Why is my saw cutting crooked?

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Your bar is worn,the groove is probably getting sloppy and the rail on one side of the bar is worn more than the other. This is caused from having the 2 sides of the chain sharpened slightly differently and over time- one bar rail will wear more than the other. This is natural for most people as we are either right or left handed and one side of the chain is easier to file,the other more awkward.
Also the bar is just plain worn now from lots of use.
You must grind the bar back to true,a shop can do it inexpensively or you can do it yourself if you have access to a tablesaw and the proper size metal grinding disc,and instruction to set it up and do it correctly and safely. Probably easier to just take it to a shop...
Don't waste anymore time,get the bar dressed and it will cut great again,then concentrate on getting your filing a little more even.
I recommend dressing any bar on occasion as routine maintenence,kept in good shape it will last much longer than just running it until the groove and rails are severely worn.
 
Your saw is cutting to the left because it is a democrat. To make that saw happy you must first pay its Union dues. Next bring it inside each night and put it by the fire and keep it comfortable. Promise you will give it three days off each week and six weeks vacation each year. It needs a health plan and retirement 401k which you pay all the premiums. Promise the saw you will take more mix out of the big saws and less out of his tank.
It may still cut a little to the left but will be much happier or put it on welfare and not make it cut all, and you won't know which direction it cuts.
 
Your saw is cutting to the left because it is a democrat. To make that saw happy you must first pay its Union dues. Next bring it inside each night and put it by the fire and keep it comfortable. Promise you will give it three days off each week and six weeks vacation each year. It needs a health plan and retirement 401k which you pay all the premiums. Promise the saw you will take more mix out of the big saws and less out of his tank.
It may still cut a little to the left but will be much happier or put it on welfare and not make it cut all, and you won't know which direction it cuts.

Yup...or maybe put it on a lifetime pension from the state? Or is that different? :hmm3grin2orange:
 
All of the above suggestions should get you fixed up but there is another possibility.
Take the chain off the saw and feel the bottom of the drive-links. If they are sharp or pointy they are worn out from fitting loosely on bad rails. The chain will need to be replaced in addition to fixing the bar rails.
 
95% or more of crooked cutting is a poorly sharpened chain. If you are free handing it you need to improve your technique or get one of the file guides that sets all the angles for you. I use one. I've been at this over 30 years and have never had the 'crooked cut' be due to the bar. It does happen but look first at the chain every time.

Harry K


Exactly!
 
Yup...or maybe put it on a lifetime pension from the state? Or is that different? :hmm3grin2orange:

The pensions the state pays some of its workers is obscene. It used to be a state worker was trying to keep a steady job when seasonal workers, like loggers, were idle. Somehow it got turned into a gravy train that working people of this state should not have to support. Having said that, no I will not turn mine down, but I still think it is wrong. BTW my Dad was a logger and had no pension or health care until he went to work for the state. Up until then he was providing for the state workers just like you do, gologit. Maybe it is not to late for you to get a state job (if you think you can).
 
It's very easy to see if bar rails are true (same ht.) Pull chain, put small precision square on rails and look. If not square, really easy to square them w/bench grinder:
set rest with bar sitting on it, so center of bar would pass through center of grinder shaft. Lightly grind rails so they retain gentle curvature and have same ht. Grinder marks will help retain oil.
If too much has to be removed, toss bar, and learn from it. You can't keep chain too sharp. Ever.
 
Well this morning I had to cut a locust tree off of a barn that had fell on it last summer. Anyway I tried sharpening the cutters on the right side 5 strokes and the ones on the left side 3 strokes. It really cut good on limbs about 8'' in diameter or less. When i got in the big stuff about 12-15'' in diameter it started cuttin crooked again. So looks like I need to have the rails dressed.

If you have one, try a different chain. My bet is that a new chain would cut straight as an arrow. The mere fact you tried to correct it by differential filing says the chain is screwed up now and probably worse than what it was.

