High Limb Brand CS-48 Rope-and-Chain Saw

You’re not considering this product because you have a branch 10 ft off of the ground. You want this because you have a branch 30+ ft off the ground and the tree companies quoted you hundreds or thousands of dollars because they know you can’t cut it down. NO MORE! I used this to trim branches 40 – 50 ft off the ground. You won’t be able to throw the bean bag very far and I bought thisTrumark Slingshots Folding Slingshot from Amazon. I then attached fishing line to a heavy metal washer. There were some frustrating tangled line moments, but the accuracy and distance were far superior to throwing the washer. Fishing line is great because it is light enough for the washer to be able to pull it through the tree. If you use a string that is too heavy the washer will just sit in the tree once over the branch. Once the washer comes to the ground you can tie it to the end of the chain that DOES NOT have the metal weight. If you pull that end up first you will have problems. At this point you will also very likely be tying another rope to the factory rope. I bought two 100 ft ropes from the hardware store.This device works best on thin branches and I recommend for your first few cuts to try it on thin branches. They are easier and lighter (won’t hit the ground as hard). Also, heavy branches will tear backward and if you cut an extremely heavy branch it could tear into the trunk. Once you get most of the way through the branch you will hear a crack and it will hinge on the cut. If you go slow the branch should hang straight down and then drop. It actually allows for fairly precise drops. Once the branch is down, move it aside and start again. Other reviewers noted and I will attest, you must soak the chain in oil. Do this before every cut. I would soak and blot the chain semi-dry before each cut. You should be careful to not drip the bar oil on your grass unless you want your grass to die.Head injuries are very common in tree trimming. I bought this helmetPyramex HP44160V Ridgeline Cap Style Hard Hat with 4-Point Vented Ratchet, Blue (safety first!). The washer falling from the sky actually caused more grief than falling branches, but either way you should protect your head.I would also recommend you watch several YouTube videos on how to use the chainsaw rope as well as several “Chainsaw Fail” videos. They are both useful for helping you know what to do and what not to do.Overall I’m very happy with my purchase. It saved me nearly $1000 (and it was fun). There is a learning curve on how to use this, but once you get the hang of it you will be dropping branches like a pro.Good luck and stay safe!

This is an awesome product if you have high limbs you need to cut down. As many have mentioned, there are pros and cons. To me the pros outweigh the cons.The pros are that when it works, it is fast, easy, does what it claims, and of course gives you access to high limbs that would otherwise require a tree service and hundreds of dollars in fees.The cons are that it does sometimes get stuck in the limb, and needs to jerked out, and some limbs are not so easy to cut. But keep in mind, if you ever tried to hand saw limbs you know that some are dry and easy to cut whereas some are wet (green) and much harder to cut. Basically, if you are cutting a green limb it will be hard, so I learned to quickly try to find an alternative limb or spot to cut that might be easier.As long as you go into the cutting process knowing some branches will be easy and some will be hard, you will not have surprises. But in the end, it works!UPDATE: A few months have passed since I wrote the initial review. I have used the rope saw a half dozen more times. I still love it, but am still frustrated by it at times. The weighted sand bag tore, and I had to refill it with sand and sew it up. And I did have a couple of moments that the rope got stuck in the cut and I thought I would not be able to get it out. But with persistence I prevailed. In fact, I cut down some limbs that were so big I needed to use a hand saw to cut them into smaller pieces to remove them from my property. In summary, for me it was well worth buying. I am very happy with it. When I look at the trees I have trimmed I feel a sense of satisfaction.

Knock me over with a feather, this thing works as advertised. I went through a 2" oak limb in about the time it takes to tell. A 4" limb obviously took longer, but none of it was any major effort.MAIN THING: Don't stand under the limb you're cutting. Right under the limb is actually the natural place to stand, so this warning is not a joke. Never mind how I know.GOOD:It's not nearly as hard as I thought it would be.Cuts on both strokes (teeth face both ways), which keeps things moving along.48" is about the right length. With a shorter chain you might not be able to get a full stroke. Depends on how long your arms are, of course.The cut is fairly smooth, but still it's an aggressive cut. Good, because a wide kerf makes binding less likely. Binding happens when the limb sags, or twists, and squeezes the blade, so stand to the side (as opposed to right under the limb) as little as possible--but be safe!The nylon hand straps provided are nice, but I think handles made from, say, a couple of 10" lengths of PVC pipe are a better way to go. DO NOT wrap the line around your hands. Be ready to jump. That limb is bigger than you thought.BAD: Nothing bad about it. It works as advertised, what could be bad? I do kinda-sorta think the teeth could be sharper, maybe.REALTY CHECK - 3 Checks:#1. Trying to cut fast tends to make the teeth skate over the wood instead of digging in and cutting. A moderate, steady pace is the way to go.#2. Getting the teeth facing the limb is just going to be something of a hassle, and there it is. Importantly, once the blade is curved it cannot turn over, so have the blade pretty straight while you mess with getting it aligned.Over in the plumbing department, 10' PVC pipe in the 1-inch size (white) goes for a few dollars per piece. I think some stiff wire wrapped around one end of the pipe might make a good chain flipper. I'm going to try that when I get to some higher limbs.#3. Not with small limbs--say 2 inches--but with larger limbs blade binding is not unlikely, just because the limb twists as it starts to come free.About the only "solution" to this is the happy fact that by the time binding occurs (if it does), the limb is about ready to come. Walking the end of the limb back and forth is likely to break it free. Of course this assumes that you can reach the end of the limb, or can tie a rope to it.In sum, none of this is terribly hard, but none of it is dead-easy. Small limbs fine, you can zip right through them and do it all day. But you should expect larger limbs to be a greater or lesser pain, and make you work a bit.EDIT: When I wrote this review I didn't notice that the price had gone up to nearly 50 dollars (I paid about 30). I question whether this is a fair price.Others on Amazon sell a 4-foot, bi-directional chain blade for 20-30 dollars. What you don't get with these is pull ropes for cutting higher limbs, and a small sandbag for throwing over high limbs to get the pull ropes up there.I'm not sure 20 dollars is a fair price for some rope and a small sandbag. But then, lacking these you have to figure out something on your own, so I guess value is, as always, in the eye of the buyer..