Here in pennsylvania Hickory trees are very hard. Especially when frozen. They can make a saw work hard in a hurry. They can also make a saw go dull in a hurry. Shorter bars keep your rpms a bit
why all the short bars on saws in this site ?
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Here in pennsylvania Hickory trees are very hard. Especially when frozen. They can make a saw work hard in a hurry. They can also make a saw go dull in a hurry. Shorter bars keep your rpms a bit
Hedgerow
HACK
Trx250r180
Saw polisher
no, no, no, you guys are all wrong... It's because we don't use big bars to compensate for anything. Unlike those pnw guys...
lol
woodyman
Addicted to ArboristSite
:agree2:When I am not bending over I kneel down lots of times on one knee,it works for me.Used a 266SE Husky with 16" bar for many years.You learn how to cut big trees with a small bar.Do know a few AS members on the other side of the river that use the 28" or longer so they don't have to bend over.I would say "use what feels comfortable and safe to you".I don't like the 28" bar on my 372 nor do I need it for 95% of the trees I cut.
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Hedgerow
HACK
This is the way i usually use my old Stihl 066, all 16"
I guess you could call that "The other end of the spectrum?":hmm3grin2orange:
Trx250r180
Saw polisher
This is the way i usually use my old Stihl 066, all 16"
oh my ,this cant be real ,that 66 is common saw in woods here 32 minimum on that bad boy
cpr
Addicted to ArboristSite
I have big bars for some saws, but I'm an enthusiast and firewood cutter, not a logger. If I can't get it through the boiler door, I could care less about it unless I'm exercising the vintage iron. Split wood is a waste since I'm increasing surface area. I'd rather see 12-16" dia. stuff all day than big stuff I have to split. It's extra work and extra time, something I never seem to have enough of. As a result, a 266 with a 20" and a 372 with a 24 are my go to working saws.
If I was a logger, I reckon a 390 or a 660 with a 32 or 36 would be my daily rig with a 372 or 460 and a 28 for lighter stuff.
All that said, my 1-82 with a 36 wears me out in 30 minutes. The guys who carried them up the mountains all day out west where she came from have my respect for doing it and for preserving the saw well enough for me to enjoy today. I promise she'll bear the story of her life in the chipped paint, but I'll give it a long life of ease.
If I was a logger, I reckon a 390 or a 660 with a 32 or 36 would be my daily rig with a 372 or 460 and a 28 for lighter stuff.
All that said, my 1-82 with a 36 wears me out in 30 minutes. The guys who carried them up the mountains all day out west where she came from have my respect for doing it and for preserving the saw well enough for me to enjoy today. I promise she'll bear the story of her life in the chipped paint, but I'll give it a long life of ease.
woodyman
Addicted to ArboristSite
I have big bars for some saws, but I'm an enthusiast and firewood cutter, not a logger. If I can't get it through the boiler door, I could care less about it unless I'm exercising the vintage iron. Split wood is a waste since I'm increasing surface area. I'd rather see 12-16" dia. stuff all day than big stuff I have to split. It's extra work and extra time, something I never seem to have enough of. As a result, a 266 with a 20" and a 372 with a 24 are my go to working saws.
If I was a logger, I reckon a 390 or a 660 with a 32 or 36 would be my daily rig with a 372 or 460 and a 28 for lighter stuff.
All that said, my 1-82 with a 36 wears me out in 30 minutes. The guys who carried them up the mountains all day out west where she came from have my respect for doing it and for preserving the saw well enough for me to enjoy today. I promise she'll bear the story of her life in the chipped paint, but I'll give it a long life of ease.
I would love to cut that size wood the saws are on all day.I would only need the 44&346 then.
Why all the short bars??
Because there's just something delightfully satisfying about running a 70cc saw with an 18" bar and 8 pin for a limbing saw, that's why.
Because there's just something delightfully satisfying about running a 70cc saw with an 18" bar and 8 pin for a limbing saw, that's why.
sunfish
Fish Head
It's not how long your bar is that counts, it's how you use it
16" 18" work for me.
16" 18" work for me.
indiansprings
Firewood Purveyor
+ 1 on the short bars and 8 pin sprockets, that's what I use on the majority of my saws.
promac850
formerly promac610
It's not how long your bar is that counts, it's how you use it
16" 18" work for me.
That is correct sir, the bar that is most useful and comfortable for you to use often is the right bar.
I.E. I run a 20" on the Pro Mac 610, and it works well for me. I can cut stuff from 4-5" all the way up to 30" or so. (yes, I've cut some rounds that were 34-35" in diameter with this saw)
Big bars are needed for big trees. But too big of a bar will wear you out fast. (unless you're Bruce Willis or someone like that)
If I were cutting a tree down that was 24", I would use the 20" bar on the PM, but if I had to cut something 54", I would have to buy a 3120 XP and slap a 60" bar on it. There is a purpose for every bar size.
I do wish I had a few saws with ridiculously long bars, but I would not use them very often. It would be more of a chits and giggles thing for me.
I do want to cut an old growth redwood down someday, but it'll be quite a while before I'm anywhere near skilled enough for one of those beasts. Oh well, the EPA might ban them and destroy them before most of us get to cut one down. They'll say "It (the tree) was not producing enough oxygen from the carbon dioxide input."
Holy ####, that's a long post. Sorry bout that.
Trx250r180
Saw polisher
It is for real i have used the saw with that bar ,where i live we don't have large trees ,but 20" bar is ok to use. I also use this saw on my sawmill with the bar on the picture below.
that looks just right big powerhead big bar
Nailsbeats
Addicted to ArboristSite
When you are standing next to an oak/maple/ash/birch/elm/popple waiting to be limbed and bucked, up to your nutz in snow (literally), you'll know why 20" is the most common logging bar around here.
Snow and ice change the game. You aren't walking to gracefully on ice covered timber with broad limbs, most limbing is standing on the ground.
Less cost, Less weight, less teeth to sharpen, less chance of throwing a chain, less chain to stick in the snow and hit rocks/dirt/ice with(hot chain can temper in the snow and ice), less bar and chain smaller area needs to be stamped down around the base of the tree to drop it (falling cuts are made low), cut fast in northern hardwoods coupled with a 70cc saw.
I am out of breath.
In short, weather conditions/terrain/type and size of timber dictate the bar you'll use.
Snow and ice change the game. You aren't walking to gracefully on ice covered timber with broad limbs, most limbing is standing on the ground.
Less cost, Less weight, less teeth to sharpen, less chance of throwing a chain, less chain to stick in the snow and hit rocks/dirt/ice with(hot chain can temper in the snow and ice), less bar and chain smaller area needs to be stamped down around the base of the tree to drop it (falling cuts are made low), cut fast in northern hardwoods coupled with a 70cc saw.
I am out of breath.
In short, weather conditions/terrain/type and size of timber dictate the bar you'll use.
Right now I run a 30" cannon on the 660 for everything. I'm waiting on a 28" stihl light bar to get here to try it out. I'm doing firewood and blowdown cleanup. I even cut 2 little trees today with it. Both were 10" and under. I didn't even put a bar on the 2171.
No, no, no, you guys are all wrong... It's because we don't use big bars to compensate for anything. Unlike those PNW guys...
Yup to compensate for big wood.
It's not how long your bar is that counts, it's how you use it
16" 18" work for me.
Something people with short bars like to say.
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