Homelite XL-12 for son-in-law

[Fritz Campbell]

I just redid my dad"s Homelite XL-12 that my Granddaddy T.R. Goodson (my cousin is Bobby Goodson from Swamp Loggers fame) gave to my dad new back in 1969. It is a nice little saw with the manual oiler and all and I was planning on loaning it to my sil (who I actually like very much thank god) just to have one around their new house set nicely in the woods. All was well until my brother who is a local coop lineman (well trained in chainsaw tactics) flipped out on me and told me how dangerous those old saws are because of kickback and no chain break. He said they have watched training films using just that saw and they are a killer even for someone with experience. My sil has been around chainsaws since he was a kid and I"ve let him run my Stihl 028 with me and he can sure run one - but now I"m afraid that he will hurt himself with it and I would never forgive myself. Like any big, tough kid - he is more than game to try it and isn"t worried about kick backs with it. I have the low kickback chain on it and was thinking about going to the double guard bar with the anti-kick back tip to lessen the chances of serious injury. I"m also getting him a Stihl helmet with face shield before he takes it home. What do you guys think would be better - all the above or just getting him a small MS Stihl saw and putting the old XL-12 on the shelf and calling it even? Much obliged.

 

[JDemaris]

A person can kill themselves with any chain saw - safety features or not.

What your friend claims about the XL-12 is pure nonsense. I first went to work as a tree-climber with a blue Homelite XL-1010 and blue XL-12 and some bigger old Homelites as ground-saws C9, XP-1000, 5-30, XL-922, etc). I did a lot of cutting with thoses saws, and that began over 40 years ago. I'm not dead and I still have all my fingers, eyeballs, etc. My old Stihl O56 Magnum runs much faster chain speed then any XL-12 ever dreamed of - and it has no brake or safety chain.

I still cut a lot of wood and half my saws don't have chain-brakes. On top of that, I never use anti-kickback "safety" chain. I hate it and it's a pain to sharpen. And, if I had any bars with "saftey tips", those tips came off. I just got two new Deere/Efco saws that had them. Impossible to make a plunge-cut with a tip on the end. Can an old saw be dangerous ?? Sure. What isn't. An agressive chain with flattened rakers can jump back and cut your throat if you get negligent.

A chain-saw is a dangerous tool and needs to be used by someone that knows how AND has some innate skills built-in. I do not believe anyone can be taught to use one safely. Chain-saw safety depends on the person using it, not unlike a gun or driving a car. And, all the saftey-features in the world won't save a person who is clueless.

Who you let use your saw is up to you, since you know the person better then anyonre on these forums (assume). I've got one kid I'd let use any of my saws with no worry. And, I've got two more I wouldn't trust with sling-shots.

 

[whizkidkyus]

Fritz Campbell,

Actually , all saws can be dangerous ,even todays saws, with all the new safety features. They can still kick back. Those films just dramatize what can happen if the saw isn't used right . Like I said , though, any saw can be dangerous and new saws can kick back . Nothing can prevent that. The safety features just help to control / stop it. The older saws ,as well as new ones ,if used by a responsible person can be relatively safe . A lot of saw accidents happen because of neglent unexperienced operators . Actually ,I just found a red Homelite XL-12 chainsaw with a app. 16" bar on it in our local metal recyling yard , brought it home , fixed it and sold it .

Whizkid

 

[PJH]

Fritz, I wore out a red XL-12. I think it was new in 1976. Never once got hurt with it. Never had a safety chain - never had a tip guard. Gave it to my son the mechanic, he put some new parts in it and is still using it.

A thought - would you be heartbroken if your SIL didn't treat your dad's old XL-12 with the respect that it is due? It might be better sitting on display, just for good family harmony.

Another thought - if someone was going to give me a chain saw, I'd ruther it be a new Stihl than an XL-12.

Jdemaris made a good point about some folks being OK around saws and some not. If your SIL is one of the "nots", I wouldn't get the new Stihl for him either.

It's nice of you to want to help your SIL. You remind me of my good old FIL who's been gone for several years now.

Paul

 

[Kansas4010]

I've used my dads old Homelite xl 12 and it's a good saw. Used properly it's as safe as any saw. But if anything should happen with him using a saw he's not used to would you want to live with yourself. Accidents can happen to even experienced people. You said he wanted a saw just to have one around the house which makes it sound like he won't be using it to often. Instead of an overpriced Stihl why not look at a little cheaper one. It will have all the safety features and give some piece of mind.

