It’s a sunny Saturday morning. Wednesday afternoon a big hunk o’ beef finished breaking a gate that was pre broken by tree roots. Golden opportunity to move the gate location to better suit our application. Since we’re going to do that, might as well take off some branches banging on the barn. That will unblock sunlight for this space.
I genuinely enjoy cutting trees. The chainsaw is a work of genius. The results are immediate and gratifying. I run a 20″ Stihl, 18″ Husqvarna, 10″ cordless(Milwaukee and Ryobi) pole saw and a 8″ handheld Milwaukee “hatchet” chainsaw.
I’m also big on personal protective equipment, PPE. It’s hard to replace legs and eyes so some cover is needed. I haven’t always done the chaps and gloves. Near misses with holes in my pants changed my mind.
Good PPE doesn’t get in the way. It can make you even more productive. These ear muffs are quiet when the noise is up but have passthrough microphones for when it’s quiet. Great for working with others. Steel toe work boots, why do anything else around logs? Great gloves drive better grip and reduce hand fatigue.
Cutting wood is even better when you have assistance. The small branches after the big cuts are tedious. It turns out goats love the leaves and the farm team is getting strong enough to help throw them over the fence to the hangry horde.
While I handled major branches and detailed limb dropping (don’t hit the fence!) Jenny cutsmall limbs off with this small Milwaukee battery chainsaw. Highly recommend. Much faster than loppers or machetes. She calls it her lightsaber.
Sometimes you end up burning big piles of wood. After trying it, I don’t care for the scorched earth effect it leaves behind. Some patches are still struggling to grow back 3 years later. We tend to pile up the trimmings and pieces through a wood chipper.
So it’s still a sunny summer Saturday. Morning has departed and team morale is low. Mr. Hungry and Miss Thirsty have joined us. I want to finish this pile of brush in one final push, then we’ll head up the hill for lunch. Satisfaction of a job well done and all that. Just gotta finish this pile of branches tangled up in the grapevines.
It’s go time. Quick quick quick. Left hand holding branches, right hand wielding this lightsaber battery hatchet saw. Wrrr-cut-pull. Wrrr-cut-pull. Wrr-snag-zip.
Uh oh. That went over my hand, not the branches.
Set the saw down and start checking, nausea intensifying.
The glove has been clobbered but the fingers are safe after the chain saw skimmed over the surface.
This is a well worn Ansell HyFlex 11-735. Regarded as a medium cut level glove with an A4 rating, I’ve used it enough that the polyurethane dip coating wore off the palm side long ago. Fortunately the cut protection is intrinsic to the fabric.
This is a better story because I have four fingers on my left hand. This is a better story because I can tell you I set the saw down and we went inside for lunch. This is a better story because I can report on some errors made by pushing too far with dangerous equipment, not a life changing injury with dangerous equipment.
I like to think we’ll have chain saws on the new earth when Jesus comes to set it up, but I don’t know. In the mean time, it’s right to work smart, work safely, and wear the right PPE. I only get one of these bodies in this life.
