Wood chipper

A wood chipper, or tree chipper, is a machine used for reducing volumes of wood from a tree into smaller wood chips. They are often portable, being mounted on wheels on frames suitable for towing behind a truck or van. There are also high power chipper models mounted on trucks and powered by a separate engine. Wood chippers are typically made of a hopper with a collar, the chipper mechanism itself, and an optional collection bin for the chips. A tree limb is inserted into the hopper and started into the chipping mechanism. The chips exit through a chute and can be directed into a truck-mounted container or onto the ground.

In the 2010 horror/comedy Tucker & Dale vs. Evil, a hillbilly named Tucker used a wood chipper to grind up tree limbs and trunks surrounding his cabin vacation home in the Appalachian Mountains. A college kid named Mike, mistakenly believed that Tucker and his friend Dale had kidnapped his friend Allison with the intent of doing her harm. Mike spied Tucker shoving debris into the wood chipper. He charged up behind him, but Tucker didn't hear him over the noise from the machinery. At the last moment, Tucker turned away to pick up more rubbish just as Mike lunged at him. He dove head-first into the wood chipper. Tucker grabbed hold of the boy's legs and desperately tried to pull him free, even though the machine was still running. Mike's body ground wood chipper's gears down and it shut off on its own. Tucker waited a beat than asked aloud, "You okay?" Clearly, Mike did not respond. Dale came upon the scene, and Tucker told him that the kid committed suicide. They each pulled on Mike's legs until the ruined remainder of his body was finally torn free.