 

[Traditional Farmer]

I own about a dozen of those saws one of the safest saws to run I know of, all the safety features on these new saws don't make them any safer in my opinion.Any saw obviously has the potential to kill or maim its all comes down to the operator.

 

[Fritz Campbell]

Thanks to all for some very sound, common sense replies. I know he will respect the saw, keep it in the family - but I'm going to work with him on how to use it before he takes it on his own. He has the basics, but he needs to learn respect for what they can do in a split second. My dad taught me and I will teach him. Thanks again.

 

[Anonymous-0]

Gave my SIL a Mac PM160 and shuddered when I watched him use it. That was 5 years ago and he hasn't taken care of it so it will no longer start, thank goodness.

 

[JDemaris]

I don't want to pick on the quality of an XL-12, but it's not particularly powerful and and does not have a very fast chain speed. A beater Poulan or Craftsman 3.3 c.i. that you might get for $25 in a yard sale can be much more dangerous with an agressive and fast chain and flattened rakers.

When our crew used nothing but Homelites (late 1960s), Stihl and Sachs came around. We were all anti-foreign saws and also very reluctant to use a saw with the new-fangled "automatic oiler." But, after using a few Stihl 040s, 041s, 051s, and 075a - we were all done with Homelite. The Stihl saws cut better - but started MUCH better, cold and hot. With the Homelites - you hated to shut one down hot - becuase chances are it wouldn't start again until it cooled off. Also, when climbing - Homelites were constantly stalling. That's can be a pain when your hanging up in the air.

Don't get me wrong. I was a Homelite mechanic back in the days when Homelite cared about making pro-saws. But, those days are long gone - and by the time the red XL-12s came out, quality was going down hill. The older blue saws were a bit better, and the even older 1950s red and blue saws better yet - as far as build-quality goes.

 

[Russ from MN]

Get him some hearing protection, and give him some basic safety training, and he will be good to go. I remember when there were a lot of XL's in use and the only thing they ever harmed was your hearing! If a person is a careless idiot he will get hurt using any power tool and it will be the manufacturers fault. Your sil sounds ok so good luck!

 

[fixerupper]

My brother-in-law cut part of his nose off with a modern saw with anti-kickback. If a chain saw was made completely idiot proof it wouldn't run and it wouldn't have a bar and chain on it. Jim

 

[Fritz Campbell]

Once again a big thank you to everyone - some pretty good advice and counsel from guys who have been there and done it which is always the best teacher.
My sil and daughter were home over this holiday weekend. My sil is the type who will come find me to see what I"m doing instead of sitting there watching tv and drinking my beer. He found me out in the pole barn checking things over and we got to talking about the XL-12. I told him my worries, he understood what I was saying. After this talk - we headed for the woods where a couple nice firewood trees were already down. I made him wear ear plugs and my Stihl helmet and gloves. I walked him through the right gas mixture, how to touch up a chain in the woods, chain tightness and how often to pump the manual oiler, etc. It takes 4 or 5 pulls to get it going and once warmed up, I rev"ed it up and show him how any saw will kick back when you stick the bar tip into a log. We practiced on poking at an old stump so he could get the feel of what a kick back felt like before he experienced on his own. I warned him about cutting into a "Y" and always watching the tip of the bar so it didn"t contact something else while he was cutting. With all that said - I turned him loose on those little trees and let him have at it. That little XL-12 worked as I remembered it from a kid and he was tickled pink with it. If anything he over oiled it - but I was happy with how he ran it and handled it. He is a big kid and at over 6" he won"t like bending over all the time, but he got a pretty good taste of it. We got back to the house and I showed him how to clean it, refill the fuel and touch up the chain for the next time. He knows darn straight that I"ll be looking it over when I get to his house for a visit - so he will keep it nice or else I"ll bring him an old buck saw to use on my next visit LOL.

Other than what I have already done - I can get back up on that stump and preach some more to him, but I think he is on his own now. Maybe I worry too much - but if an accident was to happen, I know that I didn"t just throw it at him and let him have at it. Sorry for this long repost but I do appreciate the help and advice. God bless.