exceedingly
handy. Any ideas?

Axe is probably a little easier than a bow saw.

What you want is a chain saw. Depending on your situation, an electric
chain saw might be sufficient.

As for "tree saw" someone might be thinking of a big 2 person saw.
If you don't have 2 people forget it.

--
Dan Espen

Hi Tone, It sounds to me like the bowsaw you are using is either very blunt or has a cheap blade ?? I would go to a hardware store and buy a new one, they are not very expensive ! and get one thats about 20" long, it will be much easier to use. I'm a professional gardener and whilst I have all manner of equipment, I still like using my bowsaw, I find it very useful especially when up a tree.
One word of warning, please stay away from chainsaws if you dont know what your doing, they are good tools but they demand the upmost respect and you need to have not only confidence but a high skill level to use one safely, especially if there are other people around you !
A good bowsaw will cut through cypress trees very easily !
Lannerman.

On 06/02/2011 03:03 PM, Tone70 wrote:
Hello there,
A group of friends and I have been gradually chopping down some Cypress
trees in my garden under instruction from my insurance company as
they're causing subsidence in my house. We've been battling away with
bow saws and even a hack saw and progress seems slow. From the start I
was looking to get them down extremely cheaply and not involve expensive
tree fellers costing me hundreds of pounds which I can ill afford.
Chainsaws were mentioned but i'm looking for a more manual angle. The
bow saws we have seem to take forever to slice through the bark, could
anyone recommend something that could get the job done quicker, bearing
in mind nothing electrical! Someone at work mentioned a 'tree saw' which
is tougher than a bow saw, but I can't seem to find this tool. Would an
axe do the trick? Diesel in the bark (drastic last resort if bow saw's
the only option!)? Any tool that can slice through the bark quicker than
a bow saw and get the job done in half the time would be exceedingly
handy. Any ideas?
Cheers for your help!




What is your reason for not wanting something electrical?
A reciprocating saw works for me when I cut Juniper trees
which I think would be similar to a Cypress tree.

--

Tone70 wrote:
Hello there,
A group of friends and I have been gradually chopping down some
Cypress trees in my garden under instruction from my insurance
company as they're causing subsidence in my house. We've been
battling away with bow saws and even a hack saw and progress seems
slow. From the start I was looking to get them down extremely cheaply
and not involve expensive tree fellers costing me hundreds of pounds
which I can ill afford. Chainsaws were mentioned but i'm looking for
a more manual angle. The bow saws we have seem to take forever to
slice through the bark, could anyone recommend something that could
get the job done quicker, bearing in mind nothing electrical! Someone
at work mentioned a 'tree saw' which is tougher than a bow saw, but I
can't seem to find this tool. Would an axe do the trick? Diesel in
the bark (drastic last resort if bow saw's the only option!)? Any
tool that can slice through the bark quicker than a bow saw and get
the job done in half the time would be exceedingly handy. Any ideas?
Cheers for your help!

I am concerned that you seem to have little or no idea about this project
and that you may do harm to your house or yourself. How tall are these
trees? How many of them? How thick is the heaviest trunk?

Felling large trees near a house is NOT something to take on if you know so
little that you would use a hacksaw.

A bowsaw about 70cm long with teeth about 9 mm will cut quite large branches
with a person on each end provided it is sharp (buy a new blade if it isn't)
and the two know how to cooperate and how to not jam the blade. Hiring a
chainsaw would be a cost effective option but you need somebody who knows
how to use it, also you need safety gear but that ought to be supplied with
the saw. A clumsy tyro can cut off their foot as easily as the tree branch.
I fear an accident in the making.

David

Tone70 wrote:
A group of friends and I have been gradually chopping down some
Cypress trees in my garden under instruction from my insurance
company as they're causing subsidence in my house. We've been
battling away with bow saws and even a hack saw and progress seems
slow. From the start I was looking to get them down extremely cheaply
and not involve expensive tree fellers costing me hundreds of pounds
which I can ill afford. Chainsaws were mentioned but i'm looking for
a more manual angle.

Well, since you wanted a more manual angle what are you bitchin' about
it appears you got your wish.

