Kickback Safety Features

WARNING: The following features are included on your saw to help reduce the hazard of kickback; however, such features will not totally eliminate this danger. As a chain saw user, do not rely only on safety de- vices. You must follow all safety precau- tions, instructions, and maintenance in this manual to help avoid kickback and other forces which can result in serious injury.

SReduced--Kickback Guide Bar, designed with a small radius tip which reduces the size of the kickback danger zone on the bar tip. A Reduced--Kickback Guide Bar has been demonstrated to significantly re- duce the number and seriousness of kick- backs when tested in accordance with safety requirements for gasoline powered chain saws as set by ANSI B175.1.

Reduced Kickback Symmetrical Guide Bar

Small Radius Tip

Symmetrical Guide Bar

Large Radius Tip

S Low--Kickback Chain, designed with a contoured depth gauge and guard link which deflect kickback force and allow wood to gradually ride into the cutter. Low-- Kickback Chain has met kickback per- formance requirements when tested on a representative sample of chain saws be- low 3.8 cubic inch displacement specified in ANSI B175.1.

Contoured Depth Gauge

Elongated Guard Link

		Deflects
		kickback force
	Low--- Kickback	and allows wood
	Low--- Kickback	to gradually ride
	Chain	to gradually ride
	Chain	into cutter
		into cutter
		Can Obstruct Material

Not a Low--- Kickback Chain

SFront Hand Guard, designed to reduce the

chance of your left hand contacting the chain if your hand slips off the front handlebar.

SPosition of front and rear handlebars, de- signed with distance between handles and “in-line” with each other. The spread and “in-line” position of the hands provided by this design work together to give balance and resistance in controlling the pivot of the saw back toward the operator if kick- back occurs.

CHAIN BRAKE AND CKA ANGLE

SChain Brake, designed to stop the chain in the event of kickback.

WARNING: WE DO NOT REP- RESENT AND YOU SHOULD NOT AS- SUME THAT THE CHAIN BRAKE WILL PROTECT YOU IN THE EVENT OF A KICKBACK. Kickback is a lightning fast ac- tion which throws the bar and rotating chain back and up toward 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 control of the saw which could result in serious injury or even death. DO NOT RELY UPON ANY OF THE DEVICES BUILT INTO YOUR SAW. YOU SHOULD USE THE SAW PROPERLY AND CAREFULLY TO AVOID KICKBACK. Re- duced--kickback guide bars and low--kick- back saw chains reduce the chance and magnitude of kickback and are recom- mended. Your saw has a low kickback chain and bar as original equipment. Repairs on a chain brake should be made by an autho- rized servicing dealer. Take your unit to the place of purchase if purchased from a ser- vicing dealer, or to the nearest authorized master service dealer.

STip contact in some cases may cause a lightning fast reverse REACTION, kicking the guide bar up and back toward the oper- ator.

SPinching the saw chain along the top of the guide bar may push the guide bar rapidly back toward the operator.

SEither of these reactions may cause you to lose control of the saw which could result in serious injury.Do not rely exclusively upon the safety devices built into your saw.

WARNING: Computed kickback angle (CKA) listed on your saw and listed in the CKA table below represents angle of kickback your bar and chain combinations will have when tested in accordance with CSA (Canadian Standards Association) and ANSI standards. When purchasing replace- ment bar and chain, considerations should be given to the lower CKA values. Lower CKA values represent safer angles to the user, higher values indicate more angle and higher kick energies. Computed angles rep- resented in the non-activated column indi- cate total energy and angle associated with- out activation of the chain brake during kickback. Activated angle represents chain stopping time relative to activation angle of chain brake and resulting kick angle of saw. In all cases lower CKA values represent a safer operating environment for the user.

The following guide bar and chain combina- tions meet kickback requirements of CSA Z62.1, Z62.3, & ANSI B175.1 when used on saws listed in this manual. Use of bar and chain combinations other than those listed is not recommended and may not meet the CKA requirements per standard.