Husqvarna 460/20" bar. Got a good deal.

A little background first...bought a new house with a couple of acres, complete with 5 or 6 large trees blown down by Sandy a few years back. Rather than pay a landscaper to cut them up and remove them I figured I'd man up and take care of it myself. We also have a wood stove so I figured I could burn a lot of it as it appears to still be solid and burnable. Solid plan, right?

Here's the thing - I'm a city boy and I've never run one of these things before, and it kind of scares me! I served in the Marine Corps Infantry and fired all kinds of weapons, was a ghetto cop for 20 years...been shot at and shot back...hunted deer and killed/gutted them, all self taught...but this chainsaw and the prospect of a kickback is making me nervous. I need a pep talk.

Some of you guys must play with these things regularly.

Go to the store and get protective gear before you even start it. You need training not only is the saw dangerous but trees are to. Go to arborist site forum in the homeowner section to get some ideas. Chainsaws are awesome.

buy the protective gear

Kickback on a 460 won't be that mean.

Keep two hands on the saw with a thumb wrapped around the handle.  That way any unplanned movement pushes the handle in your palm.  Some guys get lazy and half hold the top bar and it can be driven out of your hand in a kick back scenario.

Watch the tip of the bar! The top corner is where kick back happens.  Keep it the fuck off limbs and brush and you'll be fine.  


Don't get lazy and try to reach out and cut limbs that put you off your balance.  Don't blindly stab the saw in a pile of limbs to make a cut.


You'll be fine, go cut and get some confidence.

http://www.stihlusa.com/products/protective-and-work-wear/chain-saw-protective-apparel/wrapchap/




Use Safety glasses too.




Always keep the bar offset to your strong side and never to your midline. It will eventually kickback and you don't want to be in the way.




Let the saw to the work don't force it.




Never cut anything laying in a pile, always drag pieces away so there is no chances of pieces popping up and smacking you or flinging your saw.




Never cut into the dirt.




 

Thanks brother, this is what I need to hear.

By the way, good buy with the Husky

Your right to be scared of it. I've seen some knarly pictures of people I knew that let it touch them for a split second (think hamburger, but your own body).
You need 2 stroke gas. Get a seperate gas can, write on it with a permanent pen. Big numbers & letters so no one grabs it and uses it for something else. I would suggest a gallon can unless your going to be doing a whole bunch of cutting, I don't think today's gas keeps very well at all. I never use ethanol gas in any of my gas tools, mowers etc.

As far as learning it your just going to have to start it and get some time behind the thing. If you have someone you know that has done a lot of cutting ask them to give you a hand. It's safer having a second person there anyway, and they might have some tips.
Plus you might need another saw when you get your bar pinched for the first time.

Good saw too.

That's certainly a hefty first saw.....

This ^^^ and add in a good pair of gloves as well!

Too big for a beginner you think?

No, my First saw was a 20" 455 rancher.

the husky/redmax 2 stroke oil is GTG! steel toe boots and watch the tip of the bar. dont stand behind the chain, off to the side when possible. dont let your chain get loose or it will derail and keep it sharp. get some non-safety chain if you can.

i had a 455 and it was a good saw, 460 even better.  

 
Chainsaws are like Pickup Trucks, you want one with more capability than you think you would ever normally need.


A 20" bar will be heavier and a little more awkward but you can cut some big logs with it and your chain will last longer too.


Speaking of chains, you will need a minimum of 5 if you are going to do any serious cutting.

I have the same saw that you bought. They're good saws for sure. Just start on the smaller stuff and work your way up until you are more comfortable with it.
 
 

That's why I like my MS170.  

Unless you're 14 or a weeee little girl... nope.  Perfect saw to start on.

Take a look on youtube for some OSHA training videos. Also tons of OSHA training material on sires that offer free toolbox talks and other safety info.

They'll go through the safety gear, how to avoid kickback, and proper cuts to avoid pinching, barberchairs, felling direction, etc.

You're starting off the right way, on downed trees. Just keep in mind the ways in which the tree may be stressed. Once you start cutting, that energy may be released as flying tree energy.

There's lots of great info out there.

Shorts and Crocs are all you need.

Go for it!!!

I cut trees and slash for years to feed my stove and never had one kick back I can recall. Just don't cut when your arms start getting tired and learn to sharpen your own saw.

It's easier to get a load of logs dropped on your property than to cut down your own trees.

Never cut without someone else around.   Hubby and I have that agreement (also for any work up on the roof).

Let the saw do the cutting, don't push on it .  

Get protective gear and use it.

