So you got bit by a pole saw also. I did too. Never even come close to
having an accident with a chainsaw while in a tree but a pole saw made
one heck of a nasty cut on my left arm. I liked to have not ever
gotten back out of that tree.

I like the Corona brand or the tri cut blades. They cut fast, but if
you do get a pole saw or a pruning saw get a scabbord to go withit.
Its often just tossed in a box or a traielr etc and it seems so
unlikely to hurt anyone just laying there, but when they bite its
usually a bad bite.


On Sun, 21 Mar 2004 01:10:42 GMT,
(Babberney) wrote:

===On Sat, 20 Mar 2004 00:42:11 GMT, "Stephen M. Henning"
wrote:
===
===What everyone is saying is true but there is another option that is
===better. There are new inexpensive motorized pole saws that are
===sometimes called power pruners, or prunning sticks. The saw is a
===miniature chairsaw that would easily cut 3" branches at any height. The
===fact that you can hold the pole at a distance greater than your height
===makes it almost impossible to hurt yourself. Several companies make
===them including Echo, Bosch, and Poulan. I haven't seen any in Walmart
===but they may be getting them in. Or a local dealer may take the Walmart
===card as credit for one or someone my buy the Walmart card. It is worth
===a try.
===
===Ack! Every time I see those things at builder supply houses I have
===visions of branches swinging back in and knocking the cutter over.
===It's not as easy as it might seem to predict which way the branch will
===go if you don't have much experience.
===
===I am a professional arborist but I doubt I'll ever buy a "pole pruner"
===chainsaw. I've used them, and found it very difficult (despite
===considerable effort) to make proper cuts, and the contortions required
===to do so made the thing get really heavy, really fast. I'd prefer to
===climb the tree and make the cut properly from a comfortable position
===(though of course I realize not every homeowner is up to that). I
===think of this as a tool for hackers and yard guys, not arborists, and
===I don't recommend them for anyone.
===
===As for the OP, I think a cheap electric saw will do everything the guy
===wanted, wont get gummed up and be hard to start if it sits a long
===time, and doesn't have enough power to get beyond most users' control.
===As someone said, you will need to learn to sharpen a chain or be
===prepared to buy them a lot, especially if you will be cutting things
===off near the ground (dirt and rocks wreak havoc on chains).
===
=== But I'm more inclined to agree with the suggestion to get a
===high-quality hand saw with "razor-tooth" or "triple-edge" design. It
===will go through most small brush like butter and you're a lot less
===likely to cut yourself or parts of your plants that should be left
===uncut (which is not to say they are not dangerous--my worst in-the-job
===injury was from a pole saw that I knocked loose in a tree and it
===snagged the back of my hand as it fell). Coupled with a good pair of
===loppers (readily available with 1 1/2" cutting capacity), a hand saw
===will take care of 90% of what you want to do in the garden. Anything
===else, you might be in the market for a professional.
===
===good luck,
===
===keith
===For more info about the International Society of Arboriculture, please visit http://www.isa-arbor.com/home.asp.
===For consumer info about tree care, visit http://www.treesaregood.com/

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