Noob chainsaw advice?

[sploo]

I have some 30-40cm (dia) logs that I'd like to cut, in order to make stump style seats for the kids. A bowsaw turns out to be hard work, and too difficult to get a remotely straight cut.

I'm looking at the £50 Titan electric chainsaw at Screwfix (40.5cm bar, 2000W) and the bigger/longer/more expensive OREGON CS1500 (http://www.screwfix.com/p/oregon-cs1500 ... 230v/6285k) and wondering if that's a good route?

I have a Trend Airshield Pro with the ear defenders; which I'm assuming will offer as much protection against a chainsaw in the face (i.e. probably very little) as the head/eye/ear chainsaw helmets.

For the moment I'd just be cross cutting logs smaller than the chainsaw bar length (tip well out of the log, and nothing behind on which to catch the tip). Later I'd be interested in making some sort of a ripping jig (like https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HzllrI9PJdo).

I assume I really should I be looking at chainsaw safety trousers and gloves from day too? It occurs to me that a kickback would most likely end up with the blade hitting your head or body, so upper body protection would be good, but it seems to be mostly helmets, gloves and trousers?

 

[AJB Temple]

Titan is fine for occasional use. Chain loosens easily and is a pain to adjust. Eventually runs out of adjustment. For £50 it's OK. If you want to use it a lot, but a better one. I have petrol steel 16", aforesaid Titan and a Greenworks battery. Will be buying a Stihl battery. Battery is super convenient. Petrol is a pain unless you use it quite often.

Ripstop chaps or trousers are a smart thing to have. Stops the chain before it gets to your leg. Your hands should be well out of the way but I wear gloves anyway. I also wear heavy duty workboots with streel toe caps, or my Stihl chainsaw boots if I am doing a lot.

Helmet with a peak is wise.

Electric (battery or cable) is quiet - I doubt you will need ear defenders. You will if you go petrol though.

A log stand is necessary.

 

[sploo]

Thanks. I was definitely looking at buildng a log stand.

Battery would be great due to the small potential of doing something remotely, but I assume they have pretty limited run time, plus they are expensive.

 

[jnw010]

I use a chainsaw occasionally for cutting firewood logs. If you're working in a tidy, stable and flat environment it could be argued that you don't need to go full bore on the safety gear. You're not climbing over felled trees in the rain in the middle of nowhere.
I'm not saying you shouldn't have every bit of safety gear available (before I get flamed), but don't get obsessed with it.
Me, I wear some steel toes, thick jeans, gloves, chainsaw helmet/faceguard/ear-defenders combo, I take my time and I stop before I get tired. I also read a chainsaw book:
Chainsaw Operator's Manual: The Safe Use of Chainsaws Paperback – 1 Jun 2005
by Bernard Kestel (Author)

Understanding where the dangers lie and how to mitigate the risk makes it well worth a read.

 

[AJB Temple]

Run time is not an issue really. I used my 12" Greenworks (bought for use on a ladder / scaffold) to to take 5 metres off a lot of Leylandii in a hedge that is about 200m long. So I was cutting through several trunks and branches for each tree, up to about 20cm thick. The battery on the Greenworks lasted all day (I was using hedgecutters and other tools as well).

Battery hedgecutters like this run noticeably slower than the petrol equivalent, and stop the instant you release the trigger. Certainly for an inexperienced use they feel a lot safer. I have not used by Titan since I bought the Greenworks. As soon as I started using the Greenworks (good though it is) I wished I had bought the Stihl - as the battery system was so convincing.

If you are cutting up a lot of logs, a good sized petrol chainsaw eats the electric ones (either corded or battery) alive. If I were you I would go for one that has easy chain tension adjustment that does not require tools. You will be re-tensioning the chain quite a lot when the saw is new or whenever you fit a new chain.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

To hell with the expense of chainsaw trousers and spats I say. I can say that because I have no legs. :lol:
Seriously, the hard hat, visor and ear muffs are probably the most important.

 

[Rhyolith]

It should not be difficult to get a straight cut with a bowsaw unless there is something wrong with it, a good bowsaw is should cut fast and straight with little effort. This thread is probably worth your time: best-bow-saws-t96274.html

I would say its probably not worth investing in all the chainsaw stuff (and you really should get all the safety stuff!) unless you going to get a good machine and use it a fair bit.

If the wood is green (still wet) an axe is a good option too. See these threads (lots more info on youtube and the like):
- shovel-maker-t104299.html
- ty-gwyn-whitehouse-collier-s-axe-t102406.html

 

[sploo]

Thanks for all the replies.

