Watch: Use a Chainsaw to Charge a Car Battery

So, you’re stuck in the boonies and your battery is dead or just too weak to start your truck… but you’ve got a chainsaw in the back. With a little creative thinking, you just might be in luck.

This guy demonstrates how you can use a chainsaw to drive a belt (or a piece of rope, boot laces, or whatever you have) and turn your vehicle’s alternator in order to charge up the battery.

I’m thinking this might take a while, but it sure sounds better than hiking all the way home (or trying this rope-start trick).

Some commenters say you should turn on your vehicle’s ignition for this to work; others disagree. Me, I don’t know.

Check it out:

Russ Chastain

Editor & Contributing Writer Russ Chastain is a lifelong hunter and shooter who has spent his life learning about hunting, shooting, guns, ammunition, gunsmithing, reloading, and bullet casting. He started toting his own gun in the woods at age nine and he's pursued deer with rifles since 1982, so his hunting knowledge has been growing for more than three and a half decades. His desire and ability to share this knowledge with others has also grown, and Russ has been professionally writing and editing original hunting & shooting content since 1998. Russ Chastain has a passion for sharing accurate, honest, interesting hunting & shooting knowledge and stories with people of all skill levels.