Most boatbuilders have a stable of reliable go-to power saws in their shop. Mine are the venerable 12″ Craftsman tablesaw, the ubiquitous 14″ bandsaw, and the hearty worm-drive Skilsaw. Those units will accomplish most tasks, but they can be limited by either depth of cut, fixed location, or simply lack of available electricity. For large tasks, the chainsaw is often the implement of choice.
Although generally not used every day, a chainsaw can accomplish many tasks. Whether you are lopping up 10″ × 10″ hemlock support blocking, fabricating skids for a boat cradle, fashioning telephone-pole foundation posts for a new shop, roughing out scarfs for an oak keel, or even removing that maple tree that fell on the shop roof, these efficacious machines can make short(er) work of heavy-duty tasks.
Greg RösselWith an 18″ bar, the EGO CS1804 battery-powered electric chainsaw made short work of cutting 10″ x 10″ blocking.
Despite all those pluses, I have never been a fan of chainsaws. My first one was a vintage two-stroke Homelite that, although powerful, was a miniature Superfund site; it was heavy, banshee-loud, smoky, had plenty of vibration, was cranky, had a hot muffler, and was hard to get started and harder to keep running. And there was that mixing of fuel that you never were quite sure you had gotten right. The traditional machines have immensely improved over the years, but I’ve still never found their use pleasant. A number of years ago, I was given an electric chainsaw that was okay and eliminated many of the gas machines’ shortcomings, but like a plug-in lawn mower, it still had the always-too-short extension cord.
Which brings us to battery-powered saws. Lithium batteries have changed the landscape of portable tools and have become powerful and durable enough for use in chainsaws. And there are plenty to choose from. There are the familiar manufacturer names such as Husqvarna, Stihl, and Echo. The small power tool names are there as well: Milwaukee, DeWalt, Makita, and Ryobi. And then there are the new kids on the block, such as Greenworks, EGO Power+, and Worx. How to choose? After consulting several reviews and tilting toward manufacturers whose primary business is cordless machines, I settled on the EGO CS1804 with an 18″ bar.
Right out of the box, the EGO looks and feels solid. It is no lightweight. The 1804 weighs 14½ lbs with the battery installed. The 56V, 5.0Ah lithium battery alone weighs nearly 5 lbs. The machine has a high-efficiency brushless motor that delivers 11,000 rpm, which the manufacturer claims is a 45cc gas equivalent. The body of the saw has sturdy metal bucking spikes that help keep your stock in place while you saw through it. The saw is shipped with a low-kickback saw chain and is equipped with a chain brake that stops both the motor and the motion of the chain brake if kickback occurs. There are bright LED lights on the front of the chainsaw, with high and low beams, that illuminate your cut when working at dusk or in emergencies without access to lights.
One of the tedious jobs of properly tightening the cutting chain is made easier by a tool-free system that tensions the chain with a simple twist of a large green dial. The bar oil filler tank is translucent, making the level easy to see, and it has a large 11⁄2″ cap with a keeper bail to prevent its loss.
The charge time of battery-powered tools is always a concern. With the EGO’s standard charger, which is supplied, it is 100 minutes. Other chargers are available from the company that can reduce charging time to as little as 30 minutes. The 56V, 5.0Ah lithium battery that came with the machine has a capacity of 280Wh. (A larger, but heavier, battery is an option.) The battery has a dandy “fuel gauge” composed of indicator lights that display remaining runtime in 20-percent increments.
The saw weighs 14½ lbs with the battery installed. Right—Nearly 5 lbs of that weight is in the battery.
The machine performs quite well. Despite its weight it is well balanced, remaining horizontal when grasping the saw by the top handle. Operation is a different experience from using its petroleum-powered siblings. From the get-go there is no wondering about stale gas (or mixing same) or spark plugs. No hot muffler. No “pull to start” arm whiplash. Just engage the trigger and cut. There is comparatively little vibration. The machine packs a lot of punch. The manufacturer claims they have gotten up to 300 cuts on a 4×4 with the recommended 56V, 5Ah lithium battery. While I have not gotten around to counting 4×4 cuts, as interesting as that must be, I can report that I’ve done quite a bit of cutting with it and, so far, it has never run out of juice on the job. There was no slowdown when I was cutting 10″ × 10″ blocking or cutting a downed pine as wide as the bar is long. And when you release the trigger, the saw stops, and there is silence. And that is part of the appeal: there is no wailing of the engine while cutting nor hearing its chortling between cuts. The visible bar-oil tank is a definite plus; one could easily forget to fill the tank because the old cue, “fill the gas so fill the bar oil,” is no longer there.
It is worth noting that just because the tool is battery-powered doesn’t mean it is any less dangerous to use than a gasoline-powered saw. All the same gas-saw safety equipment—helmet, safety glasses, and hearing protection—should be used. And like any power saw, it is only as good as the blade (or chain) is sharp. Get a spare one to take with you in case you dull the first.
The EGO CS1804 is a quality tool whose power compares favorably with gas-powered saws. It might even convert me to liking using a chainsaw. Maybe. 
The EGO CS1804 is priced at $394.94. For more information, visit www.egopowerplus.com/18-inch-chain-saw.
Greg Rössel is a contributing editor for WoodenBoat.