That was the only point I was trying to make BPJ, The saws have some potential if they are used correctly.

I wouldn't suggest anyone carry just this type of saw. There really isn't any reason I could think of not to have something more substantial with you.

every video or other account I have seen of these type of saws suggests either making it into a bow saw as you did or suspending it between two trees and sawing horizontally by moving the branch back and forth.

it does not seem like holding on to the rings and trying to use these things directly is an effective way of sawing at all.

I have the same wire saw and have used it to cut live trees up to 6 inches in diameter. The first lesson I learned is not to wrap the saw around the tree, you need to hold it as straight as possible, much like you found with the "bow saw" you constructed. You still need to relieve some of the pressure on the wire if possible by trying to expand the cut more, if possible. The teeth are on all sides and it does bind. Wrapping the wire saw around whatever you are cutting does cause it to bind up too much to be able to cut anything. With persistence and patience it will cut larger diameter wood than a small, pocket, folding saw. It is not as useful as a good camping folding saw, but it will fit in the pocket or a survival kit.

Air travel is one exception. I have put wire saws in my carry-on kit and have never had them flagged by security.

People have to realize that items such as this are a compromise.It was used by military pilots whose space and weight for gear are limited.It was meant to help build a shelter(cutting a ridge pole)with a parachute.Trap making was an other intended use.A wire saw is not meant to be a long term use tool but a light weight aid til help arrives.i would rather have it than nothing at all.....

BOATMAN
John

Nice post, thanks for sharing, I've been considering a wire saw to include in my smaller kits, but I've usually heard such negative things about them in the past that I've not followed through. Add to that my own experiences with the wire saws they used to include in the cheap, rambo knockoff hollow handle knives years ago (so cheap that when they got just a little hot they would break in half). Plus, the only one I was considering was the BCB and those are hard to come by in the US, but the pro force is much more accessible.



This might help. There are two main makers of the chain saw type collapsible saws you mentioned. One is the saber cut by Ultimate Survival Technologies:

http://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Survival-Technologies-SaberCut-Black/dp/B001H9N8C0

The other is the original (I think) pocket chain saw:

http://www.pocketchainsaw.com/

There may be others out there, but I am pretty sure these are the two that Doug Ritter discusses here:

http://www.equipped.org/saws.htm

Usual disclaimers apply.

I tried making one with a spare chain saw chain, It did not work:

1. All the teeth bite into the wood and the pulling load is too much for anyone to pull.

2. It would only cut in one direction.

I think this is why the UST only has one tooth in five and they also act in opposite directions alternately. If I owned a tool to break and make the chain it could have been adapted.

Far cheaper to buy the UST which works brilliantly.

Great info Stephen, thank you for putting it together. You are quite right about how the "teeth" can poke holes in nearby gear of the PSK. I made a little thin leather sheath/pouch for mine just for that issue. There are different versions of these saws on the market which includes junky ones.

You can replace the metal rings with short loops of 550 cord. This cuts down on bulk for a micro kit and still enables the bow technique.

IMO these saws are best suited to micro kits where your primary cutting tool is something tiny like the Ritter RSK-MK5, where cutting a ridgepole and such would still be a challenge with such a small knife. If I had a honkin' ESEE-5 then blasting through a 1" or 2" limb is not an issue.

Thank you for sharing and great images! I gave up on wire saw idea in favor of a chainsaw a while ago (Got the Gerber Gator and scavenged the chain blade parts for the kit). However I prefer my long hatchet for any solo wood work anyway. The only problem with it - it's not as quiet as a saw and obviously heavier.

Yeah.

That's why I did some battoning to give me an idea of what was better.(that I would likely be carrying on me) With a full sized knife the advantage would go to the knife but my usual woods knife is a Fallkniven WM-1. The blade might be 3 inches long, so is not an easy knife to baton with. The saw was a lot faster.

Now If I had my F1 I bet I could have smacked that tree down in no time at all. That knife only goes out when I hunt large game however.

Nice strait cuts look nice but offer no real advantage in any situation I am likely to find myself in.

For making fire wood I suppose breaking it by hand/foot is easier than the knife and saw combined realistically, especially with good sturdy gloves.

Still, it's so small I believe it may be worth having one in certain places.