Noob help with Bench-Top/Wall-Mount Chainsaw Sharpener

[badddog]

Hello,

I am totally new to chainsaws and just purchased my first chainsaw (Poulan Pro 20” PP5020AV). I am about to purchase a chain sharpener and I need to ensure I get the correct grinding wheel for my chain.

Question?
Is a 3/16” grinding wheel used to sharpen a 3/8” chain?

Oregon 20” D72 Vanguard chain that came with the PP5020AV.
3/8” pitch
.050” gauge
25° top angle
10° down angle

I am having a hard time finding information about electronic chain sharpeners. I have never sharpened a chainsaw chain before so I plan to purchase a Bench-top/Wall-Mount sharpener due to the added complexity of the sharpening the Vanguard chain which has a 10° down angle in addition to the 25° top angle.

The chain sharpener I am considering is:
‘Bench Top/Wall Mount Chainsaw Chain Sharpener’
http://www.tscstores.com/BENCH-TOPWALL-MOUNT-CHAINSAW-CHAIN-SHARPENER-P7313.aspx

Any thoughts/experience with this ‘Bench Top/Wall Mount Chainsaw Chain Sharpener’ currently on sale for $99.99 (reg. $199.99) at TSC Stores would also be appreciated.
http://www.tscstores.com/BENCH-TOPWALL-MOUNT-CHAINSAW-CHAIN-SHARPENER-P7313.aspx


Thanks in advance.

 

[Gologit]

I'll move this thread to the chainsaw forum. The OP will probably get better, and less insulting, answers there,

 

[kodiakyardboy]

Get an Oregon file and guide and watch some youtube videos on how to use it. Do some searches here on how to properly file a chain and that will be all you need. Forget the chain grinder for now.

 

[lambs]

Hi Baddog, welcome to AS. Sorry you had a bit of a rough welcome.

3/16" is the wheel you'd need for a 3/8 pitch chain. 1/8" wheel for the .325 pitch stuff. 1/4" flat surface wheel is for the depth gauges, which are often called "rakers" although they are really there to set the depth of the cutters on the chain against the wood.

You need to make sure your chain grinder has the adjustment for the 10 degree saddle on the vise. Some will argue that you can leave it at zero degrees. I think if your chain is a chisel chain, you get better results if you take advantage of it. Be sure you dress the wheel to the right contour before using it, and check it before you grind a chain. Consistency matters.

There are some great threads here about using various grinders to sharpen chain; you can also get some great guidance from reading Oregon's user manual for the 511a grinder, which the TSC may well be a copy of. Check online.

You might also check the Stihl website for information on how to sharpen a chain. You might try doing this by hand a few times before putting a lot of money in a grinder. You may find you have the knack for doing this by hand and just don't know it. I do not, so I bought a grinder.

Good luck, and again, welcome to AS. We all learn different things from participating; sometimes it actually involves saws.

 

[barneyrb]

Hello,

I am totally new to chainsaws and just purchased my first chainsaw (Poulan Pro 20” PP5020AV). I am about to purchase a chain sharpener and I need to ensure I get the correct grinding wheel for my chain.

Question?
Is a 3/16” grinding wheel used to sharpen a 3/8” chain?

Oregon 20” D72 Vanguard chain that came with the PP5020AV.
3/8” pitch
.050” gauge
25° top angle
10° down angle

I am having a hard time finding information about electronic chain sharpeners. I have never sharpened a chainsaw chain before so I plan to purchase a Bench-top/Wall-Mount sharpener due to the added complexity of the sharpening the Vanguard chain which has a 10° down angle in addition to the 25° top angle.

The chain sharpener I am considering is:
‘Bench Top/Wall Mount Chainsaw Chain Sharpener’
http://www.tscstores.com/BENCH-TOPWALL-MOUNT-CHAINSAW-CHAIN-SHARPENER-P7313.aspx

Any thoughts/experience with this ‘Bench Top/Wall Mount Chainsaw Chain Sharpener’ currently on sale for $99.99 (reg. $199.99) at TSC Stores would also be appreciated.
http://www.tscstores.com/BENCH-TOPWALL-MOUNT-CHAINSAW-CHAIN-SHARPENER-P7313.aspx


Thanks in advance.

That looks just like the Northern Tool one (I have 2 of) and they are actually a decent piece. I would buy another but do yourself a favor and visit Edge&Engine's website and buy you a decent CBN wheel.

Grinding Wheels & Stones - Chainsaw Sharpening - Tools & Accessories

 

[Philbert]

Hello,

I am totally new to chainsaws and just purchased my first chainsaw (Poulan Pro 20” PP5020AV). I am about to purchase a chain sharpener and I need to ensure I get the correct grinding wheel for my chain. . . .
I am having a hard time finding information about electronic chain sharpeners. . . .

