![]() ![]() In the beginning the idea was to make heavy forestry work lighter using a machine. The latter is the largest and oldest chain saw producer in the world. Three names should be mentioned: Wolf (USA), Westfelt (Sweden) and Stihl (Germany). It was not until the 1920’s that someone invented a proper chainsaw. The same happened to machines which were powered by steam engines fuelled with the resulting wood waste. Most of these inventions were however very heavy, unwieldy and never really progressed beyond the prototype stage. In the middle of the 19 th Century there were also forward looking individuals who built mechanical saws, which could be taken into the forests (e.g. However for the lumberjacks they brought mainly disadvantages. The saw brought not only an increased yield in timber but also many other advantages for forestry owners. This led to timber thefts using a saw being punished harder than those using an axe.Īlthough the saw was already known in antiquity (Egypt, Rome), it was only widely put into use in the forest in central Europe towards the middle of the 18 th Century. Timber thieves however preferred the saw because in comparison to the axe it was a quieter tool to work with. ![]() ![]() Employers then provided the saws, which meant that lumberjacks sank from being self employed artisans to wage workers. On top of this saws were about six times more expensive than axes. This was because kneeling down was against the body motoric of lumberjacks at that time. This decree like many others was ignored. On the other hand in 1752 Empress Maria Theresa decreed that trees should no longer be felled " in the old way with the chopper, but with the saw near to the roots", so as, on the one hand to have less wastage of timber and on the other a better fertilisation (saw dust decomposes quicker than wood shavings). To some extent the saw was unknown and in certain places the felling of trees using a saw was forbidden. This inferior role of the saw remained for a long time. At this time there was still a division of work between the axe and the saw: the felling and debranching was carried out using an axe, and the cutting to length was done using a saw. Up until now the tools had worked either by pushing (Europe) or by pulling (Asia).Īround 1800 the first circular and band saws were produced in England. He sketched – as far as is known – the first saw teeth which worked both by pulling and pushing. Around 1500 Leonardo da Vinci also spent some time on saws. On the other hand, saw mills, which cut trunks into planks, had already been around for some time in the forest. Up until the 16 th Century there is no proof, that hand saws were used in forestry work. From this time on they were used by artisans but not by lumberjacks. There is no information on other uses of the saw up until the 8 th Century A.C. However, they were used less in the forests and more by artisans, doctors and surgeons. iron replaced bronze as a working material but saws remained out of bronze for many centuries. After the discovery of copper this was used, in the form of bronze, to produce axes and saws (with axes not only could trees be felled, but also adversaries). Whether these saws were used for working on wood is not known. They nicked small teeth into half moon shaped flints. It remained one of the most important and widely used tools for felling trees right into the 19 th Century.Īround 5000 B.C. Its use reaches so far back in human history that it’s form in stone, copper, bronze and iron reflects the different forms of culture. The axe has the oldest tradition of all wood cutting tools used by humans. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |