Over the years, I have come up with various ways to transport my chainsaw on my tractor. Sawhaul proved to be a great solution for my tractor and they came to my rescue when I need a solution for my Polaris Ranger. I cover the features, installation and the pros and cons of the Sawhaul Complete Kit for Polaris.
The SawHaul Complete kit for Polaris is compatible with Polaris’s Lock and Ride system on their Ranger and General UTVs. The price for the kit with a solid black scabbard is currently $129.99, including shipping. It is can be ordered directly from the SawHaul website or from their Amazon store for the same price and free shipping. If you prefer to have the SawHaul lettering in a color to match your tractor, then for $5 more, you can choose from blue, red, orange, or green.
One important thing to note is the scabbard currently only comes in 20” for this kit, but they tell me longer scabbards will be offered soon. If your chainsaw bar is longer than that, then SawHaul’s complete kit for ROPS and Man Lifts can attach to your UTV’s ROPS and is available with 20, 28 and 36 inch scabbards. An advantage of this is that it will work with most UTV ROPS. A disadvantage is your chainsaw will stick out past the side of your UTV so you have to be mindful of clearance as you careen through wooded trails.
The kit for Polaris came well packaged in a box that looks like this:
It includes a heavy pro-grade scabbard. (I chose blue which best matches my Ranger’s color scheme.)
Their newly resigned scabbard made for their new and improved SawHaul bracket. It is 20.5” long by 5” wide. The inside gap is ¾” wide, which should accommodate most any chain width. In fact, since my chainsaw has a low profile, narrow kerf, this wide opening allows the saw dogs to fit in the opening as well. That’s great because I don’t have to worry about the saw dogs wearing down the top of the scabbard.
The top cap is ¼” thick durable plastic. And it has a couple of holes for tools.
There is also a box with hardware, which includes the nuts, bolts and washers you’ll need. . And the kit includes the surprisingly heavy-duty quarter inch thick laser cut Lock and Ride adapter plate. I’m not sure it needs to be that thick, but there is no doubt it has the strength and rigidity to hold a chainsaw securely.
There is also a mounting bracket, which is part of all SaulHaul kits and the installation instructions, which cover all the SawHaul kit installations. Finally, they include a SawHaul decal.
However, this kit doesn’t include everything you need. You’ll need two Polaris Lock and Ride anchors, which will cost about $40 for two. Unfortunately, cheaper short ones you can find on Amazon aren’t long enough or strong enough to hold. I know because I tried them first since I already own some.
The Polaris OEM anchors are available from LeadersRMPShop.com for $20.99 each before shipping and taxes. I also found and decided to buy this set of two SuperATV Lock and Ride compatible tie downs on Amazon for $39.95 including free shipping and they work great.
So the bottom line is the total investment for the SawHaul Polaris kit is about $170 if you don’t already own a set of compatible anchors.
A couple of modifications I made to my SuperATV anchors was to remove the D-Ring since I didn’t need them and I beveled the top rubber stoppers to make them easier to push into the SawHaul Lock and Ride adapter plate. It’s a tight fit so the bevel helps a lot.
The SawHaul bracket can mount on the adapter plate at four different angles, depending on your needs.
To assembly the SawHaul, you will need either two 9/16″ wrenches or better yet one 9/16″ wrench and an impact driver with a 9/16″ socket. I found it easiest to temporarily mount the adapter plate to the cargo bed. It doesn’t have to be very tight for assembly.
Take a bolt with a washer on it and put it through the top hole for the angle you want. Put the bracket on loosely to leave room to put on another washer and get the nut started but leave it loose.
Now insert a bolt and washer in the bottom hole for the angle you want. And again, put on a washer and a nut.
Hold the bracket with one hand, with your thumb against the bolt head and snug up the nut with the impact wrench. Then snug up the other bolt. Now use a 9/16” wrench to hold the bolt heads in place while you tighten the nuts up.
Next, get the nylock jam nuts started on each bolt, which is a little awkward but still doable. Finally tighten up the jam nuts with the impact wrench.
To mount the SawHaul, place the adapter plate over the two Lock and Ride holes of your choice, then press the Lock and Ride anchors into the holes. Press down firmly while tightening the anchors as tight as you can by hand. Now you can put the scabbard into the bracket. It’s a tight fit by design as shown in the slides below.
Here you can see that the angle on the adapter plate is less than 90 degrees to keep it parallel with the rear of the ROPS frame. This is to give a comfortable margin between the bolt heads and a rear windshield if you have one.
Also, the scabbard is slightly wedged into the bracket to ensure it stays tight against the adapter plate to minimize wiggle.
The SawHaul kit for Polaris let’s you carry your chainsaw anywhere on the cargo bed that works best for you.
After installation, I took the SawHaul and my chainsaw for a test ride over some of the roughest sections of my trails. It stayed put nicely with some occasional rattling, which I can hear with my quiet Ranger EV but it probably wouldn’t be noticeable with a noisier gas model Ranger.
So here are the pros and cons that I see for the SawHaul Kit for Polaris:
Pros:
- It is extremely well-made, with the toughest chainsaw scabbard I have seen and a quarter inch thick steel adapter plate.
- It takes up almost no space in the cargo bed.
- It keeps your saw out of harm’s way using most any of the Lock and Ride holes of the cargo bed.
- It’s easy to get your chainsaw in and out of the scabbard.
- It holds the chainsaw securely, even when traveling over rough terrain.
Cons:
- It is a significant investment
- It requires the additional cost of Lock and Ride anchors.
- The maximum scabbard length is currently 20” but longer scabbards will be offered soon. In the meantime, you might consider SawHaul’s kit for ROPS and Man Lifts.
- It may rattle slightly going over rough terrain.
For me and my situation and needs, the SawHaul Complete Kit for Polaris has been a great investment!
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DIY My Way 