Start on smaller logs to get the feel of it.

Watch the tip, your cutting surface isn't the tip its the middle of the bar.

Don't tackle trees significantly wider than the length of your bar without talking to someone with experience.

Don't dig the tip into the ground while you're cutting a tree thats on the ground. Saw should be level not pointed down.

If you don't know what you're doing and the trees are still standing (or leaning ) talk to a pro. Trees are heavy and will fuck you up if they fall on you or snap back into you.

You could always get a tree guy to drop them and/or chunk them up and you can take it from there.

I forgot to mention and no one else has. Get a good file to clean up your chain. Do it every couple tanks, don't let it get super dull before you file. Learning to file a chain is important if you do a lot of cutting. YouTube can help with that.
I have a friend with a harbor freight chainsaw chain sharpener. It works great for the $27 it cost. Again, YouTube how to use it.

Had a friend nearly take his left leg off at the calf. I'm sure you will do better.



I'll watch from a distance.

Born and raised in the U.P., the son of a log sawyer/lumberjack. Husky is GTG. Never cut into the dirt. Always beware where the tip of your blade is. Plunging through a limb with the tip into another limb on the other side of the cut is BAD. When limbing, always cut from the back side of the limb as not to pinch the blade. If your under cutting and it starts to pinch, pull out and finish the cut on top. Don't leave brush under your feet to trip on. This is BAD!. Good luck, be safe

Your dad called it a blade, not a bar?

20 inch to me, is a good universal saw - at least North Eastern Ohio.  It can be a little long, but all depends on your arm strength and how well you can handle it.

I'm a Stihl guy. But Husky's aren't bad. All my local dealers are Stihl, so it's what I run.


This was my day yesterday:










It was about a 75-80ft dead ash tree. The base of it, was over 36 inches, as I had the bar of my MS661 all the way in it while stumping it, and had to work around it.


Equipment used:

MS 661 - 36in bar
MS 362 - 25in bar
MS 310 - 20in bar

John Deere ZTS 50 Mini-excavator (not pictured)
Kubota RTV900


All I can say, is a 50hp / 11000lb mini makes logging so much easier.  

I have a 70ft  pin-oak that died in the pasture that's next, along with about another 30 ash tree's on the property.  That excluded my other property, where I have a CAT 315,  CAT D4, CAT D6 and CAT 931 all cleaning up 10 acres of logged property... Including some scrap tree bases that my 315 can't pick up.  That will take a double cut with the MS 661 to move.


Edit:

My dad was on the excavator.  I wear chainsaw chaps, and a Stihl hard hat / ear pro / face mask combination, with leather gloves on.  I was bit by a chain saw once, I wear a 6 inch scar on my left thigh from my stupidity.  It ended up a 1/2 inch from my femoral artery.  Saw's don't scare me, but I have a lot of respect for them.  And the bigger, the more dangerous. I handle my MS 661 with a lot of care.

Other saws in the collection:

x2 MS 290 "Farm boss" - both wearing 20 inch bars
MS 211 - 16 inch bar
MS 170 - 14 inch bar

Edit 2:


I have at least 3 chains for every saw mentioned. (Yes, I have either 9 or 10 MS290 20in chains.)   I also have replacement bars for the 290, 310 and 170 as they're my 'normal' go to saws.    Yesterday's tree was just massive, requiring the 661 and 362.


Chain saw chaps:

http://www.stihlusa.com/products/protective-and-work-wear/chain-saw-protective-apparel/aprnchap/

I'm sure you can get a UL approved set from amazon too.

Helmet, with ear pro and eye pro:

http://www.stihlusa.com/products/protective-and-work-wear/head-and-face-protection/pmfh/

Again, amazon or local power tool place should stock them.



All day drone of a saw get's loud.  My MS 661 is especially loud.


If you have never dropped a tree before... watch some videos. Or ask someone to show you.

We have more 16 inch chainsaws than anything at home. We have an old Husky that is about 20 years old now with a 24 inch bar. Most of what we cut can be cut with a 16 inch bar. Keep the chain sharp. Learn how to sharpen it and it will make the cutting so much easier and you will not be fighting the chainsaw as much. I think that you will do alright with it. Go buy a maul or sledge hammer and a minimum of two wedges because you will get the chainsaw stuck in the tree when you cut at least once and you want to be able to get it out of there. When a tree is laying on its side but no on the ground completely and you start a cut on the top side of the tree it will pinch the saw in there then the log or tree moves. I would cut about a 1/3 of the way through the top side and then cut the rest from the bottom. Not saying that it is the correct way but fighting to get your saw out of a log isn't fun.

