Small saw long bar

[Gordon S]

Hi,

 

When I first saw this post I thought it was a troll but I'll give it a go anyways.

I'm not one of the legions of doomsayers but have a couple of points.

If you're running a sub optimal bar then keeping a sharp chain is a must, you're logging on the ground so keep the bar out of the dirt. I'm 6'2" and prefer to use a saw horse so cuts are easier and cleaner.

Trying to guide the tip of a long bar through a log on the floor is a pain, so is cutting 80% then rolling to finish off.

Your set up might be different but the logs need to be moved at some point, so on to horse first then stack for splitting?

Also why not just get the right tool for the job? Use your bar and chain money and sell/trade your 50cc for a 70/80cc with a 24" fitted, it will be a much more pleasant experience.

 

But it's your money and your saw so how you cut your logs is up to you.

 

 

 

[Craigb]

19 minutes ago, Gordon S said:

Hi,

 

When I first saw this post I thought it was a troll but I'll give it a go anyways.

I'm not one of the legions of doomsayers but have a couple of points.

If you're running a sub optimal bar then keeping a sharp chain is a must, you're logging on the ground so keep the bar out of the dirt. I'm 6'2" and prefer to use a saw horse so cuts are easier and cleaner.

Trying to guide the tip of a long bar through a log on the floor is a pain, so is cutting 80% then rolling to finish off.

Your set up might be different but the logs need to be moved at some point, so on to horse first then stack for splitting?

Also why not just get the right tool for the job? Use your bar and chain money and sell/trade your 50cc for a 70/80cc with a 24" fitted, it will be a much more pleasant experience.

 

But it's your money and your saw so how you cut your logs is up to you.

 

 

 

Definitely not trolling, I wanting to understand why it’s such a no no. I get using a small saw with a big bar for big cuts puts stress on the engine akin to putting a giant propeller on a small outboard. But does pulling a long chain on its own stress the saw? The logs I get are dumped on the floor so once they are cut up they get split and stacked. Putting them in a horse sounds like another job and one my back wouldn’t be particularly enamoured with.

[openspaceman]

When I bought my first saw it was a Husqvarna 280CD 77cc saw with a 24" bar, on the grounds it was able to do anything. Just about the first job I got was felling <6" birch poles and crosscutting them to 10ft.

 

I managed and it was lighter than the Danarm DDA110 I had been using but it was nose heavy, too heavy and if I dinged the ground took a hell of a lot longer to sharpen. It ended its days with a 15" bar at the skidder landing as it had the grunt to cross cut dirty stems.

 

We quickly settled on 60cc saws with 15" or 18" bars.

[scbk]

7 hours ago, openspaceman said:

I managed and it was lighter than the Danarm DDA110 I had been using but it was nose heavy, too heavy and if I dinged the ground took a hell of a lot longer to sharpen. It ended its days with a 15" bar at the skidder landing as it had the grunt to cross cut dirty stems.

That's the main thing to me, fook sharpening a chain that is double the length you actually need!

[Steven P]

On 29/05/2023 at 08:47, Craigb said:

Putting them in a horse sounds like another job and one my back wouldn’t be particularly enamoured with.

 

But bending to cut the logs and the back will be OK? My back likes me to stand straight, picking stuff up is OK but bending over and it will tell me about it later

[Craigb]

21 minutes ago, Steven P said:

 

But bending to cut the logs and the back will be OK? My back likes me to stand straight, picking stuff up is OK but bending over and it will tell me about it later

hence the question about a long bar

[Muddy42]

On 29/05/2023 at 08:47, Craigb said:

Definitely not trolling, I wanting to understand why it’s such a no no. I get using a small saw with a big bar for big cuts puts stress on the engine akin to putting a giant propeller on a small outboard. But does pulling a long chain on its own stress the saw? The logs I get are dumped on the floor so once they are cut up they get split and stacked. Putting them in a horse sounds like another job and one my back wouldn’t be particularly enamoured with.

 

Yes, I think pulling a longer bar (on its own not cutting) absorbs more power from the saw, leaving less left over for the actual cutting.  If you try turning two chains by hand on short and long bars, you'll see what I mean.  In other words I wouldn't justify this approach by assuming you'll just cut thinner wood and take it easy. You might get away with for a while but it still won't be optimal for the engine and will stress the clutch etc. and potentially cause overheating and premature wear.  You'll barely notice the difference in weight between 50 and 70 cc, especially if the bigger one has a light bar on.

 

Or kneel and cut with a smaller saw, I often do this. Or get a grab to lift the lengths up to waist height, a real luxury.

[Steven P]

4 hours ago, Craigb said:

hence the question about a long bar

 

always going to need to bend a bit - even if just the last part of the cut to make sure the chain doesn't dig into the ground, and unless you are lucky the way the logs lie, bending again to lift and shift them to where you want to cut them.

 

OK for me, for domestic purposes, but I have a saw horse, put the barrow at the end and the cut logs fall into that, wheel it to where the log stack is saves a little bending at least.

[pleasant]

Load a pickup truck with 5 tonnes of stuff instead of a tonne and you will get a similar result.

 

Will very slowly shift the load from A to B a few times, but will prematurely wear out the clutch, bearings, mounts, gearbox and engine as well as the chassis. And should you eventually go back to just shifting a tonne, the truck will be loose, rattly and will feel much older than its years.

[Craigb]

Black and white of it is no then. And it’s all to do with spinning that long chain. 
 

Thanks for the replies.