Climbers, saw lanyards or no?

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begleytree

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I've done it both ways. never used a saw lanyard for years, now I keep mine on a leash at all times. Never had to dump it yet, but the option is always there if I need to quick. I wear it short clipped most of the time, have seen guys with 6ft long lanyards, and the saw hanging at the end of it all the time. that would drive me crazy, I think.

I don't care about ansi or osha rules about it, those guys aren't in the tree with me, and highly unlikely that they will ever come around my small operation here in backwater USA.

What about anyone else? use 'em? and what do you use?

-Ralph
 
I have a lanyard that clips to a ring on my saddle behind me directly in line with my spine, my 200 hangs to my boots, works good, all I have ever used. Used the same lanyard with a 372 and a 288.
 
I use the multi saw lanyard from Fresco.


1037315576-1831.jpg




It has quick disconnects so you can clip it to any saw, that you have the male adapter on. Its nice cuz when you use it on the ground it comes off easily and you dont need to worry about the lanyard hanging about.

It also will break away if you get your saw stuck in the kerf, but I just set up my cuts so that dont happen.
 
skwerl said:
Never used one with my climbing saw. Too many times I've had a limb snatch a saw out of my hands. had a couple saws ride down to the ground with the limb.
What? how?-Never happened to me, I guess when you like big dogs and wrap handles you are more likely to be able to use a saw properly.
 
clearance said:
What? how?-Never happened to me, I guess when you like big dogs and wrap handles you are more likely to be able to use a saw properly.

I've had that happen once to me clearance, notched a maple sucker, and was backcutting when the groundie heaved too soon and broke it out. saw stuck in kerf. Usually happens when you cut past your notch. that was years ago, I watch closer now.

tophopper, cool looking setup, I like!
-Ralph
 
Or perhaps we just weren't born knowing not to cut in front of undercut and had to learn. i've let a few saws fly too; been quite awhile ago though. i did figure you have about 1/4 a second to rotate hand away from you and try to pull it out, rather than just trying to pull it straight up or back to get it out.
 
Originally Posted by skwerl
Never used one with my climbing saw. Too many times I've had a limb snatch a saw out of my hands. had a couple saws ride down to the ground with the limb.
If you do a by-pass cut on horizontal cut, sometimes called a "snap cut" or "pop cut", the limb can snatch your saw away. The trick is to make your second cut closer to the tree, so when the limb breaks away, the saw sticks to the tree instead of the falling limb.
Same with a notch on a horizontal limb, make the back cut closer to you, the saw will "hook" on the tree side of the cut.

Personally, I use a saw lanyard because I climb around for the next cut, while my ground men clean up the last. If I don't have a lanyard, and my 14 pound saw falls 90 feet onto a groundman, I'd have nobody to blame but myself.
 
It has happened to me exactly twice, and both times I thought I was carefully following the directions offered in an ISA pamphlet illiustration and page 57 of the Sherrill catalog. As I understand TreeSpyder and Mike - don't cut in "Front" or outboard of the undercut. If you do, and get a little too far from the undercut (fractions of an inch), you can get in trouble.

Check out the "Proper Pruning" tip on page 57 of the Sherrill catalog. In my experience that's NOT the way to do it. Cut "B" is outboard of cut "A". Too easy to get just a little too far out and lose a saw.

I dropped an 024 20 feet with a hackberry limb and a 200t 50 feet with an oak limb. Since I started cutting inboard (trunk side) of the undercut I have had no problems, but those two experiences scared me off of the lanyard while cutting. I'm careful to take my saw off the lanyard before cutting anything big enough to drag me down with it.
 
a_lopa said:
ive never known anyone NOT to use a lanyard on there saw

I know more who don't, than do use them myself.

If getting a saw hung in a cut wasn't happening, they wouldn't be making breakaway saw lanyards
-ralph
 
always used one when climbing, when making a big cut or in a awkward position or just does not feel right, i will take of my lanyard my saw.
When in the bucket i just started using one again, since loosing my 2 week old 353 about 2 mounts ago.
Never had a saw get pulled ever, don't use break-away lanyards any more lost/drop at least 3 saws that way. I some times let my climbing saw drop or a very fast slide with my hand, the weight as let the break away deploy.
that fresco lanyard looks good, how good/strong is that snap.

Lawmart
 
lawmart said:
that fresco lanyard looks good, how good/strong is that snap.

Lawmart



Im not sure of the breakaway rating, but they do break after sometime. Here anyway it gets pretty cold some months cold can make anything break. Ive been using this style for over 3 years now and im on my 3 rd one.

When you buy the lanyard you get the red bungee(actual lanyard) and 2 saw attachments, so you can interchange between saws quickly. Being on my 3 rd one i have extra male attachment ends, so now I have one on all my saws and can quickly interchange.

Id put up a link, but i think its against the rules, now that i think of it i should nt of even mentioned it sorry. Sorry Begley you asked.
 
I'm not a tree climber, but I have done industrial high access work with ropes and grinders. Everything is tied in. Period.
 
tophopper said:
Id put up a link, but i think its against the rules, now that i think of it i should nt of even mentioned it sorry. Sorry Begley you asked.

That just shows you that the site sponsors should be reading the site, and not sitting in their respective corners (forums) with the lights off. They could tell us if they have something, or see that we want it, and get it in to sell.
-Ralph
 
I was at the fresco booth at the WAA winter seminar this year. I had a pretty good budget to work with, so I was looking for the tools I wanted. As I looked at the lanyard top hopper pictured, I was thinking about the changes I'd have to make for it to work for me.
It's not quite long enough, the little ring would need to be cut off, the clips are located right where I'd put a binner for the short attachment to my saddle, and it was like $40.
I decided to just make my own.
 

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