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Electric chainsaw ?

PhillH

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Had a thought today ( I know, rare and dangerous occurrence).

I'm having difficulty justifying an expensive bandsaw with a large cut to myself (let alone Fin Dir), as it just wouldn't get the use, as I can only do max 9 inch on my lathe anyway.

So............ for the few bowl blanks that I would cut from logs and branches, would an electric chainsaw be OK to do the initial chopping up?

I could then get a smaller depth cut bandsaw (or table saw) for pen blanks and the smaller bowl stuff.

Would that work?
 

yorkshireman

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I had one given at christmas Phill and I've only used it once until the woodcutter gives me some pointers on the safe method of use. Yes it would work but you've got to be very careful
 

bellringer

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Ye it would work But depending on your budget You could get a small petrol saw as it will have more guts
 

silver

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It depends on whether or not you want to take it to the local woods to cut down your trees. I think you will need a long extension lead for that..:face:

I have a petrol Chain saw and the neighbors glare at me when I strike it up on a Sunday Morning:funny:

I reality, you will need something to hold your wood in and the safety requirements for a chainsaw are allot higher than a band saw, in all honesty I would buy a decent band saw first.

Don't get me wrong, a chain saw has its place, but for what you are saying I believe a bandsaw would be a better option.
 

Woody

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A good band saw for me every time your not always going to have a small lathe small bowls that's for sure you mark my words and why have two machines when one will do
 

Penpal

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A middle of the road approach is to consider the overall costs in equipment material and actual need, here I can speak freely because i have many of the items so far mentioned sometimes in duplicate and triplicate. Lets be perfectly honest everything is potentially dangerous and needs care at all times avoiding especially distractions.

What is your real or supposed need? In my case I have disposed of several huge Eucalypts from our place over the years I needed chainsaws but all of this material was disposed of elsewhere at cost. The last major ash tree I was willing in my mine at reduction time I was near Woody for his wet turning needs.

A friend of mine buys burl etc a tonne or two at a time then spends ages reducing it down to bowls that are then wet turned and stored carefully he is a one man band, does everything full time.

Oft quoted Richard Raffan used to buy in Tonne lots broken down for him to a rough spec then wet turned and stored both these guys were or are production turners.

My Burl Getting mate lives on a suburban semi detatched block and has up to twenty tons of burl on his place, he is a neatness fanatic you would never observe his business as huge, he high pressure removes the bark on all his incoming burl in his back yard weighs and stacks in ply boxes, he now cuts thousands of pen blanks elsewhere in large batches from his burl.

Determine how much storage room you have how many of anything you need.

Electric Chainsaws are really useful and quiet in town, absolutely neighbor frriendly, IMHO get the largest bandsaw you can afford they will breakdown anything you and I will need then and if cutting burl use the hardend blades.

Just realised you do not need a treatise on how to only trying to convey please choose carefully and match your requirements to needs.

Kind regards Peter.
 

stevenw1963

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got a mid range bandsaw & a petrol chainsaw Phil.
used the most ?
the bandsaw - just cut up a 8'' diam X 3 1/2 foot tree trunk on it rather than get the chainsaw out.
Used the chainsaw twice in the last year.

Get a decent 2nd hand bandsaw, you'll use that the most
 

Jim

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I have a good friend who does me some Chain Saw Cutting, to be honest i wouldn't trust myself with one .. :bwink:
 

rowdyyates115

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Being a bit of a towny now I don't get many trees falling down around me I reckon one of the best things in my shed is my Scheppach Bandsaw, not as many HSS issues as the chainsaw....:bwink:
 

bellringer

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Being a bit of a towny now I don't get many trees falling down around me I reckon one of the best things in my shed is my Scheppach Bandsaw, not as many HSS issues as the chainsaw....:bwink:

What problem have you had with high speed steel :face:
 

paulm

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Phil, I've got a petrol chainsaw and a 16" bandsaw. They both have different uses but if I were to get rid of one of them in favour of the other it would be the chain saw. the bandsaw is very versatile and cuts down my logs to blanks. That couldn't be done easily / safely with a chain saw and then I haven't even started on electric chainsaws. They're a bit like having an underpowered car, when you want to overtake, you're forever in the outside lane and its very dangerous. They've got the power to get you into danger but not the power to get you out. Go for a Bandsaw every time.

Unless of course you've got a forest to cut down and then go for the best petrol chainsaw you can get.
 

PhillH

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Thanks all for the benefit of your knowledge and experience.

Looks like I really should bite the bullet (when I can) and get a decent bandsaw.

Just a shame that they seem to fetch ridiculous money on eBay and it's very difficult to judge which are decent brands, so many look the same so it makes me think they're just being churned out in China in different colours for people.
 
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