Thought that I'd share a bit of my wood cutting

For most of you who do this all day...this probably will not mean much, however, I thought that I'd share a bit of my wood cutting.

Here was the victim of choice. A rather large Ash hung up at around a 45° angle. You can see where I took a wedge out to see what kind of wood it is:




I started cutting off chunks and let the tree drop. You may have seen my post in the Chainsaw forum about a saw not cutting straight. Well, now you can see it. I believe a new chain is in order along with truing up the bar :



Here is a picture of the cut up stuff a bit closer:



Just in case you don't know what that white stuff is..... well, I'll let you ask!

This is SW MN not too far from my place. If you look through the trees you can see some of my out buildings.

I quit cutting because of the saw not cutting straight. I am going to get all of that tree! I really like how this dry ash burns! There are a few others this size in this small woods too. I have exclusive cutting rights one my neighbors land. You can see a couple more larger dead trees in the background. I can take any thing that's dead! Currently, I don't want anything green! I'm saving a lot of $$ not buying propain (propane). And another cool thing is that I own my tank so I don't have ANY one telling me that I need to use X amount a year or they'll take the tank.:monkey:

I got weighed at the DR yesterday and I'm down to 185 lbs! I was up to 205! I still have some gut fat to loose. If I keep cutting like this I should be in tip top shape! Now, I need to get my 17 year old daughter out there! She has helped twice! Riding in the "old dirty stinky" truck.

If anyone is in the area and WANTS to show me what a "real" saw can do....we can send you home with a pickup load!:greenchainsaw:


Dan

My saw cut like that too so I replaced the bar and chain with new ones and it still cuts on a slant. I'm pretty sure it is my fault and how I hold the saw that is causing the problem. If I pay attention as I cut, I can cut straight but if I get in a hurry the blocks get slanted. It sure gets interesting trying to split those slanted ones!

Got any buddies that are wood workers? If so go visit them and take your bar along. Set the table on their disk sander to 90 degrees (check it with a square) and run the bar across it keeping it moving so it doesnt over heat and stay away from the roller tip. Keep making passes until you are flat and a couple strokes with a file will bevel the sharp edges. Your crooked cutting is now fixed assuming the groove is not totaly trashed and your chains are even close to being sharpened correctly. Nice Ash and grove for that part of the world. I am in Ohio now but born in Freeborn MN.

Id say just because your cut is slanted doesn't mean that the chain needs replacement, usually just that the left and right cutters have been sharpened unevenly.

I got the idea to run it on my mill

Butch(OH) said:

Got any buddies that are wood workers? If so go visit them and take your bar along. Set the table on their disk sander to 90 degrees (check it with a square) and run the bar across it keeping it moving so it doesnt over heat and stay away from the roller tip. Keep making passes until you are flat and a couple strokes with a file will bevel the sharp edges. Your crooked cutting is now fixed assuming the groove is not totaly trashed and your chains are even close to being sharpened correctly. Nice Ash and grove for that part of the world. I am in Ohio now but born in Freeborn MN.

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I got the idea to run it on my Bridgeport mill, however, a disk sander sounds like an easier set up. Good idea!

Thanks!

Dan

Cutting at an angle!

jburlingham said:

Id say just because your cut is slanted doesn't mean that the chain needs replacement, usually just that the left and right cutters have been sharpened unevenly.

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Well it just started cutting like that....it could be that I'm cutting larger rounds. I have my FIL's saw which needs a carb kit and a throttle link....I stole the 20" bar/chain. My Jonsered had a 18". I haven't had time to try it yet.

Dan

jburlingham said:

Id say just because your cut is slanted doesn't mean that the chain needs replacement, usually just that the left and right cutters have been sharpened unevenly.

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Agreed.

I had two strange things happen to me (separate times). Once I was chopping up big stumps with an old Stihl 090 with a gear reduction unit and a six foot smooth roller tip bar. Could not get it to cut straight. Looked it over, the chain had been assembled from other chains, and in the process someone had set it up so there were about ten more cutters on one side than on the other. So that side cut faster, hence crooked cuts. Probably not your problem.

