Haironyourchest

South Kerry - a long way from everywhere. Especially Tipperary, where it seems there are plenty of used con saws for sale......

Just throw in this bit of info I picked up - homeostatic agents can ingress into the bloodstream and cause clots at random locations later in life - years or decades later. The chances of this happening are proportional to the amount of haemostat that finds its way into the circulatory system, generally depends on the severity and type of injury when the agent was applied. For this reason I would not use the stuff, or allow it to be used on me, unless it was life or death. I bought a CAT (combat application tourniquet) instead. I reckon anything less than an arterial gusher will be manageable with Israeli bandages until the ER.

Cheers for your replies fellers. There is a place in Clare that deals in second hand stuff on a retail basis, informal handshake warranty kind of thing. They have some TS400's at the right price, maybe I'll give them a call. If they'll let me strip off the muffler before buying I'll chance it, will call them tomorrow.

I know this has been asked before, but its been a while and new members or information may have new input...In short, I need a concrete saw - I have been struggling with a 9 inch grinder and diamond blade cutting ferroconcrete fence posts. The problem is lubrication - the grinder cuts dry and the heat glazes the diamond particles, as well as making dust. I wear a good respirator, but the dust still contaminates everything else. In the shed is a selection of con saw blades, composite and diamond, but never got round to acquiring the con saw. So it seems that the problem with used con saws is guys use them dry, and the copious amounts of dust eventually work through the filter and trash the rings, which then break and trash the motor. I was using a friend's one a Stihl TS350 - classic con saw - and it was grand, old but worked well, and we were also cutting dry. I should think it had been abused for years, by the look of it, yet it ran well. Thing is, I don't want to meet some guy in a parking lot and ask if I can disassemble the machine before I agree to buy it - I know he will start the thing add assure me its a "great runner etc" but how would I know if its on its last gasp? Sorry, this is just another of my random stream of consciousness rants - I already know I should fork out for a new machine. Being anal about care and feeding, it would probably last forever in my hands, but they are an expensive luxury for a jack-of-all-trades. Anyone here bought a used one and how did you get on with it?

Another great reason to avoid outboard clutch saws. Never again will I support the manufacture of those monstrositys.

Yeah, oak is a bugger for warpage. Did a campervan worktop for a friend in inch oak a few weeks ago - wide laminated boards from the shop, ready sanded and shrink wrapped - supposedly a stable product. Two days out of the wrapper in her house and it warped about a quarter inch over 16 inches.

Women can be so cruel.....

Nice one! Noticed that rivets in general seem to be a common manufacturer's oversight failure point - there was a thing a while back on Treehog spurs, saying to check the rivets were the new type, as the old type were failing. Only time I had a chain break on me was from a shop-made loop where they hadn't spun the rivet - just whacked it.

I have an obsession with wheelbarrows, been YouTubing the powered ones - this one really looks well thought out. The others I have seen are too heavy to be handy, if you know what I mean. Wouldn't seriously think of forking out money for this item - at some stage, I will build my own, but maybe someone will get a kick to of it, if nothing else it sparks the imagination. It comes with a choice of buckets, and there are attachments available. [ame] [/ame]

KKK2 do you know where the auctions are held and when? Some nice gear there, Hilti drills, Brand new Husq con saw etc. Never been to a Garda auction, how does it work?

Darrin is that the one they used to call the "Ameise" (ant) in East Germany? - on account of the amount of work they could do for a small truck.

The main damage will be from boots going up the slopes while dragging - lot of to and fro.

If you seriously going to confront and damage these guys, would be wise to invest in a polycarbonate riot shield in addition your bludgeon of choice. Chances are they have legs of lamb or similar too.... A shield with a super bright strobing LED attached to it (pointing at them, obviously) would be good.

...well, yes. Enough genetic material to identify the species that comprised the last couple of meals, at any rate!

Arbtalk: the genteel gentleman-arborist's club. Another brandy my good man!

Arboristsite - a rowdy gang of drunken rednecks with a penchant for word-games, crude jokes and vendettas. Not for the thin skinned...Or under 16's. The Forestry Forum - a bunch of tight-assed Old-Order Amish, knowledgeable but easily offended and quick to shun newcomers. The Tree House - friendly hippies. Treebuzzz - those crazy buzzed-out kids!

Beautiful stuff - should have its own plinth in the "20th century inventions hall of fame!"

I don't know, but we have a pool system here that will provide compensation from damage inflicted by uninsured drivers - I don't know about unidentified individuals though. You have to jump through hoops, apparently, but your legal fees are covered, so thats good.

If there is something on the CCTV would be very interesting to see it.

Or maybe I should seek help for my meme dependancy....

Easy to do, but who would buy the saw? A kickback to the neck wouldn't have to be a running chain to be lethal, just the impact alone could kill, I should think. What you said about mindfulness when making the cut seems to be the whole crux of the issue -as a power tool user for many years, can safely say all power tools are dangerous, they all have their intrinsic mechanical forces and probable injury modes. Mindfulness is the only way to protect ourselves, there is no other way - not ppe (ok, maybe the plate armour) not gadgets - its really all up the the operator. Think ahead, visualise, be casutious when caution is needed, and decisive when it's call for. Top handle saw is just a power tool like any other, it has potential to kick back, fall through etc.

Maybe, but can't hurt....

Just in case anyone out there decides to build their own Alaskan, there's a detail you need to get right. We had our one welded up 20 years ago by a local guy, I think it was the first one he did, and dad and grandad used it a fair bit at the beginning. I think they must have always been milling with blunt chains because recently I dug it out of the shed to plank up some Brazilian walnut baulks, and, as before on the few occasions I have used it, I ran into the same old problem. The bolts that clamp the mill to the bar are too close to the teeth. When the saws at full revs, the centrifugal forces cause the top side of the chain to lift out of the top of the bar groove a bit - enough to contact the bolt and spark. Its been the bane of my life, I keep promising myself I will modify the thing to work properly, but haven't got round to it. I can mill without knackering the teeth, but only on half throttle, its a real pain... Unless the chain is really tight, this always happens. I like to run my chains at the proper tension, not too tight - especially on a three foot bar. Out local veteran chainsaw miller slacks his so much (when milling) it hangs off the bar. So here's a visual diagram of the problem. I know the solution - just weld extensions onto the clamps. Just putting this out there, for all the lurkers and guys who might be buying or building Alaskans. If our pro-welder got it wrong, there's a good chance you might as well.....

Stihl HP Ultra at 40:1 = never worry about it again (if your machines have not already been damaged - remove exhaust muffler and check cylinder bore for scratches)