Oh do I have a story...
So Saturday night we had a big storm blow through. 60-70mph gusts, rain etc.
I woke up Sunday and my wife told me a big limb fell out of one of our elm trees (we have 50 trees on a half acre...)
With all the cool tools and toys I own, you'd think I own a chainsaw right? Wrong!
Growing up, my dad always had an electric (corded) Craftsman Chainsaw. So while enjoying my Cheerio's, I read reviews on electric vs gas chainsaws. I read about battery powered saws... "I'm like, sounds kinda lame but maybe its good?" So I go to Home Depot, go back and forth on gas vs electric and end up with this...
Ryobi 18v Chainsaw. I bought it because I just purchased a 18v trim nailer, so I figured "hey cool, i have extra batteries for both."
I get it home and start working on the tree...
Instantly i'm like...
So I throw it back in the box, go back to Home Depot. You should heard me explaining to the chick why I needed to return it.
Me: I need to return this.
HDC: Does it work?
Me: No, its awful.
HDC: So its broken?
Me: No, it works,
HDC:....
Me:...just not very well.
HDC:....
Me: Look, it functions, but its the worst tool in the history of time.
HDC: Oooookay.
I guess she didn't have a clicky box for that in the returns screen.
So I get a ECHO 2 stroke chain saw (BRAAAAAPPP!!!!!!!!!) and its a dream. I wanted to cut more stuff down after I made short work of that tree.
This is actually the good part of the story (thanks for sticking with me this long.)
(I started to do a drawing in MSPaint for this next part, but it was confusing me and I was there.)
Basically I decided (even after
my wife warned me about how wet the ground was) that it would be a GREAT idea to drive my truck (2wd 3/4ton) across a 300yd field because I could pull up to a gate in my fence that would make hauling the cut up tree a 10' ordeal. Because that's WAAAAAY easier than dragging it 40' to my truck in the driveway.
Lets just say
I get about 50yds into the field and I get my truck stuck. The field is private property btw.... Yeah...
So I jump out, and haul ass across the field (waist high in wet weeds) to get my 4runner... and my wife... So I can tell her she's right. (might as well tell her before she has a chance to tell me!)
I hook up my tow strap and we head out. She leaves it in nutral and I pull her out in 4 low. I decide i'm gonna get her turned around so she can pull out.
Suddenly I stop moving... wife is yelling at me "You're digging yourself in!!!"
So here I am, my truck's stuck, my 3/4 ton won't move, and i'm on private property. All I could do was laugh. My wife didn't think it was funny.
So I called a wrecker to get us both out.
To hell with that! I'm not ending a story that way. Are you kidding?
I manage to get enough slack in the tow strap to unhook my truck from the 3/4 anchor.
Then I air down all my tires to about 15psi, and rock myself out of the ruts I had dug.
Then I rehook up to the big truck, and drag it to high/dry enough ground that it can be driven home.
We get back to to the house and my wife gives me that look like...
And i'm like...
"But I got us out..."
So we hauled all the tree parts 'the long way' through the back yard, all while I kept telling my wife in jest "I told you the field was wet... but you didn't listen." I subsequently got hit with a few branches. On accident of course lol.
Moral of the story,
Listen to your old lady....
unless you want a good story to tell Monday morning.