Dale's cordless electric , long reach pole saw. Another awesome tool.

This Stihl pole saw is very quick and powerful. It uses the same battery and charger as the long reach hedge cutter. It greatly reduces ladder usage. When I cut big hedges I can do horizontal cuts up to 12 ft from my torso.

It nearly killed my left arm, before I got the restraint belt.

It makes about as much noise as a cordless drill.

More tomorrow.

So much for the idea of posting the next day. I got very busy using my tools instead.

 There was no safe place to drop this holly tree. I used the pole saw to knock all of the branches off and then I topped the tree where it's about seven inches thick. After every 10 branches or so, I switched to the regular chainsaw to chop up some firewood.

 This house is being lifted and moved. I used the pole saw from the ground,  from the ladder, and from the peak of the roof.

This big house has a very overgrown plum tree which was overhanging the roof and allowing rats, squirrels and raccoons to access the roof.

 There are many different rooflines. I was able to pass the saw from one to another,  without taking it to the ladder.

 Plum wood is quite heavy.  There were some pieces up to 6 inches thick. I dropped them 32 inches at a time. One cut on the ground and they make firewood.

 I build a bounce pad 2 ft thick, of small wispy branches, so that the large material was able to land on a big mattress on the lower roof. No harm was done. I brought down about 600 lb of material.

Have you thought of buying a smaller and lighter battery for difficult jobs ?

David

If one is available, I may get it. The restraint belt is useful in some situations. The weight is fine on vertical reaching. Long horizontal reaches, at full extension, are challenging. Battery weight, is held close to the body, most of the time.

For safety reasons, I didn't use the harness on the tall house. I've gotten pretty good at getting the saw to the desired location quickly, so that the weight can rest on the branch. After the cut, I'm usually able to steer and let the saw fall to a lower cutting position.

Binding can be a big problem. If the cut gets pinched, at full extension, removal of the saw would require another long reach tool. It's happened to me several times as I worked from the ground. I removed the battery, so as to put less stress on the bar. A ladder and regular chainsaw was used to release it. On really high stuff, like the plum, I start at the branch tips, relieving weight as I go. A bind at this height, would require a bucket truck or some dangerous climbing. I'm going to always plan these cuts carefully.

This row of 15 trees,  has about 45 tops. They are too skinny to climb and much too tall for the ladder. The pole saw has been invaluable in getting to the more difficult pieces. 

 I've found that the most effective method is to set the ladder at full extension. Then I climb up branch knubs until I reach a crows nest sort of location,  where I can brace myself and reach horizontally,  to branches and trunks that need to be cut.

I use the saw pretty regularly. It is very useful when topping large hedges.

This hedge used to be much taller. It was cut down a few years ago and now the old tops create a platform for maintenance work. Unfortunately they average more than 5 feet apart, so I had to climb to each new cutting position.

When cops are closer together, I sometimes carry it like a tightrope walker carries his balancing stick.

When I'm cutting from a ladder, I often use a V-shaped trunk, to hold the saw, so that I can reach distant branches. It works much like those support tools used by snooker and pool players to support the cue when reaching across the table.