Hard hat, chainsaw gloves and saw pants?

[Larry]

A forestry helmet saved my life.

Same here.  The limb put me on the ground and cracked the helmet.

[DMcCoy]

I wear;
Chaps and hearing protection anytime using a gas chainsaw.  If my chaps get cut I know they need replacing.
Hardhat if felling - I have been driven to my knees by falling branches by head impact while wearing a hardhat.
Eye glasses - If I didn't wear eyeglasses I would want a face shield. Even so I think it would be smarter of me to wear a face shield as the occasion chip gets around them and into my eyes.
Gloves- Your wife might like rough hands mine does not...and it saves time in cleaning pitch and sap off.

Separate note - My big saws have a kickback safety brake.  I click it 'on' when carrying a running saw through brush and branches.  I've tripped enough to know this is a good habit.

[John Mc]

Separate note - My big saws have a kickback safety brake. I click it 'on' when carrying a running saw through brush and branches. I've tripped enough to know this is a good habit.

 

Don't ALL of your saws have a safety brake? -- or are some of them antiques?

[Magicman]

 

 
I have two 'fine running' Homelite XL12's that I retired because they don't have chain brakes.  The above picture  is of my right upper arm showing the results of a kickback. 

[lxskllr]

I wear a helmet almost all the time, even milling, cause I prefer muffs to plugs. I also like the face shield. Every once in a blue moon I'll wear earplugs, but I'm not crazy about them. Chaps all the time unless I'm climbing, or doing literally a couple cuts, and that's usually with my tophandle. I pay particular attention when I cut without chaps. I wear those milling too, cause I'm kneeling in sawdust, and it keeps me clean. If it looks like it's gonna turn into more than a "couple cut job", I go get them. Gloves almost all the time cause I don't like crud on my hands. They also add a little dampening for vibration.

[DMcCoy]

Separate note - My big saws have a kickback safety brake. I click it 'on' when carrying a running saw through brush and branches. I've tripped enough to know this is a good habit.

Don't ALL of your saws have a safety brake? -- or are some of them antiques?

Antiques?  What?  40 yr old chainsaws are antiques?  I'm older than you and your older than they are...
Antiques are always older than me by at least 1 yr...

[John Mc]

Antiques? What? 40 yr old chainsaws are antiques? I'm older than you and your older than they are... Antiques are always older than me by at least 1 yr...

 

You are so right! I should have referred to them as "classics".

My truck can safely be called an antique, since it's 11 years older than I am.

[SawyerTed]

I'm a little late to this one.  Grits have saved my life on several occasions.   One memorable time was after a temporary 8 month self imposed exile to the great Pacific Northwest city of Seattle.  In 1982 they didn't have grits there nor did anyone there have any idea what pimento cheese is.  I resorted to making my own pimento cheese but never milled my own grits.  Anyway they served grits for breakfast on the plane from Atlanta to Charlotte on the last leg of my return flight.  Between the grits and the gorgeous flight attendant with a beautiful Southern drawl, I was revived (we actually dated a few times)!

As for chainsaw PPE, always to safety glasses, yes always to a hard hat when doing work in the woods and most other times, yes always hearing protection and chainsaw chaps almost always.  Gloves only when it is cold.  In the late 1980's, during my early weekend warrior days, I suffered through a chainsaw kickback that cut my left shin into the bone.  The cut was ghastly and the subsequent surgery and infection were no picnic.  While I am certain I ate grits while recovering, I don't recall them with the same vividness as that flight from Atlanta 

[Tacotodd]

  to Ted. 👍👍👍 in many more ways than 1.

[Texas Ranger]

One time, was enough to convince me to wear one all the time.  Woke up on my face looking at dirt and leaves, with a split hard hat.  I was please it was the top side of the dirt.

[Stephen1]

I wear chaps, I have nicked them the odd time saved my legs, muffs, eye protection, they even have bifocals in them. I wear them all day. I bought chainsaw pants to wear in the colder weather. Then I don't have to keep putting my chaps on.

[Ron Scott]

Well done! 

[upnut]

Buddy of mine just sent me pics of bloody jeans and a bandaged up leg...."time to look for chaps..." I directed him here to follow discussions and a link to Baily's Online. Thank you all for great advice!

Scott B.