The chain sharpener I am considering is:
‘Bench Top/Wall Mount Chainsaw Chain Sharpener’
http://www.tscstores.com/BENCH-TOPWALL-MOUNT-CHAINSAW-CHAIN-SHARPENER-P7313.aspx

Any thoughts/experience with this ‘Bench Top/Wall Mount Chainsaw Chain Sharpener’ currently on sale for $99.99 (reg. $199.99) at TSC Stores would also be appreciated.
http://www.tscstores.com/BENCH-TOPWALL-MOUNT-CHAINSAW-CHAIN-SHARPENER-P7313.aspx

First, welcome to A.S.! The advice that you get when you pose a question is free, so you need to filter out the responses, and decide which ones make sense to you.

The grinders that you mention in the $90 - $120 range are all Asian copies of the $300 - $400 Italian grinders sold under the Oregon, Tecomec, Jolly Star, SpeedSharp, and a few other names. Here is one from site sponsor Bailey's:
Bailey's - Speed Sharp Star Chain Grinder

I am not a fan of cheap tools and recommend the grinders above. Especially, since you seem to have a fairly precise mindset on specific angles, consistency, etc.

That said, $100 is a lot for some people to spend on a chainsaw grinder. Many guys on this site have purchased grinders similar to the ones that you mention and are satisfied. They appear to be less consistent than the Italian grinders. Some have tweaked them to get better performance. On A.S., they are commonly referred to as 'Northern Tool' grinders (or NT) as that company was one of the first to offer them and sells a lot of them.

If you do a search (check out the search function on this website) for 'Northern Tool' you will find dozens of threads on this specific topic. Here is one example:

http://www.arboristsite.com/chainsaw/114889.htm

Good luck. Find a method that works for you and let us know how things work out.

Philbert

 

[badddog]

Thank you all for your replies they are very much appreciated, I do admit to being a little put off by the first responses which have since been deleted, hence the lateness of this reply, but no worries at all, I’m pretty ‘thick skinned’:msp_smile:

I purchased the ‘Bench Top/Wall Mount Chainsaw Chain Sharpener’ from my local TSC Store the other day and I managed to assemble and mount the unit despite the absolutely abysmal instructions that came in the box. Thanks Lambs for confirmation on the 3/16” wheel, I thought that was the correct size but was unable to find confirmation … and thanks for the tip on ‘dressing the wheel’ prior to use, I think there was supposed to be a little ‘wheel dresser’ that came with the sharpener but the so called ‘parts list’ in the manual wasn’t much help. Anyway I’ll see if I can pick one up. Despite the manual I’m pleased with the unit so far but I have yet to actually use it.

I think the advice to start by sharpening the blade manually may be a good place for me to start prior to using the electric sharpener.


Anyway, Thank to you all, your responses are greatly appreciated!

 

[tolman_paul]

You can satisfactorily sharpen a chain with those grinders. The vise is a bit less than ideal, but you won't get a 3 times sharper chain with a Jolley. It's not a surface grinder and if your teeth vary in length by a few thousandths, it'll still cut just fine. Do a google search for Oregon's chain grinder instructions, they'll work for your grinder.

The key with any grinder is to take light cuts so as not to overheat the chain and burn it. You may have to go through a couple advancements of the teeth in the vise if the chain is badly dulled, but you'll get there.

 

[Philbert]

. . . Oregon 20” D72 Vanguard chain that came with the PP5020AV. 3/8” pitch, .050” gauge, 25° top angle, 10° down angle

I purchased the ‘Bench Top/Wall Mount Chainsaw Chain Sharpener’ from my local TSC Store the other day and I managed to assemble and mount the unit despite the absolutely abysmal instructions that came in the box.

Glad that you were not put off. Some additional thoughts:

- Chains are consumables. You do not have to stick with that Vanguard chain if you don't like it. You can try other 3/8, .050, 72 drive link chains. I like to have 3 chains per saw so that I can swap them out in the field if I hit something, so that I can keep working, and sharpen them later at home, or wherever. You can try different types of chains and see which ones you like.

- The 10° down angle is a point of much discussion on A.S. Although, it is part of the manufacturer's specifications for that chain, not everyone feels that it is worth the extra effort of tilting the vise back and forth (and some grinders do not allow this feature). Many guys simply grind them at at 0° (or 90°) down angle with acceptable results. It's up to you. You might search around A.S. for specific opinions.

- Since you now own a grinder, you might also be able to salvage chains that other guys toss out when they get dull. Good way to practice, and to help recoup some of the cost of the grinder!

- Most grinder instructions are terrible. The Oregon ones are only slightly better. Appear to be written by and for people who already know how to use them:

www.baileysonline.com/PDF/Oregon511amanual_english.pdf

- There are a few threads on tweaking the $100 grinders. You might want to search them out to improve the performance of yours (again search for 'Northern Tool' or 'NT'). Here is another of over 25 threads I found:

http://www.arboristsite.com/chainsaw/39995.htm

I even had to do some light tweaking of my Oregon grinder to get it to perform better:

http://www.arboristsite.com/chainsaw/197073.htm

- As the last post noted, grinders are not chop saws. They do require some practice and skill to grind effectively and consistently without burning the cutters. Take your time, and use light taps. If you blue a cutter (and you will) you just need to go back and take off a little more to clean it up.

Philbert

 

[showrguy]

most important thing !!!!

keep the chain outa the dirt....