climbing saw

[Dog Tag]

With a 16" you need time lapse photography to record the cut!

 

Agree.

 

Put one on the 200.

Back to 14 inch.

192 10- 12 inch,

Rest silky..

[Jonny Pulford]

12 to 14 inch bar should just be fine

[Dom]

Well, my forearms aren't what you'd call big, I weigh 8 stone and have no probs with the 200t one handed with a 16" bar. Gives me that extra 2 inches of reach

And if the chain's kept sharp, there's no reason why it'd strain the engine. I'd much rather be carrying a 200 with me than a top handled saw, any day of the week. If you want photos, I just spent a couple days chogging some nice lime trees over a listed building, cuts like a hot knife through butter, and i was half as knackered as i would've been with a back handled saw. x

[Mark Bolam]

TBH Dom, if you're happy with that setup that's what counts.

 

I also prefer the close-in control when chogging.

 

I haven't ever used a 200T with a 16" bar, so I should have kept my gob shut really.

 

I just wouldn't fancy chasing the back cut on a heavy lateral with it personally.

 

Sharpness is key, good point. A razor 16" would out-cut a dull 12" all day.

 

If you are getting the timber down safely and efficiently it's all good.

[Dom]

I suppose we all tweak our climbing system and change things over time when we discover what works best for us. Next on the list of things to do is get used to the hitchclimber and have a play with a ropewrench, think that'll speed things up a lot.

[Dom]

Just a thought, if you're using a smaller bar, and chogging timber larger than the bar's length, then the tip of the bar is in the wood, and won't cut as fast due to the angle of the cutters..

Would there not be more strain on the engine from this than from having a couple inches of bar standing proud out of the timber, and only the effective cutting area being utilised?

I find it interesting, one of the most impressive and fastest climbers I've worked with (albeit I've hardly ever seen him with two hands on the saw) religiously uses a 12inch bar, if he knew I was using a 16" he'd give me a hearty slap.. Then again, with the amount of cutting and chucking he does one-handed, the extra 4" would probably catch him on the forearm eventually....

[Mark Bolam]

That's a plus point for a 16" I suppose - it would discourage cutting and chucking a fair bit!

 

I've seen lads who do it so much they carry on doing it in free drop zones.

 

If you do it a lot and avoid cutting yourself, you will still finish your career by having chronic elbow problems. That's another thread though.

 

The next saw up after my 12" 200T is a 440 with an 18" bar, just for the record.

[Dom]

Yeah, he already has chronic elbow problems, but has been climbing 25 years full time. 440 would just be too tiring as my second saw up a tree. Being a shortarse I also find that when i'm on spikes there's limited space between my chest and the trunk, so in order to fit the engine and handle of a decent sized back handle saw in place, I have to lean back a lot further than most.

[paddy]

hi dom the first thing i do with a new saw is take the dogs of this will give you a extra inch ,stick a 14 on and it will take most big stuff down

[Dog Tag]

Have both a 192 and 200, will test 12' 14, and 16 inch on both and tell the story.