Finnish ice saw with his own hands

About the assembly

Most fishermen equip their homemade saws with tarp loops. For this, a hole is drilled at the end of the handle and a rope is inserted into the hole. The risk of such a paddle slipping out of one’s hands and drowning in the ice hole is minimized.

How to Make an Ice Hole Saw

Winters have been pretty rough lately. Severe frosts connect bodies of water with a thick layer of ice. This causes an increased demand for ice saws.

Who gets these saws:

Ice saws are actively used by fishermen to set nets under the ice.

Athletes (divers, scuba divers) and those who want to relax with ice sticks, cut through the ice and diving and swimming lanes.

What kinds of saws can be used to cut holes in ice

  • Finnish hand saw. It is a saw blade that is mounted on a wooden handle. Its main advantage. ease. It can cut ice up to one meter thick. The cutting speed of such a saw is faster than that of a hand saw for wood or metal, but, of course, less than that of a chainsaw.
  • Chainsaws for ice can also be suitable for such work. I use it less often because it has some drawbacks:
  • Since the length of the bar, often on chainsaws, does not exceed forty centimeters, cutting ice will not be more than thirty-five to thirty-seven centimeters.
  • The chainsaw sprays a lot of water while cutting, which in turn causes the tool to freeze and stop working. Then it becomes problematic to start the saw again.
  • The size and weight of the chainsaw. It’s a decent amount of space and quite heavy.

Yes, the Husqvarna 272XP without the chain and bar can be used as a chainsaw for ice. It is a professional tool, designed to work in tough conditions. The Husqvarna 272XP chain saw is a great combination of high power and light weight, which makes it very versatile.

Ice Saw (make your own) review and sharpening

My Finnish saw cuts ice like a cake!

Looking at the site presented by the tackle, decided to order myself a saw for the ice to set the network.

When I saw the life-size saw, I was really excited. I saw a picture of it and had no idea it would be so long. The teeth are sharpened, everything locks and locks. I loved it.

It would not be superfluous to say that with such a saw should be handled carefully, as I personally made sure, having cut two fingers on its sharp teeth. So I made a canvas bag for it and it’s there now.

It’s very convenient for transportation, it takes up little space and no one will get hurt.

In order to start sawing, you must first make a hole, and then, lower the saw into the water and smoothly, pushing it to cut the ice. The saw cuts the ice like a cake.

Usually I saw a square-shaped trench. Making four holes in the ice and sawing the ice from one to the other. Since the ice is heavy you need to saw in the form of a trapezoid.

On the surface the diameter of the ice should be narrower than under the ice. When all the cuts are done, the sawed ice should fall through and float by itself.

Push a piece of ice under the water with the edge of the saw or an ice hoe, and the trench will be clean. The saw can be used to cut out large pits. It takes a few minutes (5 minutes to be exact) to saw out the 1×1 size

To set the net you have to drill a lot of holes. You have to chop the mayonna and scoop out the crumbs of ice from there.

For a long time I wondered if I should buy a Finnish winch or not. What if I don’t like it? After consulting, I realized it was worth it. Placed the order, paid all shipping costs by mail. Got the package a week later.

The winch is a spool with a rope wound on it. There’s a special lever and wheels with spikes. On one side is attached a ratchet. Came to the river with a strong current, to try the winch in action.

I brought a saw, a drill and a safety rope. I did everything according to the instructions, sawed the mayna, started the winch in the mayna. When the rope began to unwind, then under the ice was heard the sound of rattle. At first the winch stopped for some reason, after 20 meters, I had to pull out and start again.

Couldn’t find it the first time. After the third pull it became clear that the special rope was not securing the winch’s horn, so I tied it with a rope at the junction. Now it’s working fine.

The winch was underwater, and I constantly heard a rattle. Having defined the approximate exit of the winch, I sawed a 50 centimeter deep mine in front of it. Then I pulled the rope some more, and the winch jumped out of the water.

To keep water from freezing on the winch you need to keep it in water. If it is necessary to pull through a cord for several nets, it is necessary to saw out a mayonnaise in advance and pull through a cord by the same principle.

