Written by S. Thompson | Posted in Tools |

Traditionally, chainsaws have been available in petrol powered and mains powered electric varieties. These two types of saws generally cater to most situations, with petrol powered chainsaws being reserved for heavy duty work, an electric chainsaws being used mainly for yard and garden applications.

In last few years however, a new variety of chainsaw has made its debut: this is the cordless powered chainsaw. Along with cordless drills, cordless saws, and many other cordless power tools, these tools are now at the point where they are powerful, reliable and suitable for many applications around the home.

The cordless chainsaw basically operates in the same way as a mains powered electric chainsaw does. That is to say, an electric motor drives a sprocket, which then drives the cutting chain. The big difference is of course that the electric power is provided by a relatively low voltage battery, as compared to high-voltage mains electricity. The difference is here that the cordless chainsaw has less power to offer, but the advantage is total portability and lightweight.

Perhaps the best application for a cordless chainsaw is for the avid gardener who needs to prune large fruit trees. Being fairly small, cordless chainsaws are not really suitable for cutting timber any bigger than 1 or 2 inches, but this makes them perfect for pruning heavy branches. In many cases branches which are larger in diameter than 1 inch are very difficult to cut with pruning shears, and the only alternative is to use a saw. Using a manual pruning saw can be difficult for some people, so a compact cordless chainsaw is perfect for the job.

When using a cordless chainsaw, it is important not to be lulled into a false sense of confidence and become careless. Even the saw is lightweight, and nowhere near as powerful as a petrol chainsaw or mains chainsaw, it can still be potentially dangerous. One should still observe basic chainsaw safety practices, and wear protective items such as hearing protection and eye protection, to guard against flying wood chips.

It is also important to keep both hands on the chainsaw at all times and not adopt dangerous one handed cutting practices. Even though the saw is quite small, it is still possible for it to flick upwards, and potentially cut the operator on the arms or the face inflicting severe injuries.

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