Dead Fir Tree

Summer 2012 ~ by Griz (aka Steve Stovner) ~
While taking a leak outside the shop door, I noted an almost solid line of bees between the field flowers and the base of a 120-foot fir tree beside the shop. Closer inspection revealed that the tree was completely dead, The base was hollow and I could see a very large honey comb though the opening. The dead tree needed to go before it was pushed over onto my shop by a big winter wind. But there was no way I was going to start cutting on the tree with an active bee hive present. I called several people who advertised free removal of honey bees but found they only wanted honey bee swarms and required hundreds of dollars to come kill an active hive that could not be easily cut out. So late one night I inserted 2 plastic tubes in the opening (one at the top and one at the bottom of the opening) and sealed off the hive entrance with a can of expanding construction foam. With the bees sealed in, I connected a large aerosol can of Wasp & Hornet Spray to the top tube and emptied the can into the nest (the bottom tube was for venting so I would not blow out the foam seal which was not completely set yet). Then I plugged both tubes and went to bed.

The next day (with Robbie as my "safety man") I used the manlift to drop the top 60 foot of the tree and the next 20 foot section. Note: falling a 60 foot tree, 40 feet from my shop and 35 feet from my barn, while standing in a swaying bucket 60 feet in the air, is one hell of a high pucker factor task. P.S. I call the building you see behind the tree in the upper-left picture, "the barn". The shop is out of sight to the left in that picture.

The remaining 40 foot of the tree was left for another day because as I made the back cut on the second section the chain saw got stuck in the cut and went down with the 20" diameter log. As the top end of the 2nd section hit the ground (leaving a foot deep dent in the gravel driveway) the chainsaw was flung 100 feet to the West. I found it sitting as if I had placed it there. It was idling, the handle was bent more than before, but otherwise looked OK. However, the chain was jammed solid and I could not get it to move.

I figured after 13 years of abuse by me it was time for some professional care. I took it to the nearest Husqvarna Service Center and was told, after cursory inspection, that it was beyond economic repair. It most likely had a bent motor shaft, the bar looked bent at the base and the whole thing was twisted. But, If I wanted, they would charge me $150 to tear it down and determine how much it would cost to repair. "No thank you" says I. A week later, after filling my head with images, specs, reviews and prices for hundreds of new chainsaws (Husky alone must have 50 models), I put her on the bench and took off the bar & chain, which was a pain because the anit-kickback mechanism was activated (locking the side cover, which I needed to remove, to the shaft). Note: the chainsaw kickback brake lever was broken off several years ago when a 36" dia log rolled over it. Without the lever I had a devil of a time getting the brake to release. With the brake disabled, I reassembled and it purred to life on the 3rd pull. Worked great when I took down another 20 foot section of the offending tree. Those Husky Chainsaws are sure well made.

Update - 2024 ~ by Griz (aka Steve Stovner) ~
When I took down the tree in 2012, I left the bottom 20' stub standing (for the critters). It is home for several nesting birds each year. It also has a new honey bee hive about half way up.

The Husky Chainsaw served me well for several more years till I finally broke down and bought a new 16" saw.