Gauteng Smallholder August 2015 | Page 48

PRUNING protrudes an oversized secateur blade mechanism. pruners are essentially small The lever-operated blade is chainsaws attached to an activated by pressing a trigger aluminium tubular shaft and mounted in a safety shield. driven by a brushcutter Power to the tool is supplied motor. The shaft may be of by a sturdy cord attached to a fixed length or it may be lithium-ion battery, housed in telescopic. New on the market from Stihl a comfortable low-profile back-pack, designed to be this season are batterysmooth so that is doesn't snag powered electric secateurs. The business end comprises a on branches while working. Also part of the kit is a cylindrical tool from which From page 47 microprocessor which gives an indication of the state of charge in the battery, and which additionally counts the number of cuts made in any particular time frame. This is especially useful when the device is being used in an extensive commercial application such as a vineyard, enabling the manager to accurately track the work-rate of his pruners. A full charge of the battery is said to last a worker an entire day. The cost? Excluding the battery, R25 080. With one's cutting tools assembled one will also need a sturdy step ladder, or even two ~ one shorter and one longer ~ to enable working at height. When working with saws safety goggles are necessary to prevent sawdust and wood chips from entering one's eyes and all the safety rules governing chainsaws apply in 48 www.sasmallholder.co.za full measure when using a chainsaw in a tree. Not the least is that one should never cut a branch that is higher than one's shoulders, for if one has a running chainsaw above one's head and the device should suffer a kickback the chances are very good of one being hit by a still-spinning chain (and saw) as the device falls to the ground. And being hit by a falling chainsaw is not a lifeprolonging event. Stihl’s battery-powered shears