Chainsaw help

[patrick_g]

Not sure where this should be posted. Suggestions considered.

I have a collection of gasoline chainsaws ranging from a couple 16 inch Macs and some 18 inch Huskies to a 32 inch Husky and they all have the spark plug and spark plug wire sort of toward the top and or near the hand grips.

As a recipient of an ICD (Implanted Cardiac Device, AKA pacemaker/defibrillator) whose manufacturer instructs us to use chainsaws that don't have the spark plug and/or spark plug wire near the hand grips or positioned toward the user I am asking for your help.

Anyone out there in TBN land have or know of such a configured chainsaw? I will probably want to get one of those.

I bought a Harbor Freight electric chainsaw that said on the box, "Not for use by people with pacemakers" and gifted it to my wife but that isn't a satisfactory long term solution.

Thanks in advance for any leads.

Patrick

 

[ArlyA]

Patrick, there is a chainsaw section here. http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/chainsaws/

 

[arrow]

Don't know how much you need to cut. Am wondering if the proliferation of the battery saws could be applicable. They have come a long way over the years.
I have owned a ton of chainsaws. Unless somebody made a gas powered saw with its piston moving sideways, It would be difficult if not impossible to find a saw w/o its spark plug at the top of the saw.Best Battery Powered Chainsaw | Chainsaw Journal

 

[Clint S]

Have had 2 uncle's use Saws for years with pacers and no issues, most Saws are insulated through the handle and plug is covered. Old Saws they were not covered and the handle was steel connected directly to saw. As always use your MDs advice and they will direct you towards the manufacturer

 

[Liquidsilver]

And good thick leather gloves should reduce the chance of getting a spark plug zap. In years of operating piston-powered everything, I've only gotten zapped once, and it was with one of those metal clips that snapped down to ground the plug... I was bare handed.

Best to you.

 

[Egon]

There are special insulated gloves electricians use at times.
[video]http://www.minecableservices.ca/portals/0/images/products/Cable%20Handling/Electrical%20Hot%20Gloves%20sample%20set.jpg[/video]

 

[dfkrug]

And good thick leather gloves should reduce the chance of getting a spark
plug zap.

The implanted device maker may be concerned more about the stray electric field than actually getting
zapped. If shocked, the current is thru your hand, both in and out. The stray electric field is large and
radiates outward from the spark. There may be an induced current in any diodes nearby, as with
old spark-gap transmitters in the Nicola Tesla era.

BTW, I work on a lot of engines and I use a wireless tachometer that can receive these "signals"
from several feet away.

 

[patrick_g]

There are special insulated gloves electricians use at times.
[video]http://www.minecableservices.ca/portals/0/images/products/Cable%20Handling/Electrical%20Hot%20Gloves%20sample%20set.jpg[/video]

Egon, et al, It is the ICD's manufacturer's information that I was going by. While a shock hazard is a legitimate concern, that is not the issue I want to raise. For example they say to keep the ICD at least 2 ft from an electric fence. Clearly not a conducted current issue but one of electromagnetic field strength. The issue is magnetics and RFI (Radio Frequency Interference.) The spark plug wire radiates electromagnetic energy which can potentially upset the functionality of the ICD. The manufacturer lists devices that are generally considered safe, items that should be kept 6 or more inches away from the ICD, items to keep a foot away, 2 feet away, etc.

The manufacturer specifically mentions chain saws should have the spark plug and its wire located away from "the user side of the unit" and away from the handles. I can't say that part of the warning (away from handles) isn't a shock hazard issue rather than RFI.

They just don't make it perfectly clear in their writings. They do list maximum field strengths in specified frequency domains that the unit is expected to operate normally within. Not having a well instrumented lab at my disposal I can't test various saws for their potential to cause RFI in the various frequency bands of interest. So, instead I was trying to ID a saw that met the conditions of their advisory comments.

Again, thanks to everyone who responded.

Patrick

 

[TemporaryKubotaOwnerMark]

The implanted device maker may be concerned more about the stray electric field than actually getting
zapped.

Bingo. A firing spark plug generates a lot of electrical noise, and insulated gloves or handles don't have anything to do with it.


If you can find a ham club near you, you might find someone willing to make a spark plug wire out of coaxial cable, with the shield grounded. That should kill most of the radiated energy. Probably enough to give you a reasonable safety margin.

 

[patrick_g]

Bingo. A firing spark plug generates a lot of electrical noise, and insulated gloves or handles don't have anything to do with it.


If you can find a ham club near you, you might find someone willing to make a spark plug wire out of coaxial cable, with the shield grounded. That should kill most of the radiated energy. Probably enough to give you a reasonable safety margin.

Uh yup... I am an extra class ham and intend shielding the spark plug wire as we used to do on cars back in the day... I really don't want to get defibbed. I will be shielding the spark wire of a saw that has the spark plug and wire where the mfg recommends. Yup, belt and suspenders.

Patrick