[barbender]

I always wear a forestry helmet, safety boots, and ear plugs. The saw chaps...I can't describe how much I hate those things. I'm beginning to feel I would be safer in the big picture leaving them in the truck. To begin with, they are so hot that I get overheated, and then fatigued. On top of that they make it hard to move and tend to get snagged on branches and brush. The hot aspect is hard to get away from, but the clumsiness is just a poor design IMO. Wrapped around your legs with all of those buckles and straps, they just drive me nuts. I see Forester is making some now that are bibs, which make more sensen but the seat is still open. Kinda looks like something from the Blue Oyster Bar...😂

[upnut]

I swear the first time I strapped mine on it felt like I was carrying a chainsaw to a pillow fight, now its second nature, don't even notice them. Right now I use the Stihl apron style, which are better than nothing. The next ones will be full wrap, which may trap more heat, but better coverage. There is data showing where the majority of chainsaw cuts are inflicted, its worth studying.....

Scott B.

This is the one I was thinking of...

[Tacotodd]

I’ve taken a liking to the slip IN chainsaw protectors that I got from Madsens. They snap in on slightly modified jeans (or my BDU’s). The slight modification involved basically refers to a strap on the inside for the pads to slip into and the snaps correctly place those pads. It’s not as good of a system as full blown chainsaw pants or even chaps, but they aren’t as unwieldy as chaps (or hot) and aren’t as hot as reg saw pants either. Those pads are a LOT less expensive ta boot! I’m sure that they are not as protective as the real deal, but when clean you can’t tell them from regular jeans anyway.

AND, they are better than NOTHING!

[BradMarks]

I wear Labonville chaps, Bugz Eyes, gloves. Hearing is already shot on the port side so I skip the plugs. Hard hat if warranted.  Question for those who wear full wrap chaps (I don't). Has anyone prior to acquiring or during use of full wrap chaps cut the back of their leg? Or know of someone who has?  In all my years I have not. Just wondering.

[upnut]

Brad- I'm glad you asked about that, made me go back and reconsider full wrap chaps. My Stihl apron chaps tend to leave the inside of my legs unprotected, so I figured full wraps were the answer. Labonville makes an apron wrap chap that may be just the ticket for the improved protection I'm looking for.

Scott B.

[John Mc]

I wear Labonville chaps, Bugz Eyes, gloves. Hearing is already shot on the port side so I skip the plugs. Hard hat if warranted.  Question for those who wear full wrap chaps (I don't). Has anyone prior to acquiring or during use of full wrap chaps cut the back of their leg? Or know of someone who has?  In all my years I have not. Just wondering.

Back of leg cuts are rare. Snagging an apron chap and pulling it around your leg with the chainsaw and then cutting the front  or side of your leg is not so uncommon. Likewise pulling the leg of apron chaps up with a running chainsaw then cutting the front of your leg does happen. The full wrap chaps just do not seem to pull up when snagged. The chain cuts the outer layer and grabs the protective fiber inside rather than pulling up the chap.

[Old Greenhorn]

I was trying to remember this thread and figure out how it got revived. SO I went back and re-read the whole thing. Upnut, you are correct, it is a good thread and even includes grits. 

 I always am thinking about this stuff and trying to find better gear for what I do (more comfortable with proper protection. This changes with the seasons. Felling in June is very different than felling in February and comfort levels vary widely. Recently I tired a pair of mesh goggles that TacoTodd gifted me and they worked great in certain conditions. Those had a head strap. I then ordered a set of the same brand in a temple style (eyeglasses types) and they are nice because I can flip them up without effort better than the goggles, but the goggles keep more stuff out. SO they both have a sweet spot. It is nice to have options in the bag. I also bounce between ear plugs and muffs. Muffs are better in the cold weather, plugs are better for all day work but are a pain to remove and put back in. I also sometimes have ear problems with too much ear plug use, so the muffs allow me a choice. Same with the leg protection, I have chaps and pants. Pants are great for all day, chaps are handy for off and on use, but they are hot. I have to 'plan' to wear the pants for that day, but the chaps are always handy in the truck if I have to do some cutting.

 The only close call I have had was with a 372 and a 24" bar which swings a little on the heavy side. I was bucking up on a log pile and had my left foot up on the log. When I finished the cut I withdrew the saw and the chain was still spinning down. It caught the inside of the heel cup on my left boot and sliced all the covering off but didn't make it as far as meat. I got lucky. That makes me think I should consider inside the leg protection a little more. My pants have that, but not my chaps.

 My old husky chaps are in great shape. I dry them after use and keep them folded in a jump bag with the other gear. In a week moment I might consider those Labonville full wraps, I certainly see the value in that. I think it's  all about the options and being able to pick the options that work best that day.

 Yeah, get the gear and wear it. It only takes 2 seconds to learn why the hard way, or you can just use your head and plan for it. Now I just gotta get me one of those swanky aprons like MM has for sawmill and splitting work and I am all set.