I’ve got some pruning to do on some Chestnut trees. Some of the branches are six to eight inches in diameter. I not a tree climber so the next safest route I think will be a manual pole saw.

I’ve had a quick look online at offerings by Silky and Stein and cant figure out what would best suit my needs against cost. Pole length would need to be up to 6m to reach the highest branches. It’s something that I could get a fair bit of use out of but nowhere as much as a pro would. So, budget would be somewhere higher than DIY but lower than everyday pro use saw.

What’s good and what’s not?

Mate has a silky zubat 2700 which i think reaches to 6m, i used it a few weeks ago to help clear overhanging branches up his driveway and it was “almost” a pleasure to use as his previous pole saw was rather heavy and the blade was prone to jamming which at full extension was very frustrating. Like pretty much everything in life you get what you pay for and don’t underestimate the effort it takes to prune high branches so any tool that makes it easier is well worth it in time saved.

Zubat is 2.7m according to google.

I have a Corona one that is 12ft plus the 18″ of the blade. Wouldn’t want to try and use anything longer. It’s awkward at that length but useable.

Can’t you get up a ladder and do it by hand?

Can’t you get up a ladder and do it by hand?

No, no and thrice no. If working off a ladder, you want to be tethered anyway, so may as well learn to climb or get someone in.

How about hiring a small towable cherrypicker?

I’ve seen too many videos of folks being hit by branches knocking them off ladders.

My neighbour has a loadall with a basket that I might be able to get to some branches with, others are within or overhanging a walled garden with no access.

Don’t underestimate the size and danger of (what may look like) relatively small and innocuous branches from ground level.

I’d be worried about getting a clean cut safely with 8″ branches. You can’t undercut first to stop an early break tearing a big strip off the rest of the tree.

You can stand right underneath and cut from both sides to minimise the tearing underneath, but getting your cuts to meet working at 6m isn’t easy. And for the final cuts, you want to be able to work at a bit more of an angle so the saw’s dropping away from you and you’re not under the limb. So you’ll need a longer saw than you on the ground reaching directly up.

Good fun though, if you like that sort of thing, which I suspect you do! I’ve had good results with a silky Sugoi taped and zip tied to a Darlac Expert 5m pole – the heavier duty ovalized one.

Great saw on a good pole, with a serviceable connection. A sight cheaper than a silky saw on a silky pole.

You might be able to bodge a replacement sugoi blade into the darlac mount, but if you were doing that, you may as well wear out the darlac saw first, it looks decent enough. I had the saw already and bought the pole for a different reason.

Take photos! Or get someone else to…

If you’ve got a mate with you, having him keep an eye on the cut with a pair of bino’s is a good idea.

Our local seller of such things sells the silky stuff but also stocks a lot of Trojan which they recon a lot of the professionals use and a good deal cheaper. I don’t have any personal experience though as I ended up climbing with a bow saw in the end.

I was going to suggest Bahco, pretty happy with mine on trees up to house height. However I can see that the stuff that is being suggested above is more pukka. So I shall shuffle off with in the manner of someone who suggested “Apollo” to a “what is the best bike brand?” Question. Good luck!

I have a silky fox hyauchi that extends to about 6m.. it’s a joy to use. It’s a little flexy on full extension. There’s a special shape to the blade to stop the branches tearing strips. Just a bit of technique involved to push the flat bit of the blade into the bottom of the branch. Just be careful of falling branches as they are always heavier than they look..

I also have a Bahco which suits most of my needs

Any local arb’ instructors? We host climbing courses from time to time and they canopy lift and dead wood for us.
That’s when the tractor forks can’t get us high enough 😉