Re: short legs?

[DanManofStihl]

Sometimes it is good to have a longer bar but I like to have a couple of chainsaws to use a 066 mag with a 36 inch bar a 036 pro with a 20 inch and a ms 180 with a 14 inch. I do not like to have the extra weight of a 066 when all I need is the power of a 036 it depends on with I am cutting I like to have the right size for the right job.

[Bruce_A]

Over the last thirty five years, I would estimate that I have more than ten thousand hours on the end of a chain saw handle.  This is  a cross section of falling timber, bucking firewood, bucking shake bolts, and construction use.  I cannot understand using a bar under 32" unless you have short legs.  Is the power increase so much different with the short bar?  And granted I tend to use my saw with 32" bars as canes when I am working in the brush.  Another point, is it possible that large hardwood trees won't allow long bars to cut as well?  In my area I have found it easier to use a large tool to do a small job than to use a small tool to do a large job.  Better yet, let someone else do it. :

[DanG]

I like long bars, also. Mainly, I like for the bar to reach all the way through a tree, rather than trying to get 2 cuts to meet in the middle. I don't notice much difference in the performance of my Echo 670 with the 32" vs the 24" bar, unless you're trying to cut with the whole 32 inches at once. :  I do use the 24" the most, though. The saw is just balanced better with that one.

[sawguy21]

Oh man, you really are trying to start something, aren't you. Whyinscreaminell do I need a nose heavy 70+cc saw with a 32" bar to drop and buck a 12" Alberta mahogany, a.k.a poplar? Like going after gophers with a 12 ga. Let the tool fit the job at hand.

[SasquatchMan]

Hey sawguy I know what you mean... I keep wishing for an excuse to buy a bigger saw, but the fact is, there's nothing within 300 clicks that I can't bring down with my Stihl 290 and 16" bar.

[oldsaw]

I don't mind my 36" if I'm in wood where I'll bury it, but I'm a lot happier with a 16/18 for most things.  Then again, I have a lot of hours behind short bars, and not many freehanding a 36.

I guess it is whatever you are used to.  Just too much bar to think about for this guy.

[Erick]

I think the shorter bar is just safer. IMHO a 28 to 32 inch bar on the end of a saw big enough to run it is an awfull lot of saw to try to stop if something goes wrong. I also think that 32 inches of bar in a 12 inch tree leaves 20 inchs of bar (and spinning chain) begging for an accident. I agree with DanG in that I like to have enough bar to cut all the way through the wood in a single pass but for me as the tree gets smaller so dos the saw . Its a little harder on the back but may be safer for the legs and feet. Just my 2cents or maybe 3. :D

[DanManofStihl]

I say If i cant take it down with my 20 inch then I will use a 36 inch bar but anything smaller then that I leave it up to a 20 inch Im not lugging a 066 with a 36 inch bar through the woods when all I need is my little ms 180.

[MULE_MAN]

Well I have 3 saws 2 have 18" bars & the other a 24" bar I pick the saw that fits the job. Kind of like I don't reach for my 338 mag. to go squirrel hunting  ;D :D :D :D

[Bruce_A]

Around my place, most of my trees that are left standing from the last logging are at least 24" down on the ground where I want them cut {low stumping}.  And most of these are fir or cedar which is soft.  Large cedar may be seven or eight foot at ground level.  And although I have whittled them down with an 041 super and a 28" bar, the balance is better with a 044 or 046 and a 32" bar.  When I am cutting [falling, limbing, and bucking] I don't want to pack more than one saw and there is too much brush to go back and forth.  This would be a total waste of time and energy for me.  I never thought about  anyone getting to cut a stand of timber that would be all of a size.  That has not been my luck over my lifetime and I am not thinking a pulp wood show would be something I could do at this time in my life.  If you are bending over to cut brush between trees, a good back will help with a short bar.  But it is easier to brush trails when you can stand up to do so.  Safety equipment is a very good idea no matter what length bar or powerhead size. ??? ???

[Frickman]

I got short legs.  

[OneWithWood]

I am finding that the balance of the saw means more to me than the length of the bar.  A 20" bar balances nicely on the lighter MS440.  If I can resurrect my crunched 038 I may put the 25" on that.  If not I will be looking at a larger saw head for the longer bar.

[DanG]

I use the 24" bar on the 670 about 95% of the time. Only change to the 32" when I really need it. My only other saw is the little cs300 arborist saw with a 14" bar. I use it a LOT. I'm not usually in a big rush, so the light weight of the 300 is worth the little extra time it takes to make a cut.  Also, the 300 is so light it is easier to lug the extra saw into the woods than to spend several hours dancing with a saw that's bigger than I need.

[Corley5]

I run 20" bars on my 372 and 395 Huskys.  I too like the way a saw balances with a 20" bar.  There have been very few times that I've ever needed a longer bar.

