^ This... I've got a 15 year old (very soon to be 16... as in we just got lucky and fell into a used outback for him).I would really hesitate on any sharp, spinning equipment. Accidents WILL happen before anybody can stop them.
My son, and a friend of his, come out and help me with one of my major projects. Thinning my pine stands.
The steps - identify the trees - fell the trees - drag to several central piles - chip the trees. I thin 800 to 1200 small pines - every couple years.
Son and friend are both in their mid-40's. I will do the first two steps. The two guys will do step three and four. Step four - obviously the most fun. They get to drive my tractor and use the big 'ol Wallenstein chipper.
I trust nobody else with one of my chainsaws. It can happen all so fast and it's a 45 minute drive to the nearest medical help.
That's what I've been thinking too. There were a lot of things on the farm to do that were fun the first time I did them. Like...What seems like work to you may be fun for someone who has never done it before. Look at how many people raise backyard chickens...
My 15 year old nephew stayed with me for gun safety training. I checked him out on muzzle control, cleaning, how to clear the action, keeping finger off the trigger, etc. We started with a ramset blank in a .22 revolver blowing holes in cardboard, and ended up with a 9mm and a .357, plus an assortment of rifles and shotguns. By the end of a week I was reasonably confident he was not going to accidentally shoot himself or someone else. By chance, a round hung in the tubular magazine of a .22. You should have seen the look on his face when he ejected a live round from a rifle he thought was empty. He also learned to eject the round from the chamber after he dropped the magazine of the 9mm.Shooting some targets or good ole fashion cans. Riding horses. Or off roading in anything. Fishing. Watching wildlife. Driving a truck or tractor.
The list goes on
I'm thinking that at least one of those will never get old.That's what I've been thinking too. There were a lot of things on the farm to do that were fun the first time I did them. Like...
gather eggs
catch a chicken
dress a chicken
clean animal stalls
repair a fence
curry comb a horse
wrestle with a girl in the haymow
It would be beneficial to educate him about gun safety. His father has a couple of semi-auto rifles and I don't think he engages the care around firearms that I do. And one of my family members is a certified armorer for Glock handguns.a .22 revolver blowing holes in cardboard
^^^^^^Oh crap uncle!
Introduce him to the neighbors country daughter
To me, the most dangerous times with a saw is when you are tired, and when you have used one just long enough to think you know more than the saw does.The Nature Conservancy and state DNR and have seen way more dumb stuff from trained and supposedly skilled sawyers than I would like