Stihl Not Cutting

[jpistolero02]

I have a MS250 16" and for the life of me I can't get the thing to cut worth a darn. Me and a friend set out to cut a bunch of oak yesterday and he has a cheap Sears saw with an 18" bar. He was blowing right through the wood. I started with a brand new chain purchased from my Stihl dealer and it has the yellow tag for more aggressive. Even right out of the box it wasn't cutting anywhere near his saw. I took my Pferd to it later in the day and it feels sharp as heck, but it just doesn't rip through the wood at all. If I don't give it heavy pressure it just sits there and cuts very little. What's odd is it seems to cut pretty good if I come from the underside of the log upwards. Any ideas on what I am doing wrong?

 

[blades]

chain on backwards?- It happens

 

[jpistolero02]

That is a fair question, but yes it is on the right way. I flipped the bar over and sharpened it some more and it's definitely better. Not sure if my bar might be shot. It looks ok, but I am no expert.

 

[2PPacker]

chain on backwards?- It happens

That was my first thought. Yes, I've done it.

 

[lone wolf]

I have a MS250 16" and for the life of me I can't get the thing to cut worth a darn. Me and a friend set out to cut a bunch of oak yesterday and he has a cheap Sears saw with an 18" bar. He was blowing right through the wood. I started with a brand new chain purchased from my Stihl dealer and it has the yellow tag for more aggressive. Even right out of the box it wasn't cutting anywhere near his saw. I took my Pferd to it later in the day and it feels sharp as heck, but it just doesn't rip through the wood at all. If I don't give it heavy pressure it just sits there and cuts very little. What's odd is it seems to cut pretty good if I come from the underside of the log upwards. Any ideas on what I am doing wrong?

The only possible answer is you hit dirt and did not realize it. you may think you sharpened it but it is prob dull. Try one more new chain and pay attention not to come in contact with the ground.

 

[KenJax Tree]

Post some pics of the chain.

It should look like this

Or

 

[lone wolf]

Post some pics of the chain

Ain't no way that chain ain't rocked! I go through this with my guys every time we cut. Hand him a saw with a brand new almost razor sharp chain seconds later" it ain't cutting I don't know why I didn't hit anything"

 

[lone wolf]

Post some pics of the chain.

It should look like this

Or

You scared me at first I thought it was his

 

[jpistolero02]

Thanks guys. I will try and post a picture when I get home. It definitely doesn't have any dings in the teeth. I initially did about 5 passes with the Pferd, but went back and did a few more. I think it was me thinking it was sharp, but the chain was still dull. This was my first time using that sharpener, so I wasn't sure how many passes I could make.

 

[lone wolf]

Thanks guys. I will try and post a picture when I get home. It definitely doesn't have any dings in the teeth. I initially did about 5 passes with the Pferd, but went back and did a few more. I think it was me thinking it was sharp, but the chain was still dull. This was my first time using that sharpener, so I wasn't sure how many passes I could make.

Its dull or on backwards or the bar is bent or your saw is on its last lb of compression. I want to say its the chain.

 

[KenJax Tree]

Ain't no way that chain ain't rocked! I go through this with my guys every time we cut. Hand him a saw with a brand new almost razor sharp chain seconds later" it ain't cutting I don't know why I didn't hit anything"

I hear ya...some guys could destroy an anvil with a rubber mallet

 

[HuskStihl]

I would try flipping the bar and see if it improves. It is possible u'r rails are spread on the "bottom" of the bar, and the chain is flopping. If the chain is brand new stihl, it will be a bar or saw issue. Saw tuned too lean, will rob power, but I'm betting the bar has a problem

 

[ANewSawyer]

Post some pics of the chain.

It should look like this

Or

When I was learning to sharpen, I can't tell you just how much photos like that helped me.

To the gentleman who asked the question, keep in mind that you or I think is sharp may be less sharp than what these guys are used to. IIRC, a sharp cutter should be able to cut paper just a little bit. I may be wrong about that though.

 

[jpistolero02]

Here is what the teeth look like.

 

[JBA]

I hear ya...some guys could destroy an anvil with a rubber mallet

Half of the Union Carpenters I work with are that guy. MBM is their motto. " mash-bash-and mulilate"

 

[I'llbearealclimberoneday]

Here is what the teeth look like.

It looks like there is space underneath the back of the side link. If that's the case, the bar groove is too shallow and your bar is shot. Try rocking the cutters sideways. If they move more than a few degrees by hand they can wander around in the cut, cut crooked , make a lot of friction and cut slow.

 

[Woody912]

It looks like there is space underneath the back of the side link. If that's the case, the bar groove is too shallow and your bar is shot. Try rocking the cutters sideways. If they move more than a few degrees by hand they can wander around in the cut, cut crooked , make a lot of friction and cut slow.

Is his file set too high???

 

[jpistolero02]

Do I need to tighten the chain so it's hard to turn to do the side to side test? Right now it's got a little slop to it, but I have the tension set to where I can just pull the teeth down enough to see the tip.

 

[Woody912]

Do I need to tighten the chain so it's hard to turn to do the side to side test? Right now it's got a little slop to it, but I have the tension set to where I can just pull the teeth down enough to see the tip.

Your bar groove may need to be cleaned so the chain can sit down, may be full of crap

 

[I'llbearealclimberoneday]

http://www.madsens1.com/bnc_bar_maint.htm

This is a pretty good read explaining bar wear, problem areas and what causes them. It explains the side test with pictures much better than I can with text