#7 Pulling Stumps With Snatch Blocks By Hand! 50:1 Mechanical Advantage Needed [4K 60FPS]

This is a 3 stage compound pulley system. It's a 5:1 simple driven by another 5:1 simple system in compound for 25:1. Then a doubling pulley to get to 50:1. I needed to recruit my wife to help me pull.

[@mikemathis3936]

You dont get mad when a stump gets pushy, you get pulley

[@brainhomestead6]

Hahaha!!! Dad joke for the win.

[@RNP69]

Very nice !! Thank You for your time posting this video !!!!!!!!!

[@brainhomestead6]

No problem and thanks for watching. I’m finishing up another one right now.

[@kundrew1990]

Incredible video thank you.

[@brainhomestead6]

Thanks man! I have a bunch more to do.

[@biggs8729]

Holy cow, people need to get off this tow ball non-sense. Yes, if you strap your tow ball to a tree and then get a 20 mph head start and hit the end of a 30 ft strap with every bit of energy you can muster, there is a slight chance the tow ball might come off and fly through the air. But for the rest of us who don't start a recovery with "Hold my beer and watch this." it's perfectly fine. I like my truck enough that I'm never going to do that. You also need to know that if you recover from a 10 inch drop hitch, there is such a thing as leverage that comes into play. Physics was a hard class in high school, but it teaches some really cool stuff.

[@brainhomestead6]

I always think the same thing when I get told how dangerous it is to pull with 600lb slowly from the tow ball, but no one gives a thought to pulling a 5000lb trailer with the same toe ball. I did the math real quick and my hitch and tow ball are rated at 7000lb. I’m putting at MOST 1000lb of force on the tow ball. This 1000lb of force is equivalent to putting a 7000lb trailer onto the tow ball and parking on an 8%. It’s the same force. I doubt if many people would think parking on an 8% grade was super dangerous.

[@TronVila]

I love all of this so much. And thank you, Iv learned a lot

[@brainhomestead6]

No problem, I appreciate it! I’m going to try to get the two big ones out this weekend if the weather will cooperate.

[@bigonprivacy2708]

Simply AWESOME!!! Could you make a short video (shortz) with the set-up on paper? The anchors, the mechanical advantage at each point? That would be an awesome addition to this video. Just a simply overhead diagram of what you were doing. THANK YOU!!!

[@brainhomestead6]

No problem, I’ll get something drawn up here.

[@brainhomestead6]

Also, on my stump preparation video I drew up several and explained them. It was the first video in this playlist.

[@nicolaisvlog8701]

it would be pece of cake if the dog helped 😆

[@brainhomestead6]

LOL, there we go! I need to talk the wife into getting 8-10 sled dogs so I can harness them and pull stumps.

[@johndimech8945]

I have never ground a stump. I have been pulling stumps for 50+ years with a 1.5 ton come along. I use chains due to the fact that they do not fly if they break. If you use cable make sure it is pre stretched, proper winch cable. I also help out the process by stopping periodically to cut (sawsall), chop (Polanski) break the roots on the opposite side of the stump from the pull. I have never used pulleys but offen have considered it to take myself out of the line of pull. Yes damp soil helps.

[@TheBoringChannelLawnCare]

this is such a cool idea

[@brainhomestead6]

Thanks, man!! I have 6 more of these to do, then im going to try bringing trees down whole with the pulley systems and try putting a fulcrum in front of the tree so as it falls, it uses the momentum to pop the roots out at the same time.

[@user-dc6fy8iw4t]

does it matter if you have shorter length ropes? im guessing you are using 100 plus foot ropes. i literally want to pull a tree down with my hands holding onto a rope and loving the science behind it. im looking to take apart a tree in the back yard peeling the branches off then snapping the y area on two parts of the tree. Thank you for the video it truly helps me out.

[@jcar1417]

I wouldn’t worry too much about all the KZbin experts, they think because they saw it on YT that’s the way it has to be. Most of them have never done anything like it or don’t understand the”math”. I know a lot of smart people with degrees and a lot of smart people without, I also know some dumb ones with and without a degree. “ I’ve been doing it this way for 50 years” doesn’t mean you were doing it right. As long as everything is below its working load limit and you look to do it safely, which you appear to be doing, carry on. Enjoying the vids👍

[@brainhomestead6]

Thanks, man I really appreciate it! I figured I would get it out at least once so I can at least refer people to the start of this video. I think once I start doing pulls with a winch and remote, it should squash those comments.

[@Patriot-pq1ku]

Very cool

[@brainhomestead6]

Thanks for watching! I have another one coming now.

