 Agroforest
Equipment
To say that I'm at newbie at forestry would be a huge understatement. Aside from
farming and gardening, I really had no experience maintaining a forest, in fact,
my only contact with any forest was the occasional camping trip in the San Diego
County mountains of California, and an occasional trip to the Sequoias or other
national parks in America. With this lack of knowledge and experience under my
belt, I decide to go ahead and purchase our 4.5 acre heavily forested mountain
without even a thought to the potential work involved or the equipment needed.
After the equivalent of Japanese escrow closed on the property, I immediately
went online for help. Fortunately there's a plethora of DIY forest maintenance
sites, many of which explain, in detail, exactly the tools you need to maintain
a healthy forest. Some use only hand tools while others go the power tool route,
while the majority of mountain folks fall somewhere in the middle with a mix of
both....AKA us.
The next step, ugh, shopping. I hate shopping, in almost any form, and this
feeling goes way back. I come from a time when there was no Amazon or online
shopping, in fact, from a time there was no Internet....yes I actually used a
typewriter in college....I can actually hear my kids laughing as I type this. To
be fair though, I was semi okay browsing at a building supply store because they
were stocked with stuff I was interested in....a clothes or shoe store, FORGET
ABOUT IT. Anyway, it was time to throw myself into the ring, sit back in a
comfortable chair and visit The Amazon Rainforest
Shopping Site and the thousands of choices that showed up. What a daunting
project, I thought, and then I began to realize the convenience of this shopping
system, choices, reviews, easy returns, and no fuel cost or parking problems.
Hey this was actually pretty good. Knowing what to buy, that was a bit problematic. And
back to watching videos I went. Anyway, to make a long story short, the
following are a few of the tools, and other miscellaneous items, I am using to date with a bit of information
about each.
Note: These products came from Japanese
distributors and may not be available in your country. I recommend Googling
these products in your country to avoid any shipping or import fees. That said,
the Japanese link to each product is included for your information. Use Google
translate on the shopping page to read the information in your language.
And BTW, I am not affiliated with Amazon in any way and not making any money
from the purchase or sale of these products. This is simply an FYI page to let
you know which tools work if you decide to embark on a similar forestry
or farming project. |
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Forest Equipment
The following products are begin used to remove unwanted understory growth,
trees, and leaf litter, in order to facilitate food
production and live in our agroforest. |
 Camping
Knife - ¥1,930
Last purchased Jul 26, 2021
MOSSY OAK Outdoor Knife, Sheath Knife, Full Tang
Construction, Natural Wood Handle, Total Length 10.8 inches (275 mm), Mountain
Climbing, Camping, Trekking, Fishing, Home, DIY, Disaster Preparedness
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: I bought this more for looks than
anything....you remember the old Crocodile Dundee movie and the famous quote,
"that's not a knife, THAT'S a knife." Anyway, I suppose this would work for
cutting vines, making chopsticks, and for whittling twigs into marshmallow
cooking sticks. |
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Weed Trimmer
Last purchased Oct 24, 2021
Makita MEM2650UHT Engine Weed Trimmer, 4-Stroke Engine Type, U-Handle,
Displacement: 0.9 fl oz (25.4 ml)
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: Coming soon. |
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Chainsaw - ¥41,980
Makita Engine Chainsaw
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: Coming soon. |
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 Chain
Saw
Last purchased Jul 30, 2021
HAIGE HG-TM32500A Chainsaw Chainsaw, 10 inches (25
cm), Displacement: 25.4 cc, 2 Cycle, 1.1 Horsepower, 1.1 Horsepower
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: I really pushed against buying a chainsaw
in the first place, but my shoulders began to give out using only a bow saw and
I ended up giving in and bought it anyway. This chainsaw turned out to be way to
small for the size and type of trees I'm dealing with, but with a little effort,
it turned out to be adequate. This model is pretty loud, about 112 decibels, but
not a problem with the property ear muffs. The handle will come loose if pulled
too strongly and eventually this developed a chain saw leak. |
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 Axe
- ¥1,950
Last purchased Jul 26, 2021
HFS(R) Axe Firewood Cracker Camping Outdoor Hatchet
Garden Hatchet Pruning Tool for Home Outdoor Camping with Sheath (Hickory Wood
Handle)
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: This tool has turned out to be extremely
useful for debarking trees, and especially for taking out tree stumps and large
roots. The blade tends to get dull fairly quickly when used on hard woods such
as oak, but I suppose this is normal for any kind of axe.
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 Chain
Saw Engine Oil - ¥3,800
Purchased 2 times - Last purchased Jul 31, 2022
AZ F033 2-Cycle Engine Oil Smokeless Lubricant 4L FD
for Farm Equipment
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: Really not much to say about this as most
of these engine oil products are probably pretty similar. Um, it seems to work
okay.
