FORESTER Chainsaw Chaps for Men & Women | Apron-Style Chaps with Pocket & Adjustable Waist | Chainsaw Safety Equipment

I've used these chainsaw chaps 3 times now, and they do great. I normally wear 34" long jeans, and the 37" length overlaps my boots by a few inches as they should. The tags and documentation say these meet the updated ASTM F1897-2014 39JY spec, along with the Canadian CAN/BNQ 1923-450-M91 39JY class B.There's a lot of different specs thrown around with different chainsaw chaps, though the ASTM is the main US one, the commercial standard for chainsaw chap performance. OSHA 1910.266 says shall wear safety leg protection from ballistic nylon or similar. And ASTM F1414-13 is what UL uses as their standard for testing that it meets ASTM F1897. The only real different one is the USFS 11BF or FS6170-4. Most of those specs are non-safety related details (stitching, color, snaps, etc), along with fire safety related specs. Some documentation from Elvex points out that while the FS spec (year 2000 version) is tested at 3200 ft/sec instead of 2750 ft/sec (2008 version of ASTM F1897), that the testing procedure is a little different so they aren't really comparable.Why does this all matter? If I'm wearing chainsaw chaps, I want them to help protect me. I was willing to pay more for ones that would protect me better. ASTM F1897 is a pass/fail test so it doesn't tell you if one pair is better than another, but it does set the bar. In our forest service trail clearing chainsaw class they said the saw chaps had to meet the FS 6170-4 spec, and so I was trying to figure out what the differences were. But in the end, it turns out that for non-fire related chainsaw use on forest service land, that they now allow your chainsaw chap PPE to meet either the FS 6170-4 spec or the ASTM F1897 spec. See USDA FOREST SERVICE SAW OPERATIONS GUIDE 2016 electronic edition, v 1.3.1, page 15. [...]Long story short, these chainsaw chaps seem good. Like using a seatbelt even if you've never been in an accident, or a bike or ski helmet even if you've never had a crash resulting in a head injury, this is inexpensive insurance to make sure if something bad happens, you'll be better off than you would have been without the personal protective equipment. At this price, they are great. If you want to pay a little more and get a little more protection, the full ankle wrap models from Forester (Chap737-O), Woodland Pro, Labonville, or Husqvarna look like good choices.I'm including a bunch of pictures of the product and docs, since they give all these specs, and the info on these meeting ASTM F1897-2014 39JY for gas chainsaws, but not electric ones (as others have stated, this is due to the continuous high torque from an electric chainsaw). I hope all this info helps in making your decision, as I know if I had this info it would have helped me. Buy some before you fire up your saw again, and use them every time. Along with remembering to cut safely, these will help protect you if something doesn't go right.UPDATE: I've used these for 3 years, occasionally. I've probably dropped 10 bigger trees, done lots of limbing, bucked a few of the 24 cords of wood we burned, and used an alaskan chainsaw mill for 20 hours. No problems, though for trail work I was given a pair of Husqvarna full wrap chaps, so for the last few months I have preferred those. They have a few more straps and wrap fully around the ankle, which should better prevent or minimize injury in certain situations. I still think these are a great value and product, and will let my neighbor use them while I use the more expensive pair.

I have been looking for a pair of chainsaw chaps. I am not a professional but like to put safety first. Some of the other highly rated name brand chaps are very expensive. Over $100. These chaps are superb quality and very comfortable even though they are very thick to prevent you from cutting your leg off. They are easy to put on and appear to be very durable. I am 5’ 8” and the small fits me perfect. My pants size is 34 x 30. The regular size I think would have been too big on me. The waist folds and buttons down if you were a few inches shorter. Upon my first use I accidentally leaned the chainsaw muffler on my leg and the chaps top layer melted a little in the process of protecting my leg. This would have burned my leg badly have I not been wearing these chaps. I now have a small burned area on my chaps (still totally useable) as a reminder to not lean the chainsaw muffler on my leg. I highly recommend this product.

I run a chainsaw for a tree service crew with a powerline right-of-way maintenance contract. Translation: I'm constantly getting in and out of my work truck, walking, hiking (sometimes 1/4 mile at a time), crouching, kneeling, etc. The power company we contract for just recently required us to wear saw chaps whenever we use a saw. Since we have to cut trees and bushes in many places throughout the day, we just leave our chaps on so as not to waste time. My company gave me a pair of Stihl apron chaps (that cost $100+) but they were too short and I had already ordered this pair. I wore the Stihl chaps for 2 days until this pair shipped, then I started wearing these. As a result, I can present a direct comparison between these Forester chaps and ones costing $60 more.One caveat to keep in mind when reading this review:I've only had these chaps for 2 days, so I can't accurately attest to their durability. Also, it is currently winter here in GA, so I can't really say how hot these chaps will be when the temperature is in the 90s.The good:These chaps fit me well. I'm 5' 10" and 160 lbs. I cinched up the leg straps all the way and they fit my legs snuggly without being too tight. I was able to move and bend without feeling restricted or uncomfortable. Fortunately I haven't been able to experience how well they stop a moving chain (and hope I never do!) but I can say these chaps are briar-proof and very abrasion resistant. The hi-vis color has not faded yet and they do seem to fend off the worst of all the dirt and grime I put them through.The not-so-good:While the material itself is high quality, the straps and buckles seem somewhat cheap. This was kind of expected from reading the other reviews. The straps are very slick nylon-type material, so they will slide through the buckles as you move around. I followed another reviewer's suggestion and put one of my wife's hair bands around the waist belt behind the buckle so it wouldn't loosen. So far that has worked. I tied knots in the leg straps for the same reason. So far that has worked as well. The reflective tape is very, well, reflective, but it isn't very durable, but I kind of expected that. After one day of kneeling on asphalt to sharpen my saw one of the strips of tape had a tear in it. However, the tear didn't get any worse the rest of that day or the next. I think I can patch it with some repair tape and it will be fine.Overall, I am happy with my purchase. These performed as well as the more expensive chaps I wore earlier in the week, though the lower price is reflected in some of the materials used. I feel confident these chaps will last for a long time.