I just found your channel. I heard about you on another channel and finally I'm watching a 70 plus year old like me that's still cutting firewood. I love cutting firewood and finally this year my wife and son wanted me to get a log splitter because they thought 50 years of splitting by hand was long enough. My neighbors wonder how I keep doing it and I use your saying "keep moving". Keep it up for us 70 plus year old guys. Good Job Oh I hope the other channel was right that you are 70 plus
Thanks for watching Noel… hope you subscribed! Yes, I’ll be 74 in January. Like you, I love cutting firewood… it’s relaxing and therapeutic for me. Please keep watching and “keep moving”! - Dick
We’ve pulled down dozens of smaller white pines (8-12”) with the rope puller. Works great with good arborist rope. Tried some cheaper braided rope and it slipped badly. I’ve heated with wood for 20 years, hope I have another 20-30 in me!
Thanks so much for watching. I hope you’ve subscribed! I use a 50’ piece of quality 3 strand rope and connect that to my longer arborist bull rope The 3 strand will not slip with the Maasdam.
Wow Dick! This was such a great video and really great job done on getting that tree down! Thanks for having us along on this, definitely picked up some good methods an pointers from you on this one! This one definitely had alot of mechanical advantages in use and it was really great to see all them working together for you! This is one of my fav videos so far! Andrew from NB :)
Great video Dick! That rope puller worked awesome I might have to get me one! Love the drone footage of the tree falling! Thanks for sharing my friend 👍👍
Thanks Jeremiah. I really appreciate you watching and commenting. You're still a much better drone pilot than me haha! I was skeptical about the maasden's capability but after watching several professional videos I thought I'd give it a try... it works! It's great for those situations where you can't get a tractor or truck in position to do the pull.
Great job Dick. I’ve been cutting trees the same way for over 20 years. it works great but I use a regular come along. Keep up the good work. I’m going to be 53 years old this year. I hope I’m still cutting trees like you when I’m 73🪵🪓
Thank you my friend! I used a regular come along for years. The nice thing about the Maasdam is that you never run out of pull length. You can use a 100’ rope (or more) and it just keeps pulling the rope on through.
Thanks for watching Will. I certainly recognize you from many woodhound livestreams. At my age “keep moving” is critical ha! I really appreciate you watching and commenting… hope you subscribed - Dick
Hey Daniel, thanks for watching! I know you don't see hickory trees like that out where you are... it is one tough wood. I think I'll do a cannon build video in a few weeks... there seems to be a lot of interest.
Thanks for watching and thanks for the comments Leroy. That Maasdam rope puller is a handy tool. I used it the other day when I got my zero turn mower stuck. Hooked it to a tree and pulled it right out. Thanks for subscribing! - Dick
Excellent video. Tough tree to get down safely and where you want it. Loved the rope puller! Never seen one used before. I’ve only used a come along and it limits how much length you can take out of the rope. Great job! Go take a break!
9/14/23; ..just caught yur video, 1st time viewer. I, age 78, just bought a Maasdam Rope puller & 200ft ( recommended via instruction booklet) 1/2"x 3strand rope for several project trees. Glad to see your using this tool in video today. From comments..repeat video on 'Air Cannon'...or make new video..Yes! Please do! Older guys showing 'how to..' videos demo equipment carries significance via time researching & using it on a real job..just like today's use of yur Maasdam Rope Puller taking down big tree opposite lean direction. Yup, great video! Air Cannon next time, aye?🤔💪⚙️🔧🪚🍺😊
Thanks for watching James. Hope you’re subscribed! Here’s a link to my video on the air cannon build ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-d9FudUw-SLI.htmlsi=JqHzw_MlmbrSStkg
thanks for the video. great example of using the rope puller to recover a leaning tree. would love to see an air cannon video. have a couple of trees i need to put a line on and drop.
Thanks for watching. I did a video on the air cannon build. Go to my channel, click on “videos”, and scroll through the list to find the air cannon build.
