Big saws?

[treeman82]

How often do you guys wind up needing more saw than what you've got? My biggest saw is a 66 with the 36" bar. I think that in the last year I've done maybe a dozen trees where I needed a few more inches to get all the way through on the back cut. How often do you guys encounter such situations, and what saws are you running for big saws?

 

[jomoco]

I'm a wimpy old veteran climber that uses the smallest saw I can to conserve my dwindling energy reserves.

My saw choice calculation is a direct result of bar size vs wood to be cut, so a 40 inch cut can easily be done with a razor sharp 24 inch 440 pretty quickly.

My bigger saws, 395 and 880 are mostly used on the ground for bucking and base cuts.

Theoretically I can cut a 140 inch log with my 880 with my six foot Cannon bar on it.

It cracks me up to watch newbies dangerously struggling with big saws in wood that I can zip through with one of my 365's with a twenty inch bar.

Sharp saws and brains are the mark of the veteran pro conserving energy.

Work safe!

jomoco

 

[2FatGuys]

We keep a 460 and a 394 with us "just in case", but prefer to stay with smaller lighter saws most of the time. Here, in the piedmont region of NC, we don't run across too many trees that really NEED anything bigger than an occasional 32"-36" bar (if worked wisely). We prefer to work hard, rather than working hard.

 

[OTG BOSTON]

It finally happened!!!

jomoco made a post that I agree with

 

[jomoco]

jomoco made a post that I agree with

Great Scott! Is that heck freezing over or what!

Where's me long underwear n earmuffs?

jomoco

 

[Treetom]

3120 with a 36" bar.

Rarely do I break out the 36" bar. Most trees around here, including the butt cut, can be done with a 385xp with a 28" bar, just walk it around the trunk. I had the 3120 on the shelf for four years until last season when I brought it out for some big oaks. I'd forgotten what a bad-ass machine it was! A bit heavy, but it has it's place in my arsenal. A new 28" bar with a hand-filed chisel chain is going on my 372xp this year, in keeping with that "energy conserving" thing jomoco mentioned.

 

[Grace Tree]

Very few of my clients have the money to pay for stump grinding so we always leave the stumps as close to the ground as is practical. The biggest saw we run is a 390 with a 32" but there are times when we're working around big root flares that I wouldn't mind having a five footer on the saw. Seems like the stump cut is the worst one of the day and both bar and chain take some abuse so we've decided in the interest of economy that 32" is as big as we'll go.
Phil

 

[Dadatwins]

A 660 with a 36" bar is usually all the chain I need in this area also. Like Jomoco said, used properly this setup gives me almost 70" of cutting. I have an 084 with the 48" bar also, but that is mostly used for ripping. It is always better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it.

 

[reachtreeservi]

I've never needed more saw than I brought. Yet.
Most of the time I use my 660 with a 36 in. bar to cut the stump and the 460 with a 28 in. for all other felling.
Every now and again I have had to fall and buck with the 660.

I turned down a couple of jobs last year partly because of the size of the tree.
Not because I didn't have a big enough saw, but because the HO wouldn't come off with the jack for the job.

 

[911crash]

around here we do allot of silver maples with multiple leaders and it could be an easy 6 feet across on the stalk that you need cut through. for those special trees i use an 088 with 4ft bar wishing i had more, but only use the saw a dozen times a year or so. but every time i use it, I'm reminded of why i have it.

 

[chucknduck]

My big saw is a Ms660 with a 28" Bar. I have cut down some monster trees with it, over six feet diameter. Sometimes you have to make a deep notch or circle round the tree. Keeping the blade sharp is mandatory, I have watched a guy with an 880 take fifteen minutes to cut through a three foot section of a tree. The chain was 'smoking' on the wood. I could have beat him with an 029!

 

[TimberMcPherson]

My big saw's are 88's, running 42 inch bars. And I do come across trees that are to big if attacked from both sides.

But for the most part I find the 36 inch bar on the 66 gets most biggish jobs done. Otherwise my 66's and 44's run 22's.

 

[smcowboy1974]

Biggest I've run is a 32" on my 066 and 064. I had a big elm once that was over 4 foot on the stump. I cut it up with Some Homelite C-9, xp-1020, and a C-7 all with 30" bars with .404 skip with full chisel.

 

[AngelofDarkness]

I'd rather have a 70cc saw running a sharp 20" bar that can cut a lot of the stuff up fast and if I need the bigger bar I can just put it on, but I mostly just cut firewood.

 

[ASD]

i think we have just about any cut coverd
t200 -5
MS26 -6
MS440/441 -4
MS660 -2
MS880 -4

 

[fireman]

big saw

we use the 880 on dailey bases with 30 inch bar.we use the 48 inch bar maybe 2 times a week.but the 440's are used all day every day.we do alot of monster oaks elm and willow trees and populars.I love the 880 good work out.

/IMG]

 

[mckeetree]

we use the 880 on dailey bases with 30 inch bar.we use the 48 inch bar maybe 2 times a week.but the 440's are used all day every day.we do alot of monster oaks elm and willow trees and populars.I love the 880 good work out.

/IMG]

Better get your PPE.
People around here call me the safety police.

 

[hornett224]

Better get your PPE.
People around here call me the safety police.

:hmm3grin2orange: :hmm3grin2orange: :hmm3grin2orange: :hmm3grin2orange:

 

[hornett224]

i have a 395 with a 28 and 36" bar.

i rarely use it.most can be done with a 372 with a 20 or 24" bar.

 

[techdave]

Big Saws? 3120 for milling

Howdy, I use the 3120xp with a cannon 50 incher for milling, and for cutting tabletop cookies from butts and boles. I also use it specifically for taking oaks down to pieces small enough to mill with the 372xp. I dont like to run a 32 inch bar tip on my 372 through say 14 foot of 4 foot bole, plus its hard to get good alignment of the two cuts without a jig.

I agree that the 372 or 440 is a great all around size, my 372 was my first miller and lots of hosers would say it was too small but sharp and determined milling with a homemade mill using the 372 made me lots of $$$.


#72 for almost all falling except small Euc thinning up to 16 inchers or so I prefer my 42cc Daverized Crapsman with an 18 inch bar.

i have used the 3120 for 1 fall of a huge 6ft dbh co-dom Euc that was prolly over 8 feet at knee high where I mae the humbie to down it.

Btu once I design a better setup for the 3120, it will do almost all my milling, I am thinking double skip chain and use the log as structiure to hold th guiderails for the powerhead.

Silly for me to try and remake ior buy a Lucas when most of the big tree stuff I do is for milling planks for outdoor tables and benchess. Big thinck pieces off big trees so my customers have a momento of a favorite tree that died or had to come down. If they make indoor furniture, their mill usually can saw and plane my blanks to size.

I guess its like the saying " drive for show, putt for dough". Most "civilians" are wow-ed by the bigger saws, but we all make most of our cash with 372/044 or smaller eh?

Dave
County Beam and Timber
Jamul CA