What is the dumbest thing you have done with a chain saw?

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Atomic Hawg

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For me, it was this Monday, cutting a large limb on the maple tree in my front yard. The tree is near power lines, but I did not think the limb would strike the lines. When the limb fell, it ripped the line off my house and dropped it to the ground. Amazingly, we didn't lose power, but it was pretty embarrassing having to call the power company and then talk to the lineman when he came to reattach the line.
Anyone else brave enough to admit doing something this stupid?
 
Atomic Hawg said:
For me, it was this Monday, cutting a large limb on the maple tree in my front yard. The tree is near power lines, but I did not think the limb would strike the lines. When the limb fell, it ripped the line off my house and dropped it to the ground. Amazingly, we didn't lose power, but it was pretty embarrassing having to call the power company and then talk to the lineman when he came to reattach the line.
Anyone else brave enough to admit doing something this stupid?
Click to expand...

I grazed some power lines once... I didn't knock anything down, but it scared the sh*t out of me nonetheless... I swear that branch didn't look that long!
 
sloch24 said:
I grazed some power lines once... I didn't knock anything down, but it scared the sh*t out of me nonetheless... I swear that branch didn't look that long!
Click to expand...

Years ago while living in Connecticut I was clearing trees next to an Interstate Highway. Owner said it was okay as State was going to clear anyway to widen road. I was cutting a fairly good size oak when it leaned the wrong way and wanted to fall on a chainlink fence and possibly hit the highway. I quickly hooked up my come-a-along and started cranking away when a State trooper pulled up next to where it could have fallen. Luckily I was able to get it going back to where I thought it would fall. Talk about talking fast and wetting my pants!
 
there was a job i wouldn't take not too long ago, vacant lot that had been sprayed and killed off all the trees. mostly monster red and white oak, but houses on each side. i passed on the job as i don't carry insurance as i don't generally cut down trees - once in a while for a friend i will, if i know it can be done safely. this one was a friends uncle, but i still passed. he explained he was low on money, fixed income but it was okay i didn't have insurance and i still said no.

but...i called my dad, and of course he said yes. so, it was his show but i offered to help. everything went well 'til we got to a big white out close to the road. it had a slight lean to it in the wrong direction, so we hooked up my big ford to encourage it to go the way we wanted it. my ford sunk, the line snapped and the tree caught some wind and began drifting toward the road/neighbors house/neighbors cars. by some stroke of luck it got hung up in a pathetically small limb off another red, just dangling over this guys house. if it would have let go, it would have crushed his place and totalled out at least one car. it was a 60 footer all day, about 3ft dbh.

ended up wrapping some cable around the base of the tree and hooking it up to my dads suburban. he locked it in low and got a running start, it picked up his truck and moved the end over about 6ft, but there was enough to pull that tree down out of the limb and onto the ground safely. never been that scared in my life. :bowdown:
 
We've always bought that "Orange German saw" brand, but once when we were low-on-dough we needed a small saw for a groundie to cut up slash and glean some kindling so we purchaced a brand-new Home Depot Poulan (It was a kinda "Mango" color after all). We figured it would last a couple of months anyway...Well, it's still going...and going...and going...it's llike that stink'in Energiser Bunny.
Even after we got a new guy and he put gas where the bar oil should go...we were lucky we didn't blow up and make the 6:00 news...:blob2:
 
Not me, but a buddy of mine and I was there, so.... He'd just taken his little Homelight [little junker, cheapie] in to some shop and had them fix it. New handle [rear plastic one], new bar and chain, plug, tune-up [what they called it] and so forth. I'd told him it wasn't worth it, but he is a stubborn cuss even if my friend. I went over to watch him cut down a big, leaning cottonwood, alive, that was threatening a garage if a big wind came up. Told him the tree was too big for the tiny saw. Stubborn cuss, like I said, and he went at it. [He'd asked me to be there, I guess for moral support.] Wind pushed the tree a bit, pinched his bar in the back cut, he stepped back, tree cracked loose and butt fell on his "new" saw and destroyed it. After I drove home and came back with my saw, I bucked it out and we dug the homie out of the ground and he stuck the pieces in the trash can. Tree didn't hit the garage though.
 
i put a tree ontop of an old d5 cat once. was very embarassing the wind kicked up and pushed the tree 90 degrees or so off coarse (was a small spindaly poplar no bigger than 12" around and maybe 75 foot tall) did not hurt the dozer. operator was freaked out. he was in the cab when it happend. but after the dust settled me the landing crew and the operator had a good laugh. even though this could have been much worse:bowdown:
 
Cut a 70 foot poplar down on my three month old 2007 4x4 F-150 XLT, a direct hit. $3,800 in damage but insurance paid the body shop bill.
 
I dropped a tree on a skidsteer while my buddy was in it, it was at a job we were doing around Purdue University clearing a 100' wide road a couple miles in. It was at the end of the job infact the last couple hours of it, we just wanted to get it done and get outta there after a few weeks of working like rented mules.

I didn't bother with a notch and just cut straight through it and I cut crooked and it swung left and right on top of him. I felt like a jackass standing there with a stupid looking face and speechless. We kinda joke about it now but didn't laugh to much at the momnet:)
 
Once I chased my buddy through the woods with a running Husky 55, I was very, very intoxicated and I vaguely remember the incident. I do remember falling down, dropping the saw and then getting up, next thing my buddy (also drunk) was chasing me with it, luckily for us we were too drunk to realize the chain brake was on! Needless to say neither of us drove home that night.
 
Cutting.....er scratch that...trying to cut a tree out of a canoe. Saw never made it to the tree.

:monkey:

gink595 said:
I dropped a tree on a skidsteer while my buddy was in it
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This isn't you is it?!!

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