spec me a chainsaw

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Soldato
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rumour has it theres an impending zombie apocalypse forecast for next week and i'd rather die with a tidy garden, I have a need for a Petrol Chainsaw for chopping down some rather large hedges/trees and living dead, was looking at a decent looking Ryobi number in the big orange DIY place for £180, always took Ryobi to be a good brand for hedge trimmers etc but i would like to ask the ocuk collective for their experiences,

Soo ocuk, spec me a petrol chainsaw for under £200
 
What size bar are you looking at? You should get a Stihl within budget - much better (imvho) than Ryobi.

Husqvarna are also within budget :)
 
Kwerk knows about chainsaws? So, paranoia, belief in lizard men, and now knowledge of chainsaws.

You've got a whole department of the CIA watching your every move, haven't you.
 
In all fairness to Kwerk he's expressed a real interest in lawn keeping, so it's no surprise he'd have some knowledge about hedge trimming etc. I actually think a great deal more of Kwerk for him taking an interest in lawns, I don't have any interest at all, but it paints him as more of a human character than some of the mental stuff he says.
 
Would deffo prefer a petrol one, no reason than it just comes across much more manly than an electric one :)

stihl and husqvarna are 2 names i recognise, both good I assume?

what size of bar should i be looking for? not going to be cutting down anything with more than a 10" diameter.
 
Stick with petrol - maintaining a 2 stroke engine is not hard and you can use it anywhere. It will be much more powerful than an electric one too.

Make sure to get some safety gear (chainsaw trousers/chaps, boots gloves and a visor) which ever you go for. You'll also want to get a saw chain file to keep the chain nice and sharp.

e. just saw your post - 14" bar would be more than adequate - 16" maybe overkill :)
 
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Bosch make some decent electric hedge trimmers for less than £100, you may find those and a manual saw to be all you need! Saves money, but lots of effort !
 
Quink said:
Stick with petrol - maintaining a 2 stroke engine is not hard and you can use it anywhere. It will be much more powerful than an electric one too.

Make sure to get some safety gear (chainsaw trousers/chaps, boots gloves and a visor) which ever you go for. You'll also want to get a saw chain file to keep the chain nice and sharp.

e. just saw your post - 14" bar would be more than adequate - 16" maybe overkill :)
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useful points cheers, Already have a 2 stroke lawnmower and strimmer so quite happy look after one,
having a look through ebay atm and after getting distracted looking at 111cc stihls with 3 foot bars i'm watching a couple of Husqvarna 236s
 
Spunkey said:
Kwerk knows about chainsaws? So, paranoia, belief in lizard men, and now knowledge of chainsaws.

You've got a whole department of the CIA watching your every move, haven't you.
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I know about a lot of stuff. I have all the tools to build a house, no joke. I've got a chainsaw and pole saw for trimming my trees, not exactly rocket science. Pole saw is electric and works fine even on thick branches. A bit slower of course but I'm not doing it every day.
 
10" can be quite a big tree...unless you have experience and training on using chainsaws and the correct felling of trees i'd advise you dont buy one and leave it to the professionals, either that or go on a chainsaw course first.
 
TRNC said:
10" can be quite a big tree...unless you have experience and training on using chainsaws and the correct felling of trees i'd advise you dont buy one and leave it to the professionals, either that or go on a chainsaw course first.
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again sensible advice, but i shall make sure that i am a) sober and b) not likely to kill anyone before i start cutting things down, How hard can it be.

Expect a thread in a week or 2 titled, Spec me a way to flee the country, i've just killed my neighbour with a tree

no but being sensible i shall look at options for a bit of training in tackling the 2 big trees down the bottom of the garden

heres a pic of said trees

IMG_0354.jpg

IMG_0343.jpg
 
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How hard can it be.....harder than it looks. Chainsaws can kick back and make a real mess very quickly.

My brother-in-law is a tree surgeon for the national trust and he's seen plenty of nasties happen over the years with some very experienced people, if they make mistakes with plenty of training and experience then i'd not like to see the mess someone without the kit and training makes!
 
It would be far cheaper to get someone in - do you think you will use the chainsaw after this job?

The safety gear can cost as much as your budget for the chainsaw and you need it, when having some work done in my garden i saw how even pros don't take chances and how valuable it is. I want to get a chainsaw to chop up logs etc and do cut up wood for the wood burner, an electric one does the job fine but again still need all the PPE so its an expensive bit of kit.
 
An electric chainsaw limits your zombie killing radius, also if the national grid goes down you've had it!

Petrol all the way, we've hired Stihl's in the past and found them to be excellent.

Also look at buying some protective trousers.
 
A cheap corded recip saw might be a better option. You can get pruning blades for them that will fly through tree branches.

Get a can of WD40 and keep spraying it on the blade to stop it binding and you should have them down in no time.

You can also saw through the roots with a recip saw. Dig down to find the root then saw through it.

Bosch-RP125-25B-rw-257008-360120.jpg
 
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imo a chainsaw is overkill for your needs. With that said, if you must get one, get a Stihl. My folks live in woodland in Gower so very much need a decent chainsaw and theirs doesn't miss a beat. It's often borrowed by other people in the valley when their chainsaws give up the ghost during the winters, it just keeps on going.

One warning though, their low budget models while reliable have a tendency to have the chain oil outlet clog itself up with sawdust as it cools after use. Very easily fixed, you just need to remove the blade by taking off one bolt and dig the dust out of the outlet using a nail, it takes less than 5 mins. It's just something you need to check before use every time as if you use it heavily whilst the outlet is blocked, it could very well knacker the chain and potentially motor.

[EDIT] Chainsaws have no friends. I'd advise buying a decent helmet with a mask in case of kickback, some ear protectors (most decent helmets will have these built in) and a set of kevlar lined bib-trousers. This may seem like overkill, but when inexperienced there's a dozen ways that a chainsaw can catch you out and, when it does, it'll go straight for the bits you don't want it to (face or groin typically). It costs a lot of money to kit youself out properly for chainsaw use. While kickback etc is rare, especially with a lower powered chainsaw, all it takes is one slipup to result in a lost digit/permanent scarring/a missing testicle.
 
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