"Bow" Saw Questions

[Wasatch Stihl]

I'm curious as to "Bow saws".

I grew up in northern New England and we had several chain saws with "conventional" bars. About 25 years ago I was in the USAF and stationed at Moody AFB in Valdosta, GA.

In south Georgia it seemed there were a significant number of folks running a bar setup I had never seen. It resembled a rounded triangle and they told me it was a "bow saw".

Lots of things are different in the south, and already having been labeled "a Yankee", I didn't want to show my ignorance of the "bow saw" and be ridiculed for that, as well as my (lack of) accent and aversion to boiled peanuts (I still think they're gross).

Now I divide my time between Utah and Montana and I've never seen a bow saw out here at all.

So, what's the deal with the bow saw?

 

[Sprintcar]

Growing up in the Southeastern United States I was around bow saws all of my life. The original concept was developed by Poulan chainsaw company. The bow bar was used primarily for pulp wood mainly in the coastal plains from North Carolina all the way to Texas. They now bring a pretty price if you buy one, for that matter even find one.

Hope that helps.

Moody AFB, 347 TFW, F4-E's, know them well.
Hahn AB, 50 TFW, F4-E's, till they got those crappy F-16's.
K.I. Sawyer AFB, B-52H's, greatest aircraft ever built, hands down!

 

[Fireaxman]

I have one on a Homelite XL-12 (dont laugh, Homelite used to make really good saws when they were made out of metal, before Textron bought them out). It is excellent for bucking. Dont have to bend over or kneel down, just stand next to the log, put the bow on top with the full weight of the saw on it, and let it eat. The bow is narrow and tapered to the inside, so it doesn't bind like a bar. As long as the log diameter is small enough to fit inside the bow, top of the log closes over the inside of the bow and the taper just lets the bow eat on through. Hence, I think, the popularity with pulp wood loggers bucking a lot of comparitively small logs.

I think they dont make them anymore. I finally quit using mine because of chain maintenance. Many teeth. Much sharpening. And, there is a good bit of friction in the bow. No roller sprocket like on modern bars.

 

[pickwood]

The bow bars are still available- just do a search. Just be sure you know how to use one and they are great for bucking logs.