E-Mail 'Wood Cutting Made Slightly Less Dangerous - Part 1, by The Novice' To A Friend

Email a copy of 'Wood Cutting Made Slightly Less Dangerous - Part 1, by The Novice' to a friend

* Required Field






Separate multiple entries with a comma. Maximum 5 entries.



Separate multiple entries with a comma. Maximum 5 entries.


E-Mail Image Verification

Loading ... Loading ...

26 Comments

  1. I run a small tree business. I’m like the chainsaw chap nazi. I have often said if I was a chainsaw salesman I would not let the saw leave the store unles the customer could show me they already owned a set of serviceable chaps or bought a new pair. I would sell the chaps to a new saw buyer at cost. Once a pair of chaps has been compromised, cut by a saw, you need to retire them and buy a new pair. I have three friends that have not heeded my warning that now walk with a limp. Two cut their thighs muscles and one cut his kneecap in half.

    1. Gasp! Oh my word. Got it. No chaps. No chainsaw work.
      I would like to acquire several sets, possibly on Black Friday or cyber Monday sale. Since I am unfamiliar with these, do you have a recommendation or preference to share?

      1. Krissy,

        I fought wildfire 2 years, and live on a woodlot. I heat with wood, mulch the orchard and bed the chicken coop with woodchips and I shop at Bailey’s for stuff I don’t expect to keep maintained long term. I like Amazon convenience but I don’t use it for woodcutting equipment. For things I may want serviced above and beyond my capability I use the local saw shop, at full price; because they support what they sell. And local commerce arguments help me part with the Benjamins. Nothing special about them they print them like crazy.

        Jim

          1. I wear my regular chainsaw chaps when I am using an electric chainsaw on the theory that something is better than nothing. I don’t know of any chaps that are rated for use with electric chainsaws.

      3. The chaps will last until they get scuffed up enough that threads are pulling out.

        They are layers of Kevlar like cotton gauze that are easily pulled free. When a chainsaw chain gets ahold of them they gum up the works to where the saw sprocket won’t turn. They do a great job of limiting the damage, emphasis on limit.

  2. Novice, it sounds as if Universe has bestowed upon you what is more commonly known as “Clark Griswold Syndrome”. Sometimes, despite best intentions and an abundance of safety precautions, bad things happen to good people trying to do the right thing. You have just described more mishaps than my father, my grandfather, or I have experienced in three generations of power saw use. Maybe a nice set of golf clubs instead? For gosh sakes, be careful brother!

    1. DD, it’s kind of like, hey I’ve done this wearing jeans for 40 years and never needed them. Then comes 40 years and one day, and oh crap, that one day just wiped out 40 years of no accidents. $100.00 or less for chaps is super cheap insurance. I do this every day and I will always wear PPE. Safety is always first on my mind. I want to be able to be healthy at the end of the day.
      Kris’s, I do like the Husqvarna full wrap. They are around $85.00 to $100.00. I’ve tried many different over the years and they work the best for me. I also wear chainsaw protective climbing pants. They are quite a bit more expensive, but depending on what your trying to accomplish they may be worth it. They can run around $300.00.
      Hey DD please wear chaps brother, stay safe.

      1. Perhaps you should re-read my comment because I’m pretty sure that in no way, shape, or form did I ever mention what safety equipment I use, nor did I infer or recommend that Novice not use chaps or any other type of safety equipment. As a Stihl dealer for 13+ years, you are preaching to the choir, but if I ever need a chap salesman I’ll be sure to look you up.

        1. D.D. I’m with you. All this reminds me of watching my kids play with other kids on the playground after school. All the moms kept yelling “be careful!’ every few minutes no matter what their kids were doing. Me, as one of only to dads there, would watch my kids and when, and only when, the looked like they might try something sketchy, I would say in a low voice “you need to think that all the way through before you do that”. Safety equipment is great, a clear, thoughtful, observant mind is better.

          1. I hear what you’re saying Freeheel, but my original comment was not about safety equipment. By all means people should use any and all safety equipment available.
            Since 1975 my family and I have owned and operated motorcycle, ATV, and boat dealerships. One of them also has Stihl and Echo power equipment. It has been my experience that just as sure as there are people that have absolutely no business on a motorcycle or operating a boat, there are people that have no business operating chainsaws.

            “Honey, get over here! The neighbor is up on a ladder with a chainsaw cutting a limb over a power line!”…’Merica!

