Chainsaw PPE

[paul1966]

Having already had a close shave with the electric chainsaw i use to cut logs up with i want to get some PPE before i lose a finger or worse, looking around at chainsaw trousers there is a choice of chaps or trousers, can anyone comment on if chaps are comfortable to wear, reading some reviews its a mixed bag really. My budget is up to £100 for a helmet, gloves and trousers, i have seen a PPE kit for £90 but it includes chaps. I don't want to get something that is a pain to fit.

[SX3]

Wow How much do you value your limbs.  forget £100 get some training and proper kit or buy cut logs,

  

[Dougy]

Get the helmet with mesh instead of a plastic visor, they dont steam up. Chaps are comfortable enough i bought salopette style with braces, gloves i just use chrome leather. 

 

Dont skimp on the PPE, knew a chap that had 60 stiches in his face and another nearly lost his darting hand (that was a stihl grinder though . 

And dont wear trainers or Crocs.

SX3 spot on, 

Edited January 31, 2022 by Dougy

[Walker570]

AND be careful out there. Most accidents occur when you take short cuts...no pun intended.  Also a sharp chain is a safe chain.

[Dougy]

If your handy with making things knock up a horse to place your cords on, it will save your chain and your back, and its allot safer than bending forcing yourself to work in uncomfortable positions. 

Horse

There not too expensive to buy really. 

 

[strimmer_13]

I wear pfanner gladiator trousers. About £260 a pair. My boots cost £210. Depends how much you value your limbs. But then im not using little saws and the only reason i spent that much is because they are designed to be comfortable. Cheap gear is really sweaty and knackering. 

I do know 1 guy who wears the oregon trousers from screwfix, but google forest and arb/f.rjones/sam turner websites and youll find kit for your budget that will stop the chain. 

I will say footwise, the wellies are about the most uncomfortable **** youll wear, get boots if you can. 

 

 

[Dougy]

@strimmer_13

If i remember you could get trousers years ago with an extension that went over the front part of boots possibly gaiters

[strimmer_13]

Just now, Dougy said:

@strimmer_13

If i remember you could get trousers years ago with an extension that went over the front part of boots possibly gaiters

I think i know what you mean and think thats an american style, usually just made of baked leather i think but most trousers have hooks in them to latch on to your laces (mainly to stop the dust going down your boots). I personally wouldnt rely on it. 

Worst case ive seen is my mother. Shes cut her own wood for 30 odd years and being old and arrogant only ever wore hiking boots or wellies. Just using a 35cc piece of husky junk, she took out a perfect chuck about 2" long out the side of her left foot. Her foot slipped whilst standing on the log which she was cutting, as me nor my brother was there to help. Absolute bloodbath when i got there to rush her to hospital. Proper hole. 

A chainsaw 'cut' removes material, its not a cut. Because the flesh has been removed, theres not a lot they can do to fill the hole. She had a open wound packed with mesh for about 3 months because of that, another 3 for it to heal good enough to walk on and not hurt. Good scar too. 

First day of wearing my spanking new boots i ran my saw along the side of them, i was seriously angry about ******* them up but also i was so glad i wore correct ppe for a change. 

 

[Minky]

That's  crazy, as you are using a chainsaw you should already be using ppe. Just because it is only an electric hobby saw, it'll still have you if you aren't using it correctly.  Don't rely on any safety kit as opposed to handling  and using a chainsaw correctly.   If you think that you are going to have an accident then don't do it. A few logs ain't worth an injury that could be life changing.

[Dougy]

Minky 

In days of old there was no PPE, the protection was called common sense, you either had it or your didn't, those that didn't obviously failed to breed.

 

I certainly agree that PPE should always be used, but how many do actually wear any PPE for most gardening or DIY jobs.  

Edited January 31, 2022 by Dougy

[strimmer_13]

7 minutes ago, Dougy said:

 

I certainly agree that PPE should always be used, but how many do actually wear any PPE for most gardening or DIY jobs.  

Fully agree. I see it all the time. 

Also what walker says, a sharp saw is a safe saw. Mind you i like a full chisel with the rakers off, bucking like a bronco 😂👍 plunge cuts are off the menu 😉

[simonm]

I got the Husqvarna kit of helmet with mesh visor and ear defenders, gloves and chaps for about £80 or so.

same as this one

https://www.worldofpower.co.uk/husqvarna-basic-chain-saw-protection-kit.html

 

Edited January 31, 2022 by simonm

[Dave at kelton]

I use still bib and brace, boots, gloves and helmet with mask visor. Wouldn’t pick up a chainsaw without them whatever the cost.

[paul1966]

1 hour ago, simonm said:

I got the Husqvarna kit of helmet with mesh visor and ear defenders, gloves and chaps for about £80 or so.

same as this one

https://www.worldofpower.co.uk/husqvarna-basic-chain-saw-protection-kit.html

 

That's the one I was looking at, what do you think to it?

[simonm]

16 minutes ago, paul1966 said:

That's the one I was looking at, what do you think to it?

Very good, I’m only an occasional user but seems good quality, chaps are easy to get on and off. It didn’t cost much more than a pair of unbranded chaps from B&Q.

[chrisjpainter]

24 minutes ago, paul1966 said:

That's the one I was looking at, what do you think to it?

I made my dad get that set. He's been very pleased and I'm pleased he's in it. 

As others have said it's best to do it right and not compromise. Remember that PPE isn't a substitute for safe practice. I've got the qualifications and the kit up to the eyeballs, but that's not what keeps me safe. That's the training and the common sense. However things can go wrong and occasionally it's not the fault of the cutter, so it's worth having the safety kit too. You only get one set of limbs, so it's best to keep them connected to the body...

[Mice!]

