Non chainbrake saws and ppe

[KASH]

The cutters in my part of Canada have been wearing cut proof pants since the sixties.The chains used then are the same chains used now so a chain on a vintage saw will cause roughly the same amount of trauma and cutting action as a newer saw.Chain brakes were mandatory here around 1979.
Kash

 

[Bob Hedgecutter]

The single most critical part of any chainsaw PPE, modern or vintage, resides between the ears of the operator.
If you are confident, proficient and capable of doing your bit, chainsaws are relatively safe.
If you are out of your league and intimidated by the power of the saw, then you are unsafe.
I have seen a lot of idiots dressed in the best available PPE have some ugly near misses or injuries due to operator error, doing stupid things, not applying a bit of thought to tension and compression, wrong tool for the job- or just sheer gung-ho attitude from lack of experience, but a tonne of enthusiasm.

Just use the least utilised app in the box nowadays - common sense.

 

[pdqdl]

I don't want kickback from ANY cc saw!

Yeah I'm not sure really if the PPE would respond the same way or not. You could wrap a pair of new style chaps to a log and test with an old saw to see?

Try it on a nice ham from the grocery store. More reliable results.
Ham=$30 (small!), chaps=$120.00

 

[Paul Silvestri]

It's important to note on this that getting away from the stump is good but going straight back and not on a 34 deg is bad and I think looking up while getting away he might have seen what the top was doing and maybe have planned a different exit. Just my opinion and when I cut for the US forest service they teach you things that should help improve your chances of survival. However this guy's decision to leave the house in the morning with PPE and use it saved his life.

 

[Oletrapper]

Same here on car wrecks I have 3 high speed crashes where no seat belt was worn and walked away from them with barely a scratch. Cars were shredded to pieces. Probly just the good lord watching over me my mom suggested

I would have to agree with your Mom. OT

 

[Brufab]

Thanks for all the input, valuable knowledge, opinions and life experiences guys! Just a thing I thought about after watching some chap testing on you tube. They were showing the chaps wrapped tightly around a log and then the bar dropped hard on it. That's a worse case scenario imo, where a guy falls with finger on trigger and drops saw on leg. I have had only one close call where not handling the saw correctly tore my jeans alil bit. That was years ago, ever since then I wear ppe. I have seen the thread where guys get torn up bad from saw accidents

 

[Brufab]

Not sure why you think there would be a differnence? Chain breaks apart, or bar kicks back, hits ballistic padding, and saves the leg......the pants don't know if its a new MS500i, or some old turd McCulloch

If everyone knew everything there would be no need to ask questions

 

[gary courtney]

@ericm979 is correct. I was in the fire service 24 years and chaps work the same brake or no brake !

 

[Hermio]

Not sure why you think there would be a differnence? Chain breaks apart, or bar kicks back, hits ballistic padding, and saves the leg......the pants don't know if its a new MS500i, or some old turd McCulloch

But there are different degrees of chaps ratings. A high powered saw should be used with more layers of fiber. It takes more to stop them. But chaps work on any saw, old or new. I bought an MS500i last year. I really should get a stronger pair of chaps than the $100 pair I have now. Labonville sells several grades, including a "competition" grade. Not so sure any chaps would really stop a 350 cc hot saw before it got to you. But they are not used in a way where kickback would be likely.

 

[MikeRock]

They didn't have or use safety pants back then....lol

Had them in 1968, green canvas over Kevlar(I think)

 

[Brufab]

Had them in 1968, green canvas over Kevlar(I think)

Were those the military ones? I seen some for sale and some pics of the army guys wearing some chaps with there green remington super 754 in Vietnam

 

[Oletrapper]

The brake doesn't have anything to do with chaps or other PPE. It's not like the chaps activate the brake. Chaps work just as well on non chainbrake saws.

When I ran saws for the USFS in the '80s we ran Homelites with no brake. Chaps were mandatory.

And to add to ericm979, I don't think they make PPE for your face! That's, in my opinion, why they came up with the chain brake. Saw kickback activates the brake. Saves your face, head, grey matter maybe. jmho OT