Need to get a line up a tree

[bucolic_frolic]

How high can you hit a golf ball with a tennis racket? this is the last idea before getting a bow and arrow.

[Irish_Dem]

1. Why do you want to get a line up a tree?

Not that it's any of my business.

[bucolic_frolic]

9. I am an experienced high-limb rope pruner, fitted with an in-line narrow chain saw

These are commonly sold as pocket chain saws. I usually use a baseball, or a cemented tennis ball, but have reached the limits of arm throwing.

[Irish_Dem]

10. Ok thanks.

Will be interesting to see the responses to your question.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

26. Use a tennis ball cannon?

https://www.wikihow.com › Make-a-Tennis-Ball-Mortar
How to Make a Tennis Ball Mortar: 12 Steps (with Pictures) - wikiHow
1 Empty 3 aluminum cans and clean them out thoroughly. Use cans that are 10.5 in (27 cm) tall with a 3 in (7.6 cm) radius. These cans will serve as the blast tube for the tennis ball mortars. Dump any potato chip crumbs into the trash, wash each can out thoroughly with dishwashing liquid and water, then dry each can thoroughly.

https://www.youtube.com › watch?v=cKmbjF-sL3Q
Tennis Ball CANNON from Soup Cans - YouTube
0:00 / 7:19 Tennis Ball CANNON from Soup Cans TKOR 12.4M subscribers Join Subscribe Subscribed 12K Share 596K views 5 years ago #thekingofrandom #tkor Today we're building a super simple tennis...

[Think. Again.]

2. A weight tied to a line...

..and thrown up under-hand works really well.

[Chainfire]

3. Hire an out of work monkey for the job. They work for bananas.

[bucolic_frolic]

15. I drop waggish replies every day, that 's a pretty good one. /nt

[Hassin Bin Sober]

25. A friend of mine had their cat stuck in a tree.

So she calls the fire department and they tell he “lady, we don’t actually do that.” They even tell her the old “have you ever seen a cat skeleton in a tree?”

So she finds someone on Facebook? Who claims she can get cats unstuck from trees.

Facebook lady gets stuck in tree. So the fire department comes out and gets the Facebook lady AND the cat down.

So my advice to the Op: get a cat…



(True story)

[MiHale]

4. Pretty damn far...

Used to play tons of tennis…now I just smack walnuts into the field behind me. I can send a walnut with the husk on at least 20 yards with a 30 foot arc. Just estimating by eyeball and memory now but I know my landmarks.
This is using a kinda sideways underhanded swing with an upward trajectory.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

5. Slingshot. NT

[OAITW r.2.0]

7. My suggestion as well. I use a large washer or nut, with some small dia rope or twine, tied to the rope.

[masmdu]

12. Yep. Slingshot and nut tied to fishing line.

Done it several times. The fishing line feeds out from a cheap fishing rod so I can reel it back if I miss my target.

Tried and failed with tennis balls and lacrosse balls.

You are essentially making one of these
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=arborist+throw+line+launcher&adgrpid=82813796370&hvadid=408802708452&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=9009648&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=b&hvrand=9850962412712241777&hvtargid=kwd-323646920613&hydadcr=17543_9853591&tag=hydsma-20&ref=pd_sl_yfs107e94_b

[bucolic_frolic]

16. Reel and rod, not a bad idea indeed. /.nt

[mitch96]

18. Thats what we used to get Ham Radio dipole antennas up in a tree. Slingshot and a large nut and a

light weight fishing line. Then attach the end of fishing line to the copper antenna wire and pull up the copper wire with the fishing line. Boom...bobs your uncle...
Any line shot up will create drag and limit the hight of the line being shot.
In the Navy it's called a "messenger" line
Or you could use one of these...
m

[Alpeduez21]

6. Not sure how serious this post is but here goes

How high does it need to go? What is the clearance around the branch?

The problem is being under the branch when starting the angle to get something across the top is very severe. The farther from the branch the better. Getting higher and more distant is better still.

A golf ball smacked with a racket will go really far. Maybe try a tennis ball? The weight of the line is important I would use fishing line and have enough to have some with me still below the branch. Tie that to the heavier rope and hand over hand it to get the rope where you want it.

Please say there are videos of your attempts thus far and will be of your eventual success.

Waiting with bated breath for the outcome.