5 hours ago, simonm said:

I got the Husqvarna kit of helmet with mesh visor and ear defenders, gloves and chaps for about £80 or so.

same as this one

https://www.worldofpower.co.uk/husqvarna-basic-chain-saw-protection-kit.html

 

Silly question,  is the set a one size fits all, I can't see anything to do with size?

[chrisjpainter]

4 minutes ago, Mice! said:

Silly question,  is the set a one size fits all, I can't see anything to do with size?

Yes. The chaps don't wrap all the way round, so they don't need a waist size and the helmet's obviously adjustable. If you go into the Description tab near the bottom, you'll find the gloves are a size 10

[Mice!]

9 minutes ago, chrisjpainter said:

Yes. The chaps don't wrap all the way round, so they don't need a waist size and the helmet's obviously adjustable. If you go into the Description tab near the bottom, you'll find the gloves are a size 10

Cheers mate, I'd clicked on the full spec and not scrolled down far enough. 

I've got long fingers and a big head 😭 as much as some will say its cheap PPE, it's got to be better than wearing nothing designed for chainsaw use.

[chrisjpainter]

49 minutes ago, Mice! said:

Cheers mate, I'd clicked on the full spec and not scrolled down far enough. 

I've got long fingers and a big head 😭 as much as some will say its cheap PPE, it's got to be better than wearing nothing designed for chainsaw use.

Cheap it is, but it meets proper safety standards! Class 1 is standard, good quality protection. It'll stop a chain up to 20m/s. In context my professional ground saw (Husqvarna 550xp) chain speed at 133% of maximum engine power speed is 26.1m/s. So to go through my Class 1's I'd have to rev the saw up to its beyond max speed, then grip down hard on the trigger then ram it into my thigh! At its working max, it's only running at 19.6m/s - and that's a good pro saw. Basically, you'd have to deliberately try and cut into them, even then all domestic saws and a lot of beefier ones too would get jammed before they get to your leg. It's a very good kit - assuming you can fit into it all! Here's  Felixia Banck, aka FemaleLumberjack on youtube playing about with Class 1 trousers At Stihl HQ in Denmark with a similarly powered pro saw: a Stihl MS261

 

Edited February 1, 2022 by chrisjpainter

[Mice!]

Certainly impressive how they work, I eas told a while ago that the fibres mimic flesh in the way they react?

But an Aldi  electric chainsaw costs about the same as this safety equipment and I imagine most people will view them as being pretty safe as there only small and electric!

[Fisheruk]

I’ve just bought an Aldi 40v battery chainsaw and sold my petrol ones. It works well enough in a domestic situation but nowhere near the grunt of the petrol ones. Just have to slow down remembering to let it work at its own pace.

I think I’ll invest in that set of kit, even though I’ve been using chain saws for 60 years, without incident.

Edited February 1, 2022 by Fisheruk

[joejoe]

I bought a park side chainsaw helmet in Lidl last year for less than £10. Only went in for beer.

I use some Oregon trousers which I have never cut so I can not say how well they work. But the do get warm if you are doing a bit of work. 

[stumpy69]

From my experience do not bother with the chaps. They are awkward to put on and uncomfortable so you are less likely to use them especially if just for a short period. I have a pair of Oregon Yukon trousers and have used them for about 5 years, they are comfortable and don't get too hot! 

 Also don't bother with gloves with chainsaw protection, everyone I know just uses them for their training and they never go on again, everyone just uses standard gloves like builders grip gloves. 

Edited February 1, 2022 by stumpy69
Wee edit above as I meant chainsaw protective gloves. 

[chrisjpainter]

2 hours ago, stumpy69 said:

From my experience do not bother with the chaps. They are awkward to put on and uncomfortable so you are less likely to use them especially if just for a short period. I have a pair of Oregon Yukon trousers and have used them for about 5 years, they are comfortable and don't get too hot! 

 Also don't bother with gloves, everyone I know just uses them for their training and they never go on again. 

Chainsaw gloves, I agree with, but there are a few reasons why wearing gloves is a good idea - and none of them have got anything to do with cutting yourself with the chain.

Firstly, chainsawing is physical work. your hands get sweaty and if the weather's warmish, you will be rubbing sweat out of your eyes. That makes your hands wet and slippery, which is a bad state of affairs to be in if you're holding a chainsaw. A pair of gloves will give you grip even if your hands are sweaty.

Secondly, having gloves on means you're able to remove brush out of the way easily. If you're cutting through thorny stuff, the last thing you want to be doing is batting undergrowth out the way with your saw if you can help it. They're unwieldy things at the best of times and if you're constantly waving it out the front (even without applying the triggers) you're asking for trouble. It'll also make the day a lot more tiring.

Thirdly and connected is gloves can protect you from infections by saving you from the cuts and punctures that come from working with timber or undergrowth. No one wants a rusty nail through a hand because they grabbed a piece of fence post, but missed the nail sticking out of it and blackthorn's notorious for infections in wounds. A splinter in the hand from a lump of wood you're cutting up that's sat in the wood shed's no biggy...unless of course there are mice and rats running over it and constantly weeing everywhere. Anyone for a dose of leptospirosis or Weil's disease?

Fourthly and perhaps most importantly is gloves are protection from white finger. Vibrations can knacker nerves in the hands and fingers. Over time and especially in cold or wet conditions those vibrations damage and kill the nerves in your hands. This is permanent damage and can't be undone. 

Chainsaw protection ones are bulky and give you very little feel and control through them, which is why I don't wear them - I use pike fishing gloves as they give thorn protection without any loss in feel or dexterity - but wearing some form of hand protection absolutely comes under the heading of common sense when it comes to chainsaw work. The rotating chain's not the only thing you should have in your mind when it comes to protecting yourself.

Edited February 1, 2022 by chrisjpainter