Warm fires without the effort

Steve Blakemore. Photo / Lynda Feringa

Dean Taylor looks at Kiwis' latest inventions, among them Soar Horse, which makes getting firewood safer and faster

They say good things improve with age - and that is certainly the case with the Soar Horse.

Inventor Steve Blakemore came up with the idea 20 years ago and said when he had the time he would make and market it.

Now the time has come.

Blakemore and his wife Mary run an assortment of businesses in Homebush in the Wairarapa - hosting guests in their homestay and gypsy river camping facilities, building shepherd huts, offering landscaping design and construction and selling a range of workshop products.

Gathering, cutting and stacking wood for the home fires is part of the Blakemore's routine and the Soar Horse has been designed and built to make the job easier, safer and faster.

At National Fieldays the couple had their prototype on show in the Grassroots Innovations section and attracted a lot of interest - the key innovation being a water filled arm that securely clamps the wood.

Blakemore took the comments and further refined the design to come up with the product now on the market.

He says it has been a long haul setting up the workshop and waiting for new moulds to be manufactured, but worth the wait.

Blakemore says safety and good ergonomics remain to the fore and the unit is adjustable to suit individual firewood needs.

Each unit is built to last and is readily dismantled for transport.

He adds that he is sure those who saw the product at Fieldays will like the new model even more and it will allow them to "fly through your firewood" faster than ever.

The benefits of the Soar Horse are safety, speed and comfort - and it can be operated by one person.

Wood is held securely and at a comfortable working height that reduces bending and back strain.

The saw is secure and safe and the wooden legs eliminate the risk of chainsaw contact with metal parts.

The chance of injury from the saw is virtually nil.

It is proven to be fast.

Blakemore is able to produce the units at a price he believes makes it economical and worthwhile for anyone who has to gather and cut firewood.

It is a 20-year-old idea finally made good.

ADDED EXTRAS
Since the first prototype at Fieldays the Soar Horse has:

• A heavier clamp putting 10kg-plus of downward pressure on the butts
• Better clamping ability allowing for unobstructed chainsawing
• Moulded teeth to better grip the wood, plus a moulded handle
• Increased capacity giving greater production from each load
• The idling box is now made from moulded plastic, with a wooden section for the blade.

For more information on the Soar Horse email mas-des-saules@wise.net.nz or check out the www.soarhorse.co.nz website.