How many of you use saw benches?

[Wolfie]

My Dad uses a big circular saw. He lost his thumb on it, my brother had to have two fingers stitched back on from it, I stay well clear of it.

 

 

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[agg221]

My Grandfather used to own about 9 acres of woodland from the 1940s through to the 1980s. In the early days he rented it out to woodmen who coppiced it, but they gave up in the 1950s, leaving their Denning sawbench and the Lister B that ran it behind, right up in the woods. One day in the early 1960s my Dad was over at his prospective in-laws and my Grandmother had gone shopping. My Grandfather took advantage of the circumstances to get Dad to help him haul the sawbench and engine out of the woods, him towing it down the track in his Hillman Imp, Dad keeping it upright (no trailer, just on ropes!)

 

It was then installed next to the garage before my Grandmother got back from shopping. She was, apparently, not very impressed.

 

We still have it, and I used to use it for cutting firewood. There are no guards, not even a riving knife, and it's a two-man operation, one to keep the engine running right and the other to cut the wood. I still have all my limbs and appendages, but treat it with great respect and always use a decent length push-stick. Oddly enough, I've been down there today and looked over the engine with a view to using the bench to cut up the decent bits of apple I've pruned off. Just need to sort out a kink in the fuel return line.

 

One thing I would say - the key parameter is the travelling speed of the outer perimeter of the blade. Run it too slow and it's a bit tedious, run it too fast and you risk the blade bursting which is lethal. Perimeter speed is a function of blade diameter and rotation speed. If you have a fixed speed engine, the easiest way to control perimeter speed is to use the right combination of pulleys on the engine and the blade. If you need the details for this I have them somewhere.

 

Alec

Edited March 10, 2013 by agg221

[doobin]

Unless you get one with a sliding table then they're bloody dangerous, plus it's hard to push the timber through without pinching it onto the blade as you near the end of the cut.

 

Looking at that size blade (it's not gonna do much past ten inch diameter if that) you'd be better off and much safer with one of those saw horses that holds the chainsaw for you. Especially as you have to mess around mounting a petrol engine.

[testcricket01]

Unless you get one with a sliding table then they're bloody dangerous, plus it's hard to push the timber through without pinching it onto the blade as you near the end of the cut.

 

Looking at that size blade (it's not gonna do much past ten inch diameter if that) you'd be better off and much safer with one of those saw horses that holds the chainsaw for you. Especially as you have to mess around mounting a petrol engine.

 

I have one of them sawhorses that holds the chainsaw. The sawbench will be able to cut 9-10inch stuff which is more than enough its already in rings its easier to cut fire wood than split it by hand or on my log splitter

[Peasgood]

http://www.atkinson-walker-saws.co.uk/ELECTRONIC%20CATALOGUE.pdf

Plate saw blade is what you want, lower down on the catalog.

Awesome blades! No way a chainsaw can touch them for speed.

[doobin]

I have one of them sawhorses that holds the chainsaw. The sawbench will be able to cut 9-10inch stuff which is more than enough its already in rings its easier to cut fire wood than split it by hand or on my log splitter

 

Fair point. I have been known to use my sawbench (of similar size and stature) to butcher up tough willow and yew after ringing up. Would stick with a log splitter for the straight grained stuff tho.