what is the best saw

So as a small volunteer department we have never owned a K-12 saw. We own chainsaws ( for trees) , reciprocating saws and hydraulic cutters (vehicle extrication) and the usual hand tools . Most calls are vehicle related with occasional wild fires, rope rescue, EMS and an average of 1-2 structure fire per year plus 1-2 chimney fires. We have not had a fully involved structure in over 10 years. Nearly all structures are residential single family made from wood construction. there are only 5-6 commercial buildings and a few masonary structures. There are a few metal siding buildings in the district

So I am considering buying a metal cutting K-12 saw -- why , good question , it seems like something we should carry like most FD's and it is worth ISO points. We do have a lot of metal roof buildings , but I am generally a horizontal ventilation fire fighter whenever possible.

Space on my trucks is tight so I really want to make sure this is necessary before spend $2k and taking up valuable space.

I would like o hear thoughts from other small departments on the real value of these types of saws and if there are better alternatives out there.

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Tiffanie Pettis on July 21, 2009 at 11:00am

im just a rookie firefighter but from what i have seen from my dept., the k-12 is a great saw! it scares the crap out of me but it is a valuable tool to have...our calls are about simmilar situations as youurs. We dont realy have to ventilate or use the saws a whole lot but when the situation comes up, it works great! w few months ago we had a tractor trailor-trailor packed FULL of hay. we got called as if it was a structure fire, but when we got there we saw what the real situation was. we had to end up culling a huge hole in the side of the trailor in order to be able to extinguish the fire thet was fully involved upon arrival. we wouldn't have been able to do so effectively and efficiently without a k-12. ... like i said im just a rookie and i dont know much, and i know money and space is valuable, but to me it seems like an essential fire fighting tool.

Permalink Reply by Mark Klaene on July 21, 2009 at 11:12am

thanks for your input -- don't worry about the rookie part , sometimes Rookies have unique perspectives on things that us old guys look over

Permalink Reply by Jeff on July 25, 2009 at 4:03pm

You never know when your going to need one it could be today or sometime in the future so i think i would be a great investment to your department to get one.

Permalink Reply by Gregory R Bailey on August 24, 2009 at 11:45am

Hi, We have K12, sawall and Chain saws. Our newest saw is a Rage Saw. Something like a skill saw but for metal. We used it on an extriction to cut the roof off an auto. No sparks and it works on a lot of things. Good thing it is $150.00 $26.00 for a spare blade. We saw a simular saw priced at $900.00 spare blades $125.00. You can check out the Rage site. We are on it's picture for Rage Rescue. National Welders Supply is one of there vendors. Very cost efective and versitle.

Permalink Reply by Kevin Johnson on October 24, 2009 at 7:01pm

We carry STIHL. Easy to repair and have had no problems with any of them.

Permalink Reply by Rob Young on October 26, 2009 at 4:24pm

This may sound like a no brainer, but if you get a K-12, make sure you have a blade specifically for Metal. You will still go through them, but some of the multi-purpose blade will just get eaten up too easily. It's far less likey that you will need to use a wood blade (espcially since you have a chainsaw and axes) or a masonary blade on the K-12 with any regularity.

Permalink Reply by DAVID GONZALEZ on February 26, 2013 at 10:23pm

we only carry one on our light rescue and its a great purchase we only use it if we have something major like a over turned big rig. other then that you want cheap check out www.firesafetyusa.com really good prices for them

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