Thread: Wire saws
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Old 26-02-2019, 05:12 PM posted to uk.rec.gardening
Jeff Layman[_2_] Jeff Layman[_2_] is offline
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First recorded activity by GardenBanter: Sep 2008
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Default Wire saws - follow-up

On 24/02/19 20:08, Jeff Layman wrote:
On 24/02/19 18:48, Chris Hogg wrote:
On Sun, 24 Feb 2019 09:00:04 +0000, Jeff Layman
wrote:

Anyone got any experience with these? There are lots available on Amazon
but there are some very poor reviews, mainly of those which really are
made of wire. There are better reviews of those made like chainsaws.

I have an old Cornus I have to dig up, and have limited access. I've cut
it down so there are only half-a-dozen trunks left; they are about 7 or
8 cm in diameter and 30 cm long (left purposely that length to help with
leverage). The main problem is that some of the roots go under a tarmac
drive. Previous experience removing a ceanothus suggests a lot of hard
work in on the way. I wondered about using a wire saw to cut through the
roots, as it should be possible to use a small trowel to dig a channel
under the roots wide enough to pass the wire saw through.


Dare I suggest the uk.d-i-y universal stand-by, an angle grinder?
Equipped with the right blade, stones shouldn't trouble it, and I
imagine it would make short work of roots. It would need a steady hand
so it didn't jam, and a face guard would be essential.


Interesting thought! I do have a 9" one, and metal and stone-cutting
discs. I'll have to get a face guard - I only have shatterproof glasses
and ear protectors. Though I do wonder if it might have a tendency to
jam when cutting through green wood.


It almost came to the angle grinder - and still might!

I decided to drill a large number of holes almost horizontally through
the main trunk, and then use a wedge to lift off the top. After a dozen
or so 10mm holes were drilled with a brad bit, it suddenly would not
advance. A new bit was the same, and both sounded a bit odd. On
examination, the cutting edges were rounded. So I tried an old HSS bit
in the same hole in case there was a nail or other bit of metal in the
trunk.. That, and a new one, ended up like the brad bits - blunt. So I
decided to cut down with a hard-point saw, cut under the saw holes, and
use a splitting axe to remove a chunk of wood to see what was causing
the problem. The first blow of the axe drew a spark. On examination,
there was a 2cm pebble embedded almost completely in the trunk! No
wonder the drill bits were blunted. I've seen trees grow round iron
seats, etc, but never round a stone.

Still, what's left of the trunk is more-or-less level with the surface.
I'll try to saw - or maybe angle-grind - more of the trunk away, and
perhaps use an old axe to slowly remove wood chips.

--

Jeff