chest protection

[preach it]

Here I am fishing for information again. When cutting up in the top of a tree you often are operating a chainsaw a strange angles and many times very close to the chest/stomach area. Yes, it is very dangerous, but too often there is no other way for it to be done. I use leg protection faithfully, but that serves no purpose for the chest area. Has anyone else tried any chest protection in a dangerous situation? If so, what?

 

[Jumper]

Upper Body protection

There are some Kevlar type underclothes available on the market that are meant to protect against hockey skate blades , which can do devastating and fatal damage, from piercing the vital areas. I have a T shirt, but opted only for the kevlar in the neck area. It has been my experience that the puck always finds the unprotected or at least less protected area, and I am sure Murphy's Law strikes often WRT chain saws as well; I have a broken finger again today to show for my efforts in goal yesterday, the second time I have broken the same one.

 

[Newfie]

Husqvarna has a jacket or pull over type garment that is supposed to provide chest and arm protection.


"It has been my experience that the puck always finds the unprotected or at least less protected area"

Mitch, that's because we try and shoot their on purpose to get ya thinking the next time.

 

[Toddppm]

Do you wear a chest protector when you ride? Try that up in the tree and let me know how it feels, think mine would be a little bulky to climb in

 

[Jock]

Its a safety issue again you know? you cannot climb a tree and carry out work safely with too much protection, its too heavy, you WILL suffer severe fatigue, and end up hurt, possibly badly hurt! All {snip} are trying to create a safe working environment by insisting on more protection for climbers. I've seen first hand how people dress up in fancy coloured climbing gear, and make their way into the tree, ok they might look good but if they were honest, i bet they would tell you they did'nt feel so good, and usually the protective jacket hits the ground before any branches do. Ever seen a rock climber or steeple jack wearing so much protection? didnt think so, as for chainsaws they are only dangerous if you are careless. The best leg,neck and chest protection is in your head, just have respect for the saw as that is another part of your profession, you are a qualified chainsaw operator. Jock.

 

[ORclimber]

http://www.leonardsafety.com/leonardsafety.storefront/EN/catalog/1056

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

In partial agreement with Jock (if you want to wear balistic clothes in the tree that's cool with me) the best protection is proper body positioning.

The majority of the time when we are cutting with the bar in line with our body, it is because we donot take the extre 2 min to change to a better position.

Sometimes when blocking/chunking the lean of the trunk will make it difficult to do this, but in myt experiance these times are few and far between.