Chaps

[yomax4]

Great info on this. I think I'll look into a hardhat w/ muffs as well. Not too many options out there for those but i think a ratchet headgear is the way to go.

I too have done a lot of summer cutting in shorts and a t-shirt. Getting pretty spooked now. Funny thing is I do most of my cutting with an 044 or 039 but the 026 with 20" bar that I use for limbs is the one that keeps almost getting me.

 

[dickfoster]

I'm not sure how many people are using saw chaps but after 20 years of fairly heavy cutting I thought it may be time. Fatigue has caused a few near misses over the years and The more I think about them the more I think about getting chaps and a hard hat/face shield. Anyone have experience with more than one brand or is there a general consensus out there.
Thanks

I use all the saftey gear. It's cheap insurance and I only have two legs so I wanna keep em both.

 

[TemporaryKubotaOwnerMark]

On another note;hired a :tree trimmer with a bucket truck to take down a couple large trees in my yard.
The fellow in the bucket(30 year old body builder) wore no safety gear and had on shorts and a short-sleave shirt.

Yeah, because all that safety gear is for sissies!

The next week my son showed me a picture on FaceBook of the same fellow in the hospital with a chainsaw injury to his head/face.Almost lost an eye.

Or.... maybe not.


Kidding aside, when I hear somebody tell me that using safety stuff is somehow unmanly, I know I'm talking to someone who has a very juvenile idea of what manhood is.

 

[joeyd]

After 30 years as a fireman and countless hours of operating a chainsaw (always wearing safety gear) I retired and was cleaning up some brush around the house. I was wearing Cartharts so who needs safety gear right? I cut through some brush and just barely touched my knee. I had a small tear in the pants and kept on going until I felt my foot getting sticky in my boot. Well lets just say 6 stitches was being lucky.

I now wear Kevlar chaps EVERY time I fire up the saw, use leather gloves and boots always with mesh eye goggles and ear plugs most of the time. I'm pretty sure the chaps are Labonville from Baileysonline.com

 

[japody]

I need to get a pair of chaps. The 3" gash on my knee took a while to heal!

 

[hslogger]

I have used both Stihl and Labonville. I don't see any difference in the top tier quality chain saw chaps except in fastener and size preferences. Go get em before you change your mind. A long time ago as a timber faller in the coast range they were optional attire. Safety regulations came into maturity and forced us to wear them, supplied by our company or by ourself as independent contractors.

Many of us resisted giving excuses like 'they hang you up in the brush' or 'they're just a pain in the ***'. The regulations won over and never wavered. It was the law. And a good one. I got used to them and wore them religiously. Now in retirement,when pooping around my own place, if I fire up a saw, I have my chaps on.

I've been cut by thrown chains, stumbling, tumbling, and kickback. I have also been saved a lot of grief by wearing chaps. Go get em.

 

[japody]

I don't think chaps would help this guy:

https://scontent-lga3-1.xx.fbcdn.ne...=f53db057434d3e9cdf28d9b591d2288b&oe=593DE7A6

 

[yomax4]

I don't think chaps would help this guy:

https://scontent-lga3-1.xx.fbcdn.ne...=f53db057434d3e9cdf28d9b591d2288b&oe=593DE7A6

Human Chain Brake.

 

[General Lee]

Quick story why I went to a face shield over glasses - Mind you I did not have safety glasses on when this happened because I took them off to repair the saw. I was getting no oil dispensed on the chain while cutting so I broke everything down to repair and clean. After getting everything back together I was running the saw to check for oil being dispensed. I had the the saw at full throttle and the bar up close to a big tree round so I could see if oil was being sprayed on the wood. Well I got to close to the round and the tip of the saw "kissed" the round and the saw kicked up. Next thing I know my ball cap was knocked off my head and I knew the chain licked me in the face, I just didn't know how bad.

Luckily I only received a cut on my eye lid. By the grace of god. I believe the chain stop engaged like it was supposed to because my hat brim received no evidence of being hit by the chain and if the chain was still moving I most likely wouldn't have an eye or worse. Just goes to show how things can happen and I wasn't even cutting wood, just checking if the saw was putting out oil.

 

[The Deerslayer]

Quick story why I went to a face shield over glasses - Mind you I did not have safety glasses on when this happened because I took them off to repair the saw. I was getting no oil dispensed on the chain while cutting so I broke everything down to repair and clean. After getting everything back together I was running the saw to check for oil being dispensed. I had the the saw at full throttle and the bar up close to a big tree round so I could see if oil was being sprayed on the wood. Well I got to close to the round and the tip of the saw "kissed" the round and the saw kicked up. Next thing I know my ball cap was knocked off my head and I knew the chain licked me in the face, I just didn't know how bad.

Luckily I only received a cut on my eye lid. By the grace of god. I believe the chain stop engaged like it was supposed to because my hat brim received no evidence of being hit by the chain and if the chain was still moving I most likely wouldn't have an eye or worse. Just goes to show how things can happen and I wasn't even cutting wood, just checking if the saw was putting out oil.

Glad you did not get hurt and a great cautionary story to share. Hopefully it will help others who do not currently use a face shield to see the benefits.