Chainsaws. Overrated?

[beastmaster]

Other then treeseer do others feel chainsaws are overrate for trimming? I did commercial work for many years. Never saw a pair of pruners on a job. We would knock out complexes doing sometimes 30+ trees a day. Doing bigger cuts using chainsaws. The trees would come out looking nice but grow back pretty fast. The last 5 or six years I've had the good luck to work for some really good companys. I go weeks now sometimes and never touch a chainsaw. It's a joy to work in a large tree with 4 other climber and have complete silents. My silky cuts small branches as fast as a saw and you don't have that saw bouncing off your leg all day. I carry pruners,loppers, and a pole pruner. Should I need a saw to remove a larger branch I'll have a groundsman send it up. I think I can trim as fast with my hand tools then I could with a saw. Especially doing fine pruning. I hear some say you can't make money like that but my bosses seem to be doing OK.
I don't get a chance to talk to many climber ,thats why I love this forum and ask maybe dumb questions. Thanks for bearing with me.

 

[lync]

The extremly sharp handsaws we use today allow you to do production work without the chainsaw. Of course the tools you use are selected on a tree by tree basis. If there is larger deadwood to contend with the chainsaw is required. If proper pruning principles are followed I would say a hand saw can do 60-70 percent of the work. I also enjoy climbing without the chain saw if possible.
Corey

 

[Daddy M Dawg]

It is nice to be able to hear one another. The bad thing is if yall don't make any noise, the neighbors won't even know you are there. How many times do you get estimates from neighbors hearing the saws run? I would bet a lot more than without firing up anything.

 

[Grace Tree]

the old ways are the best ways View attachment 112206

 

[huskystihl]

It is nice to be able to hear one another. The bad thing is if yall don't make any noise, the neighbors won't even know you are there. How many times do you get estimates from neighbors hearing the saws run? I would bet a lot more than without firing up anything.

I would say 30 % of business is walk ups.

 

[treeoperations]

chain saws are never overated, just used to often by some people, it is faster to prune with a hand saw as it is easier to move in the tree, theres nothing worse then a mega #### fight in a pin oak or copper beach thats never been pruned. ill prune off branches up to 4 inches with hand saw, just hate carrying around a chain saw for cuts on the very ends of branches.

 

[oldirty]

i had to prune a jap maple away from the house the other day. first time i used a handsaw in 5 months. it was nice.

 

[Blakesmaster]

Often I leave the chain saw hanging in the tree in the area where I need it and trim the rest of the tree with my Zubat.

That's my new style to prune as well. Even on a serious reduction a chainsaw is usually only needed on a few cuts. Finally getting that through my thick head now, lol.

 

[beastmaster]

I don't feel chainsaws are over rated.[/QUOTE]

I don't feel chainsaws are over rated either, just maybe over used.
My strong point is big removals, I love big powerful saws and their priceless when needed.

 

[Rftreeman]

I always used the handsaw when I was stub cutting Bradford pears under the wires...

 

[md_tree_dood]

You must not be climbing osage orange or slippery elm. Don't get me wrong, I use my handsaw more than most. I've got a fano, zubat, and sugoi for climbing and a gomboi for young tree pruning, I love my handsaws. But when you climb osage orange or slippery elm, I get a chainsaw before I even start pruning.

 

[treeseer]

Osage orange I agree; arm aches without chainsaw power. But few species have such tough wood and branches so close together. I find the leverage gained by polesaw to save work too.

Nice thread!

 

[treemandan]

I just bought one of those 54 dollar Zubat things and still think those of you who go after trees with something like are out of your minds.

 

[ForTheArborist]

When I have to choose between the chainsaw and the hand saw, I always think to myself about how I need to work out my arm for throwing that baseball. That always gets me to leave the chainsaw behind. Anyway, without all the motor on me, I can go totally ninja on that tree.

Now I looked at what you some of you were calling a Zubat. I can see how the zubat is thrifty because you can just clip it on the belt and off. It's also a little cheaper, but I like that Silky Sugoi hand saw. It's one inch longer, and the holster wraps around the leg. Any of you see anything negative about that?

 

[Bermie]

For pruning and smaller reductions I head up with my silky zubat and a pair of Felcos, my silky holster has a nifty pouch for the secateurs...most of the time I don't even need the 200t. Walking shoes and tech pants are much more comfy that boots and chainsaw pants too!

I did a load of avocados this summer, some of which were renovations from nasty previous toppings, avo's are so soft all of them were done with the hand tools, even 6-8" limbs.

Whatever silky handsaw you get, make sure you match the aggression of the teeth to the type of work you will be doing, I find the sugoi teeth too large for the finer pruning I do, and the zubat can handle quite big limbs...up to a point, the 200t point to be exact!

Chainsaws are not overrated, just not the only tool in the arsenal, for those smaller finer jobs.

 

[tree MDS]

I just switched to the sugoi this year....I gotta say for all the hype it aint much better than the old corona's I ran for years.

I dont prune much lately, but I find myself finishing my backcuts with the handsaw alot of the time, its just easier to holster it real quick in preparation for the ride (climbing that is). Also handy for clearing sprouts and whatnot on the way up.

If pruning, yes the hansaws make a superior cut indeed, so I use them when it makes sense...never tried leaving the 020 down below for an entire tree though, well not that I can think of anyways...

 

[outofmytree]

Most of my work is in confined spaces so cutting small pieces can actually speed up the job. For removals a hand saw is a great tool for cleaning up the route for setting TIPs and equally good for prep cuts. For pruning I now rarely use my 200t. Even limbs up to 150mm can be removed with a sharp hand saw if you are keen. I was really surprised how easy cleaning Cocos palms with my Zubat actually is.

Of course, the real benefit of using a hand saw is how much easier it is to get your ground crew when there is no saw noise. Gotta love stealth mode.

 

[tree MDS]

"Stealth mode", lol.

I call it "silent death". Kinda fun to watch thier ears perk up when a branch falls and they are nearby but didnt expect it, keeps em on thier toes...but there is some sick part of me that wants to hit em...not bad, just a little.

 

[Blakesmaster]

"Stealth mode", lol.

I call it "silent death". Kinda fun to watch thier ears perk up when a branch falls and they are nearby but didnt expect it, keeps em on thier toes...but there is some sick part of me that wants to hit em...not bad, just a little.

That's the only thing I don't like about the peace and quiet of handsaw use. You really gotta watch for the ground crew because a silky's scream is a bit softer than a 200's.

 

[TreeW?rx]

I never even go in to a tree with out my Sugoi. Even on incredibly hard woods like ash and walnut I have it with me. On smaller branches instead of yanking on the starter chord, I just yank on the sugoi and the branch dies.