JamesonFG-6PKG-7 FG-Series Manual Pole Saw and Tree Pruner with Two 6-Foot Fiberglass Poles

Purchased for trimming yard trees. The Gardners picked this out. Arrived much quicker than promised. Very well made. Works great.

My cottage has an acre of subtropical forest surrounding it. I need to keep these trimmed artistically so as not to block the view of the ocean below. I have used other pole pruners for at least thirty years, and they have always turned out to be flimsy, bendy things that rust and end up with broken "junctions" between the pole. Being nearly eighty-years-old, I had essentially given up trimming using the last set of poles I bought.But after a year, I could barely see the sea through the woods, and decided that I would spend extra and purchase the "Jameson FG-6PKG-7 FG-Series Manual Pole Saw and Tree Pruner." After many hours of using them, sometimes in dense forest damaged by Hurricane Maria, I consider the Jameson poles to be a revelation in what one should use to cut overhead branches and small limbs in a forest. Even at my age, it makes pruning a joy.The packaging was solid and undamaged, but the cutting knife was sticking. So I emailed the Jameson service people, and described the problem. The e-mailed my back within minutes, offered a free replacement if I couldn't fix it, and then (on my request) set me up to ask one of their engineers who told me to just loosen a lock bolt about 15-degrees. That took me less than a minute, and it never got stuck since. I have to say, this was the best service ever.As for the product, the wide mouth head easily cuts through 1 1/2 - 2" of most of my hardwoods, although the ironwood tree (the one that sinks) can be a challenge. It is solid, plenty sharp, and has a massive spring unlike the shoddy products (not bought at Amazon) I have previously owned. The rope is thick. The pole, while it does flex some, is solid as compared to the other products I have used. The pruning saw is sharp, and I was surprised at how quickly iit eats through 3-4" limbs.Highly recommended for anyone who has real tree trimming and pruning work to do, and well worth the extra money.

I was unsure of which pole saw I wanted to purchase. I was tempted to order one of the cheap kits for sale on Amazon. After reading reviews, I felt like they would not be good enough quality and would be too flimsy. After a quick Google search, I found the Jameson brand. There were so many choices on their website but I loved that they were made in the USA. I decided to call Jameson for help choosing a kit. I spoke to a very kind and patient lady who directed me to this kit. It was priced less than the kits I was looking at on the Jameson website. Again, I was worried about how sturdy this kit would be. She assured me that it was high quality and I’m glad I listened. I ordered this kit and an extra pole. When it arrived, I immediately assembled it. Unfortunately, the base pole would not connect to the next pole. The hole where the snap fits did not line up on the two pieces. Instead of calling to request and new one and waiting for it to arrive, I drilled a hole in the proper location. That did the trick. I took the pole saw out in the back yard and cut a couple of limbs using all three poles. Success! I was very impressed with the sturdiness of the pole and the ease of cutting the limbs because of the sharp saw. I am so glad I chose this kit. Looking forward to using it again.

Im so glad I splurged and bought this model and brand. I've used others but this is a tool that works. It will end up saving me so much money because my last arborist visit cost me $1500 and I have to call them every other year. The saw is fantastic, just have to be patient and stay in the kerf.

Just received my Jameson FG-6PKG-7 FG-Series pole pruner set today. Initial impression (like other reviewers have stated) is that overall it is pretty heavy to be holding 6-12 feet over your head cutting tree branches! Fit and finish look good and everything was shipped in a small box about 6 feet long. Pruner and saw head are pre-assembled. Tested the cutting action and effort on the double pulley pruner, and it seems smooth with a fairly strong return spring. Everything snaps together pretty well, but there is a small amount of wobble where the poles snap into the attachments.I have a tree that the neighbors cut down to a 15' stump about 5 years ago. Now the tree is about 35' high and looks like a mushroom! One half of the tree encroaches into my very small backyard, so this weekend I will go out and reclaim my "air space" and follow with an update on how this tool performed on the 50 or so small branches I will need to cut off. I gave 4 stars initially so there is room to move in either direction after I test this this tool.The only "flaw" I noticed during unpacking was that the rope was not tied in double knotts at each end. An easy fix, but without tying in double knots, the rope would have come off in just a few pulls.UPDATE: This weekend I had a chance to put this pole pruner to use. I cut about 40 branches off a huge maple tree that ranged from 1/4" to about 1 1/4".PROS:1) Cuts well and only failed to return to open position one time after cutting a particularly large and stubborn branch. Found some debris stuck in the cutter blade...removed debris and went back to normal operation.2) I only have the two 6' poles, but I could see adding a third pole for a total reach of 19'.3) Fiberglass poles are pretty stiff and I was able to control the head without too much trouble.4) Double pulley action works well...I can not see how this tool would cut large branches (up to 1 1/2") without the double pulley...this is a critical feature in my opinion.CONS:1) Heavy. This tool is pretty heavy to be holding 12' over your head while standing on an 8' ladder. The trick is to get the branch hooked in the jaws. Then stabilize yourself on the ladder. Then grab the rope and make the cut. One hand on the rope and one hand holding the base of the pole.2) Pretty hard to pull on larger branches (over 3/4"). I would suggest wearing a leather glove on the hand you are pulling the rope with. Also, I found it much easier to choke up on the rope, wrap it around my hand a couple of times, and then pull with a good steady motion. Branches over 1" take quite a bit of force to cut, but it does work. The double pulley system requires a longer pull then the single pulley system...that is what increase the leverage and the cutting capacity.3) Fixed length poles can be a PITA in tight spots. I was working in a confined location and the 6' was too short, while the 12' was too long. Found a way to make it work, but can be a bit of trouble trying to maneuver the 12' tool in a tight space. With 18' of pole, I would suggest 2 people.Overall I am satisfied and keep my rating at 4 stars. Jameson suggests cleaning the sap off the cutting blades after each use and using a very light oil on the moving parts. This way the cutter operates normally with no issues. Getting the cutter stuck up in a tree due to locked blades would be very bad...preventative maintenance should prevent this from happening.