I've previously planked smaller timber using my bandsaw, but I've recently gained a local source of fresh felled logs.

Ideally a really big petrol saw would allow me to plank sections of bigger trunks on site, but that's way beyond my experience yet.

At the moment then it would be chunks that I could lift into the car to bring home - so, basically, 30-40cm dia and 50cm long.

I do some turning as well, so it occurs to me that a chainsaw would be useful for preparing blanks from the logs.

I'm leaning towards the Oregon as a not-the-cheapest-but-still-not-too-bad first option.

Ironically, a US promo video I saw for the Oregon had people wearing full suits and gloves - but no helmets or face protection; which would be my first choice.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I've this one (it was cheaper when I got and I got it at xmas with clubcard points so half price again) and I can't fault it.
www.tesco.com/direct/ikra-red-2000w-ele ... d=598-7684
I wouldn't expect a lightweight electric one to perform like a top class petrol, but this one's fine - and I have a 16" Stihl petrol and I've used chainsaws for decades so I have something to go by.

 

[duncanh]

Please get some sort of leg protection, particularly if you've never had any training in chainsaw use. Thick jeans were mentioned above but they will offer no leg protection other than keeping you warm and stopping your legs getting dirty! The cheapest option is usually chaps. Upper body protection is generally not used as chainsaw gear is generally thick, heavy, warm and would impede movement. Most days when I'm out chainsawing I'll be wearing a tshirt with maybe a fleece or waterproof over the top if it's really cold. If you get proper instruction you will learn how to hold the saw and not have your body behind the line of the bar, thus reducing the chance of a kick back injury to your upper body.
Gloves with chainsaw protection aren't essential and many operators don't use them, preferring something more dexterous with a better grip. They usually only have protection in the left hand anyway.
Head protection - I doubt the Trend is rated for chainsaw use. I'm pretty sure the main reason for a chainsaw helmet is for not protection from the saw, more for protection from flying debris, hearing protection and a helmet to protect from falling trees/limbs/bits of wood. The material making up all the elements of the helmet don't appear to offer much protection from the saw itself.
I wear chainsaw boots whenever I do any cutting, even a small amount. They're not cheap though. Chainsaw wellies are often cheaper or you can find boot covers (well, we have some at work but I've never seen them on sale anywhere). Steel toe caps at a bare minimum with extreme caution.

You mention maybe doing some ripping in the future - this operation is very stressful on the saw and I doubt an electric chainsaw would cope with it for very long without dieing. When we do it at work we use one of Stihl's more powerful petrol saws and even that struggles sometimes.

Someone mentioned a log stand - they can be useful but not esential. I don't use one. If at home I rest whatever I'm cutting on a sacrificial old block of wood. When working I generally cut part way through the log, roll it and then cut through the rest.

Someone mentioned the Stihl battery chainsaw. One of our sites has one and for anything over maybe 20cm diameter I'd go for something else. It's certainly convenient but lacks the power you get with petrol and makes for slow work.

 

[AJB Temple]

I think Duncan gives good advice above.

Lots of people use chainsaws without any safety gear and 99% of the time it is fine. The trouble is, that 1% might be the very next time you use it and it could have your leg off. If you have ever seen a demo of proper trainsaw trousers, they are full of fibres that instantly clog and stop the blade. They are a bit bulky to wear. My Stihl chainsaw boots are basically orange wellies that have armour all the way up. I don't think they were all that expensive.

You are cutting 30-40cm logs and at that size I would definitely go petrol as well. The trouble with using an underpowered saw for big cuts is that you can start to get impatient and begin jiggling the saw about - this increases accident risk. Chainsaws, badly handled, are an ultra dangerous tool. I make it a rule that I never use mine alone - I always have a helper in the vicinity.

For home use, typically cutting up logs and branches of between 10 to 30 cm diameter, I find a log stand / trestle is faster and safer. You can lock the log into position with a sprung chain, and this stops rotation during the cut.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

The downside of petrol, of course, is the problem of stale fuel if you seldom use it - you get rid of 80% + of a gallon of two stroke only to do exactly the same a few months down the line. You can buy special fuel but it is expensive. A beauty of electric if you are a turner is that you can use it indoors.

 

[Beau]

Another one agreeing with Duncan. Only bit I would add is I thought one of other purposes of the helmet was the peek helps protect you from kickback.

 

[sploo]

I will definitely go for trousers - all guidance recommends them so I'd be daft to ignore it.

I was thinking the same (as comments above) about the helmet - probably protection is just chips and noise, so the Trend would be fine. However the peak comment (vs kickback) is interesting.

