Top handle is it the end.

[simonm]

We all know what's right and wrong if your unsure or out of your depth don't do it! Its up to the operator with the saw in his or hers hand to say hey im i putting myself in an unsafe position. No amount of training can replace good old common sense!

[Lowestoft Firewood]

I bet what happens when they ban top handles is that people will just start using rear handled saws one handed which imo is more dangerous!

[Old Mill Tree Care]

I think blaming colleges is wrong... I work for one, and at no point do we advocate one handed use of saws nor do we send students into the industry believing they're tree surgeons.. we have to look no further than the industry itself for both.. companies letting my studends climb with top handle without tickets and lets face it I can make a week long montage of arbtalk members you tube vids showing one handed saw use... We need ro start where the biggest influance is... Current climbers as peers show kids the wrong stuff... Rant over, sorry guys, climb safe, work safe!

 

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Sorry, didn't mean to sound like I blame the Colleges, it's the operators fault if they cut themselves.

Students come out if college assuming they are ready for work but that's not the case and they are licensed to use a top handled saw.

 

 

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[MWArb]

Sorry too omt, didn't mean to aim all that at you, straw that broke etc... I hear it so often from fellow professionals but the with respect to all I also hear from students 'my boss says this' and 99% of it breaks industry best practice.. even worse some of it seems to contradict plane old common sense.. your right, most think they're tree surgeons as soon as they wear the trousers but bad practice comes from within the industry itself imo

 

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[santacruz]

I believe that the low kick back chain does solve a lot of the problems. The chain with the raised bumper drive links is very difficult to make it kick, it also cuts slower especially when the nose is in the wood, its a compromise. I dont understand how a ban will work, what will happen if you are caught surely you wont get arrested. Its like log splitters with one handed controls are "banned" but everyone still makes, buys and uses them.

[santacruz]

All of the injuries I have seen are from cutting and holding on the ground or cutting whilst in a confined space with the saw too close to the body in a tree, eg in a leylandai hedge. I dont believe that cutting and holding is especially dangerous, its just when you see arms crossed or cutting and holding limbs above shoulder height near your rope.

[Gary Prentice]

:lol:I think all chainsaws should be banned! horrible,noisy,smelly and dangerous things and that's just the users:lol:

 

Think how many more trees there would be , if they had to be felled with an axe and crosscut saw .

[Paul Jenks]

A better and enforceable licencing system should be the way forward. Making sure the purchaser has a certificate is a start. However the number of stolen saws in the industry[a loose term to cover the top professionals to the bottom feeders] means that there are still many users who're unqualified and a hazard to themselves[usually the ones in the HSE statistics] and to others.

As with street works, users should have to carry a licence/certificate and if challenged will gladly produce it.

Working on building sites, highways, MOD etc is becoming this way. Certainly, many of the sites we work on have challenge cultures. This will gradually filter down into the wider market place and the bottom feeders and old school operators will have less and less credibility. This may begin to reduce cut injuries and thence the need to ban, which, lets face it, is a bit too draconian. I remember using rear handled saws one handed in trees.

[Old Mill Tree Care]

Good post Paul Jenks. I was about to mention one handed use of rear handled saws too.

 

 

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[Jamie_tardi]

I agree with enforcing a license rather than a blanket, of course your still going too get idiots who think they are 'tree surgeons' because they have a chipper and a top handle saw, these are the guys that land themselves in hospital.. Like the other chaps have said I think going into using a rear handle saw in a tree is not a brilliant option.. I'm not saying I'm a saint with my top handle as I have used it one handed before but to be honest I'm quite a safety conscious fella and try too limit this... If you haven't used one with one hand your either lying or a much better man then me!