Thanks for watching Tony. If you can’t get a truck or tractor in place to pull, the Maasdam will certainly do the job. I really appreciate you watching and commenting. Yes… great minds 😁…
@@oldguyfirewood I’m another old guy with a limited amount of DYI tree care, and have a good inventory of tree climbing gear for my trees. I use a MonkeyBeaver climbing harness, and piece-out the trees to get them down or trimmed. I would prefer dropping trees from the ground instead of hanging 10’ to 75’ off the ground by a 12mm rope, but am too reluctant to fall trees from the ground if there is any possibly of surrounding structures. I do have a 3-ton comealong winch, but it has a 25’ cable that requires attaching and adjusting 5/8” pulling ropes. I always thought a Maasdam puller with a 1,500lb pull rating was too small for most trees. You proved me wrong! I should have known the Maasdam can be safely used since so many tree pro’s use them and sold by the tree care supply companies (e.g., TreeStuff.com, SherrillTree.com). Your video convinced me I should get a Maasdam Rope Puller, which should be less of a hassle to setup and use.
2 things I noticed, never take your EYE off the tree your pulling. 2 if the hinge were to break it would have been opposite side of the wedge and fallen in your direction. Just my observation. 71 and still climbing.
Hello Richard. Thanks for watching and commenting. I really appreciate and respect your knowledge…. 71 and still climbing… that’s impressive!! The location I was pulling from was over 100’ from the tree. If the tree had fallen in my direction it couldn’t have hit me. It was also perpendicular to the notch. It’s difficult to see angles and direction in the video. You are correct about keeping your eye on the tree. I did have someone running the camera for me and they were helping me watch. I turned 75 a couple months ago… wish I had the build and strength to climb!!
Thanks for watching Del. I’ve had that puller for a couple years, but that’s the biggest tree I’ve ever used it on. Apparently professional arborists use them. They aren’t that expensive either. A handy tool to have.
Thanks for the video. I’m cutting down a rotten oak close to my garage. Thankfully it’s only about 12”. It was nice to see you using it on a much bigger tree. Looks like you put a serious amount of tension in that rope.
@@oldguyfirewood I bought the puller and the recommended arborist rope to go with it a year or two ago. The more I use it and the more I see people like you use it, the more confident I am. Thanks for the video. It’s a bit breezy today. Normally I’d wait for calmer days. But the wife is getting antsy - she wants that tree down. I think I can safely do it in a moderate breeze thanks to the puller. Thanks again! And I’m about to subscribe. Edit: I just subscribed.
@@oldguyfirewoodHello! Excellent video! What specific rope did you use? I'm thinking of doubling up on what you did. Two pulleys, two Maasdams, with a friend working the other in tandem with me. My Dad is a master at all kinds of knots so no worries there. I'd rather use a professional, however the tree I'm dealing with is threatening my family's home and I absolutely cannot afford more than $500 for the foreseeable future. I tried appealing my case to 5 different companies and lowest they would consider is $2000, even just to pull it down into the woods as you did. No payment plans! A loan is out of the question unfortunately. So I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place. It's do or die. I'd prefer to die with my boots on under a tree than having it take me and my wife out in our sleep. I'm 43, with good life insurance, so there's that. With your procedure and respectful distances, I don't think it will come to that 🙂 The tree is hanging over my bedroom and the honey mushrooms on the trunk are multiplying daily. P.S. All of them didn't seem to hear me say multiple times that I just need it pulled down. They were quoting me on cleanup and haul away even as I was showing them the door. So stuck on money. It was disheartening.
Thanks for watching! In a situation like yours I wouldn’t try to do it myself. It sounds like a job for a professional tree company. I’m not a professional and my video was only showing how I did it, not necessarily how anyone else should do it. Don’t take a chance where persons or property could be injured!
@@oldguyfirewood Thanks, I realize there is trade secrets at play here, but as I'm sure you realize, I don't have a choice. No one wants to help me and no one cares that I can't afford it. I also speak other languages and between all of the videos and countries' methodologies, I've gotten quite a few aspects of all of this. I came to realize with the dangers involved here, the scientific method is a must. So I'll be practicing on progressively larger trees until I get the wrinkles ironed out. I have a patent pending to improve upon your idea. I will be posting that RU-vid after the patent is approved. I hope to revolutionize the process for people who were stuck, like me. Thank you for the inspiration!
