Kubota Tractor ROPS Chainsaw Carry Sleeve

Some time ago I created hooks to attach to my tractor ROPS to carry long-handled tools, and several people asked if I could adapt it into a chainsaw carrying hook....which unfortunately put that idea in my head, and it became a problem I needed to solve.  It took me a long time, with several failed iterations, until I came on this design solution that seems to be working pretty well for me.  

Q&A

Q: Do you have variations for different dimension ROPS (i.e. 2"x2", 2"x3", etc)?A: That's on my to-do list. I need to sort out some parametric quirks, but should be able to push them out pretty soon?  Message me if you need one, a user request always makes me work a little faster.

Q: What saws will this work with?A: Should be pretty universal. I tested with a 16" Stihl 042, a 12" Echo CS-3000, and 16" EGO battery powered saw.  Please message me if there's some feature or aspect that doesn't for your saw that isn't addressed by the customization options.  The default customizations are set as a compromise for my 3 saws.

Q: What hardware is required?A: 4(ea) 1/4-20 x 4" bolts, nylon lock nuts. 8(ea) 1/4" flat washers.

Q: What filament do you recommend?A: I've had good luck so far with PETG, although there are several other advanced filaments that should work well also.  PLA is not recommended.

Q: Do I need both the upper and lower sleeve?A: Maybe not. The lower sleeve was intended for longer bars, and to reduce front-to-back swinging when driving over rough terrain.  I have both upper & lower on one side of my ROPS for the larger saws, but only I only use an upper on the opposite side of the ROPS for the short-barred limbing saw.

Q: Should I mount this on the inside or outside of my ROPS?A: Whichever you prefer.  The inside gives you less access and clearance to get the saw in & out...but it's easier to damage your saw and/or sleeve with a tree branch if it's mounted outside.  Long saws on the inside are difficult to lift out, and if you keep your ROPS at the 45 or 90-degree 'reclined' position, you won't have much ROPS length available for positioning. And the inside positioning has potential clearance problems with hazard/tail lights interfering with the tip of your bar.  You'll also need to be tall enough to light the saw safely up & clear, which will be dependent on your height and saw length.   So as a general rule of thumb (with exceptions) is: long saws outside, shorter saws inside.

CUSTOMIZABLE PARAMETERS (see photos)

BarThickness & BarWidthDefault is 0.75" and 4.25" (respectively).  These can be changed to allow for thinner/thicker (pitch or gauge) chains or narrower/wider (higher/lower) bars. The defaults are set to accommodate a standard bar cover.

OffsetThis is an additional distance between the ROPS and the saw. Default is 0.25" to accommodate for a toolless bar bolt system (quick-adjuster, tool-free tensioner, or similar). I have not tested any higher than 0.25, and this will put the saw's weight further away from the ROPS, placing more strain on the 3D-printed part.  There's a glitch that prevents this being set to zero, but you can set to 0.01" or a similar small number to reduce the offset.

SupportGussetThese are the triangular "fins" on the upper sleeve that support the saw body, and help distribute the saw's weight through the entire bracket. Default is 1". This also has the "zero glitch", but you can user the lower sleeve if you want to eliminate the gussets.  Pay attention to your saw's bumper spikes; if you have aggressive teeth they are liable to interfere with the gussets.

GussetNumberAgain, this cannot be set to zero, you will always have at least one.  The single gusset will be positioned to the 'front', a second will be positioned to the 'back', and additional gussets will be equally spaced out. You can user the lower sleeve if you want to eliminate the gussets completely.  Default is 5, but you can set to a higher/lower number to provide more support or create spacing for your bumper spikes.

GussetWidthHopefully self-explanatory at this point?  Default is 3/8" (0.375).