[sawguy21]

Bruce, I have spent a lot of time on the wet coast. Most of us will never see the timber you are dealing with. The sight of that cedar and Douglas fir is humbling.
I am wondering why the need to run a heavy 372/395 with a short bar unless you are milling.  I certainly don't sell many with less than 24"

[IndyIan]

sawguy21,
I run a 372 with a 16" bar.  I got the 372 because I could mill softwood with it but still be able to carry it for felling and firewood.  In my area 16" to 24" dbh trees are common and I do fine with a 16" bar.
The main advantages of a short bar in my thinking are:

Its lighter, makes me less tired, less tired = less mistakes

It's safer, I don't have to keep track of the tip 3' away when limbing and kick back is less when I do catch something with the tip

Less teeth to sharpen, I carry a file and touch up every 2nd tank or so, or when I see sparks... :-[

Its cheaper!, short bars and chains cost less ;D

Less drag, I've got a 36" bar for milling(thought I'd upgrade my saw one day) and it has a lot more drag than the 16".  Probably something reasonable like a 20" bar I wouldn't notice the difference but giong from extreme to extreme its very noticable.

Ian

[Bruce_A]

Another point I failed to take into consideration,  most of the people I know are hiring bunchers to come in and fall the stuff under about 30" on the stump.  We mainly need a saw to handle the oversize stuff or very small jobs.  I haven't done much cutting over the last five years, so I still have a couple of rolls of 3/8 chain which I hope never to use up.  Cost of bars and chain never entered into my thinking.
  While I am here has anyone ever pulled the wheel off a model H scoopmobile, drive wheel that is. I had a low tire  yesterday and Les Schwabs came out  to put in air, but wouldn't repair it on site because they didn't know how to get the tire off the wheel without taking the darn thing off the machine.  I have never had the wheels off and it looks like I need to pull the planetary to get to the wheel lugs.  Any insight would be helpful.  Thank you.

[Dean Hylton]

some where in this thread some one said it was safer to have a shorter bar and then some else said they could fall double cutting. ??? ??? ???  How is putting a tree down  by moving from one side to the other to finnish a cut safer?  As for weight  that the extra length of bar and chain add; when I am tired of carrying 15# I am tired of carrying 13#  usually it only takes about 20 minutes :D

[Corley5]

Why run a long bar when when the timber you're cutting doesn't require it ???  A 20" bar will cut a 40" tree ;D

[Bruce_A]

time is money.

[Erick]

I was the one who said I felt the shorter bar was safer but I also said I like to have enough bar to make a single cut as dean can tell you after all I just bought a 48" bar from him. ;) Given the chioce I will always make a single cut as I think it is safer and less time consumeing. will always use enough bar but just enough to get the job done.

[Dean Hylton]

I was just stirring the pot for fun Eric.   I know there are a lot of people in here that think a longer bar is more dangerous than a short one ???  Chainsaws are dangerous period and deserve tremendous respect whether it is an 011 or a modified 066. Chain makes hamburger mighty quick. I am not sure that carrying and extra pound and a half is going to tire some one out any more than bending over all day.  Also how is it more dangerous having a bar sticking out the other side of a tree?  The only time I have ever seen a bar get dangerous because of the length  is when they get over 36" and get whippy and throw chain when a guy swings it too fast. That  though is only from lack of respect for the saw.  Of couse I do agree that the saw has to be balanced for the guy using it and if he does not feel comfortable with something the he should not use it. Nothing wrong with not feeling comfortable with something.  So have you gotten the chance to play with that bar yet?  by the way if your saw is still down  I picked up a running Stihl 090 Yesterday if you  need it and are interested let me know.

[Erick]

Dean,
       I finally got to play with the new toy (its an 084 not 090) yesterday.  8) 8) 8)worked it out on a 39" oak all I can say is ITS A BAEST..... ;D smiled the whole time. My neighbor came over to see my new dirt bike and was pretty suprised to see a saw warming up instead. The look on his face was a kodak moment the site of that saw w/ 4 foot of bar is pretty rare around here. We were both smiling after the first cut the saw barley even slowed down. needless to say everyone has herd and I now have plenty of big wood to cut. Thanks

[ksu_chainsaw]

my favorite saw is the 041 farm boss with a 16" bar on it for working around the farm.  I dont need to carry around a huge bar on it for most things, as we use it for fixing fence, clearing around the edge of the field or removing cedar trees from the pasture.  I would not want to have to sharpen a longer chain as we hit a lot of metal and rocks in what we are cutting.  On the other hand, when I am out cutting firewood or sawlogs, I take the 041 with a 20" bar and the 044 with a 24" or 36" bar.  In the timbers that I am working in, those bars are more than enough for what I am cutting, and even then, the 044 bogs down when I have that 36" bar buried into the red oaks or hedge trees that we have.

Thats just what I do, but everyone has their own way of doing things

Charles

[MULE_MAN]

Well my 2 cents is I just always like to use the saw that best fits the job . If  I'm doing
 smaller stuff, I use a lighter & easier to handle saw.  I guess it's just what ever
a person is comfortable with using . Of course I guess I'm just getting OLD, Always
looking how it can be done easier  :D :D :D ;D