chain saws

[toffee]

any recommendations?
cash limit 200 pounds.
its for chopping logs. needs to go through tree trunks not just branches.

also, anyone know about chopping driftwood? (direct from beach) how is this to burn? this may get moved to general diy I know but wanted to try here first.

needs to be usable by me.(so not too heavy)

we got one from ebay but it packed in within a month.

 

[noseall]

hate the damn things. very dangerous.

get some chainsaw pants too.

 

[toffee]

chain saw pants?

 

[RF Lighting]

They are made from kevlar, and stop you accidentally amputating your legs by bunging up the blade and jamming the saw with kevlar fibres.

http://www.chainsawspecialists.co.uk/clothing.htm

 

[Igorian]

Yes and a jacket and helmet too. It's easy to get complacent with these things, but if you do hit something nasty, they can kick back and flip over. You won't make the same mistake twice.

 

[toffee]

play with matches and you may get burned.
is it really so dangerous with chain saws?
I appreciate they can obviously do real, even fatal damage.. but is it a great risk if used carefully?

we have log burner and some felled trees and it seems a good idea to chop them our selves.

 

[Trazor]

You need one of these..........

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/54809/worlds_largest_chainsaw/

 

[noseall]

It's easy to get complacent with these things,

wise words.

 

[Thermo]

if your going to get one, get a petrol one. Electric ones are more dangerous as they are underpowered (god job they sell them at band q). Wear steel toe caps, chainsaw gloves/trousers and helmet as a minimum.
Something along thelines of a small stihl at that price will be reliable and be what you need. Make sure you buy a sharpening kit to go with it. A blunt saw is dangerous.

Contact your local agricultural college. most do a one day course that covers how to use and maintain them. They are very dangerous bits of kit and i avoid using mine wherever possible. Give them maximum respect, but even so they can still bite back. Good job they sell them in b an q with no protective gear really

 

[Jasonb]

Thermo do you mean a Stihl saw like this

Jason

 

[toffee]

had a look at newton rigg agricultural college.
The fees for lessons start at £36o and go upto £520 for five day courses.

The cost of getting helmet and pants and shoes will also put the cost up greatly.

I think hub would be tempted to just use without all of the protective gear, well I know he would as he did with the last one.

I was going to replace it as a birthday gift but perhaps I wont bother.

 

[breezer]

do you recall the sad story in the paper, ? short version:

bloke in tree dropped saw cut his wifes head clean off.

what is £300+ compared to a life?

 

[Thermo]

your funeral you decide. Phone the college. Most do a one day course specifically for private users, normally only costs about £80. the stuff they teach you on maintenance will save you that in running and servicing costs.

Ill never forget the lecturer on my course. He has worked in the industry all his life, felling trees all over the world. He was bald with a nice scar right across his scalp from a chainsaw that kicked back. Still if you want to take a chance for the sake of money thats up to you. personally i value my limbs and my life too much, because they will maim or kill in a second.

jasonb thats spot on!

 

[toffee]

I agree.. I just meant that due to the costs of going about this properly and safely, I will get him something else instead.

Unfortunately, I dont have any more than the £200 pounds spare to spend this month.

so, I think I will consider something else for birthday and look at chainsaw another time.

When we bought the last one, hub used it just wearing jeans and t shirt, no protective gear at all.
I dont think he can have realised the dangers.

Like me, I guess he thought that so long as you are careful and dont 'muck about' with one, everything will be ok.

However, We wouldnt ride a motorbike without full leathers and a helmet 'just in case' but I certainly didnt and I guess neither did he, consider that a chainsaw is as dangerous.

I thought, perhaps flippantly, that just like people who own guns (which could also potentially kill) that it was simply a case of being careful.

Ignorance like mine on the 'what can go wrong' and consequences of such is probably responsible for many accidents... not just where people have blatantly taken risks.

I will ring the college as the website didnt show day courses.
Hub can wait and do it right.

 

[Thermo]

sorry to vent my spleen but it does annoy me. especially with the sheds selling them. Even with protective gear and when you are trained they can be dangerous. thats why there are techniques for doing certian things with them and why there are certain safety features built into them. Thats the trouble, most people dont realise. Most people dont even know when they are blunt (when they can be very dangerous) and how to sharpen them