I was looking forward to video. You did a good job of felling tree. To bad you didn't have a winch on your truck, Us seniors have to watch our energy expences when we can. Warn #8274 winch would have been a good one for that. You made it work w/what you hade. Good video.
Thanks for watching Dan. I normally use my tractor or truck to pull when I need to use a rope. I really wanted to see if the Maasdam could handle that big of a tree… I was impressed! The Maasdam is good for those wooded situations where you can’t use a vehicle to pull. You’re right, us seniors do need to conserve our energy. This one had me panting!
Hey Anthony, thanks for watching. Hickory is extremely heavy wood. I’ve bucked most of that tree up and there’s no way I could lift the rounds from the base of the trunk. The Wolfe Ridge splitter log lift makes it easy!
I got a 28" Red Oak I've gotta cut that has a constant 8-10° back lean and branch weighted against the direction of intended fall.. does a Y 2/3rd of the way up so that's all the higher I can hook.. I'm going to be using a portable winch co gas powered capstan winch that has 2200 lb of pull.. was surprising to see how you pulled this down with only that 1500lb rope puller! I've already bought and am intending to hook up a 5:1 pulley system and was considering the rope puller as a secondary pull in case the 10,000lbs from my setup wasn't enough but now I'm thinking i won't really need to.. if there was a way to figure approx weight for 28" red Oak to 60' at the Y and then approximate the rest of the tree's weight I'd be in a better ballpark to figure what it'd truly require.. does 10,000lb sound like enough? First time with a tree this big
Sounds like one I’d have a tree company look at William. Maybe have them remove the branches on the back side and then you could do the rest. It seems like 10,000 lb pull would be plenty. You would need a bull rope with that working strength. Without seeing it I wouldn’t want to give any further advice. Again, sometimes you need to let the experts tackle one like this!
@@0ptimal oh I got it down no problem, I tend to over-think things so I also tend to over-do them.. winched to bowstring tight with 1/4 dyneema winch line pulling a 5:1 then face-cut, partial back-cut, wedges inserted and winch pulled a little more than just more cut more wedge more pull until I got it to where the cut was as far though as I felt comfortable with and then winches it the rest of the way until it fell. It definitely upped my confidence, I actually waited until this year to do it just a couple days ago
First video and subscribed. You sir, clearly know your stuff. To use such a small amount of force, you must have had that rope up high. My question was how did you get it there? Looking forward to that air cannon video!
Thanks for watching. I did have the rope up high. Go to my RU-vid channel page, hit “videos” and look for the videos of me shooting the throw bag with the air cannon. Thanks for subscribing!
Was more interested in the connection s you used to conect the maasdam to the tree???couldnt see it..i use maasdam all time at work but never seen the way u mounted it????.
Hey Seth. Bull rope in tree to pulley at base of another tree in direction of fall, back to madam that was attached to the base of another tree wrapped with a chain. If you watch the whole video I think I go through the entire setup. Thanks for watching!
Thanks for watching Mike. It gave me a workout (old and out of shape ha) but that maasden puller is great when you can't get a tow vehicle into the right position.
@@oldguyfirewood I saw one of these pullers for sale at the show, I did not buy it, but after watching what you did with it here, this is a ''got to have''.
Thanks for the continued support Terry. I just feel so blessed being able to still do so many of the outdoor physical activities that I enjoy. I’m having fun with the drone although I’m not too proficient yet ha!
Ha! Larry - You must have heard me panting… out of breath! I prefer the tractor too but I thought I’d show an alternative for when you can’t get in position with equipment. Appreciate you watching!
Thanks for watching and commenting Jon. Yes I do. The off center weight caused by the lean determines the amount of pull needed. If the tree is plumb it takes very little pull. If it’s a 45° lean the amount of force required would be astronomical. With the tree in this video I was comfortable with using the Maasdam. Several RU-vid videos by tree professionals show the Maasdam being used to pull trees with much more lean.
Thanks so much for watching Rick... it's greatly appreciated. I'm going to stack all the rounds up when I buck that tree up and estimate how much firewood it will yield. It will be quite a bit. I'll mention it in a future video.