Sawing high branches.

tomthebomb

I'm getting a bit long in the tooth for tree climbing so thought I might invest in a polesaw to deal with the high branches.

Can anyone offer any advice or experience on a possible purchase?

Any input would be much appreciated.

Ectophile

A couple of elf and safety thoughts:-

• A hard hat is a good idea when cutting above head height, just in case the branch doesn't fall the way you expected.
• Before you start cutting, make sure you can step back smartly as the branch falls, without tripping over anything behind you.

I've used the simple pole saws - just like a pruning saw on the end of a long stick. they are a bit slower and clumsier than a hand saw, but they do get there in the end. And they are safer than climbing up on ladders.

Mojisola

Ectophile wrote: »

A couple of elf and safety thoughts:-

• A hard hat is a good idea when cutting above head height, just in case the branch doesn't fall the way you expected.
• Before you start cutting, make sure you can step back smartly as the branch falls, without tripping over anything behind you.

One of my neighbours is currently suffering with a head injury, several broken ribs and a broken collar bone because the branch he was sawing fell on him.

McKneff

Yes,,,,

Pay someone else to do it ..

Lorian

I have a very cheap saw/lopper from amazon.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Spear-Jackson-W223-Razorsharp-Telescopic/dp/B0006UF676/

It works. if the branch is small enough the lopper is much easier to use than the saw. Either way you need good upper body strength to use if for more than just a few cuts.

I know others already mentioned wearing a hat - I wear a full helmet - but also wouldn't use it without eye protection and toe-tectors, and gloves of course.


Don't underestimate how much damage the saw blade can do even when not actively sawing.

glasgowdan

I got a 12ft corona saw and it's very good. The blade is curved and very long.

http://www.abbeygardensales.co.uk/hand-tools/corona-tree-pruners/showitem-WW-TP3841.aspx

Always wear goggles...more important than hard hats! And if someone's dropping branches on their own head while watching the thing...Maybe the results are just natural selection doing some biological weeding out!

Mojisola

glasgowdan wrote: »

And if someone's dropping branches on their own head while watching the thing...Maybe the results are just natural selection doing some biological weeding out!

Not the case. He's a very experienced gardener/smallholder.

He'd sawn almost all the way through and stepped back but the branch didn't fall the way he expected and took him down. If it could happen to him, it could happen to anyone.

wrightk

tomthebomb wrote: »

I'm getting a bit long in the tooth for tree climbing so thought I might invest in a polesaw to deal with the high branches.

Can anyone offer any advice or experience on a possible purchase?

Any input would be much appreciated.

anything that long is cumbersome and heavy to manage. It does the job though. I have a telescopic titan hedge trimmer (extends to around 2.9m), they do a chainsaw version also which has very good reviews on screwfix, plenty of review vids on youtube too.

Just be aware safety wise also

glasgowdan

Mojisola wrote: »

Not the case. He's a very experienced gardener/smallholder.

He'd sawn almost all the way through and stepped back but the branch didn't fall the way he expected and took him down. If it could happen to him, it could happen to anyone.

Trees aren't magical...if he was experienced he wouldn't have stepped back from a branch almost cut through unless he was finishing it off to drop, and also would have prepared for unexpected falls! Lapse of sense perhaps, we all have them