Poulan PP5020 Owner Manual - Page 5

S Stand slightly to the left side of the saw to keep your body from being in a direct line with the cutting chain. S Do not overreach. You could be drawn or thrown off balance and lose control of the saw. S Do not cut above shoulder height. It is difficult to maintain control of saw above shoulder height. KICKBACK SAFETY FEATURES WARNING: The following features are included on your saw to help reduce the hazard of kickback; however, such features will not totally eliminate this danger. As a chain saw user, do not rely only on safety devices. You must follow all safety precautions, instructions, and maintenance in this manual to help avoid kickback and other forces which can result in serious injury. S Reduced--Kickback Guide Bar, designed with a small radius tip which reduces the size of the kickback danger zone on the bar tip. A Reduced--Kickback Guide Bar has been demonstrated to significantly reduce the number and seriousness of kickbacks when tested in accordance with safety requirements for gasoline powered chain saws as set by ANSI B175.1. Reduced Kickback Symmetrical Guide Bar Small Radius Tip Symmetrical Guide Bar Large Radius Tip S Low--Kickback Chain, designed with a contoured depth gauge and guard link which deflect kickback force and allow wood to gradually ride into the cutter. Low--Kickback Chain has met kickback performance requirements when tested on a representative sample of chain saws below 3.8 cubic inch displacement specified in ANSI B175.1. Contoured Depth Gauge Elongated Guard Link Low--Kickback Chain Deflects kickback force and allows wood to gradually ride into cutter CHAIN BRAKE AND CKA ANGLE S Chain Brake, designed to stop the chain in the event of kickback. WARNING: WE DO NOT REP- RESENT AND YOU SHOULD NOT ASSUME THAT THE CHAIN BRAKE WILL PROTECT YOU IN THE EVENT OF A KICKBACK. Kickback is a lightning fast action which throws the bar and rotating chain back and up toward the operator. Kickback can be caused by allowing contact of the bar tip in the danger zone with any hard object. Kickback can also be caused by pinching the saw chain along the top of the guide bar. This action may push the guide bar rapidly back toward the operator. Either of these events may cause you to lose control of the saw which could result in serious injury or even death. DO NOT RELY UPON ANY OF THE DEVICES BUILT INTO YOUR SAW. YOU SHOULD USE THE SAW PROPERLY AND CAREFULLY TO AVOID KICKBACK. Reduced--kickback guide bars and low--kickback saw chains reduce the chance and magnitude of kickback and are recommended. Your saw has a low kickback chain and bar as original equipment. Repairs on a chain brake should be made by an authorized servicing dealer. Take your unit to the place of purchase if purchased from a servicing dealer, or to the nearest authorized master service dealer. S Tip contact in some cases may cause a lightning fast reverse REACTION, kicking guide bar up and back toward operator. S Pinching the saw chain along the top of the guide bar may push the guide bar rapidly back toward the operator. S Either of these reactions may cause you to lose control of the saw which could result in serious injury. Do not rely exclusively upon devices built into your saw. WARNING: Computed kickback angle (CKA) listed on your saw and listed in the CKA table below represents angle of kickback your bar and chain combinations will have when tested in accordance with CSA (Canadian Standards Association) and ANSI standards. When purchasing replacement bar and chain, considerations should be given to the lower CKA values. Lower CKA values represent safer angles to the user, higher values indicate more angle and higher kick energies. Computed angles represented indicate total energy and angle associated without activation of the chain brake during kickback. Activated angle represents chain stopping time relative to activation angle of chain break and resulting kick angle of saw. In all cases lower CKA values represent a safer operating environment for the user. Can Obstruct Material Not a Low--Kickback Chain S Front Hand Guard, designed to reduce the chance of your left hand contacting the chain if your hand slips off the front handlebar. S Position of front and rear handlebars, designed with distance between handles and "in-line" with each other. The spread and "in-line" position of the hands provided by this design work together to give balance and resistance in controlling the pivot of the saw back toward the operator if kickback occurs. 5