I'd be an occasional user, hence looking at electric rather than petrol.

I've planked 8" logs with my 1hp handsaw, so was hoping that a 3hp chainsaw would work for larger logs. Having said that, I believe that for the same blade you need approx twice the power for a ✓2 increase (1.4x thickness), so a 16" log would theoretically need 4x the hp vs an 8" cut; and that doesn't account for the fact a chainsaw blade has a much wider kerf.

 

[duncanh]

The downside of petrol, of course, is the problem of stale fuel if you seldom use it - you get rid of 80% + of a gallon of two stroke only to do exactly the same a few months down the line. You can buy special fuel but it is expensive. A beauty of electric if you are a turner is that you can use it indoors.

To counter the problem of stale fuel you can use alkylate fuel such as Aspen or Stihls version.

It's certainly more expensive than regular unleaded with 2 stroke oil added but the benefits:
1) the fuel doesn't go off - I had some in my small Stihl for well over a year without a problem,
2) it burns cleaner so is better for your health (not as many nasty exhaust fumes) and the health of the saw. It's certainly more pleasant to work around.

We couldn't afford to use it at work but for home use it's all I have as it saves draining the tank after every use.

At home I also have an electric saw - can be used in the shed and is less intrusive for the neighbours if I only want to do a small amount of cutting

 

[sploo]

At home I also have an electric saw - can be used in the shed and is less intrusive for the neighbours if I only want to do a small amount of cutting

That's a big factor for me: it'll be an occasional use tool, and I'd probably make myself unpopular with a petrol powered machine wailing away.

One possible concern is that it looks as though Oregon are playing the usual game with wattage ratings. In the US it's listed as a "15 amp" saw. One source claimed 1800W (roughly 15A at 125V). Another noted you'd need a power cord of a particular gauge, that when I checked, was rated to provide ~1400W.

The claim on the Screwfix site is 2400W; which is obviously quite possible on a standard UK 13A plug, but is surely sufficiently different that (if true) would mean it'd likely have a different (more powerful) motor.

 

[Simou1]

Ditto to all the safety kit points, keep A and E out of the chainsaw personal protection kit decision.

Electric chainsaws have come on leaps and bounds and though I prefer petrol for the convenience and power, and use Stihl green oil to overcome stale petrol, I did buy an electric saw last year. It is the Makita UC 3541, about £90, and it is an excellent saw. Made in China like most of the electric saws on the market and sufficiently powerful to meet my needs, it is very well made, has a 3 year warranty and is very easy to tension.

I looked at the others in the entry level range and did buy the Worx one from Wickes when it was on offer at £50. But it went back as the tensioner broke on first use. At the £50 mark the Titan's seem to be excellent value but the solid build quality of the Makita won me over.

 

[sploo]

Ditto to all the safety kit points, keep A and E out of the chainsaw personal protection kit decision.

Electric chainsaws have come on leaps and bounds and though I prefer petrol for the convenience and power, and use Stihl green oil to overcome stale petrol, I did buy an electric saw last year. It is the Makita UC 3541, about £90, and it is an excellent saw. Made in China like most of the electric saws on the market and sufficiently powerful to meet my needs, it is very well made, has a 3 year warranty and is very easy to tension.

I looked at the others in the entry level range and did buy the Worx one from Wickes when it was on offer at £50. But it went back as the tensioner broke on first use. At the £50 mark the Titan's seem to be excellent value but the solid build quality of the Makita won me over.

What amazes/disturbs me is that so many casual YouTube review videos have guys with no safety gear leaning right over a chainsaw, with the bar inline with their body, and cutting a wobbly log from a random pile on the ground :shock:

I suppose that familiarity breeds contempt, and YouTube videos involving table saws are usually just as bad.

The Oregon does seem to have gotten very good reviews in the US, though strangely I was struggling to find it on their UK website (there's a battery powered model, but you have to search a bit to find the CS1500). I guess Screwfix have a good returns policy, so there's relatively little risk there.

I'd love a massive petrol powered Stihl or Husky (with appropriate attachments) for portable planking duties - but that's just not realistic at the moment given cost and my lack of chainsaw experience.

 

[LancsRick]

As already stated, definitely get gloves and trousers. BE AWARE that they will protect you from light glances only, you are not invulnerable and if you drop a running blade on your leg you're going to have a miserable day.

That said, when you use them safely, they're great fun .

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I who have nothing certificate wise have to say the most dangerous person with a chainsaw I ever worked with or near had every qualification know to man. I wouldn't work within twenty feet of him.