[@biggs8729]

To keep it from flying off, cut your notch in the back and then do a girth hitch around it. Maybe?

[@brainhomestead6]

I’ll have to see what that is. I’m willing to try anything with the straps because I really don’t want to use chains.

[@brunolaflamme5202]

II knew it ! We are riht! Despite the ridiculous amount of ropes and pulleys required, as long you have enough space to pull the ropes. We can`t break phyIsics`s laws, it`s only how we can apply them better! Cheers and applauses!🙂

[@brainhomestead6]

Thanks, man. I was thinking about getting another pulley to redirect so I could do it entirely by hand start-to-finish, but I couldn’t get my hands on any rope over 100’ on short notice anyway.

[@lifeaccordingtobri]

Hey question or suggestion. Next time you pull a stump over. Throw a log up against the base of the trunk and let the stump roll up over the log. You'll gain more advantage and it will pull up on the stump not just over. Just a thought. Cool videos!!

[@brainhomestead6]

I’ve had that suggestion and I’m going to start doing that in the near future. My next video I’m going to attempt pulling down a whole tree and using a log in front as you suggest.

[@happyhome41]

At some point -- we see this on sail boat masts -- you reach a point of diminishing returns with increasing resistance in the system reducing the efficiency of your effort. At some point, there should be a "sweet spot" with your setup and component choices.

[@brainhomestead6]

I’ve been noticing this somewhat. From a 25:1 to a 42:1, I don’t see a huge difference in pulling force required. Maybe I would if the stumps were bigger.

[@caotropheus]

Amazing, just amazing. I think you correct about pulling the stumps out and not grinding them. I also think a stump grinder would be more expensive than the pulley system you use. Also, your pulley videos are a lot of fun. Will we see you pulling whole trees? You can use them later to cut your own lumber for your projects, right?

[@brainhomestead6]

Yeah, I have 6 more stumps to pull, then I’ll be doing whole trees! I don’t have a way to cut my own lumber, but I may have to get something.

[@caotropheus]

@@brainhomestead6 I live in this side of the puddle and I have never seen small mill for private use. But over there in the USA it seems to be a common piece of equipment ... At least that is my perception from reality TV shows and many videos you see on YT. I also noticed this equipment uses a chainsaw to cut the lumber. Good luck with it and I hope it will be cheap to acquire and operate.

[@brainhomestead6]

@@caotropheus yep, my buddy that lives in Tennessee has one of those portable sawmills that he uses, so I know what you’re talking about. I might just go borrow his for a week or two.

[@Captain-Awesome]

Fun videos to watch but speed up the video at sections and also make cuts to move the story along quicker. The video production will be harder but more people will watch and finish the video. IMO. Thank you for the video!!

[@gaylanbishop1641]

I think you’re right about stump grinding. It is fast but it is a terrible option for the overall health of your homestead

[@brainhomestead6]

You ought to check out the comments on my video #3, for a week straight I had everyone and their brother telling me to grind them off and so I had to explain dozens of times why I don’t. If you just don’t want to see them in a piece of property you never use, sure grind away. Anything in your yard or by a structure, get them out of there.

[@stevebray71]

If you was to try and wrap the strap around the tree stump using a clove hitch the nature of the way when it gets tight on the stump it will still be easy to undo but it will be able to grip around the tree stump and possibly not come off when the tree is pulled over past a certain angle just a thought that might help you from my old days of being in the boy scout movement

[@brainhomestead6]

I’m not sure if I can do a clove hitch with the straps. I think I’m just going to have to go back to chains. I just can’t seem to get the straps to stay on.

[@mikemathis3936]

If you ever find yourself pulling rope by hand again and run out of strength, there is another way to easily multiply force on the tag end of the rope you are pulling. But it caqn be time consuming and use quite a bit of extra rope. You can pull as hard as you can then tie off the rop[e to an anchor point while it is under tension. Then walk to the middle of that leg and pull the rope sideways (perpendicular )You can add theoretically infinite between the two endpoints of a taut line with muscle power, but theres a catch. When you move the mi9ddle of a taut line one point sideways with an infinitely small force it will either move the points towards each other, stretch the line, or add an infinite amount of tension . But as you pull the midpoint fartheraway from where it started it becomes less efficient. . the the last point of possible movement sideways would be infinite4ly far away and require an infinite amount of energy but it would add no tension whatsoever to the enpoints. Back in the real world though this mean you can get ridiculous rope breaking amounts of tension by pulling a taught line sideways but you wont get much movement per pull before you cannot pull hard enough to keep moving things

[@brainhomestead6]

I’ve seen this theory before, but I’ve never seen someone practice it. I’m guessing the reason why is precisely because of the very high tension. I have 3/8” synthetic rope, but I may need to jump up to 1/2” or even 5/8” before I try that. I’ll definitely keep that in mind for the future.

