# cutting girdling roots, best hand tool, best power tool



## Arborsharp (Oct 14, 2021)

what have you all found works best? I'm debating between oscillating tool and recip for power tool, also use wood chisel and hand saw and some circumstances

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## Maintenance supervisor (Oct 16, 2021)

Cordless sawzall with a pruning blade.


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## frank_ (Oct 16, 2021)

these are very effective, mine,s a bolster chisel welded into a thickwall tube (kart axle)


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## ATH (Oct 16, 2021)

*cordless sawzall (I have a Milwaukee - M18 - one called a Hackzall).
*oscillating tool is also a good tool to have.
*chisels are very useful.
*I also have been using an air chisel (with sharpened bits) - running from an adapter that takes the chicago fittings on my 185CFM compressor to a standard 1/4" fitting. This has been a great tool for bigger chunks that the tree is starting to grow around where you can't get the sawzall in.


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## thenne1713 (Nov 30, 2021)

Arborsharp said:


> what have you all found works best? I'm debating between oscillating tool and recip for power tool, also use wood chisel and hand saw and some circumstances
> 
> Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk


There are several recent youtubes using Recip saw w/ 6-9" -blades to run a circle around bushes and small tree to be removed, w/ amazing, FAST results; he did comment to expect to trash the blades, so suspect the cheapest blades do just fine anyway? But, video made it look much easier than trucks/chains/tires/ straps, etc. TRY it and let ius know YOUR Opinion?


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## ATH (Nov 30, 2021)

thenne1713 said:


> There are several recent youtubes using Recip saw w/ 6-9" -blades to run a circle around bushes and small tree to be removed, w/ amazing, FAST results; he did comment to expect to trash the blades, so suspect the cheapest blades do just fine anyway? But, video made it look much easier than trucks/chains/tires/ straps, etc. TRY it and let ius know YOUR Opinion?


that sounds interesting...but I don't think that is what the OP was asking about. He mean roots wrapping around the trunk - which will girdle the trunk. Not girdling trees for the purpose of killing them.

Here is a girdling root on a tree we just got from a nursery...




here is that same area after cutting it out. notice the 1" deep indentation. I used chisels to get this one off.


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## Arborsharp (Nov 30, 2021)

good catch, pretty poor way for a tree to start!
seems like there are a number of tools I need to have on me for the varied situations- Glad to see you were able to make a simple chisel work

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