NEVER KISS A CHAIN SAW! NEW PIC [BEWARE]!

[mainemaul]

so i was preparing to do a little cutting,file chain, gas and oil etc. i always start saw {old stihl 031av} a real brute! 1st,then put chaps and headgear on.however the oil level was a little higher than ought to be so i goosed the saw to see if it was spittin oil from the bar like it should be, only i got too close to a round with the tip of the bar ans actually touched it while throttling the saw and holy #$%@&*!,that saw kicked back and smacked me in the face! 39 stitches and lucky to be alive,all superficial cuts to chin and left cheek.now,look i do know better than to touch the bar tip to anything,believe me i had it happen in the past but i took my [eye off the ball] this time and nearly cost me my life! stupid or just lack of attention or whatever,just a reminder to all,BE CAREFUL PLEASE,lucky my wife was right there to drive me to the rescue station or i would not be here today. take care guys and dont [take your eye off the ball]

 

[southbound]

Holy S**T

Hope you recover well and fast.......

I wrestled with selling my 031 and the main reason I did was simply lack of safety no chain brake.....Now I'm a little glad I made that choice....


Hope you are well......

 

[Tony H]

Mainemaul - Thanks for the reminder , just takes one second to cause grave injuries with one of these things.
WOW !! glad to hear you are going to be ok.

FYI Southbound I read that many of the older Stihls can be fitted with a chainbrake check with your dealer . I won't run a saw without one either.

 

[wood spliter]

Hpoe you get better real soon.

 

[Jack Straw]

There goes your modeling career! Hope you get better soon.

 

[savageactor7]

Good to hear your mostly alright...close call.

 

[ScottWojo]

Scars are cool. Chicks dig scars.

You need to take that thing into the back yard and put it down. Three shots. One in each side of the crank and one in the cylinder. Once its tasted human blood, it will never be right.

Get a little newer saw with more safety devices.

Sorry about your luck man.

 

[mainemaul]

thanks all,not sure if a chain break would've helped,maybe maybe not,but will be holdin on a little better in the future for sure

 

[ScottWojo]

thanks all,not sure if a chain break would've helped,maybe maybe not,but will be holdin on a little better in the future for sure

Might have still hit your face, but with a chain brake engaged automatically, you would have had a whole lot less damage to your face. and probably no trip to the ER.
As the kick back happens and the saw starts its travel, you forearm would have engaged the chain brake.

Like I said, you should destroy that saw. I would refuse to sell a saw like that to anyone. especially one that you know first hand was dangerous.

 

[southbound]

Mainemaul - Thanks for the reminder , just takes one second to cause grave injuries with one of these things.
WOW !! glad to hear you are going to be ok.

FYI Southbound I read that many of the older Stihls can be fitted with a chainbrake check with your dealer . I won't run a saw without one either.

Yes you can fit a chain brake to a 031..Mine had one when new but someone who new better then stihl removed it...Dealer can't get the parts you would have to look on ebay....

Chain brakes WORK they are not 100 percent but they do work.....My FIL is getting a little older and a little weaker I see him reset his all day long....Makes me keep a close eye on him....

 

[firefighterjake]

I once went to my Dad to borrow a saw . . . he had two . . . one that didn't run quite as well and another that ran well, but had no chain brake . . . I chose the one with the chain brake . . . to me it's a no brainer.

 

[Danno77]

ya shoulda been wearin' your face chaps. I'm just glad you are able to come back here and post about it. That could have turned out a WHOLE lot worse than it did. Get healed up soon, and take a picture to tape on yer saw.

 

[smokinj]

Put it up on the shelve and leave it there!

 

[Flatbedford]

Thank goodness you are gonna be OK. I will admit that I did the same thing a couple weeks ago, but the brake stopped my chain and I was able to keep the saw down, but it scared the crap out of me and proved to me just how valuable that brake is. I also say time to get a new saw. It will cost less than those 39 stitches and all associated expenses.

 

[YZF1R]

Scary! Glad to hear you'll be ok. And thank you for posting when you could have tried to hide an embarrassing mistake. These wake up calls keep people like me from getting too lax. Get well soon.

Steve

 

[LLigetfa]

The kickback happens amazingly fast. Had one stop a 16th of an inch from my nose. Scary fast.

Over the years I've drawn blood more than once but never quite bad enough to require stiches to close. Always carried butterfly closures in my packsack.

http://www.labsafety.com/images/xl/BAND-AID-Butterfly-Closure-LSS-_i_LB9010_3.jpg

 

[Flatbedford]

Lightning fast

 

[mainemaul]

once again,thanx all,big time difference in the healing from sunday mornin till today,i really am amazed at the human body! all is good.will try to post a before and after pic.

 

[Stlshrk]

Wow! Glad you are still around to post on here. Scary stuff, for sure.

Get well soon!

 

[basswidow]

You're wife must be one tough lady. My wife doesn't handle stuff like that very well. She would have fainted or been too frightened to drive. She would have been a mess.

Hope you and your wife are doing much better. What a terrible scare. I couldn't imagine. I will think about this thread and respect my saw for sure. Mines got a break and I try to stay away from the business end. It's gotten close to my foot and thigh before - but never my face.

 

[CrawfordCentury]

A lot of loggers and folks that spend considerable time in the woods keep a couple tampons or maxi pads in their first aid kit for blood absorption.

 

[Flatbedford]

A lot of loggers and folks that spend considerable time in the woods keep a couple tampons or maxi pads in their first aid kit for blood absorption.

I'd rather use something to keep the blood in me, than use something to absorb it.

 

[Danno77]

A lot of loggers and folks that spend considerable time in the woods keep a couple tampons or maxi pads in their first aid kit for blood absorption.

yeah, girl loggers.

 

[Adios Pantalones]

Yoiks. I have a helmet/face sheild/ears combo that I tell myself will slow the blade down a bit in such a situation. After reading this, I will get religious about putting it on first always.

 

[mainemaul]

my wife is one cool headed girl,drove me to rescue station and no one was there! they were on a call elsewhere so we called 911 and they sent a unit from the ER 25 miles away to meet us,my wife said we'll meet you 1/2 way and had that honda CRV above 80 mph for 10 miles or so, we met the wagon on the road and i knew i was good as soon as they looked at the wounds and realised i missed EVERYTHING.
anyway love this site,check in daily,tons of great info from great people who i can relate to [cavemen]
keep cuttin,keep safe!