Can't find Wheeler Saw for apple pruning

[Armstrong]

I'm gearing up for pruning Apple trees and was advised to get my hands on a wheeler saw. Oesco website said that they are no longer in stock or producing them. Can any body help me find one? It sounds like they were the go-to tool for many years and I'm not sure why they are being phased out my best guess is that Silky saws are taking over. Thanks

 

[sawfun]

I would rather have a Silky with its narrower profile. I am not fond of bowsaws for pruning for that reason. I use a Corona 7" folding saw and a bigger Silky 15" handsaw as well as a 200t & Stihl polesaw for apple & and other fruit tree orchards. Corona is a good lower cost saw that, in the folding saws, is competitive with a Silky. They have close to the same tooth design and materials. Also a good Felco or Corona hand pruner will help as well as a good Corona pruner. I am not trying to seel Corona, they just make an excellent product for reasonable prices that can be found in most hardware stores.

 

[Armstrong]

I am looking for a good excuse to put in a silky order... I have only put my hands on a silky Gomboy 240 with large teeth and imagine the medium teeth would make a cleaner cut. So the front runner at this point would be a 240 medium. Which one you would recommend?
I have a quality fiskars pole pruner with the blade style that gets sharpened with a chainsaw file but i haven't used it on the apples yet. I have a 6 1/2" folding corona, a 15" "D" handle corona with a curved blade, and a pair of all steel corona hand pruners (non replaceable blade). I used a pair of fiskars 3x gear loppers that seem like to make a nice close cut too
Good friends of mine swear up and down about okatsune hand pruners. They run a Christmas tree farm and do some landscaping in the summer. They have had them for over 20 years and I think do their wreaths with them. Do you have experience with these? I have found felco lovers and haters but it seems like Okatsune only has supporters.
The person who suggested the wheeler saw came from a family who ran a large apple orchard and said when he gives me a tutorial I'll see why the wheeler saw is best for pruning.

 

[sawfun]

I have no experience with Okatsune products at all unfortunately. I used a hand polesaw and snipper for 20 years but getting rope burns and fingers pinched got old. I can do in 45 minutes with a power pruner what used to take 5 - 6 hours. and I make cleaner cuts better placed.

A medium tooth is what I would want in a 7 - 10 inch saw. On 4" stuff my 7" Corona beat my big Silky. I also have a Silky polesaw as backup to my power saw and for further reach or where a power saw might cut branches I don't want.

 

[sawfun]

It sounds like you have most of what you need.

 

[Armstrong]

Which silky model do you have? I'm curious about handle configurations for all day use.
Still hoping someone else can chime in about what makes the wheeler saw better than silky saws...

 

[sawfun]

Hayate 16' polesaw and Ibuki 15" handsaw.

 

[sawfun]

The Fanno saws look like affordable workable saws.

 

[Armstrong]

I'm looking for quality first. Ill work carefully and do the maintenance to make it last. I know that the right tool will save labor and pay for itself. That is mostly the reason why I started this thread... I was told the wheeler saw is THE saw to use and I'm hunting for it. If Silky saws are better than others, I'm willing to pay extra to have the right tool. I'm just a little perplexed why the Wheeler saw is so highly recommended, by multiple people, but not available and not heard of by so many.

 

[sawfun]

My buddy is the main apple guy for the PNW as far as identifying and location of types of apples. He runs a conservancy with over 4000 varieties of apples and is a parner/owner in Bull Run Cider. He doesn't have a Wheeler that I know of and I have never seen one at his place. Corona saws seem to be popular and are cheap to replace. I have used a bow saw in apple work, but only because I had nothing else. The extra area the bow takes up limits how or what you can cut. Their main advantage seems to be stiffness and strength.

 

[Armstrong]

Thank you. I would like his contact info for the future. I have roughly 30 "old" trees on my property and we are planning on adding a handful per year to have an orchard area. I am fairly new to this and always looking for good resources. It sounds like he is a valuable resource. I believe cider is going to give micro brew/craft beer a run for the money so hopefully good fortune will be upon him.

 

[sawfun]

What part part of the country are located in? PM me as we should take this off the open forum.