The Silky Gomtaro and its curved blade brother, the Silky Zubat dominate the NZ handsaw market for arborists - to date nothing else has come close to knocking these two saws off their perch.
Enter the Silky Tsurugi. Treetools has been demonstrating a sample of this little beauty over the last week or so and the response is quite unbelievable. Initially, we imagined the Tsurugi might be another also-ran hand saw… but, not so, this new Silky saw has some very unique attributes.
The long, low-profile blade of the Silky Tsurugi is the first obvious difference but it doesn't stop there.
The handle features the same bolt-less Genki Grip as the Nata knives and the aluminum sheath has an excellent lock system to ensure your Tsurugi stays put - even when the climber is upside down. Six rollers reduce the amount of wear and tear on the blade as you holster and un-holster the saw from the sheath.
The rubberized Genki (or Sure) Grip absorbs vibration and directs more energy towards the cut. The handle is made up of two sections working in unison with the blade tang to lock into place - no bolts required.
The low-profile blade ensures a surgically precise cut, even in tight crotches.
Silky have obviously listened to what aerial arborists have to say - the sheath is almost completely open at the bottom end to allow saw dust and wood chip to escape - a problem usually solved with a hack saw on the Gomtaro and Zubat sheath.
The blade is slightly thicker than the Gomtaro or Zubat but that does not seem to inhibit its cutting ability.
Our sample Tsurugi has a 400mm long blade but a 200mm and 300mm blade version will also be available from next month.
Judging by comments so far, the Silky Tsurugi should be a real winner even if it does pirate some of the Silky Gomtaro sales volume. The 300mm version will more-than-likely be the big seller with arborists.
Treetools will list the Silky Tsurugi as soon as they are available.