[@mikemathis3936]

@@brainhomestead6 You mostly see this mentioned as examples of bad or dangerous ways to rig when lifting with cranes. . For example if you were lifting a heavy item with two lifting eyes twenty feet apartyou would not want to use two 12 foot slings on the lifting eyes and hook. Each sling would be pulled way more than half the weight of the item that was being lifted, maybe each would have more than the entire weight of the item. You could be well beyond the working load of the slings. All of the excess tension beyond the weight of the item would show up as force trying to pull the two lifting eyes together and bend the item in half. If you used two twenty foot slings instead of two 12 ft slings for that hypothetical lift everything would be fine.. I(ts been so long since I did the math for the added tension on rigging with angled slings that Ive forgotten how. But Im sure the physics havent changed since then

[@brainhomestead6]

@@mikemathis3936 that’s way more info than I’ve ever heard about. I work with large lasers for a living, but I was always thinking when I was younger that if it didn’t work out with lasers, I wanted to learn how to operate a crane.

[@leroykidd7457]

Now that you have the pulley’s down pat, you need to learn about the prusik knot.

[@brainhomestead6]

You are right. I have never heard of that one. I just now got done hooking up my tractor to a 40’ tall “stump”. It’s a stump full of branches and leaves. I’m going to get the cameras set up and see how much damage I do to my shop right next to it.

[@threeriversforge1997]

Told ya that a long soak would work. Clay still absorbs water, but it takes time, and usually a rain shower isn't enough to really soften up the deeper strata. Love seeing ropes and pulleys being used to good effect! Next thing you need to try is building a really honkin' big A-frame to re-direct your pulling force more upwards. Trees are evolved to resist against toppling, but not yanking straight up. For your application, you'd probably need something about 10' tall and made from 6x6 timbers. Expensive, sure, but a fun thing to play with!

[@brainhomestead6]

I think what I’m going to try next is to pull down full trees, stack some logs in front of it to use it as a fulcrum, drill holes around it and water the base and see if I can fell a tree and extract roots at the same time. I still have 6 more stumps to do first though. I may have to make that A-frame in the future.

[@threeriversforge1997]

@@brainhomestead6 Here's a really good A-frame build in action. kzbin.info/www/bejne/ppTGpnSLg9yZrZo I really like that he used half-logs for the footers so the whole frame could rock as needed and not dig into the ground. As you can see, it doesn't have to be much taller than the stump, just that it's redirecting your pull upwards and acting a little like a lever to really get things moving.

[@threeriversforge1997]

@@brainhomestead6 If you want to go Old School and play with a big lever, I can't recommend this technique enough. Works like a charm every time! kzbin.info/www/bejne/b4LKg6yjms6JY80 😀

[@brainhomestead6]

@@threeriversforge1997 thanks, man I’ll check it out. I definitely have enough logs laying around here!

[@yaykruser]

@@threeriversforge1997 Doesnt lose the leverage from the long tree trunk then?

[@logic3721]

FYI it's not the ball shank that breaks it is the welds where the flat is attached to the square tube. the one in this video is upside down also making it even weaker. That said. you are not putting enough pressure to matter in this case. Most of them fail b/c they jerk on them.

[@brainhomestead6]

Yeah I had to put this one on upside down otherwise my trailer would intermittently scrape the ground. I’m still meaning to get an actual winch to help out with the next ones.

[@nicolaisvlog8701]

if you have time and money could you make Pulling Lever to see if that could help ? would love to see that 😁

[@brainhomestead6]

You mean in front of the stump?

[@nicolaisvlog8701]

it's a win win saving on diesel and no membership in the gym 😁

[@brainhomestead6]

LOL! I’ll tell you that my legs were burning! I didn’t use gloves while I was pulling the rope, so now I have a nice big blister from it.

[@Dalton325]

That’s awesome, man! I knew you guys could do it.😁 Every time I see your wife’s car as an anchor, I think of the story of the guy who tied a safety line to his wife’s hitch to work on the other side of his roof. She didn’t know and took off to town, unknowingly taking him with her.🤣 With that bamboo, since it appears to be a rhizome that puts up shoot, can you brush glyphosohate on it? Kill the sprouts through the rhizome? I have to do that in with blackberries and wisteria. Clemson recommended triclopyr to me for shruby stuff. It doesn’t hurt grass. I spray it on pastures. Might take out bamboo. Not sure. Good luck. Great video.😅

[@brainhomestead6]

Thanks, man! I tried coating it with glyphosate. It hurts it, but doesn’t kill it. The only thing that I’ve found that kills it is just digging it out of the ground. I’ll check out that chemical to see if it works.