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Protective Clothing
The following products are begin used for protection while working. |
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 Hiking
Boots - ¥6,490
HI-TEC HT HKU10 Aoraki Mid WP Trekking Shoes, Breathable and Waterproof
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: These are not the first HI-TEC boots to
cover my feet and certainly will not be the last. When I began our agroforestry
project, I was still wearing a very old pair of HI-TEC boots. I desperately
needed a new pair to handle working on the sloping topography of our new
mountain and, of course, went with this brand again. For about 40 bucks, these
boots are extremely comfortable, very stable, and have incredible traction for
keeping my balance on all the slippery leaf litter.
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Cargo Pants - ¥3,880
Matchstick Men's Cargo Pants, Stretch,
Multi-functional, 6 Pockets, Work Pants, Large Size, No Belt
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: Coming soon. |
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Pajama Pants - ¥3,480
HomyComy Loungewear Bottoms, Pajama Pants, 95%
Cotton, Casual Pants, Lounge Shorts
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: Coming soon. |
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 Socks
YUEDGE Men's Socks, Cotton, Antibacterial, Odor
Resistant, For Sports, Outdoor Use, Trekking, Climbing, Dark gray *1805
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: I bought these socks to were at night,
mostly during the cooler months and they turned out to be incredibly warm and
comfortable. |
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 Socks
- ¥1,632
1906 Men's 5-Toe Socks, 4-Pair Set, Military Feet,
High Cotton Percentage and Refreshing! Easy to wear, Heather Gray, No Shakato,
Perfect for Work, 9.6 - 10.6 inches (24.5 - 27 cm), gray
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: I have rheumatoid arthritis which has
forced some of my toes to curve slightly and rub together. I bought these socks
to keep my toes separate while working and they work out really well. |
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 Gloves
Yahuhu Heat Resistant Gloves, Fireproof Gloves, Work
Gloves, BBQ, Camping Gloves, Outdoors, Leather, Cowhide Gloves, Orange
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: I bought these for debarking trees and for
building a cabin and have not actually used them. |
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 Gloves
Last purchased Jul 26, 2021
Kinco Gloves Youth's Split Cowhide Leather Driver
50Y
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: I bought these for the kids for debarking trees and for
building a cabin and they have not actually used them. |
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Camping Equipment
The following products are begin used during our extended overnight camping trips
to the mountain. |
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Storage Bag - ¥2,780
Last purchased May 15, 2024
Tool Bag, Tool Bag, Storage Bag, Tool Bag, Tool Bag,
Shoulder Strap Included, Large Opening Storage, Wide Opening, Lightweight,
Durable, Multi-functional, Reinforced Bottom, Large Capacity
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: Coming soon. |
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Broom - ¥580
Purchased 5 times - Last purchased May 7, 2024
山崎 Industrial Cleaning Supplies Condor, Yard, Brooms, Bull Long BS
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: Coming soon. |
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 Camping
Light
Purchased 2 times - Last purchased Jul 30, 2021
Vantozon LED Lantern, Set of 2, High Brightness (USB
Rechargeable, Battery-Powered, 2-in-1 Power Supply), Lantern, Foldable, SOS
Light, 3 Lighting Modes, Portable, Convenient, Magnetic, Waterproof, Splashproof,
Outdoor, Mountain Climbing, Night Fishing, Disaster Prevention, Power Outages,
Emergencies, Disaster Goods (Gray)
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: I cannot say enough about these
lights....possibly the best purchase I made to date. The lights are really
powerful and can be used as a lantern or as a flashlight. We use them mostly in
the flashlight mode for illuminating our eating table or for interior lighting
of the buses, AKA our bedrooms. The bottom is magnetic which works out great
when used on the outside of our metal buses. The lights last for a long time and
there is a USB charging unit included. |
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 Camping
Flashlight
BOIFUN Flashlight, LED XHP70+ L2 Set,
Ultra Bright 4,500 Lumens, Zoom Type, 5 Modes Dimming, Military, Strongest, USB
Rechargeable Two-Way Flashlight, Low Power Warning, IPX67 Waterproof, Mobile
Battery, Handy Light, Lantern, Shockproof, 4.9 ft (1.5 m), Small, Lightweight,
Bright, SOS, Outdoor, Disaster Prevention, Emergency Prevention, Bicycle, For
Mountain Climbing, Night Fishing, Camping 26650 (Included) 18650 (included); AAA
battery compatible, PSE certified.
Details at Amazon Japan
(link not working)
Review: These lights turned out to be quite a
disappointment. The smaller light is basically pretty good and last for a fairly
long time. The larger light worked for awhile and then began to flicker and now
only works when hit, and even then, usually turns off. |
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