Would a chainsaw be a practical weapon in combat?

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7moreDead_v1legacy

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Feb 17, 2009
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DoctorNick said:
As someone who has a lot of experience with a chainsaw:

NO.

HELL NO.
This, climbing saws maybe slightly more plausible though.

Kickbacks would cause all sorts of havoc in melee...

linwolf said:
I have seen him half running down a trees trunk, and take of all the Branches. (the tree laying down on the ground)
That's snedding...I found it quite a relaxing part of the job :)
 

Mr. Gency

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Jan 26, 2010
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mrhappyface said:
Would a chainsaw be a practical weapon in combat? What do you think?
http://images.off-roadweb.com/freestuff/0803or_z+motivational_posters+chainsaw.jpg
I think it can be
 

RandV80

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Oct 1, 2009
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Not an industrial chainsaw... but if you could redesign it for combat purposes, it would work great! Though then you'd be getting more into the sci-fi 'vibro blade' concept.
 

Fayathon

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Nov 18, 2009
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I imagine they would break down too easily, I'll take a sword over a chainsaw any day.
 

PrototypeC

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Trees are one thing, that's what chainsaws are mostly designed for. Human beings aren't all a cylinder with layers; they have small, breakable bones in varying shapes and sizes, that could break mid-cut and shards could go flying into the face of the attacker. Even if not, the gore could easily clog the mechanism (depending on the quality) or just blind the attacker from that.
 

Assassin Xaero

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Ok, can we please stop with the "Would a [insert object here] be a practical weapon?" threads? This is the third I've seen in two days. So much for originality on these forums...
 

Commissar Sae

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Superbeast said:
Military combat? No. Personal combat...


I'll let you decide ;)
Well hardly effective, but I must admit, chainsaw duels have the potential to be pretty cool even if swords would be more effective. Gotta love Hong-kong action flicks.

But yeah, on the whole agreeing with the mass concensus, Chainsaws are too heavy, noisy and unwieldly to make really effective weaponry.
 

maddawg IAJI

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Feb 12, 2009
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Depends really. If the enemy is unarmed then you can really kick some ass, but if the guy is fast and has a weapon with them, they could proably kill you faster then you could swing.
 

Deadpewl

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danpascooch said:
lets see. Well it would be a great weapon.

As long as you're not concerned with:

1.) It's noisy and draws attention
2.) It needs to be revved up, giving the enemy warning
3.) It needs fuel to operate
4.) It will be damaged beyond function ability after one kill.
5.) You need to be within a few feet of the guy
6.) It's messy as shit.

There's a reason people use guns
You forgot that its heavy and can be dangerous for the user as well (see Dawn of the Dead).
I'd take a katana over a chainsaw any day.
 

Treblaine

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Well whatever it lacks in practical value it must make up for it (to a certain extent ) due to it's psychological effect.

I mean cocking a gun, not THAT intimidating, but when I was playing Resident Evil 4, hearing that chainsaw rev up... you can't help but think what it could do to you. And that scared this shit out of me... in a game!?!?

Much like the flame thrower, a very impractical weapon in terms of range, bulk and amount of "shots" but I couldn't think of something I'd be more afraid of in the trenches though flamethrowers like most psychological weapons have fallen out of use.

The problem is not that they aren't effective, but they are TOO effective, everyone focuses their fire on the guy with he flame thrower. US Marines fighting in the Pacific in WWII had disproportionately high death rate when they had to man a flame thrower and god help any poor flame-trooper who was captured alive.

But he single biggest problem with a chainsaw as a REAL practical weapon is close-quarters combat is so rare any close combat cannot be too heavy or it won't be worth the weight, so only a small knife or shovel (that has other uses) can be justified.

Of course in games it is an accepted trope that you can always inexplicably carry a literal metric ton of weapons, equipment and ammo with no speed penaly so in that case a Chainsaw is not so unreasonable.

Another problem though is the main way that melee weapons are effective is if they are used with the element of surprise or stealth, though revving up a chainsaw will likely shock the hell of the enemy, maybe even prompting them to surrender, it is hard to sneak up or charge on their blind side. With a chainsaw they will hear you from rooms away and be ready and waiting.

Overall, I'd say a simple bayonet is more effective, even in a modern warzone.
 

eezaak

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One slight problem with a chainsaw is that if the chain hits metal, it has a high chance of shattering.
Environmental protesters near where I grew up used to hammer big ass nails into tree's in logging coops. So when the poor suckers try to cut the tree down the chain shatters and they get sprayed with bits of metal. Not pretty.
 

mento 2425

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it really only works in the situations you expect
runing down a dark corridor away from a guy with a chainsaw until you reach a dead end.
really
almost any other certifyed weapon would do better
 

Setharoth

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Jan 28, 2010
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No. No it does not.
three main reasons:
1. It is very heavy not only because of the normal weight of the saw itself but also for the gas needed to fuel it.
2. It is very loud and has short range. The short range would make you want to sneak up to somebody, but the loud noise makes it impossible.
3. One trip with a running chainsaw and the one actually getting their internal organs spread across several yards is you, not your target.

Unless you're a huge super-mutant with a quiet chainsaw and amazing stablitty, I would suggest against it.

By the way, would anyone be interested in buying a chainsaw baritone?
 

MagicMouse

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Dec 31, 2009
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IF you have used a chain saw ( and i know lots have said this) then you know the answer is no.

Heavy
hard to start
refueling every 40 mins or so
needs bar oil
Chain dulls rather quick
bones would move the chain off the track or get it jammed
very loud
short range
blood and bone bits flying everywhere blinding you


in the end a rock would be a better choice (especially if you're a hobbit)
 

The87Italians

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Jun 17, 2009
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Well most of us saw how that worked in the book of Eli...

The guy with the chainsaw got raped by a blind man with a machete.

It would not be practical. At all.