[@Dalton325]

@@brainhomestead6 cool. If nothing else, I’d email Clemson’s ag extension or the one in Georgia. I’m sure you guys probably have one. They’re pretty good about helping with that kind of stuff, or directing you to the right resource.

[@brainhomestead6]

@@Dalton325 yeah, it’s the same place to send soil samples for them to analyze and tell me the ground is terrible!

[@Dalton325]

@@brainhomestead6 ha ha, yeah I did the same. I tested the pastures, garden site, and yard. Surprisingly, it ok. It’s all clay, but isn’t missing huge amounts of anything. I think the only way to improve it would be to core aerate and drag some black dirt into the holes.

[@brainhomestead6]

@@Dalton325 yeah, I use Centipedegrass which spreads via stolons, takes almost no nitrogen and only needs to be mowed every few weeks.

[@RaudeW]

Not sure if this helps. When I leverage a winch on the Jeep to pull out concrete anchored fence posts (with soaked ground), I used a Spare tire to arc the object up out of the ground instead pulling horizontally. At the same time using a redirected snatch block and blankets on the rope for safety.

[@brainhomestead6]

I’ve seen that done before. I haven’t done that because of the size of some of my stumps. I saw a guy in one video use the tire method and it ended up getting sideways and got launched out of the side. But, he should have stopped when it started laying over at an angle. I was thinking about doing that with a tractor rim because I have tons left to do, but still haven’t sold myself on it yet.

[@RaudeW]

@@brainhomestead6 I would also think that you could leverage anything to change the direction. A tire might also sink into the ground. The load would need to be distributed. Well, it seems like an interesting problem. be safe, enjoy.

[@brainhomestead6]

@@RaudeW once I get to trees again, I’m going to attempt to put logs in front of a standing trees, then pull the tree down whole and use the logs as a fulcrum so as the tree falls, it pops the roots out at the same time.

[@Ed-ym4tu]

Using a tire works well. I use it in some circumstances. When you have the rope up high and pulling down you have lots of moment force working for you. But sometimes you don't have that advantage and the tire allows you to pull up while out and the roots don't hold well when being pulled up. Very situational.

[@brainhomestead6]

@@Ed-ym4tu I imagine that I have so many to do that I’ll eventually have to do this. I was thinking about a tractor tire instead of a car tire though since it’s wide.

[@joewoodchuck3824]

I wonder how much money all of that stuff cost.

[@brainhomestead6]

Altogether, $1100 for absolutely everything. Unless you mean the tractor too! But all of the rigging equipment, ropes, shackles, etc. was $1100.

[@joewoodchuck3824]

@@brainhomestead6 I only meant the rigging and pulleys.

[@crossbow3539]

What are you using to pull with?

[@brainhomestead6]

I’ve used several different things. I’ve tried with a lawnmower, but usually just my car and/or tractor. Some of my earlier videos have both.

[@oshkosh850.]

What lengths of rope did you use

[@brainhomestead6]

I use all 100’ long ropes. For the last one, I wouldn’t mind longer ones, but I can’t find any longer than 100’. If I want longer, I can special order it, but it’s way more expensive.

[@Ed-ym4tu]

I'm surprised you were able to do that. A stump that size I would estimate needs about 30k force to pull out. I don't think you could get more than about 7k by hand and 50:1 giving the friction and vector force loss due to angles. Had that tree been dead a while?

[@brainhomestead6]

No, cut it down in its prime in September. I figured that my wife and I put out a total of no more than 300lb of force. I don’t know what the losses are, but it actually wasn’t terrible to pull.

[@LiveAuthenticallyDaily]

Here is a wild idea. How many pulleys and how much rope would be needed to chuck a wheel to a 18V battery operated drill to pull out a stump. That would be a fun challenge to see.

[@brainhomestead6]

LOL, I don’t think I have enough pulley and ropes to get that to work!

[@MrJaxJinx]

Run one end of the rope through the one eye of the rope this is called choking

[@brainhomestead6]

How can I do that with straps?

[@TheSshadow7]

Where are you getting this equipment?

[@brainhomestead6]

This I got almost exclusively at Amazon. If you go to my first video in this playlist, Stump Removal Preparation, I put links in the description. Amazon doesn’t like links, so I put equivalents in there. Most of my equipment is Ticonn.

[@dennisratcliffe5637]

Almost a correct wrap, except you should have included a half-hitch in the tree-saver strap in front of the stump.

