5
MAINTAIN CONTROL
The following precautions should be fol-
lowed to minimize kickback.
Stand to the left of the saw
Thumb on
underside
of handlebar
Never reverse
hand positions
Elbow
locked
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A good, firm grip on the saw with both
hands will help you maintain control.
Don’t let go. Grip the rear handle with
your right hand whether you are right or
left handed. Wrap the fingers of your left
hand over and around the front handle-
bar, and your left thumb under the front
handlebar. Keep your left arm straight
with the elbow locked.
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Position your left hand on the front han-
dlebar so it is in a straight line with your
right hand on the rear handle when
making bucking cuts. Stand slightly to
the left side of the saw to keep your
body from being in a direct line with the
cutting chain.
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Stand with your weight evenly balanced
on both feet.
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Do not overreach. You could be drawn
or thrown off balance and lose control.
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Do not cut above shoulder height. It is
difficult to maintain control of saw above
shoulder height.
KICKBACK SAFETY FEATURES
WARNING:
The following features
are included on your saw to help reduce
hazard of kickback; however, such fea-
tures will not totally eliminate this dan-
ger. Do not rely only on safety devices.
Follow all safety rules to help avoid kick-
back and other forces which can result
in serious injury.
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Hand Guard: designed to reduce the
chance of your left hand contacting the
chain if your hand slips off the front han-
dlebar.
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Position of front and rear handlebars:
designed with distance between han-
dles and “in-line” with each other. The
spread and “in-line” position of the
hands provided by this design work to-
gether to give balance and resistance in
controlling the pivot of the saw back to-
ward the operator if kickback occurs.
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Reduced-Kickback Guide Bar: de-
signed with a small radius tip which re-
duces the size of the kickback danger
zone. This type bar has been demon-
strated to significantly reduce the num-
ber and seriousness of kickbacks when
tested in accordance with ANSI B175.1.
Large Radius
Tip Guide Bar
Small Radius
Tip Guide Bar
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Low Kickback Chain has met kickback
performance requirements when tested
on the representative sample of these
chain saws specified in ANSI B175.1.
Low Kickback Chain
Contoured Depth Gauge
Elongated Guard Link
Deflects Kickback Force
And Allows Wood To
Gradually Ride Into Cutter
CHAIN BRAKE AND CKA ANGLE
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Chain Brake:
designed to stop the
chain in the event of kickback.
WARNING:
WE DO NOT REP-
RESENT AND YOU SHOULD NOT ASSUME
THAT THE CHAIN BRAKE WILL PROTECT
YOU IN THE EVENT OF A KICKBACK.
Kick-
back is a lightning fast action which throws
the bar and rotating chain back and up to-
ward the operator.
Kickback can be
caused by allowing contact of the bar tip in
the danger zone with any hard object.
Kickback can also be caused by pinching
the saw chain along the top of the guide
bar. This action may push the guide bar
rapidly back toward the operator. Either of
these events may cause you to lose con-
trol of the saw which could result in serious
injury or even death.
DO NOT RELY UPON
ANY OF THE SAFETY DEVICES BUILT INTO
YOUR SAW. YOU SHOULD USE THE SAW
PROPERLY AND CAREFULLY TO AVOID
KICKBACK.
Reduced--kickback guide
bars and low--kickback saw chains re-
duce the chance and magnitude of kick-
back and are recommended. Your saw
has a low kickback chain and bar as origi-
nal equipment. Repairs on a chain brake