  3. I think the observation:
    ‘If you act with a ninety-percent certainty of success, you are due for failure…’
    aligns with the gambler belief:
    ‘This slot-machine / these cards are due to turn in my favor’.

    Nope.
    Each event stands alone.
    The odds do not accumulate.
    ‘Because I lost buying lottery tickets for several decades, this Saturday will be my big win…’
    Nope.
    You can win the first time, you can never win. One drawing has nothing to do with another.

    In the case of skills such as your sawyer example, I think repetition reduces the potential for injury.
    The more I practice and rehearse, the better I can get.
    In theory…
    This discounts complacency. Fatigue. Distraction(s). Worn or missing equipment.
    Aging out of competence.
    Or the ‘double-dog dare’ factor… coupled with adult beverages.

    Or the government agents and their regulations codes acts laws permits-and-fees(not ‘taxes) keeping us safely cocooned in security cradle-to-grave.

    Speaking of fire-wood, let’s look at this another way:
    Let’s say you live or work in a wooden structure.
    Ninety-percent of the time of you using the building, the wood doesn’t catch fire.
    Ninety-percent of the time, you survive using the building without death, injury, disfigurement.
    Each use is a stand-alone event.
    The last time (or the first time…) you use the building, lightning could set it ablaze. Or your ‘neighbor’ could have a bee encounter, resulting in a The Grid© collapse.

    [ This may be a good time for us to fervently contact the government agents to encourage them to consider enacting laws codes acts regulations requiring a cautionary plaque at the entry to every wood structure:

    “!!! WARNING !!! Use of this building may result in death, injury, disfigurement. Use only by adults with adult supervision. !!!”

    Accompanied by the appropriate licensing.
    After tests to verify competency.
    After back ‘ground’ check(s).
    After finger ‘printing’.
    After fees(not ‘taxes’).

    Or maybe we could simply not wear our jammies in public while sipping a soy latte… ]

  4. I count my blessings after reading your article. My FIRST experience using a chainsaw is now a bit comical, yet amplifies your intention in writing.
    A local had shoulder surgery and was looking for a helper for yard work. I needed extra cash, so got hired. Now, this man was a vet from WWII as a officer on the carrier USS Yorktown. Surviving Midway and such, the words, “can’t be done”,,,,,”not possible”,,,,or even a simple ” I don’t think so”,,,,,,,were NEVER ALLOWED.
    With six acres of property he needed cleaned, cut up dead fallen trees etc, you all know the gist of it, I was fairly busy.
    One day, he tells me a tree needs branches removed. I look up and asked “Are you kidding me?”
    I was an inexperienced lad, and the world was full of challenges. Considering all he had been through, who was I to say IT can’t be done.
    He leads me to his extension ladder, shows me the extra long electrical cords(the saw was electric) and up I go.
    The first few branches went just fine. Cut, fall. No problem. But, he wanted that one particularly long, dead branch, that at that moment was beyond my reach.
    He wasn’t accepting this. Fully extend the ladder, stand on the top rung and hug the tree and with a 14 inch blade you should reach it easily.
    Something about the eyes of a hardened vet convinced me we were both more then a little crazy. He wanted it done. And I was stupid enough to give it go.
    Truth!
    Top rung, on tiptoe, hugging the tree and reaching with every fiber i could make stretch.
    Now, since then, I have heard of under cutting first? Yeah, a bit later.
    Involved in my endeavor, he figured to go have a cup of something, because when I looked down( wished I hadn’t) he was gone.
    Three quarters through, the branch did a twist. The bark held tough and swung that damn thing right at me, hitting me in the chest, then breaking and falling with the thickest part hitting the lower rung on the ladder, the vibration even shaking me. finally resting on the ground, and the chainsaw suddenly weighed 5x more flailing around. HOWEVER, as this unfolds, the chainsaw clutch broke, why I never did find out, and the saw just kept spinning. All while I am trying not to fall. So now I have to try to unplug it and not fall. I succeed. And drop it to the ground.
    My heart is bursting through my ribcage. My breathing is way deep and rapid. My calves are killing me, And a voice from below cries out, “what are you trying to do? Break my tools? You damaged my ladder!”
    My response was un flattering to be mentioned here, yet I yelled that I could have been killed for that damn branch.
    With his head shaking and hung down he walked off. Leaving me stranded.
    Begging the question: If a man is stuck, crying in a tree in the woods, would anyone hear him?
    I sought the advice of a man who did tree work. Told him my story, for which he poured me two shots of bourbon. Onefor not getting killed. The other, because “You’re an a’hole”
    I worked for that old man for 12 yrs till he died. Cared for him through a stroke.
    And during that time, I had learned quite a bit about how to cut trees, PROPERLY, and SAFELY, (and a few close calls anyway), and he learned that when I said no I meant it.
    Chainsaws are like guns. Should not be allowed in anyone’s hands until they have properly trained in the safety.