[@brainhomestead6]

I just did the two big ones by the house and I think I got it right now.

[@ridermak4111]

A progress capture device and a quick Z-rig is all that is missing. Search “rescue rigging” videos…..oops, I apologize ahead of time for the probable Visa card abuse. You’re gonna love their hardware. Fun stuff !! Keep it coming. 🤜🤛

[@brainhomestead6]

Thanks, man I’ll take a look to see what I’m missing. I think the rescue rigging is where they use complex pulley systems.

[@jcar1417]

@@brainhomestead6 you are correct, but most rescue rigging is the hundreds of pounds not thousand of pounds. When you capture a rope you risk damage to the rope sheathing or rope itself that is why you do not usually see complex systems in hauling systems like you are doing

[@brainhomestead6]

@@jcar1417 hmm, it may be useful to increase the rope size and always use a higher MA system like this one. I mean, the wife and I have max 200-300lbs of pulling force. Although this stump was relatively small as well. I’ll still check it out as I’m no where near an expert.

[@ridermak4111]

@@brainhomestead6 Picked out my favorite video from this inventive gentleman. All of his videos are cool. I had to find this one because I’m sure you’ll love it. kzbin.info/www/bejne/aYmZk6quo61qZ6s

[@ridermak4111]

@@jcar1417 “Hundreds of pounds not thousands of pounds” ?? What are you rescuing, kittens ? ALL rescue rigging components are rated at MANY THOUSANDS of pounds. No progress capture on rescue rigging? Go ahead and cut the brake lines on your car while you’re at it. Employed with the right combination of components and at maximum available MA, rope doesn’t get damaged at all. Your statements reveal that you have gotten very bad training, or none at all.

[@henryknox1186]

Friction will mechanical advantage

[@brainhomestead6]

I know the friction reduces the mechanical advantage a decent amount but my tractor has still been able to overcome it.

[@thepotterer3726]

You really do need to get a suitable chain with a hook and use it correctly. Then you'll be able to take advantage of the height of the stump.

[@brainhomestead6]

I know, my buddy just watched this video and told me the same thing. I just can’t find a grade 70 1/2” chain. I checked all over and had someone tell me Northern Tool had one, but I couldn’t find it on their website.

[@yaykruser]

Found something you would like: 3.3meter 24mm choke chain for 100 bucks. Unfortunatly 6000km away from you... Any updates on the big stumps? Or dit the termites eat your camera too ?😁

[@brainhomestead6]

No, I’ve been getting all of my crops planted, then it started raining every day, so I couldn’t do it. I’m going to give it a shot today though if I can.

[@pauls4708]

ok to pull with tow ball but not a kinetic pull

[@brainhomestead6]

Yeah, definitely could cause issues that way. Slow and steady.

[@brianmorrison2012]

Why would you just not throw sand or light dirt down for low spots? Just sayin'

[@brainhomestead6]

Because it would bury grass. It’s not a little sunken, it drop 3-6” every year, which is too much.

[@Wolfyvibess]

Update for best effort starlink?

[@brainhomestead6]

They automatically upgraded me to full service StarLink a few months back. It seems to be very similar though, except during peak times.

[@Wolfyvibess]

@@brainhomestead6 My order still says best effort. I live on the edge of my town and I notice that my town got it already. I live 2 or 3 miles from my town but somewhat where I'm living it's not there yet is frustrating 🤦‍♀️lol

[@brainhomestead6]

@@Wolfyvibess I signed up the day after pre-orders went live and some people got there’s months before me. It was people paying for the RV version and just using it at their house to bypass the wait list.

[@jeffreydunham2798]

choker chain hook, choker chain hook, choker chain hook, choker chain hook,

[@brainhomestead6]

So keep breaking chains at $100 apiece? I’ll stick with the straps for now.

[@nicolaisvlog8701]

and maybe the Pulling Lever would solve your problem with it jumping off

[@brainhomestead6]

It may. That would make the force much less when it gets bent over because the roots would already be pulled up.

[@yaykruser]

Hmm, weird, our chat is gone... guess KZbin delets comments with external links now. But yes, in this case termites might be your friends for once ;)

[@brainhomestead6]

I’ve put links in descriptions before and never seen that, but I could see YT stopping links in comments just to stop bots. I didn’t figure they’d delete a whole thread though. The more I think about it, the more I want to get started on the big ones…

[@thepotterer3726]

This is the type of winch I use: kzbin.info/www/bejne/d5jTfppjoKukask

[@brainhomestead6]

My buddy uses one similar to that to drop trees. My problem is that I like synthetic rope and I can’t use them with that winch.