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Post by Magnus B. on Jan 9, 2021 13:18:47 GMT -8
Hello friends. I hope you all are getting through this pandemic as best as you can. I did not make it out backpacking this year, but I got in some good overnite conoe trips and some good hikes. I recently did a YouTube video to review a peice of gear that I aquired about a year and a half ago. It has worked real well for me. Please let me know your thoughts. Prost! Magnus Böner Click here if you are interested in my gear review video.
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driftwoody
Trail Wise!
Take the path closer to the edge, especially if less traveled
Posts: 14,970
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Post by driftwoody on Jan 13, 2021 9:22:11 GMT -8
No responses yet, most likely because few if any here, on a backpacking trek, would have need of a saw capable of serious cutting.
Not exactly Leave No Trace.
On my local hikes I carry a 7" folding Corona saw ($15) to maintain some lesser used paths in the forest preserves. It's very effective up to 4" diameter and fits easily in a pants pocket.
The Agawa Canyon saw you reviewed is no doubt much better on larger diameters, but not so handy to carry and quickly deploy.
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Post by tipiwalter on Jan 13, 2021 10:21:41 GMT -8
Like driftwoody I carry a corona folding saw but the 10 inch model and use it while backpacking to clear blowdowns blocking my way on a trail. The beauty of the corona is you can fold it up fast and drop it down the front of your shirt for quick access while moving---but the Agawa can't be quickly deployed or stowed.
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Post by johntpenca on Jan 13, 2021 13:16:37 GMT -8
Humorous video. But I object to cutting down standing trees, even if they are dead. My philosophy is only use wood that is dead and down.
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Post by High Sierra Fan on Jan 13, 2021 13:24:02 GMT -8
Hadn’t this been settled some time ago in another thread: Stihl or stay home. OTOH: For canoeing in the wooded east where wood fires can be appropriate and pack weight is less significant even when there are moderate portages a bow saw like that can be an option. Though a folding pruning saw like a Sven or similar is more in scale with the light wood work I’d be doing for a fire, I’m not going to be building anything where I need a big blade. On the order of this SILKY: www.rei.com/product/120954/silky-gomboy-curve-folding-hand-sawIn the alpine west? No, never, ever.
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Post by bluefish on Jan 13, 2021 13:30:20 GMT -8
If you use 10w instead of 30w bar oil you can save .020 oz. Drilling holes in the bar and handle lopped off 1.1oz. . I also sanded off the logo.
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Post by johntpenca on Jan 13, 2021 13:58:48 GMT -8
In the alpine west? No, never, ever. That is where my mentality comes from. In 45 years of camping and backpacking, never seen the need for a saw. As discussed on other threads, it is geographically/situationally dependent. For clearing downed trees for trail maintenance, looks like a nice saw.
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Post by High Sierra Fan on Jan 13, 2021 14:08:16 GMT -8
In the alpine west? No, never, ever. That is where my mentality comes from. In 45 years of camping and backpacking, never seen the need for a saw. As discussed on other threads, it is geographically/situationally dependent. For clearing downed trees for trail maintenance, looks like a nice saw. Yes our reactions get programmed from experience. My western alpine Sierra interests form the basis for my instinctive thoughts on fire. Like this recent post by Andrew Skurka introducing one of his new guides. For this flammable environment traveler who witnessed firsthand the RIm wildfire that burned Yosemite for a YEAR: yikes!www.facebook.com/andrewskurka/photos/a.279842312026905/3973455605998872/?type=3[/i]
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driftwoody
Trail Wise!
Take the path closer to the edge, especially if less traveled
Posts: 14,970
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Post by driftwoody on Jan 13, 2021 14:50:27 GMT -8
In the hands of a manly man, a big ass knife is all that's needed for any task against trees and other varmints.
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reuben
Trail Wise!
Gonna need more Camels at the next refugio...
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Post by reuben on Jan 13, 2021 15:21:20 GMT -8
In the hands of a manly man, a big ass knife is all that's needed for any task against trees and other varmints. Yeah, when you're 1/2 mile away from the road, life can get tough. What a thread that was.
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FamilySherpa
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Tangled up in Rhododendron
Posts: 1,791
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Post by FamilySherpa on Jan 14, 2021 5:29:29 GMT -8
Nice little video Magnus. I usually take a sven saw with me for clearing blowdowns. This one looks like something I might look to replace the sven saw with eventually, although it is 5oz heavier.
I've never had much luck with processing firewood while backpacking. Always seemed like it hadn't been dead long enough to properly dry out, or it had been dead and down so long it was just a rotten spongy mess. Nothing worse than a smoky campfire to stink up all your gear, smoke out the campsite, and let everyone within 5 miles know you are there burning stuff.
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ErnieW
Trail Wise!
I want to backpack
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Post by ErnieW on Jan 14, 2021 8:18:06 GMT -8
Actually way back when I would do fires, I found that a Sven saw and a hatchet to basically use as a splitting wedge was best for firewood. I would have to cut the off ground dead fall to the right length for it to work. A good piece of log as a wood mallet to drive the hatchet. For the good off ground dead fall the wood is dry in the core. If it is a straight grained wood it was possible to do thin splits, under a tarp in the pouring rain if need be, to get dry wood for the fire start.
Fires aren't very LNT. Throw in everything getting smoky and the chance of a bloody accident and it just no longer makes sense to me.
Edit: And the chance of starting a forest fire
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Post by bobcat on Jan 14, 2021 14:45:28 GMT -8
Sven saw and a hatchet are all I take on canoe trips in campfire-friendly areas (Boundary Waters). When backpacking and kayaking, where permitted, I gather dead and down wood no larger than what I can break up without tools. I have amazed myself with what I can break if I have two trees just the right distance apart to use for leverage! I’ve wished a time or two that I had the saw along for blowdown.
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Post by bradmacmt on Jan 14, 2021 18:19:26 GMT -8
Here in the “Alpine West” of Montana, we regularly build fires. Deadfall is abundant, and it’s rarely a problem to find (this isn’t the Sierra). A small saw, if you approach cutting intelligently, can tackle quite large pieces of wood. I carry an Opinel no.12 pruning saw. I’ve used all kinds of saws over the years (including the Sven), and for backpacking find the Opinel ideal. It has a 4.75” blade, is hell for stout and I prefer how its blade cuts over the old-school thin blades like those found on the Sven. While there are many places I wouldn't build a fire in the "Alpine West" (where it's not ethical, safe, practical or sustainable), there are many places where it's a perfectly acceptable and sustainable practice.
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Post by cweston on Jan 15, 2021 6:15:25 GMT -8
Yeah, the fire/no fire thing is so location dependent. I don't usually build fires, but at lower-elevation wooded camps, I do enjoy a fire when it's safe to do so and when I'm not too tired to fuss with it. (Especially if the mosquitos are bad.) I don't carry any saw, though: if it's too big for me to safely break mechanically, I just don't burn it. I'm generally pretty early to bed in the BC--I don't want a big raging fire anyway.
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