  5. Getting within 10 feet of a power line with a ladder or pruning saw is a great way to get electrocuted. If the conditions are right (by which I mean horribly wrong) you won’t even have to touch the wire for it to arc over into you.

  7. Dont know where y’all are from but here in central new york if the power lines run to your house meter base it the power companies responsibility they will take care of the branches just make an appointment.
    And spot on about fatigue. If we head to the woods in the morning we bring a load out by lunch time and thats it for the day. We have been known to get a 2nd load to haul out in the afternoon but normally no more cutting.

  8. To answer JW’s question about the difference between electric and gas powered chain saws, I would say the primary difference is power/cutting strength.

    I own to gas saws with different length bars. I also own a Black and Decker 40-volt cordless electric. I bought that brand simply because I already had two other products using the same batteries. I have never used a saw that uses an extension cord, so my comments will be about the one using a rechargeable lithium battery.

    In my experience, gas are more powerful and are required for big, thick trees and logs. As a result of being more powerful, they cut faster. I would not want to cut a log or trunk over 5 or 6 inches with my electric ubkess it was my only option.

    Battery powered saws are easy to use. No starter to pull. You pull the trigger, the saw runs. You let go, it stops. There is no engine idle and they are far quieter than a gas powered saw. But I have found them to cut slower and the chips don’t fly like they do with gas. (I am guessing that the chain is slower than on a gas saw.) That said, they are great for trimming things, cutting down small trees that popped up somewhere you don’t want one, and for the occasional odd job.

    Electrics also don’t smell and so far, mine doesn’t leak or drip, although it does require bar chain oil.

    If your battery goes dead, you either need another handy or you have to wait hours to recharge. With the gas, you just refuel and you are good to go.

  9. Crisp day in March. Armed with a Stihl sporting a 24 inch bar I am knocking out some privet. Been at it a while. Previously I had used a shorter lighter saw and developed some habits that were not compatible with the longer, heavier Stihl. Fell back on those habits. Nipped my thigh. Blood everywhere. Huge adrenaline surge. Applied pressure. After I realized I was not going to die on the spot I locked my tools up and drove the the hospital. The clerk gave me a form to fill out and told me it would be three hours. I tell her I am dripping and could she get me some gauze. Sure, she waves me off. So I sit there pressure with one hand and Plutarch’s Lives in my other reading when a real nurse spots me. “Let me see that!” she demands. I show. “Why didn’t you tell us?!” My reply is “I said I was dripping. What does it take?” “Get in this chair!” she commands. Triage room. They probe. “Tell me about pain.” I tell them 3, maybe 4. They puzzle, “sir, there are people who have sore throats out there that say 9. I say, “It feels like a skinned knee.” They decide it is not life threatening (duh) and that I need to go back and wait. I beg not to be put in the waiting room again as I will have the flu in an hour if I stay in that room. So they sit me in that chair in the back hallway from triage dressed like a lumber jack, oil, saw dust and blood all over everywhere(a little goes a long way) reading Plutarch. The doc was fun. Intrigued by my reading choice. Fifteen stitches later I am out the door with the real task of the day. Facing my wife and explaining the day. Yikes!
    Yes my chaps were someplace else. Now they are always behind the back seat of my truck. Definitely limit the duration of chainsaw use. Several years passed before I picked that saw up again.

  10. My husband’s step-grandfather was a plumber in the north woods of Wisconsin. He did a lot of septic system work for folks with cottages. As he got older, he hired an assistant. One afternoon the assistant didn’t return after he’d gone home for lunch. Grandpa Hollis went to check on him. Turns out the fellow had used his lunch break to trim a tree at his place. Somehow he had fallen off the ladder and dropped the chainsaw. The chainsaw was an older one that didn’t have the “let loose the trigger and the blade stops spinning” feature. When he fell, he landed on the chainsaw and was decapitated. Be careful out there, folks!

Comments are closed.