i have always used hand tools but now i have access to confifer/cedar etc... so i want to buy a chainsaw.
what's best? what to avoid?
Bike Forum
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chainsaws for trail building
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Posted 1 year ago #
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stihl or husqvarna - a decent named brand, the cheap ryobi ones I've seen were rubbish & wouldn't cut straight (and have crap incompatible [to the major brands] chains fitted).
[mother knows best] then get some training and decent chainsaw protective clothing [/mother knows best]
Posted 1 year ago # -
Avoid dying alone in the woods with blood spewing from a massive gash.
Posted 1 year ago # -
i used one yesterday to build
Posted 1 year ago # -
no one like a massive gash in the woods
Posted 1 year ago # -
Get training
Get protective equipment
Use both. Anything less is really very silly indeed. My brother is a tree surgeon of some 20 years experience. He won't work without his safety kit and it has saved him from some potentially lethal injuries.
Posted 1 year ago # -
My mate Dave has one and helped me clear a some fallen trees from a trail last year - very scary machine. I wouldn't use one alone.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Used a little electric one for the first time yesterday to chop logs. Firmly mounted on a sawhorse (which is about as safe as you can get). Even that was moderaterly scary, and I *like* power tools.
Get training. Get the kit. Use both!
(how much better and less likely to crash are guys after they've been on a training course with you? Apply the same logic to chainsaw training)
Posted 1 year ago # -
im asking about chainsaws. i will get trained too obviously.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Agree with stihl or husqvarna but number one on the list should be safety gear, min is trousers, helmet, ear defenders, eye protection (built into helmet), gloves. Then get training.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Ditto what's been said:
1. Never work alone
2. Get a good chainsaw with a chain brake
3. Get training
4. Wear a helmet, ear defenders, visor/goggles, chainsaw trousers and bootsPosted 1 year ago # -
learn to juggle with balls first. Then move onto clubs before you start with chainsaws
Posted 1 year ago # -
Look in your local yellow pages and see which servicing agent is closest. They tend to have pools of polularity and they very much reflect the local dealers. My brother uses Husqvarna without exception and has used most all other professional options before.
Posted 1 year ago # -
I still want one as I now have about 2 tonnes of 2m long logs I need to chop and season, buggered if Im going to do that with an axe!!
Posted 1 year ago # -
hedfull - Member
Ditto what's been said:1. Never work alone
2. Get a good chainsaw with a chain brake
3. Get training
4. Wear a helmet, ear defenders, visor/goggles, chainsaw trousers and bootsthe most important bits. Bloody nasty things chainsaws when used in the wrong hands.
As for which to look at, we use Stihl MS240, MS260's at work. The newer ones are quiet light and good for climbing with if needed..
Posted 1 year ago # -
The newer ones are quiet light and good for climbing
Climbing with a chainsaw - Never ever unless trained.Posted 1 year ago # -
Do it.
Posted 1 year ago # -
richmars - Member
The newer ones are quiet light and good for climbingClimbing with a chainsaw - Never ever unless trained.
aye, forgot to mention I do work for a tree surgeons for a living
Posted 1 year ago # -
didmatt, I guessed you were!
A question, how do you deal with wind blown, hanging trees? (I know, carefully.)Posted 1 year ago # -
That Portek Logmaster looks awesome btw, any idea how much they are?
Posted 1 year ago # -
Why do all the 'what car' threads not get filled up with people telling you to make sure you get training/lessons/licence/crash helmets?
Posted 1 year ago # -
Because you can't legally drive without training, license etc but you can go into a shop and come out with a chainsaw and start cutting legs off.
Posted 1 year ago # -
richmars - Member
didmatt, I guessed you were!
A question, how do you deal with wind blown, hanging trees? (I know, carefully.)start with a risk assement, make sure the area is cleared of other objects, work out what will happen to the tree when you cut it (will the whole tree come down? will parts of the crown or branches fall down separately? how will the supporting tree react?) Then it just being very careful, watching for movements when you cut the trunk, you don't want the saw getting too hot or getting stuck in the cut from the compression on the trunk reacting.
really you need to do a NTPC course on it, its the best way and keeps you from killing yourself, its a rather dangerous job...
Posted 1 year ago # -
didmatt,
Thanks, that's pretty much what I do. Also, when possible, I pull them down with a winch, which keeps me a long way away from them!
Good point about more training. Will look into to.
Thanks.Posted 1 year ago # -
Jedi, I'm not too far from you (shefford) you and am a qualified Tree Surgeon. unfortunately I am more experienced than most at being at the wrong end of a chainsaw. I will happily run you through the does, don'ts and wotnots if you want, ping me an email...
Posted 1 year ago # -
richmars - Member
didmatt,
Thanks, that's pretty much what I do. Also, when possible, I pull them down with a winch, which keeps me a long way away from them!
Good point about more training. Will look into to.
Thanks.Winches on a tractor is usually the best way. Obs depends on access to the tree/wood etc. Aye, training is the key really.
Posted 1 year ago # -
+1 to Husquvarna or Stihl - Makitas are getting quite a good name now as well.
Also +1 to getting trained and equipped to use it, I had two months off work many years ago due to a disagreement with a chainsaw and a dead tree.
For real cutting power you need one of these
Posted 1 year ago # -
damion, my mate hamish is a tree surgeon and will do the same. thanks for the kind offer
Posted 1 year ago # -
Husky for a smaller saw, Stihl for a bigger one according to my local tree surgeon.
BTCV are good and cheap for training. They'll lend you safety kit as well if the instructors like you once you've completed the course.
I'm in Sussex, qualified, with saw, all the safety kit and willing to do some work for beer :O) But I guess you won't be local.
Tim
Posted 1 year ago # -
No worries, back OT, as others have said I'd go for a Stihl MS200 (rear handle) if you're happy to splash out, a MS260 if you wanted soemthing will last forever and have enough grunt to cope with the majority of things, or a Makita if you want something a little less 'profesional'.
I was given a demo of Makita's easy start a year or so ago, and was really impressed with how little effort was needed to get it running.
HTH
Edit: Oh, and will work for lessons
Posted 1 year ago # -
and one of these. http://www.s2as.com/p/p-Dakine_Builder's_Pack_2010-3287.aspx.
BTW a chainsaw can remove about 2lb of flesh a second i hear.
So take a belt for rapid weight loss.
Posted 1 year ago # -
sharki dude, i park my van 20meters away from where i build
Posted 1 year ago # -
Oh, forgot to sya, stop by here next time you're on your way to woburn:
Posted 1 year ago # -
ride to the woods to cut trees, carbon neutral.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Dolmar and Makita do some very good value saws dolmar 340 is a great little saw
Stihl/husqvarna are fantastic, but unless you're using them professionally, day in, day out they're too expensive, I use dolmar saws
A.Posted 1 year ago #
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