Another time I was trying to fall a good sized fir, about 48" on the stump. Could not get my saw to cut straight as I was sawing in the face. It'd cut crooked, I'd check, and all the cutters on one side were dull (only one side). SO I'd sharpen it, try again. In a minute I was cutting crooked again. Same side, cutters dull again. After the third time, I figured out that one of the bolts holding the dog teeth on the inside was loose and had backed out and was beating up all the cutters on that side of the chain. Easy fix.

If you're cutting crooked, your chain's not sharpened right.

Slim possibility, probably not your problem, but you might have too large a gauge bar for your chain. (050 chain in an 063 bar groove). This will allow your chain to wander in the groove. Or your bar groove might be wallered out. Might have crooked rails like others have described how to correct.

Finally, you might just be steering the saw crooked, but probably not that crooked. Might be a combination of factors, but check your chain sharpness first and foremost.

Nice day in the woods even if you didn't cut as much as you wanted.

Great pics, My new saw started cutting crooked about 30 min. into cutting, the cutters were trashed. Don't know what I hit probably a nail or wire. Try sharpening the chain before you buy an new bar and chain.

Gotta go with the chain. Everybody has a "Better side" when filing the teeth.
Usually the right side.

It's an unconcious thing, and besides, the Coals in the stove are never even.
A slight cut on the bias allows for a custom fit in the firebox...it's an "Enhancement". LOL!

Of course ALL of my rounds are paralel and square. uttahere:

I know ya ain't J-lo but NICE ASH!!!

Didja get good and 2-stroke stinky?
I swear it's the Human version of a Dog rolling in Coon poop!!!
Big cuts, small cuts, dosn't matter as long as ya have fun and get stinky!

Nice practice with fence posting that leaner BTW.

Stay safe!
Dingeryote

Stay safe!

From my own experience of incomplete sharpening of on side's teeth, I found that the cuts would curve, not slant. Bar would bind up in the cut due to flat metal trying to fit through arc of the curve.

Then againn...maybe I was WAY off and you're only slightly off?

Everyone is saying "it's the chain".... "it's the chain"!!

dingeryote said:

Gotta go with the chain. Everybody has a "Better side" when filing the teeth.
Usually the right side.

It's an unconcious thing, and besides, the Coals in the stove are never even.
A slight cut on the bias allows for a custom fit in the firebox...it's an "Enhancement". LOL!

Click to expand...

I know that I have a different angle on the sides. I just noticed that a while a go. However, it was cutting streight even with that difference.

I know ya ain't J-lo but NICE ASH!!!

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Yes I like it...it's dry, free (except for some sweat, gas....) I like the smell of the smoke (kinda smells like pipe smoke....a bit anyways) it burns hot.

Didja get good and 2-stroke stinky?
I swear it's the Human version of a Dog rolling in Coon poop!!!
Big cuts, small cuts, dosn't matter as long as ya have fun and get stinky!

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I guess you'll have to ask my wife. When one has been wearing a fragrance for a while one gets used to it and can't smell it so they put more on!

Nice practice with fence posting that leaner BTW.

Stay safe!
Dingeryote

Stay safe!

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Thanks!..... I'm wondering how to handle this thing with I get closer to the tree it's hung up on. I know it will get more and more towards vertical. Any tips?



Dan

From what i know and have exsperianced the cutts look straigt, not curved like a bad chain or bar would leave. I have found that when i am cutting leaners ( hung ups) like you are in the pics i end up with the same slanted cut, straight not curved. This is because the tree is on an angle and you are not comensating enough for it in your cut. When the chain starts cutting in a curve on side of your cutters is duller than the other.

