Need a small saw with a long bar.

[Crumm]

Thought I would check with the experts to see if what I want is possibly available. I am looking for a small saw that I can put a long bar on like 24" or longer. I talked to them at the saw shop here in town and they tell me that on the little saws all you can put is like a 18" bar. All the longer bars they have and all the ones in the catalog take a different size chain than you can run on a small saw. I am wanting to pack the saw in my boat for cutting down sweepers and need the extra length for reach not for cutting larger logs. For the most part the saw will never see anything bigger than a six inch log but I don't want to be hanging over the side of the boat by my toenails to cut a limb. Looking for a lightweight unit like a smaller Husqvarna or a Stihl. Don't want anything much over 10 lbs. Any ideas? I am about to just go with a cheapo Poulan from wal-mart so that if I drop it over the side to save myself from going for a swim I won't be losing much. Thanks for any suggestions. :help:

 

[Lawn Masters]

If you want my honest opinion, reaching over the side of a boat with a chainsaw is just begging for disaster. you're safer just buying a small hand saw.


Besides, I know of pretty much no saw thats under 10 pounds and able to handle a bar over 18" long.

 

[Crumm]

You are correct that using a saw over the side of a boat ain't the best idea but when you are hung up against a sweeper in a swift river the next option is to get swamped and sink. There is not time in a emergency situation to be using a hand saw and after reading a thread just now on the worst saws there is not time to be trying to start a Poulan either... I am going to get a smaller Husqvarna or a Stihl but I really need more reach than a 18" bar provides.

 

[sawn_penn]

Get yourself a pole saw - a sickle shaped handsaw on the end of a pole.

No where near as sexy as a chainsaw, but a great tool.

I've dropped 10m trees (6" diameter) with my pole saw (trees in a nasty spot, and I really didn't want to be standing right under them) and by adding more sections I've trimmed branches up to 12m up (yes, that is a balancing act.)

In terms of value for money, nothing has been more versatile than my pole saw.

For use from a boat, go with a 6' pole. You won't regret it.


...of course, hand saws are boring. Nobody sets up a website where people brag about their handsaws... :^)

 

[Crumm]

Get yourself a pole saw
No where near as sexy as a chainsaw, but a great tool.

You want sexy get a pole saw with a engine

I just need a 24" bar on a small saw. No such thing?

 

[buck futter]

husky makes a 24" small mount bar that will fit most small huskies and even a 40cc saw would probably do ok if you were only cutting 6". Is it a good idea?

buck

 

[Crumm]

Would like to go with the 45cc 3hp husky rather than the 40cc 2.4hp saw. The 3hp saw does not weigh anymore than the 2.4.

Would you have a part number for the 24" bar? I was at a Husqvarna dealer and they could only come up with 18" bars.

 

[SawTroll]

It is possible to put a 24/25" bar on the MS260, but I think it will be cutting real slow with the standard/full-size 3/8" chain on it.

Maybe it is possible to run 3/8" lo-pro/Picco chain on a .050 gauge one????

I know that Stihl has been selling the 066/660 over here with 3/8 Picco set-up for milling, but I do not know if the sprockets are the same as for standard 3/8" chain - I suspect that they are not.

Anyway, I like the pole saw idea much better.

 

[dogdad]

Get a Stihl weed eater and get the pole saw attachment(12 " bar) for it. It will give you a much higher reach without the strain.

 

[tony marks]

just a suggestion but have u thought about an small echo top handle 6lbs.
it works for me ,but i do have long arms an am over 6 ft. u get full arm extension. this works pretty good for me,and i do this, rather than fool with my pole pruner.of course my pole pruner is not top o the line .
i do agree its pretty iffy cutting limbs from a boat. u use a life jacket ,im sure.

 

[computeruser]

HA! The very topic was discussed yeesterday - it is still on the first screen so it wasn't even necessary to search!

http://arboristsite.com/showthread.php?t=29848

You should be able get such a bar with a .325 tip, I would think, and that would be your best bet if you're aiming to do the big bar/small motor thing. Oregon PowerMatch bars come in up to 28" on a small Husqvarna mount, and other brands undoubtedly will be able to give you 24" or 28" on that mount, too.

 

[rb_in_va]

There is not time in a emergency situation to be using a hand saw

I would think that by the time you got a chainsaw started you could be halfway through the limb with a pole saw. Plus you would have more reach, and it would be lighter. And dropping a pole saw in the water would be much less catastrophic, no worries about kickback. You should really try a good hand saw. They probably cut MUCH faster than you think.