Harry K
 
Your saw is cutting to the left because it is a democrat. To make that saw happy you must first pay its Union dues. Next bring it inside each night and put it by the fire and keep it comfortable. Promise you will give it three days off each week and six weeks vacation each year. It needs a health plan and retirement 401k which you pay all the premiums. Promise the saw you will take more mix out of the big saws and less out of his tank.
It may still cut a little to the left but will be much happier or put it on welfare and not make it cut all, and you won't know which direction it cuts.
It'll cut more to the center in the general saw elections.
 
state workers

you moron's ragging on state workers are just jealous . I'm sure everyone of you jerks will refuse your pension.
 
Working in shops I've ground hundreds of bars. I'm willing to bet that putting a new chain on or sharpening it correctly won't stop it from cutting crooked or binding in the cut after a few inches,the bar is too worn now. Good filing technique can prevent that kind of lopsided wear,but even the groove is going to wear eventually. A good practice is to flip the bar over periodically. Also FORCING :angry: a saw through a cut with a dull or rocked chain can cause severe wear or burning and burring of the bar in a few cuts. I had a guy return a brand new Tsumura bar for warranty replacement :laugh: after only a few days,it was badly blued and mushroomed in it's main cutting area. I looked at the chain and it was so badly "Rocked" that it wouldn't cut cake,I refused warranty but ground the bar for him...He wouldn't stop and sharpen it and just put his full weight on it.

Now I'm not putting any blame on the operator of this saw,it could be many things,old worn bar,cheap bar with sloppy groove and soft material,or just many years of wear,I'm thinking just plain old wear and tear...
I've made a bar bar grinder out of a tablesaw in many shops and they work fine,I make sure with a square that the grinding disc is true at 90 degrees first. I even resurfaced an 8 foot bar from a hydraulic paper roll cutter from a pulp mill with that setup.
On my own saws I like to give my bar a light skim on a grinder periodically just to keep it true and get best cutting and life out of it.
There's so many variables,such as chains with rakers filed down excessively will show a lot of wear under the tie straps etc.,and some really poor bars have a sloppy groove to start with and poor metal that chips and wears easily.
 
No offense to anyone, but take the pension talk to another thread, like "off topic thread" or "political views".

If you keep it up here, the mods will close this thread down....:cheers:
 
No offense to anyone, but take the pension talk to another thread, like "off topic thread" or "political views".

If you keep it up here, the mods will close this thread down....:cheers:

Political views sounds like a good place for that one!:cheers:
 
Welcome to AS!

You probably sharpened the left cutters on the chain better than the right ones. Take a good look at the cutting edge and I bet you'll still see a bit of round over. So...the left cutters are probably removing wood faster than the rights. Give the rights a couple of good swipes with the file...

Post up a close up of the cutting edges.

This is a common occurrence.....It was one of my first posts to this site too. Here it is: http://www.arboristsite.com/firewood-heating-wood-burning-equipment/86315.htm

This information is incorrect.

The OP reported that the saw was cutting to the left. The cutters on the right side are therefore cutting faster than on the left. Think of it like the left hand cutters are holding the chain back.

Sharpen the left side more, not the right.

Also make sure the rakers are set the same height on both sides as well.

The saw is new (4 months), so unless the operator really buggered up the bar, it still should be like new.

EDIT EDIT!! I went back to the first post and re-read it. The OP did not report that the saw was brand new. It could be, but possibly not. So, I correct myself, and say yes, the bar could certainly be bad. Please pardon my mistake.

Have the chain ground back to original angles, or buy a new chain.

Bob
 
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Not so sure about any of this. I have a brand new bar and chain and I still cut to the right. Every darn piece. I think it is how I hold the saw. I can cut straight if I really pay attention but when I'm in the thick of a giant Maple top that has been sitting on the forest floor for two years with briars trying to pluck out my eyes I just hammer down and let the chips fly. My hydraulic splitter doesn't mind if the ends are a bit sloped.
I've been on AS for a bit now and haven't seen a thread on proper cutting technique yet. (mind you I haven't searched for one either)
In fact I noodled a big son of a gun today and when I finished it off it looked like a banana.
I probably just suck buy really I'm having a darn good time.
My point is:
It's not always the machine, especially in my case!
 

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