Bow saw blade for dry wood?

[Tim+]

There?s a large dead branch dangling from the Larch at the end of my garden. Still attached but it looks untidy and I?ve a mind to lop it off.

The branch is long dead and well dried. 5 minutes work with a chainsaw but as it?s about 20ft up I?m not entirely comfortable with waving a chainsaw around at altitude. ;-)

Obviously going to take longer with a bow saw but I don?t mind investing in a new sharp blade of the right type (namely, not one for green wood) if it?ll make the job easier.

What should I be looking for?

Tim

[John_j]

IMO a pole saw. Much less risk of falling off, you only have to avoid being under what you are sawing off.

Electric pole saws are easier to use but obviously cost more than a manual one.

[Jeff Layman]

Something like this:

Just don't stand beneath it while you're cutting it. ;-)

[Tim+]

Too high for any pole saw I?ve seen. Not about to spend that kind of money.

Tim

[Tim+]

Too big for one of those. Probably 8-9? diameter, wider than it is deep.

Tim

[Richard]

This?

[harry]

Hah. You'll struggle with a bowsaw with something that size. Especially up a ladder. Make the first cut from underneath & finish it from on top. The cut will open that way & the branch will come off cleanly. Be sure to tie the ladder to the tree. It will take an hour at least.

[Harry Bloomfield, Esq.]

Tim+ brought next idea :

If it is really dead and dry, attach a rope and apply some weight to breal it off. A bow and blunt arrow might help in getting a line over it, to help with the rope.

[Thomas Prufer]

Pole saw -- the kind with hooked noses on the ends. Extend the pole with duct tape and bamboo poles.

Fiskars make them.

(Searching for "Silky pole saw" will get you razor-sharp sawblades at the end of light poles, extendable to six meters. Sadly, this comes at a significant^Wexorbitant price.)

Thomas Prufer

[Tim+]

I?ve climbed the tree today and there?s less wood to cut through than I thought. From the ground the branch looks ?half snapped? whereas in fact it?s nearer 80%. I?ve got rope climbing gear and if I can persuade my wife to belay me (again) I think I?ll actually manage with my existing handsaw.

Thanks anyway.

Tim

[Tim+]

Job done. Branch was nearer 90% snapped which just left a ?rind? of wood about an inch thick to saw through. Getting to it was the tricky bit but with a combination of a ladder, a bit of climbing and some rope climbing gear for security and my wife belaying me from below, the job was accomplished without too many near-death experiences. ;-)

Tim

[AJH]

Good, should you have the need again I would forget bowsaws and look at a Silky (or other make) pull saw, Zubat or Gomtaro, though for guerrilla footpath work I used a Gomtaro Big boy folding saw with 7.5 TPI. Blades are several times more expensive than bow saw blades but last quite well, are re sharpenable with diamond feather edge file and a joy to use in comparison.

[newshound]

You missed a good one at Lidl a few weeks ago, 50 notes IIRC (I already have batteries). Won't do 20 feet of course, but assuming you can get a ladder up somewhere safely you can be well clear of the sharp bit and the heavy bit.

[T i m]

+1

Daughters Silky was very very sharp (one reason for metal strops I believe) and would appear to go like a knife though butter on branches that 'looked' like they would be way to big for it.

Did I mention how sharp they were ... (DAMHIK). ;-(

Cheers, T i m