To use it for the ice thickness of about a meter, it is necessary to use some long stick or pole. The winch works confidently in the current, and it does not drift. For the winch I made a box out of thin foam plastic. It’s light and at the same time it prevents water from getting into the car during transportation.

The disadvantage that I found, I think, will help many anglers to solve the problem of stopping the winch halfway.

Features of the chainsaw

The work of this equipment has its own peculiarities. For example, uninterrupted operation of the chainsaw is ensured by the air blower system. This also increases the life of the tool, as the saw wears out much slower. The shape of the device itself is quite handy, so the cutting process is quite easy and fast. For heavy workloads the three-section crankshaft is available. Ice may be cut with any chainsaw, but as a rule of thumb, do not use oil.

The point is that it otherwise reduces friction and prevents overheating, but when working with ice it is not necessary.

Model Rating

For ice masses of small length will also suit a standard household chainsaw, but for larger amounts of work you should choose a professional tool. Let’s look at the most popular models.

STIHL MS 661. This unit has a capacity of 7.3 liters. с., and that’s good enough for cutting ice. Basic guide bar. 71 cm.

STIHL chainsaw MS 880. It is recommended for a thickness of 90 cm. This is the most powerful model. If this length is not long enough, the Rollomatic ES 0 can be used for a longer guide bar.404″, but judging by the reviews of experts, it is quite difficult to find such a tire.

Husqvarna 395 XP. Rail length. 106 cm. According to the professionals, it is a very handy, powerful and productive unit.

) and do not sweat. But if your hands are itching to make it from improvised materials.

Two-handed saw (230r tool magazine)

Plastic sewer pipe with a diameter of 40mm and a length of 1m. (everywhere 79r.)

Remove wooden handles from the saw and remove the hinge on one side (rivets can be drilled out, but it is better to saw with an angle grinder).

The hole nearest to the back side is reamed out to a diameter of 6mm (under the bolt).

Then we make a cut in the future handle. Very good for cutting PVC with a fresh metal scissor blade that just sticks in your hand.

At first one cut is made, but it not enough, t.к. The pipe will turn inward. To get the slit with a width of 5 mm you need to make another cut, thus choosing 1-1.5cm.

(Note the difference between the selected strip and the resulting gap.)

Then we put the handle and drill through the pipe (hitting the drilled hole left after the hinge). It is necessary to press the future handle as tightly as possible to the back side of the saw:

Then insert the bolt and tighten the nut (better to use a wing nut). If everything is alright the fixing should be quite tough.

When it is assembled the teeth of the saw go into the gap on the handle:

finnish, hands

(Because of the arched shape of the working part of the saw, the pipe must bend a little to normally cover the teeth all the way through)

On both sides of the saw (in the holes from the loop and on the other hand in the loop itself) tied 2 ropes, so that the tube does not fly off the teeth.

Then it is necessary to separate the teeth of the saw (the wider the better). This is done with a file (be careful not to saw it yourself)!

(Put a triangular file between the teeth and move the teeth in pairs in different directions. Then flip the saw over with the other end and do the same thing so that each tooth is exposed on both sides.)

the results of full-scale tests have shown that compared to the Finnish diving board for ice, our makeshift dive computer certainly fails miserably (subjecctively at 1:1).5-2 times slower). However, efficiency for normal sawing is quite enough and the device digs into the ice very decently. In general this thing is quite usable (for its money).

Addendum: it seems that because we bent the saw wrongly (bent back the teeth more to one side) it started to saw not along the mowing line and along the arc (which is pretty inconvenient). Next year (when there will be ice) we will try to make the teeth more symmetrical will hopefully this will improve the situation.

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How to choose?

Choosing an ice saw, you should familiarize yourself with the different variants of household saws, because each of them is designed to work a certain amount, has its own advantages and disadvantages. To perform the sawing of the ice cover, you can use several varieties of saws.

