Ex snowmobile racer . Also learned a lot swapping engine tech with a competition . Chainsaw guy I know . A lot has to do with the saw raker . That’s the piece on the chain in front of the sharpened tooth . Often the tooth is left sharp . If you lower or file down the raker . The tooth bites harder . This makes the saw more aggressive . Takes bigger bite of wood . But also more dangerous . A taller raker Exposes less wood to the tooth less aggressive . But still sharp cut . From the carve guy . The top edge of the sharp tooth . Can be dulled or even slightly hammered down . This is good for lighter detail work . More like grinding the wood as compared to aggressive cutting . Hope that makes sense . Also keep in mind the more aggressive the saw is the more risky it is of kicking back . Especially if your using the round tip .
This help explain the function of the links. Thank you. I'll likely not modify the raker. For a consistent (predictable) cut, the modifications need to be consistent. I'm not that type of precision metal worker. The information is great. Any other info on this is welcome.
Holy smokes... I googled the Lancelot chainsaw disc because I've never heard of it. Some of the stories and photos that come up are not for the faint of heart! I would say this Milwaukee is substantially safer than using an angle grinder with that chainsaw disc!
Milwaukee is also a name you can trust to produce higher quality power tools. While a purpose-built chainsaw is safer than a repurposed angle grinder, respected name-brand tools are safer than random no-name chainsaw pruners on Amazon.
A lot of the mishaps/accidents you see online are from failing to follow instructions, commonsense, or just plain carelessness.
Educate yourself before you decapitate yourself.
Questions I ask myself: How is this tool going to kill me? How is this material going to kill me? How is my workspace going to kill me? How is my profound stupidity going to kill me? How do I get out of here when it all goes pear-shaped?
I have one of these hand chainsaws from a different brand and it is a pretty dangerous tool. Mine doesn't have a safety button either which is not great. It does work, I guess.
I cut and burn about 4 cords of wood a year and i picked up a few things about chainsaws... you want to keep the chain very sharp at all times. A dull chain makes an unpredictable cut and an unpredictable cut is a dangerous cut. The comments above about the rakers are correct, you can file it down for a more aggressive cut, but it will also make the saw less predictable. This is also the argument for buying the "more expensive/powerful" saw. If the saw is underpowered, it is unpredictable. It is generally better to have a little too much power. One option is to get a powerful saw and put a short (appropriate to the mfg.) 6 or 8 inch bar and chain on it. This will give tighter angles and you will be sure that the cut will happen on the intended place.
The other thing is about kerf. This is the width of the chain. It can be narrow, or wide. You can get a wide kerf that will remove more wood but I suspect a narrow kerf would be best for bonsai as you would typically want to go a little slower rather than too fast.
You really don't want to cut with the point, that part can bounce up and into your face. If you are looking for that kind of grinding action, you might do better with a finger sander with 40 grit paper. A angle grinder with a 40 grit flap disk can safely remove a lot of wood, i would recommed.
Had to look up "finger sander". You are what addiction experts call an "Enabler". I had never seen this tool before. Now I have to have one. You're not helping.
There are ways to use the chainsaw for carving live material that mitigate risk. Discussing safety techniques on Internet scares me in a legally binding sense. No one should be learning anything about safety from me. I have the scars to prove it. That said, my approach to safety is to understand the causes and effects of improper use. That way I can avoid them. When they occur, I'm not surprised. As I've always said "Safety: Somewhere in the top 10"
As for chainsaw kerf, that's why I have multiple tools for varying purposes and capacities to remove wood.
I'm with you on sharp and powerful tools being the safest. The chainsaw I bought has an 8-inch bar/chain. The lower powered version has a 6-inch bar/chain. Replacing the 8-inch chain is already on my to-do list. I like to be close to my work and have better control over what's happening.
Off to look at finger sanders ... curse you
Power carving tools are all very useful . But can remove a lot of wood quickly . That don’t grow back .
Myself I struggle with the artistic side of bonsai or at least . Find time a great thing to change your outlook on a tree . Preferring to work slower on deadwood . What’s the hurry . If you have a collected tree . That will take multiple years to create a bonsai out of . Why do you have to carve the dead wood in a afternoon . Look at Ryan Neal . Formally served a apprenticeship in Japan with Mr Chainsaw himself . Kumura. . Yet Ryan performers a lot of carving with hand tools for a more natural less obvious man made finished product .
Here in Louisiana, the choice on deadwood is to make permanent changes quickly or let rot set in and make random unwanted changes. Then there's formosan termites. They're everywhere down here. They eat the hardwood of living trees.
I recommend carving and preserving deadwood soon after you've decided (or forced) to make it an element of your design. Unless you're going for targeted rot or allowing a termite colony to flourish, if the wood is there and you want to style it, get to it.
