I've been thinking for years about a safer alternative to chain saws. Something along the lines of a carbide coated wire driven by an electric motor and battery. Strap it to the tree, turn it on, walk away and some minutes later the tree falls down. The main difficulty is in how to drive the wire. Using friction would create fast wearing parts. Maybe a chain could be used instead of a wire. It could oscillate back and forth, instead of having to be wrapped and spliced to form a circle around the tree. It seems really strange that no one has come up with an alternative to chain saws for decades (except for large scale trucks that can process whole trees.) For small trees and branches even a sawz-all is safer than a chain saw. Inspired by spending some time sharing a hospital room with a guy who had a chain saw accident, but I still haven't come up with a workable idea. Maybe someone else can.
I was thinking I could use a tool just like the wire you described to remove a stump, after I spent 6 hours with a 5ton Bobcat trying to dig up a 3ft diameter pine stump to no avail today. For felling trees though, you need precise front cuts/back cuts to drop the tree at a desired angle, you can't just cut in one direction even if you have a cable attached.
Perhaps drilling in a wedge shape so it weakens the branch and it eventually breaks off naturally but it seems like more work than just a chain saw. The holes could also be used for steam treatment, enzymes [0] or something else to break it.
I use a tool called the Alligator. Is is a tool you can use like scissors. It has 2 chains on the inside of the the business ends. You put around the branch. Close the end and press the button. Springs will then close the end even more and cut the wood. No open chains
