nmurph
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Guys, I have said it so many times: don't count on a steel-toed boot to keep your foot safe against a chainsaw. Here is all the proof I need to know what I have been preaching is true.
I was limbing a 8" oak I had just dropped. I was running a ported 346 with 3/8" RS, freshly sharpened. I was facing the stump, limbing towards the butt. I cut a 2" limb which had a large flare at the collar. It was, unknown to me, under a great deal of tension toward the top and towards me. Because the saw went through very fast, instead of pinching it just spit the bar back at me. Before I knew what happened my saw kicked into my boot. I have always considered myself careful and attentive to the dangers of a chainsaw. This happened so fast I had to go back to the tree after I got settled down to piece things together (I later determined it was 1.5ft from where I was cutting and I was pushing the saw away from me). All I could do when it happened was imagine the worst!! I was in shock. My brother was cutting about 50yds away, and my son was stacking the wood for both and was helping my brother at the time. I threw the saw down and pulled my chaps back. My foot was aching and I was expecting to see blood. I limped to the truck, yelling at my son. He heard me and got my brother's attention. Both of them came running. We got my boot off and found I just had a big red spot where the saw hit me (got a bruise that looks like a hammer hit me). I checked the boots out well. It looks like they were cut through the first three or four layers of the seven in this boot. But what is more important, and the point I want to make is that, though this boot has a steel cap, the saw glanced off the front and went straight to the soft part. I am SO thankful that there was Kevlar there. Otherwise, I would have lost the front portion of my foot- THERE IS NO DOUBT ABOUT THAT FACT!
Please, if you value your body, invest the money in some serious protection for your feet. You do it for you legs, head, and think you do with steel toes...you are so wrong. Yes, if you hit your foot straight on the steel will stop the saw, but what happens in the next fraction of a second could be very ugly. These boots are almost three hundred dollars. My hospital bill would have run into the tens of thousands of dollars. And even with insurance I would have taken a serious financial hit. But more important, I would have never had more than a club on the end of my leg. I would never have run or played baseball with my son. I am so thankful to GOD.
I don't know if Matterhorn will sell single boots, but I plan to send some pics, thank them for their product, and see if I can get a replacement left boot. The bummer in this episode is that I have had the boots for over two years. They don't get a ton of wear, but they were finally getting well broken in. I'm guessing it would take a few weeks of daily wear to get them back to this point.
Please, hug you kids, tell your wife you love her, and get some boots with something more than a steel toe to protect your walking gear.
A
I was limbing a 8" oak I had just dropped. I was running a ported 346 with 3/8" RS, freshly sharpened. I was facing the stump, limbing towards the butt. I cut a 2" limb which had a large flare at the collar. It was, unknown to me, under a great deal of tension toward the top and towards me. Because the saw went through very fast, instead of pinching it just spit the bar back at me. Before I knew what happened my saw kicked into my boot. I have always considered myself careful and attentive to the dangers of a chainsaw. This happened so fast I had to go back to the tree after I got settled down to piece things together (I later determined it was 1.5ft from where I was cutting and I was pushing the saw away from me). All I could do when it happened was imagine the worst!! I was in shock. My brother was cutting about 50yds away, and my son was stacking the wood for both and was helping my brother at the time. I threw the saw down and pulled my chaps back. My foot was aching and I was expecting to see blood. I limped to the truck, yelling at my son. He heard me and got my brother's attention. Both of them came running. We got my boot off and found I just had a big red spot where the saw hit me (got a bruise that looks like a hammer hit me). I checked the boots out well. It looks like they were cut through the first three or four layers of the seven in this boot. But what is more important, and the point I want to make is that, though this boot has a steel cap, the saw glanced off the front and went straight to the soft part. I am SO thankful that there was Kevlar there. Otherwise, I would have lost the front portion of my foot- THERE IS NO DOUBT ABOUT THAT FACT!
Please, if you value your body, invest the money in some serious protection for your feet. You do it for you legs, head, and think you do with steel toes...you are so wrong. Yes, if you hit your foot straight on the steel will stop the saw, but what happens in the next fraction of a second could be very ugly. These boots are almost three hundred dollars. My hospital bill would have run into the tens of thousands of dollars. And even with insurance I would have taken a serious financial hit. But more important, I would have never had more than a club on the end of my leg. I would never have run or played baseball with my son. I am so thankful to GOD.
I don't know if Matterhorn will sell single boots, but I plan to send some pics, thank them for their product, and see if I can get a replacement left boot. The bummer in this episode is that I have had the boots for over two years. They don't get a ton of wear, but they were finally getting well broken in. I'm guessing it would take a few weeks of daily wear to get them back to this point.
Please, hug you kids, tell your wife you love her, and get some boots with something more than a steel toe to protect your walking gear.
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