[bucolic_frolic]

11. Estimated height 60-70 feet.

This particular branch has good access, it's the top of the tree which has grown parallel to the ground over a building.

Sorry no plans for videos, but there are several high limb rope pruning videos on YouTube. I've been doing this about 20 years.

[Chainfire]

21. A weighted line and a lots of patience is what has worked for me.

[GiqueCee]

8. In the Navy...

... they use a complex knot called a monkey's fist tied around a lead weight. Somebody on You Tube can show you how to tie it. Make the knot at one end of a lightweight line, with as long a tail as you need to get over over the tree and able to retrieve the knot on the other side. Then tie the tail to whatever rope or cable you want to hoist into the tree, and use the knot end to haul it to wherever you want it.

We expect pictures of your success!

[Irish_Dem]

13. How about a USAF answer.

Model airplane, helium balloon, drone.

[bucolic_frolic]

14. Thanks for that one

The weight of the ball or knot is important, that's what enables it to drop on the other side. That's why the cement tennis ball thrown is a preferred weight. But golf balls work too because they're so small.

I might try some pics, this limb is unusual. But no plans to do this before taxes are filed and spring is here.

[codfisherman]

17. Deckhand's advice

The monkey's fist is the way to do it, in a fashion. Weighted throwing bags are sold. Tie or clip this to a lightweight tangleproof throwing line, also sold somewhere. This is the trick: start with about six feet of scope in the line and whirl it in an underhanded circle. Release it when it points at the target. A few practice throws and you'll be pleasantly surprised with distance and accuracy.

[GiqueCee]

24. Solid advice! nt

[Attilatheblond]

27. Curious about knots, so I hunted this one up

Found a pretty good animated instruction for the monkey's fist knot

https://www.animatedknots.com/monkeys-fist-knot]

Since I have some tree pruning to do, this will likely come in handy as I try to thin the branches of a big ash tree to keep it from 'catching too much wind'. As I am 70+ and arthritic, I do have a hard hat and telescoping loppers with a saw attachment.

Wish me luck!

[GiqueCee]

22. Good luck!

The Navy used it, and still does, to haul heavy cordage from one ship to another. I used to know how to make a monkey's fist, but it's been 50 years or so since I made one. Oh well... they say memory's one of the first three things to go. I forget what the other two are...

[codfisherman]

23. Knots

If you can still tie a bowline, all is well.

[k55f5r]

19. Potato gun. A friend here in Az

Would use one to send rope into a tree that they couldn't climb when his brother and he owned "tree house brothers"
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php/?id=100063772293803/

[usonian]

20. Drone

Not that I have a clue how to operate and use one.

[4dog]

28. There are ball-throwing gadgets for dogs who like to fetch

Gives you more leverage. Sort of an atalatl for a ball. Or a lacrosse stick. Not that I ever tried one.

[RockRaven]

29. If you want to skip trial and error from throwing/slinging, AND you've got

the following materials, this method may be worth a shot. I've done it in the 30-40 ft range, should work for higher too. Works easiest from nearly directly under the branch, not from way off to the side.

Tie a weight to the end of a rope/cord. A full roll of duct tape or a full water bottle should be heavy enough.
Thread the rope through a 10 ft section of PVC or ABS pipe. Hold upright, keep hold of rope too so weight isn't pulling rope through.
Onto the free end of the rope thread on a straight coupling. Dry fit to end of pipe. Now slip on another pipe section, and dry fit that to the coupling. And the next coupling, etc.
Repeat until desired height is reached. Reach weight over and beyond branch in question. Slowly let out rope. Weight should pull rope through.
Once weight is on the ground, carefully disassemble pipe sections without losing control of the free end of the rope. Now you have a rope over a branch.

The higher you go and the skinnier the pipe, the bendier it will be. There is some limit beyond which it won't be easy to hold or control. And the most obvious downside -- requires materials which you may not have lying around.

[bucolic_frolic]

30. Now that is innovation

Actually I have about 9 sections of gray plastic well pipe, probably 9-15 feet each. Kind of not quite straight though. I have no idea if pvc couplings would fit. The original couplings are metal, and very rusted, and not on the ends. Hack off a piece of pipe and head to the plumbing department.

I'm likely to try the golf ball method first but this proves there's more than one way to skin a cat!