Also, if I were in a tough spot in a boat I think a chainsaw might just make the situation worse. If on the other hand this story is the only way you can convince the wife that you need a saw, well go for it man!

 

[ShoerFast]

Crumm

If your like me, your going to do what you want, bucking the current of good advice!

I have a 36" bar that I occationaly run on a MS-310 , with 114 dl full skip RKLF (3/8 x .050) it dosant do too bad, but it may ring in a little over what your target waight is.

http://www.zippyvideos.com/8558195842901796/ms31036a_01/


Kevin

 

[Lakeside53]

Reaching with a saw with a long bar from inside a small boat (o.k., you didn't say a small boat, but...) is a recipe for disaster - the reactive forces from the saw will either pull or push you all over the place and can bind the blade as you twist around. The longer the bar the more you get accelerated. Don't even ask how I know this! I did see someone try to do this even more stupidly than me - an 036 with a 32 inch bar in canoe - immediately sucked the canoe to the log, almost cut the canoe but the guy panics and turned the boat over... Sadly, it was really funny.

I use a Stihl FS80 with the Pole pruner attachment. Cuts great. The 101 series with the extended pole might be a handful on a smaller boat, but if you have a larger boat and can stand firmly in place, it might be o.k.


Yes, get a great handsaw...

 

[rb_in_va]

Reaching with a saw with a long bar from inside a small boat (o.k., you didn't say a small boat, but...) is a recipe for disaster - the reactive forces from the saw will either pull or push you all over the place and can bind the blade as you twist around.

That was my thought exactly. If the boat is small enough to be capsized by a limb, then it would likely get very interesting if you introduced a saw to the mix.

Crumm,
What kind/size boat is it?

 

[Jim Mesthene]

Does anybody make a good Kevlar PFD?

 

[fishhuntcutwood]

Crumm, as soon as I read that you're cutting trees out of a boat I thought of the only time I've cut trees out of a boat...on a moose hunt! Then I looked at where you're from and bingo!!

While all very knowledgable, I'd reckon that most of the responders thus far haven't been on the Wood River floating their way down to the Tanana to get to their pull out at Nenana so they can drive up to the Monderosa and get a burger after two weeks on the river!

Skip the handsaw, and forget the pole saw. No way. You can go two ways. Get yourself something like a little Husky 55 Rancher with a 24" or a Stihl 026/260 with a 24", depending on what you want to spend. There's a Stihl dealer in Fairbanks isn't there? I thought there was. My buddy uses an old Homelite top handle XL2 or something with like an 18" bar on it. And it starts every time. Even after being dunked several times. The top handle configuration is nice because we float so the smaller saw fits in the raft well, and the top handle lets you one-hand out in front of you or off the side if need be. I'd put a lanyard with a quick disconnect on it to keep it with the boat, and also allow me to snap it off quickly so we can beach and run down river to clear a jam if need be. We never teathered the Homelite. It never occured to us!

Normally I wouldnt' recommend a 24" on a little saw like that, but you aren't cutting timber or even cutting for any length of time. We've actually done well witht the 18", as it was less unweildy, and we're able to cut up even the largest logs enough to get the raft over them. Are you in an air boat or a jet drive?

So yeah, it's dangerous using a saw while hanging out of a boat, but no more dangerouse than to be there and getting stuck in a log jam without a saw and getting sucked underneath it, only to be found at ice-out. So all the "this is very dangerous" advice is good, but it doesn't apply here, so I don't have to tell you handsaw and polesaw options aren't viable.

How's the winter been? Do you have your name in the hat for Nenana ice-out?

Take care my brother!
Jeff

 

[Crumm]

Crumm, as soon as I read that you're cutting trees out of a boat I thought of the only time I've cut trees out of a boat...on a moose hunt! Then I looked at where you're from and bingo!!

While all very knowledgeable, I'd reckon that most of the responders thus far haven't been on the Wood River floating their way down to the Tanana.

Skip the handsaw, and forget the pole saw. No way.

Glad someone finally understands. I believe Jackovich is the Stihl dealer here so I will check them out thanks. Winter has not been bad at all this year. I run a 21ft Jetcraft Extreme Shallow. The first picture is of it on the Wood river the second is a sample picture of what I need the saw for. Anyone want to tackle that with a hand saw? Thanks for all the help

Jetboat on the Wood River

You say Handsaw?

 

[DeanBrown3D]

It dont look like you could cut your way out of that from within the boat. Is that what you really mean?

 

[sawn_penn]

Ah yes, danger is all relative isn't it?

Taking on a 1:10000 chance of death while getting rid of a 1:100 chance of death is a good deal!