if you had one handsaw to carry…,

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I appreciate this I am in the minority here, but I like 21" Bow Saws. As long as you have sharp blades they work well. There are specific blade for green wood. Compared to to silkys or similar folding saws, I like the fact the blade is under tension and cuts in both directions. Much cheaper too. Folding versions are available but with a scabbard even the normal ones can be carried over your shoulder. The huge benefit over a small chainsaw is it can be used one handed. Mine is over 30 years old.
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Another Silky fan here, and I'm two-yrs retired from commercial work. I believe it's a Silky Zubat that I use. I had a machinist sharpen it for me once (he did all my other sharpening, chipper knives, etc.) but the results were unimpressive. So I got used to replacing the blade when necessary. Buying Silky seems expensive at first, but there's just no comparison when it comes to performance.

I have two manual pole saws that I use a lot. One is a Stihl that's about 21' long--I use it only when I need that long reach, because the Stihl blade cuts like a dog when compared to my 15' adjustable saw with Silky blade. This was originally a Corona saw, but it's blade was unimpressive and dulled quickly so I fixed the saw to mount a silky blade that I've used ever since. Probably replaced the blade 2--3 times since, the first time when my helper got the saw pinched and pushed it until the blade broke. (He was such a good employee in every other way, I couldn't hold it against him.) But I enjoy using that outfit.

BTW, I'm 4 months out from total knee replacement. Wow, it's a long process. But I'm doing well. Went out Tuesday and loaded an entire elm tree (cut up, but still some large, heavy chunks) on my pickup and trailer. Then came home, unloaded and did some more cutting. First real work since Nov., and it was really nice to be back at it. Hope you're doing well with your knee.
 
arathol said:
Not true at all.....
https://wesspur.com/items/saw2104.htmlMade by Silky, sold under the Notch brand name.
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I didn't say they didn't make stuff sold by someone else. Nor that they quit making the pole saws. That looks to me like you are agreeing with me, rather than disproving what I said.

That being said, I'm glad you pointed that out to me. Maybe I can buy a replacement blade & parts for mine.
 
muddy42 said:
I appreciate this I am in the minority here, but I like 21" Bow Saws. As long as you have sharp blades they work well. There are specific blade for green wood. Compared to to silkys or similar folding saws, I like the fact the blade is under tension and cuts in both directions. Much cheaper too. Folding versions are available but with a scabbard even the normal ones can be carried over your shoulder. The huge benefit over a small chainsaw is it can be used one handed. Mine is over 30 years old.
View attachment 1066911
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The bow saws work fine if you are camping out and need to cut up some sticks. They suck for close pruning in a tree.

That big wide bow simply won't fit into the tight places you need to be in order to do good pruning in a variety of positions and tree types. If you are a climbing arborist, that is particularly inconvenient, as you cannot drop that bulky thing into a scabbard and continue to operate safely.
 
old CB said:
I grew up using a bow saw that was in my dad's garage. Since adulthood, I can't stand those things. I suppose there might be a good one out there, but in my hands the long thin blade always manages to twist and misbehave.
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When I was doing tree work, my boss showed up with some brand new bow saws and we all said no thanks and we all bought our own Corona razor saws. Those bow saws suck.
 
pdqdl said:
I didn't say they didn't make stuff sold by someone else. Nor that they quit making the pole saws. That looks to me like you are agreeing with me, rather than disproving what I said.
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What you said was this-
pdqdl said:
Silky no longer sells pole saws in the USA, at least not their really fine aluminum versions. Nor parts or replacement blades, either.

It seems they got tired of being sued by folks too stupid to keep the tool out of the power lines, and they are actively removing that risk from the market.
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The Notch saws are aluminum bodied, made by Silky and sold here under contract by Notch. So, Silky does still sell the saws and replacement blades here. The only difference is they got somebody else to put their name on them to avoid whatever legal issues they thought might result from idiots misusing them, if that was even the real excuse to stop direct marketing of the saws......

The following video shows a Notch pole saw that looks exactly like mine, except its not yellow.
 
I use hand saws quite a bit. I just bought a “notch” from treestuff. It has a nice holster but it doesn’t outcut my cheap corona folding saw I bought from Lowe’s. For the money if I could only use 1 I’d get the $19 saw from Lowe’s. 13” blade, you can cut some big stuff with it. The kicker is when you beat it up it doesn’t hurt the wallet so much to replace.
 
I am looking for a hand saw that will well work for four to eight inch branches. Each spring I get calls for pruning older standard apple trees, usually ones that have not been pruned in years. Any recommendations?
 
pdqdl said:
Silky no longer sells pole saws in the USA, at least not their really fine aluminum versions. Nor parts or replacement blades, either.

It seems they got tired of being sued by folks too stupid to keep the tool out of the power lines, and they are actively removing that risk from the market.
Click to expand...
Treestuff still sells silky pole saws.
 
arathol said:
If you are using the saw for landscaping and pruning, find yourself a Silky Yamabico. It has a primary cutting edge of 5 TPI, but also has a section of 8 tpi on the back for fine undercutting to prevent tear-outs.
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Ditto to this. I love mine. Felco 6 Pruners and a Silky Yamabico and you'll be unstoppable.
 
AlotL1keVegas said:
Treestuff still sells silky pole saws.
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No they don't. Send me a link to it if you can find one: https://www.treestuff.com/silky-saws/

They do have a few parts for the 16' pole saws, which did surprise me.

You guys seem to think I'm making this up. Here is what a google search reveals concerning a Silky pole saw:
1679170297801.png
Google search for yourself!

If you open the link anyway, nothing comes through, at least on my computer in the USA. Other parts of the world with fewer lawyers will probably have no trouble.

Go ahead and ask Google "Learn why":

1679170563332.png
 
lloyd786 said:
I use hand saws quite a bit. I just bought a “notch” from treestuff. It has a nice holster but it doesn’t outcut my cheap corona folding saw I bought from Lowe’s. For the money if I could only use 1 I’d get the $19 saw from Lowe’s. 13” blade, you can cut some big stuff with it. The kicker is when you beat it up it doesn’t hurt the wallet so much to replace.
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You can buy replacement blades from Corona for at least their fixed blade saws, reducing replacement cost further.
 
pdqdl said:
No they don't. Send me a link to it if you can find one: https://www.treestuff.com/silky-saws/

They do have a few parts for the 16' pole saws, which did surprise me.

You guys seem to think I'm making this up. Here is what a google search reveals concerning a Silky pole saw:
View attachment 1067359
Google search for yourself!

If you open the link anyway, nothing comes through, at least on my computer in the USA. Other parts of the world with fewer lawyers will probably have no trouble.

Go ahead and ask Google "Learn why":

View attachment 1067361
Click to expand...
 

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