On Jun 2, 8:13*pm, "David Hare-Scott" wrote:
Tone70 wrote:
Hello there,
A group of friends and I have been gradually chopping down some
Cypress trees in my garden under instruction from my insurance
company as they're causing subsidence in my house. We've been
battling away with bow saws and even a hack saw and progress seems
slow. From the start I was looking to get them down extremely cheaply
and not involve expensive tree fellers costing me hundreds of pounds
which I can ill afford. Chainsaws were mentioned but i'm looking for
a more manual angle. The bow saws we have seem to take forever to
slice through the bark, could anyone recommend something that could
get the job done quicker, bearing in mind nothing electrical! Someone
at work mentioned a 'tree saw' which is tougher than a bow saw, but I
can't seem to find this tool. Would an axe do the trick? Diesel in
the bark (drastic last resort if bow saw's the only option!)? Any
tool that can slice through the bark quicker than a bow saw and get
the job done in half the time would be exceedingly handy. Any ideas?
Cheers for your help!

I am concerned that you seem to have little or no idea about this project
and that you may do harm to your house or yourself. *How tall are these
trees? *How many of them? *How thick is the heaviest trunk?

Felling large trees near a house is NOT something to take on if you know so
little that you would use a hacksaw.

No kidding. During my undergrad days I worked summers for the US
Forest Service. This is simple stuff to learn, but difficult to put
into practice. I also don't know what size trees we're talking about,
but even a little one can kill you if it lands on your head. And even
using an axe, if the tree is rotten inside it can split right up the
middle- seen it happen. If you're lucky, half the trunk won't pop off
your cut and bash your brains out.

Another happy thought- he should be checking the upper stories of the
trees for widow-makers...loose or dead branches that can be dislodged
by the vibrations of ax or saw on the trunk. They fall down right
alongside the trunk, and inevitably on the side where you're standing.
There's a reason people call them that, you know...

No, I would definitely not recommend putting a chainsaw into Tone70's
hands.

Someone already mentioned a two-man saw. Here's one:

http://www.jackscountrystore.co/512foottwo-mansaw.aspx

But that's misleading. You need two people on the saw and one person
as a spotter- you _always_ have a spotter along, doing nothing but
watching the tree, ready to yell when something bad happens. And if
you cut down enough trees, something bad eventually WILL happen.

Chris


A bowsaw about 70cm long with teeth about 9 mm will cut quite large branches
with a person on each end provided it is sharp (buy a new blade if it isn't)
and the two know how to cooperate and how to not jam the blade. *Hiring a
chainsaw would be a cost effective option but you need somebody who knows
how to use it, also you need safety gear but that ought to be supplied with
the saw. *A clumsy tyro can cut off their foot as easily as the tree branch.
I fear an accident in the making.

David

Despen,
The reasoning for cutting down the cypress trees came from the so called 'professionals' at my insurance company who are insisting the first 6 trees come down as they're certain that's the reason for the subsidence. My thoughts were 'they're professionals, they know what they're talking about'. They'll only carry out repairs to the house once this is done.
Also I notice the hacksaw mention has got a few people excited! This was only used the first time we attempted to chop them down and It was quickly discovered to be a silly idea. That diesel plan was suggested by another 'expert' insisting that putting that in the bark should 'sort it out'. Spookily enough he's not a gardener by trade or ventures into one very often! The two person saw sounds interesting and luckily enough I've 4 people to help me!
Also the only reason I'm shying away from the chainsaw is reflected in two key words: 'amateur' and 'danger'. Taking the cheap option to me means using saws and possibly axes to chop them down unless a kindly individual who's adept at using a chainsaw safely just happens to offer their services cheaply!

An obvious assertion there Mr Brooklyn. Cheers for that! I shall take your advice away and treat it with the utmost respect it deserves!

Mysterious traveller (one of Peter Gabriel's old monikers as I recall!),

As I've stated in another reply it's the whole amateur gardener thing and not wanting the wife despairing over highly dangerous pursuits with electrical tools.
A reciprocating saw sounds interesting though, I shall look that up.

Lannerman,

Sound advice sir! I must admit, the bowsaw I do have was purchased rather cheaply. Something of a bit higher quality could be the order of the day.