Open, the Bigboy is 30" long. It cut through this 6" alder limb in 24 seconds. photographs and video by the author

Open, the Bigboy is 30" long. It cut through this 6" alder limb in just 24 seconds.

When I was living in a cabin I'd built in Washington State’s Cascade mountains, I was way off the grid and miles from the roadhead. I relied on my chainsaw to cut firewood for heat and to harvest vine maple as well as downed red and yellow cedar for some of my woodworking projects. On my coastal cruises I also gathered windfalls and driftwood and I carried a small folding Japanese pruning saw and a pocket chainsaw—both a far cry from my gas-powered chainsaw, but better than nothing. I’ve recently added a Silky Bigboy to my boating toolkit. It too is a Japanese pruning saw, but it is no more like the one I’ve been using than a piranha is to a guppy. Like all Japanese saws, it is designed to cut on the pull stroke while the blade is in tension, so the blade doesn’t need to be as thick as that cuts on the push stroke. The Bigboy's kerf is much narrower and consequently consumes less energy. The saw is available with medium or large teeth. The large teeth are suited for cutting green wood and are a good choice for arborists working with live trees. I got medium teeth, since wood I collect for firewood and woodworking is usually dry.
Folded, the saw is 16" long. A rubber grip covers a portion of the aluminum handle, with the rubber wrapping into the slot for the blade, protecting the teeth from wear.

Folded, the saw is 16" long. A rubber grip covers a portion of the aluminum handle, with the rubber wrapping into the slot for the blade, protecting the teeth from wear.

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