Why shouldn't I "air start" my chainsaw???

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Well, I guess Daddy was trying to kill me all along.
He had me drop starting an XL-12 with a bow bar at 12.
No chain guards.
No chain brake.
No PPE.
And shockingly no injuries.

I'm all for personal safety.
But some people are so scared of their own shadows they have no place around a saw.
 
I drop started for years. Then it became virtually illegal in the workplace. So i learned to start with the saw between my thighs. Now I feel totally uncomfortable drop starting. It never felt dangerous before. Now it does only because I have become unaccustomed to it.

I start my ms660 clone on the ground. Once it's warm, I can start it any way I want. Cold, for me, it's best on the ground.
 
We were freehand ripping some bridge beams far back remote area and I was drop starting my Stihl 090AV, as well as my 066`s, the other fellows with me were amazed I started those size saws using the drop start method but not one of them thought it was dangerous. They were all long time chainsaw users,many had worked as woods workers.The biggest saws under mine were in the 65cc size bracket and they all drop start saws.
 
When we say drop starting where is it that one is holding the saw. I can see if you are gripping the rear part of the handle ( where the trigger is ) using only one hand that could be dangerous. I hold the top of the handle and let the throttle do the fast idle thing. It doesn't seem dangerous to me that way.
 
My mind is blown. People actually start on the ground? Between their thighs? What am I reading? I hold the saw with my left hand by the top handle with the bar pointed away from my body to the left and I pull with the right hand. I thought the ground start thing was just something they put in the manual for feeble old men who can't support the weight of the saw.
 
Safety standards that claim you MUST start a saw on the ground are made by committee "experts" that have never actually used a saw in the bush.
Saws with long bars are nose heavy, pick them up and the tip of the bar stays on the ground. With this setup, many guys like to rest the tip on a stump or log and hold the saw with the right hand in the rear handle and pull with the left hand. If your saw doesn't have a chain brake, this allows you to hold the throttle open and release it as soon as the engine starts and before the chain goes crazy. I like this method as it gives you complete control of the throttle but when trying it on a saw with a short bar, I can't find the strength to hold the saw up (bar off the ground) with my right hand in the rear handle. Old and feeble.
Crotch starting seems to work with saws that pull over and start easy but with saws that are hard to pull and like to jerk the handle out of your hand, I need to pull against the inertia of the saw being dropped. Too many thigh bruises and maybe a weak left arm.
Drop starting seems to work for all saws except for a few small ones like the Hommie Super-2 that don't have a method of latching the throttle open for cold starts.
 
We were freehand ripping some bridge beams far back remote area and I was drop starting my Stihl 090AV, as well as my 066`s, the other fellows with me were amazed I started those size saws using the drop start method but not one of them thought it was dangerous. They were all long time chainsaw users,many had worked as woods workers.The biggest saws under mine were in the 65cc size bracket and they all drop start saws.
You gotta be a big hoss to be able to drop start your 090. I cannot drop start mine with a 47” bar and chain. It’s too heavy. But, it’s my preferred method and the 090’s are the only ones that really give me a problem. I wish those saws had automatic decompression buttons like every other saw in the world almost.
 
And by "air start" I mean holding the saw in the left hand, and pulling the cord with the right hand.
To me it's the most ergonomic, fastest, and most reliable way to star the saw, but apparently the federal government will lose its **** they see you do this?? (OSHA and other federal lunatics - lawyers).

They suggest putting the saw on the ground, putting your foot in the handle, and pull starting the saw that way.

Even my imagination struggles with this one.... scenario 1: the pull start simultaneously binds, AND the saw starts and shoots to full speed, pivoting around your left hand and tilted into your leg and your leg that gets sawn off?

Scenario 2: the saw starts and the pull start mechanism wraps around the pull string, pulling your right and the saw towards one another, and then when your right hand hits the saw it bashes it up, somehow doesn't trip the chain stop, and into your face?

Is this a bigger concern with larger chainsaws? I just don't get any of this
I've never in my life in person at least
Just on tv or the Internet
Have seen anyone start a saw on the ground
I've been around saws and running saws since the 1970s
Try getting a size 13 4e boot into a saw handle.
 
My wife starts my saws for me lol

But yeah if you don't have at least 4 different ways (drop starting is one of them) of starting a saw down pat you are lacking in valuable skills.
For example the rear handle in crutch is excellent for starting a saw in a tight space where even bending over is not an option.
Broaden ya knowledge and skills peoples and don't be so quick to judge it's not a manly thing it's a use ya brain type thing.
 
My wife starts my saws for me lol

But yeah if you don't have at least 4 different ways (drop starting is one of them) of starting a saw down pat you are lacking in valuable skills.
For example the rear handle in crutch is excellent for starting a saw in a tight space where even bending over is not an option.
Broaden ya knowledge and skills peoples and don't be so quick to judge it's not a manly thing it's a use ya brain type thing.
It’s easier to drop start if you’re left handed. I set the choke on my 288 and 372 hold the top of the handle with bar pointed away from me. Even my large frame Macs are started this way, still do to this day. (I’m 69 with arthritis in my hands). I don’t think this is a good way for a novice to start one.
 
It’s easier to drop start if you’re left handed. I set the choke on my 288 and 372 hold the top of the handle with bar pointed away from me. Even my large frame Macs are started this way, still do to this day. (I’m 69 with arthritis in my hands). I don’t think this is a good way for a novice to start one.

I'm a left handed drop starter!

40+ years.
 
You gotta be a big hoss to be able to drop start your 090. I cannot drop start mine with a 47” bar and chain. It’s too heavy. But, it’s my preferred method and the 090’s are the only ones that really give me a problem. I wish those saws had automatic decompression buttons like every other saw in the world almost.
Every saw I pick up is started drop start style, I wouldn`t know or even try any other method as I would feel unsafe due to its awkwardness, anytime something feels awkward it would more likely lead to me doing damage to myself. A heavy saw helps with the drop start method, my 070 and ContraS all weigh in close to the 090AV,heavy saws compared to most modern saws.
 

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