Chainsaw Safety Picture This

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When felling and crosscutting, you may want to bore the guide bar into the trunk. There is a kickback risk if you saw carelessly with the guide bar’s kickback zone directly facing the trunk. You can avoid the greatest kickback risk simply by never putting the nose of the guide bar directly against the wood. The bore cutting technique, however, requires sawing with the nose of the guide bar. If using this technique, make sure you understand how to perform it properly and in a safe way.

Improper chainsaw use can lead to serious injury and even death. Each year, hospital emergency rooms see approximately 30,000 catastrophic injuries from chainsaws. The most frequent chainsaw injuries occur to the left leg and the back of the left hand. These injuries are usually related to kickback and losing control of the saw.

Plan your cut so you know exactly where the saw’s bar will exit the log. As the old timers used to say: It’s not where you start the cut that counts—it’s where you finish. That is, you don’t want to sweep right through the log, out the other side, and into your leg or foot.

Sharpen the teeth and keep the chain lubricated and under proper tension for the best and safest cuts.