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#268082 - 03/14/14 04:47 PM Re: any sawyers out there? need advice [Re: hikermor]
bsmith Offline
day hiker
Addict

Registered: 02/15/07
Posts: 589
Loc: ventura county, ca
Originally Posted By: hikermor
As one who has gaily tripped by cleared logs, glancing casually at the massive saw cuts, I owe you and your buddies a great many thank yous, especially since i have also fought my way through the tangle and jumbles of numerous windfalls. You make life easier for a lot of people.

thank you for that. we always receive a positive response from hikers who catch us working. even those who may have to wait a few minutes until we stop and make the work site safe to pass over, around or through.

Quote:
Would your sawn log have been on the Reyes Peak trail by any chance?

good eye! specifically: N 34 38 03, W 119 16 44.
_________________________
“Everyone should have a horse. It is a great way to store meat without refrigeration. Just don’t ever get on one.”
- ponder's dad

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#268084 - 03/14/14 05:01 PM Re: any sawyers out there? need advice [Re: bsmith]
JerryFountain Offline
Addict

Registered: 12/06/07
Posts: 418
Loc: St. Petersburg, Florida
bsmith,

Thanks for the pictures! I can just imagine the smell of the fresh pine. And thanks for the work, we all appreciate it.

Respectfully,

Jerry

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#268325 - 03/18/14 11:45 PM Re: any sawyers out there? need advice [Re: bsmith]
ATsawyer Offline
Stranger

Registered: 03/17/14
Posts: 6
I usually carry my wedges in a piece of fire hose. They get beat up and mushroomed, and cracked edges can snag clothing in your pack. My pack has an outside mesh pocket that keeps them readily available. Don't just reserve your aluminum wedges for hangers, they are great in the kerf and much less likely to spit the way a plastic wedge will.

As for Ben Meadows, I would avoid those Curtis Fastcutter saws unless it was the last saw on earth. The steel is soft, the plate is flat ground (if ground at all), and the saw will arrive dull and unset. That said, they can be made to cut, but why? With all the good used saws out west, no volunteer sawyer should have any trouble finding a good one at auction.

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#268329 - 03/19/14 12:03 AM Re: any sawyers out there? need advice [Re: bsmith]
ATsawyer Offline
Stranger

Registered: 03/17/14
Posts: 6
Uh oh, I think I may have gone too negative on my first post. My apologies. The Curtis saw company made very good saws back "in the day". Their modern saws (or whoever is making them with the Curtis brand) are not the same tool. I have filed a lot of crosscut saws and counseled new sawyers on good ones to buy. There are plenty of good saws still available if you look. NGOs and certain US agencies typically don't buy tools on Ebay, so they purchase what's available in the retail marketplace, which is to say, not much. Those "new" saws then make their way into tool rooms, and if not intercepted by a decent filer, are misery whips out of the box.

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#268341 - 03/19/14 02:56 AM Re: any sawyers out there? need advice [Re: ATsawyer]
dougwalkabout Offline
Crazy Canuck
Carpal Tunnel

Registered: 02/03/07
Posts: 3219
Loc: Alberta, Canada
It's clear that you're intimately familiar with this topic. So I'm curious: what sort of work do you do, what led you here, and why crosscut saws instead of chainsaws?

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#268348 - 03/19/14 01:08 PM Re: any sawyers out there? need advice [Re: ATsawyer]
bsmith Offline
day hiker
Addict

Registered: 02/15/07
Posts: 589
Loc: ventura county, ca

great idea for transporting the wedges. i've got some coming when available. and i hope to make more use of the hanging wedges than what i've seen in use so far. i have a pair from littco.

and i've got a saw coming ~ disston 6', perforated lance, western handles - may be a bit heavier but worth the weight in hand protection and usefulness.

chainsaws allowed on the at or is your work in a wilderness?
_________________________
“Everyone should have a horse. It is a great way to store meat without refrigeration. Just don’t ever get on one.”
- ponder's dad

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#268349 - 03/19/14 03:11 PM Re: any sawyers out there? need advice [Re: ATsawyer]
JerryFountain Offline
Addict

Registered: 12/06/07
Posts: 418
Loc: St. Petersburg, Florida
Thanks for the information, even though it makes me sad. I have only used an older Curtis and it was a very workmanlike saw. Maybe not the top, but a good, solid tool.

Respectfully,

Jerry

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#268395 - 03/20/14 08:44 PM Re: any sawyers out there? need advice [Re: dougwalkabout]
ATsawyer Offline
Stranger

Registered: 03/17/14
Posts: 6
Originally Posted By: dougwalkabout
It's clear that you're intimately familiar with this topic. So I'm curious: what sort of work do you do, what led you here, and why crosscut saws instead of chainsaws?


I'm retired, but I volunteer for an AT trail club. I was doing a search on crosscut saws and saw a link to this site. For firewood and the occasional ice storm or hurricane, I use a chainsaw. All the rest is crosscut saws and axes, as I like the hands-on feel of traditional tools.

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#268396 - 03/20/14 08:47 PM Re: any sawyers out there? need advice [Re: bsmith]
ATsawyer Offline
Stranger

Registered: 03/17/14
Posts: 6
Originally Posted By: bsmith


chainsaws allowed on the at or is your work in a wilderness?


I work in both and prefer crosscuts. I volunteer mostly in Shenandoah NP, but I also maintain a trail in Michigan.

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#268397 - 03/20/14 08:50 PM Re: any sawyers out there? need advice [Re: JerryFountain]
ATsawyer Offline
Stranger

Registered: 03/17/14
Posts: 6
Originally Posted By: JerryFountain
Thanks for the information, even though it makes me sad. I have only used an older Curtis and it was a very workmanlike saw. Maybe not the top, but a good, solid tool.

Respectfully,

Jerry


Older Curtis' are fine saws. It's the newer ones that require more work. Once filed up they will cut ok.

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