  • Manual Finnish. The advantages of the specimen are its lightness. Ice masses up to one meter thick can be cut. Among the disadvantages it is worth noting the low speed of work, if compared with a gasoline-powered tool. But if you compare the speed of work on metal or wood, this saw will cope with the ice much faster. And also manual Finnish saws, which are recommended for sawing a hollow or a mine, can be divided according to the following characteristics:
  • A tool with a wooden handle. it is an environmentally friendly accessory, it is good in the hand, it is easy to work with;
  • Saw with a metal handle. compared to the above option, it is a more durable variety.
  • A chainsaw. It is quite a convenient option for work. Sawing a hole in the ice with it is simple and fast, but this variety has the following disadvantages:
  • possible to work only with a thickness of no more than 37 cm;
  • During the process of sawing the saw gets a lot of ice spray, which is fraught with icing the tool and the failure of his work;
  • this tool is quite massive.

You can buy a normal Finnish saw for the ice (2200-2500r here or here) and not sweat. But if the “hands itch” can make it and from improvised materials.

Actually a two-handed saw (tool store. 230r)

Plastic drainage pipe with a diameter of 40mm and a length of 1m. (79p everywhere)

Take out handles from wood and remove the hinge on one side of the saw (rivets can be drilled out, but it’s better to saw with an angle grinder).

The hole nearest to the back side is drilled to a cross section of 6mm (for the bolt).

Then we make a kerf in the future handle. A fresh band saw blade for metal, which is easy to hold and cuts very good on PVC.

At the beginning you make one kerf, but that’s not enough.к. The pipe will “turn inward”. To get the slot with a width of 5 mm you need to make another cut by selecting those 1-1.5 cm.

Ice buzz saw to make with his own hands

You can buy a normal Finnish ice saw (2200-2500r here or here) and do not bother. But if your hands are “itching”, you can also make it from improvised materials.

Actually two-handed saw (tool store 230r)

Plastic sewer pipe 40mm in diameter and 1m long. (79p everywhere)

Remove the wooden handles from the saw and remove the hinge from one side (the rivets can be drilled, but it is better to saw with an angle grinder).

The hole nearest to the back side is drilled to a diameter of 6mm (for the bolt).

Then we make the cut in the future handle. The best way to cut PVC is with a fresh band saw blade for metal, which is easy to hold in the hand.

First, a single cut is made, but not enough, t.к. The pipe will “wrap inside”. To get a slot with a width of 5 mm, you need to make another cut, thus selecting 1-1.5cm.

(Note the difference between the selected strip and the resulting slit.)

Then we put the handle and drill through the pipe (getting into the drilled hole left after the hinge). At the same time it is necessary to press the future handle as tightly as possible to the back side of the saw:

Then insert bolt and screw nut (it’s better to use wing nut). If all is well done, the mount should be rigid enough.

When it is assembled the teeth of the saw go into the gap on the handle:

(Because of the “arched” shape of the working part of the saw, the pipe has to bend a bit to normally cover the teeth all the way through)

On both sides of the saw (in the holes from the loop and on the other hand in the loop itself) is tied 2 ropes, so the tube does not fly off the teeth.

Then you need to separate the teeth of the saw (the wider the better). This is done with a file (be careful not to saw yourself)!

(Put a triangular file between the teeth and “divide” the teeth in pairs in different directions. Then we turn the saw with the other end and do the same thing, so each tooth would be exposed to both sides.)

The results of field tests showed that in comparison with the Finnish ice saw our “self-made” saws of course shitty (subjectively in 1.5-2 times slower). However, efficiency for good sawing is quite enough and device digs into ice very decently. In general, quite usable thing is turned out (for my money).

Addendum: it seems that because we bent the saw wrongly (bent teeth more to one side) it started to saw not along the mowing line but along the arc (which is pretty awkward). Next year (when there will be ice) we will try to make the teeth more symmetrical will hopefully improve the situation.

Ice saw: features of the Finnish model. How to choose a good tool

The ice saw can be used in many different situations. For example, many fishermen use this tool to saw holes or large openings in their nets. Often the ice saw is used by EMERCOM personnel and scuba divers.

finnish, hands

Another use for this tool is during extreme journeys, for example, such a saw will allow you to free your car from ice captivity.