About to buy a sawzall for cutting large yamadori roots, hoping for reco's on what TPI blades to get

[SU2]

I use the Dewalt 20v. It’s great. Two pieces of advice:

1. Listen to Zach and buy the 12” pruning blades.
2. You’ll need a lot of extra batteries. The ones the Dewalt comes with in the box are 1.5 Ah and don’t last nearly long enough. But you can buy premium 5Ah batteries that have some staying power. They’re expensive, but absolutely worth it. I go in the field with two of the 5Ah and four of the 1.5 Ah batteries. Nothing stinks more than hauling all your tools and equipment into the field and having your sawzall battery die on the first tree.

Scott

Thanks for the advice!!

Re pruning blades, I'll definitely get some I mean if I were in a position where I was collecting a tree today I'd never try w/ 6" blades I'd just borrow the sawzall I always do (w/ 11" blade and twice the amperage! I'd said 9" earlier but was wrong, it's got an 11"), I'm going to go for the root-pruning / trunk styling session on an already-collected bougie with these 6"'s but definitely wouldn't waste time attempting a collection that way!

Re batteries, this is a corded model - I've been lucky enough that most of the trees I've collected thus far have been from yards, so I can run a line for the sawzall, and the few that weren't I just used saws/hatchet and the torque of long-branches (like, leaving the trunk(s) larger than wanted so you can use them for leverage to twist it, then cut them once it's out-of-ground!), and I certainly see the utility of a battery-powered unit for truly-wild trees but, unfortunately and hopefully not for that long, I'm currently unable to go 'wild tree hunting', I've yet to find what trees to go for (ie what trees can handle drastic trunk-chopping at the time of collection), with it being fall now I'm sure my collection-rate isn't going to be what it was, gives me time to figure out what species I can attempt such extreme collections on with some realistic degree of success (for instance, I've never had luck with an Oak, and I've had ones that I was sure they'd had enough roots / foliage to make it, they always die.. I recently went to my first meeting/workshop, and was told that now is actually a good time to collect Oaks in my area, as at the end of the rainy-season they've got the largest fine-root-mass under their trunks than other times of the year, so will likely try another Oak or two before resorting to 2-stepping it ie trenching it one time, collecting another - one way or another I'm getting an Oak, there's no 2 ways about it!!)

 

[M. Frary]

I still carry my Fanno hand saw when I go collecting. Sometimes in certain situations works better.
It's a good idea to use the reciprocating saw with both hands.
With the hand saw you can cut with one hand. Like when you need to hang onto the tree in order to make a cut,like when reducing large roots after you've collected something and decide afterwards you need to cut more large roots off.
When it's out of the pot and laying there bareroot in front of you.
Anymore when I collect anything but conifers I cut the big roots way back then and there.
I'm talking deciduous species that take drastic root reduction in stride at one time.

 

[discusmike]

Large offset tooth pruning blades seem to work the best for me

 

[sorce]

row of mexican sunflowers to act as a wind-block

Careful... mine got fungus real bad, where other stuff very close did not.

Yes on the gaurd....ish....you get it.

Sorce

 

[SU2]

Careful... mine got fungus real bad, where other stuff very close did not.

Yes on the gaurd....ish....you get it.

Sorce

What kind of fungus? How did it start? Want to keep an eye out for it, I can't say I pay as much attn to that hedge as I should!!

 

[Bonsai Nut]

You didn't really say... but your photo showed a corded saw. You clearly want a cordless one Excuse me if this is patently obvious

Longer is better. Lower TPI is better for rough work. It will cut faster... but leave a rougher edge. For yamadori work, when you are going to take the tree home and clean it up before potting it, rough cuts are fine.

 

[M. Frary]

I used a chainsaw to cut my best hawthorn out of the ground.
It was in clay soil and it just gummed up other saws.

 

[michaelj]

I generally prefer to use demolition blades. 10-12" They seem to last longer. That said, I always want two saws and four batteries and at least 3 extra blades per saw when we go digging.

 

[SU2]

You didn't really say... but your photo showed a corded saw. You clearly want a cordless one Excuse me if this is patently obvious

Longer is better. Lower TPI is better for rough work. It will cut faster... but leave a rougher edge. For yamadori work, when you are going to take the tree home and clean it up before potting it, rough cuts are fine.

Yeah I've always gotten yamadori within range of an outlet! Have never used my new sawzall for collection (only used it to carve-out a large trunk before using the angle-grinder/die-grinder, to save some grinding time!), unfortunately I've yet to find what 'nature' trees I can go out and collect, everything 'natural' growing in the woods I kill when trying to collect :/ Bougies & crepes are my go-to's and they're typically within 100' of an outlet!