I took a really good chainsaw safety and maintenance course at a local saw shop. Learned a lot about safe cutting practices and maintaining saws, bars, chains, etc; including proper felling techniques. Sounds like the first thing I would check is the evenness of teeth on each side. If they seem evenly sharp and worn down the same, then I would look at the bar. I got an 'even rail' tool (also called a chamfer file I think), that I run across the bar to make sure both sides are even. I looked on line and can't find a pic of this thing, probably cause its made in Sweden or some where over there. It basically slides over the bar with a guide so you know it is filing perpendicular. The earlier post that mentioned using a disk sander-good idea if you have access. This tool I got cost $30, but in the long run it will save me. You can probably get a saw shop to do it cheaper if you don't want the investment. The other thing to check(this typically if your saw binds), is if there are burrs on the bar edges (just under the chain). These should be filed off with a flat file. Good Luck

As others have said, I doubt VERY highly it's your bar. I've been cutting for over 30 years and never seen a bar wear uneven. What happens is they wear and the chain "sinks" into the bar causing ridges on the sides and the sides of the chain start dragging on it. Saw acts like it has no power and you can see the wear on the chain. Cure is to sand or file flat again. You can only do this a few times as they only heat treat(carberize) a small area on the bar. Once you get through that your into soft metal and it'll wear FAST.

Most common cause of curve, as others have said, is a dull/missharpened chain on ONE side. You will have a curve not a slant though. Yours looks straight just on a slant and if it is I think your problem is you started the cut not perpindicular to the log. Easy to do as your cutting the log on an angle and your natural tendancy is to hold the saw straight. Try cutting a length flat on the ground and see what happens. Your sawdust looks pretty fine and dusty as well which is a sign of a dull chain. Your depth gauges could need attenion too. If they are too shallow it won't allow the cutters to take a deep enough bite.

I was given a chain that had over half of the cutters broke off on one side side. For grins I sharpened it and tried it and it STILL cut straight. Ran that chain till teeth were completely worn out. My Dad went to an Oregon chain workshop when they had a sawshop and they said a chain should cut just like a new one IF it is sharpened correctly and gauges are correct. I love finding people who think otherwise and tell me to give me those "junk" chains.

Well I did say assuming the chain is reasonable, I guess the term reasonable is up to the beholder. I will contend that a true bar is more important than a perfect chain but arguing the point here is pointless as when both are right the saw will cut straight,,,end of discussion.

On the fencepost thing.

At a certain point, I'll just push 'em back over if they are small, or use a come along/ATV winch to unsnag 'em.

Usually, about the time you notice the tension reducing(Undercut dosn't open much) it's time before ya pinch the bar or worse.

Stay safe!
Dingeryote

bars WILL wear uneven--apparently---they dont always get the rails hardened the same--for whatever reason--as a saw seller--and repairer--its happened to me--and other saws ive worked on--and ive seen chips come out the rails--and i believe that spot got a little toooo hard--then as said--if you wear a groove into the bar--the bar aint being maintained properly--this will show on the bottom of the chain links also--

I think it's a bit of the bar and chain

olyman said:

bars WILL wear uneven--apparently---they dont always get the rails hardened the same--for whatever reason--as a saw seller--and repairer--its happened to me--and other saws ive worked on--and ive seen chips come out the rails--and i believe that spot got a little toooo hard--then as said--if you wear a groove into the bar--the bar aint being maintained properly--this will show on the bottom of the chain links also--

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I think it's a bit of the bar and chain. I took the bar to a sander today, put on the reading glasses and saw uneaven rails! I fixed that....

Now to get the chain the same on both sides!

Thanks for the input guys!

Dan

Addition

Starting with:

"I'm pretty sure it is my fault and how I hold the saw that is causing the problem. If I pay attention as I cut, I can cut straight but if I get in a hurry the blocks get slanted. It sure gets interesting trying to split those slanted ones."


then add:

"usually just that the left and right cutters have been sharpened unevenly."

in a manner that compensates for the above angle, (for instance, you have a tendency to cut to the right - oversharpen the left side cutters.)

WIN-WIN, right?

OK, skip my primitive humor.

=============

The analysis:
"......incomplete sharpening of on side's teeth, I found that the cuts would curve, not slant. Bar would bind up in the cut due to flat metal trying to fit through arc of the curve."

If the cuts are straight angled, then it probably is operator error.
If the cuts curve, it could be bar, chain or combination of the two.

It should be noted that with some of the very soft anti-vib mounts on newer saws it can require some concentration on staying straight. This wasn't always the case.