[Dave]

New house has got way to much hedging, plus I need to do some serious hacking of trees & hedge ....... therefore think I need a petrol chainsaw & hedgetrimmer Only problem is I have no idea what to look for.

Argos seem to have cheapest models with 2 examples here :-

Buy McCulloch Mac 338 Petrol Chainsaw. at Argos.co.uk
Buy McCulloch Virginia 542 Petrol Hedge Trimmer. at Argos.co.uk

Any reason these shouldn't do the job ?..... probably use chainsaw about once a year if that ...but as it costs £65 to hire a chainsaw , it seems sensible to buy one at £85 & either keep it, or sell it straight on after job

[Dabhand16]

Whatever one you get - be careful with it. A friend of mine does voluntary work clearing overgrown canals, footpaths etc, and he had to go on a course before they let him use one.

His safety gear includes a kind of chain mail apron and long sleeved fingerless gloves (to allow for operating the saw, not becuase he chopped his fingers off before he went on the course)

[Markulous]

Flipping heck! When I worked in Canada when we ran out of firewood we went into the forest (with chainsaw) and cut down a couple of trees.

Training? "You press the trigger here and pull this handle to start it". We all had a wail of a time and, it would seem, should be surprised to survive!

Having said that, my brother has a chainsaw and had the chain drop off (when it was running!) which nicked his leg (he was lucky not serious). But then the stupid idiot didn't check the chain tension!

[Tigress]

After Petrol Chainsaw & Hedge Trimmer - No idea what to look for

..... a gardener

[cpd23]

This is the small chainsaw that I use for trim work. Tough and reliable.
Husqvarna 137 Chainsaw

Second thing a chainsaw is designed to cut wood quickly. When it comes in contact with human flesh it cuts even faster. So be sure to get with someone who has and get some training.

[cpd23]

Another solid work horse.
STIHL MS 250

[Dave]

Cheers ...have used one before in anger .... although I was a bit dodgy with the 40 ft conifer .... now which way is it going to fall

But typical for me ..use the thing & take no notice of what is important when buying one

[Dave]

Originally Posted by Tigress

..... a gardener

what & give up doing manly things Me hunter & gatherer

[Dave Canon]

Dave, I bought an electric chain saw a couple of years ago but it sounds like you have a much tougher challenge. You do need to be careful operating a chain saw but I only use mine to trim trees and bushes.

Despite the potential risks, they are fun to use and do a really good job if you are careful. What will you do with the unwanted branches etc? When I needed a couple of 30 foot trees cut down recently, I did hire a specialist company. Their total cost included removing all waste and the charge was little more than I would have paid to hire a couple of skips. They had to postpone the visit for one week because one of the guys was recovering from an earlier chain saw accident!!!!!

[Dabhand16]

Originally Posted by Dave Canon

I did hire a specialist company. Their total cost included removing all waste and the charge was little more than I would have paid to hire a couple of skips. They had to postpone the visit for one week because one of the guys was recovering from an earlier chain saw accident!!!!!

Good point Dave. A little while ago I had a 30 foot tree cut down and all debris removed. They did the job in no time at all and charged me £60.

[Dave]

I have a local gardener who takes away a whole large trailer load for £10 a pop Might see if I can hire his chainsaw off him for half a day at a reasonable rate

Luckily no huge trees to get rid of ...more like 3 ft off height of around 100ft of hedging, plus taking out some centre branches on apple trees in orchard & some general pruning of some other trees. I won't be hanging off branches with the chainsaw, let's put it that way

[Ali]

For the sort of stuff you want to cut you'd should be fine with the McCulloch Mac 338.

We have the 335 (34cc engine 14" cutting bar) and it does a fine job. It's been used for taking down a few largish trees, lopping off hefty branches and for cutting up large logs for firewood. It's been a reliable beastie over the last 5 or 6 years.

Safety safety... always angle the saw away the body, let the saw do the work, never 'chase' a log when cutting - stop repostion and start again, if cutting logs stand to the side or with your legs apart and so on.

As for hedge trimmers, we were given an old electric Black and Decker which tackles the hedges (holly and beech) well but it's a complete pain having metres and metres and metres of cable trailing about. When it gives up the ghost we'll switch to petrol but as it's doing the job OK can't really justify changing yet.

Enjoy your new 'toys'

[Dave]

Cheers Ali

[IanHoughton]

I know your into your motors Dave so thought this would be more down your street..

YouTube Video

My dad has the Mac 338, its fine for chopping off tree branches etc, but we have found the chains don't stay sharp for very long.