OPERATION
WARNING:
The warnings and instructions in this section of the operator's manual are for your safety and to prevent serious personal injury.
UNDERSTANDING YOUR CHAIN SAW SAFETY DEVICES
SAFE-T-TIP® ANTI-KICKBACK NOSE GUARD
See Figure 3.
The
SAFE-T-TIP®
Fig. 3
Users, such as professional loggers who need to draw the tip through the cut, make boring cuts, or cut logs bigger than the bar length, should reinstall the
Note: Refer to “Maintenance” later in this manual for instructions on reinstalling the
LOW KICKBACK SAW CHAIN
The rakers (depth gauges) ahead of each cutter can minimize the force of a kickback reaction by preventing the cutters from digging in too deeply at the kickback zone. Only use replacement chain that is equivalent to the original chain or has been certified as a low kickback chain.
As saw chains are sharpened, they lose some of the low kickback qualities and extra caution is required.
GUIDE BARS
Generally, guide bars with small radius tips have some- what lower kickback potentials.
When making a replacement, be sure to order one of the Homelite bars listed for your saw in this operator's manual. The proper size
CHAIN BRAKE
See Figures 4 and 5.
Chain brakes are designed to quickly stop the chain from rotating. When the chain brake lever/hand guard is
pushed toward the bar, the chain should stop immedi- ately. A chain brake does not prevent kickback. The chain brake should be cleaned and tested before each use. Refer to “Operation- Operating the Chain Brake” later in this manual for additional information.
WARNING:
Even with daily cleaning of the mechanism, the dependability of a chain brake to perform under field conditions cannot be certified. Keep the
RUN POSITION
Fig. 4
BRAKE
POSITION
Fig. 5
WARNING:
KICKBACK occurs when the moving chain contacts an object at the upper portion of the tip of the guide bar or when the wood closes in and pinches the saw chain in the cut. Contact at the upper portion of the tip of the guide bar can cause the chain to dig into the object and stop the chain for an instant. The result is a lightning fast, reverse reaction which kicks the guide bar up and back toward the operator. If the saw chain is pinched along the top of the guide bar, the guide bar can be driven rapidly back toward the operator. Either of these reactions can cause loss of saw control which can result in serious injury.
Do not rely exclusively upon the safety devices built into your saw. As a chain saw user, you should take several steps to keep your cutting jobs free from accident or injury.
Page 9