Good advice has been given.

I'll add get a replacement bar and Extra chains. If you get your bar pinched, take it off don't try and pry or work it out. Just put on the new bar and chain and cut to release tension pressure. Or you could just buy a second saw, the whole 2 is one thing and all.

Buy chaps and a helmet.   Bugs goggles

Get on YouTube and watch the BC Fallers work safe videos.   It's 17 videos about falling trees.  Worth it.  Great info in the videos from our neighbors up north.   They're like OSHA training videos.

Also husky has a few 45 minutes safety videos you need too watch too.

Having a second saw small saw is very helpful

Stihl guy all the way but nice saw

OP,

Kickback on any saw can kill you.  It's the ones you think won't (as in smaller saws) that people get complacent around and end up getting maimed by.

The chain brake handles are weighted just enough so that in he event of a kickback, the inertia of the saw being pushed back and the weight of the handle work together to trip the brake.  That's why they are called intertia-driven chain brakes.  

You should also get into the habit of engaging the chain-brake whenever walking and maneuvering around with the saw.  Every time you pull the saw out of wood and take a few steps, the chain-brake should be on.  My chaps have saved my shins and legs from the chain many times prior to me wising up and getting into the habit of doing so.

I have saws that range from 50cc up to 125cc, with 16" to 42" bars.



Here's a pretty nasty kickback that could have killed this guy.  The inertia-driven chain brake saved his life.  He shoved the tip of the bar into the chainlink fence.  Sorry for the poor quality, I took vid of the tv show a few years back.  

In addition to the safety equipment, I like steel toed boots when playing with a saw.



A 20" bar isn't that long, so you'll be closer to the tip than a long bar, beware of tip flip (kickback) it generally only happens if you bury the tip at lower speeds or start the saw up with the tip in contact with wood.



Put the head of the saw right up against your wood, those little metal spikes on the saw head are there for more than decoration, dig them right into the wood you're cutting.



Ethanol free gas is best, if Ethanol is your only option then Star Tron, or Stabil or another stabilizer is recommended for gas left in the tank.



Have fun, once you get past the intimidation factor, chainsaws are fun.

Solid advice here so far.

Until you've cut quite a few trees, work towards having it land where you want it, but assume it won't.  Have a clear "escape" path in all directions, if at all possible.  It's not hard to get out of the line of fire one you start hearing the creaking and see the telltale widening of the cut that tells you it's about to let go, but a pile of brush and limbs around where you're cutting makes getting clear treacherous.

Yep, and don't fall for the "chainsaw boots".  They have kevlar stranding in them like the chaps do, but testing has proven that a saw will cut right through it and still have enough momentum to make your toes no longer a part of your foot.

Steel toes won't allow that.  

Chaps do the same thing, but have much longer strands of fibers that stop the spinning chain from penetrating much beyond the outer layer.  

Chaps are a pain in the ass to wear in the summer.  They're hot as hell.  But learn to deal with it.  You'll read many horror stories of people just needing the saw to cut one quick branch down and skip the chaps because it would take more time to put them on than it would to cut the branch.  That's when they get bit.

Holy shit!

saws are kind of like ar's. its called CAD(Chainsaw Acquisition Disease). very similar symptoms as BRD

not as powerful as i can sell a saw but not an EBR.  

Mind the tip.
Two hands firmly on saw at all times.
Both feet flat on ground when you make a cut.
Overhead cuts are most dangerous for kickback.
Know where your feet/legs are at all times.
Stop when your arms get tired. Fatigue causes carelessness.

Treat saws like loaded guns, don't fear them, respect them.

Though I'm a Dolmar guy.

Get the chaps and helmet.

My chaps have saved me once my helmet has saved me a headache a time or two.

Get protective gear, get good with a file set.

Do me a favor and just keep both hands on the saw at all times when cutting. I've used chainsaws for years and just recently (as in within 3 weeks) almost cut my pinky off by doing something so incredibly stupid involving only one hand.  A boat load of stitches and a tetanus shot later I still have my finger..

OP I think that's probably a good thing, you need to respect that machine it can fuck you up, I remember being a young teen & my dad used to tell\make me cut wood for our cabin & now that in look back I didn't really know what I was doing but it was heavy this was in 75 I think it had a 36 inch blade, thank god I still have all my parts, now I run one no problems, actually I enjoy it.

If you want to impress your neighbors (or be a poseur), wear a replica of the face mask as worn in the "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" movies.

I have a Stihl MS180 for around the property jobs...a pure pleasure to start, run and use