20" chain loop question

[GASoline71]

Well, fortunately (or unfortunately) you will get older and wiser, and someday you will understand. You will lose that razor sharp close up vision of yours when you hit about 45 years of age, and things will not be so easy. Me, I keep my chains sharp, and there is not that much difference between a sharp and a dull cutter. Yah, if I look close at the dull bits they are are not as bright. Easier for me to go by feel. Finger flick; dull, flick; sharp. I mark the starting link with a pen and go from there anyway. If I am interrupted, or watch TV while I am doing it, or lose track of where I was, I do not even have to think about it. No brainer.

Seriously... I hear you guys. I just think that sometimes sharpenin' chains gets way overengineered sometimes. My vision sucks... (I'm 39 BTW), I should be wearin' glasses most times but I don't.

I just hold the file as close to 30 deg. as I can, file until all cutters are shiny, hit the riders, and dog in and cut... EZ-PZ ... all my chains run through wood like a raped ape. Been doin' it that way for damn near 25 years.

Gary

 

[windthrown]

Sponsor attitude... wow... bad stuff...

Like I have posted BEFORE if you can't tell where on the loop you started maybe you shouldn't be filing the chain. Like really how do you tell if you actually get it SHARP??

My .02

Scott

Well, Mr Sponsor, dude, with that kind of attitude, you will be losing respect and business from the likes of me very fast on this site with posts like this. Show a little respect, eh?

Geez... steamey in here. Some guy posts a simple question that I and many others have had to deal with, and others want to beat up on an old blind person like he is the world's dumbest idiot. I have better than 20/20 distance vision. I had LASIK surgery about 5 years ago. Great out there in the woods. But up close, like when sharpening chains, things are fuzzy w/o reading glasses. That will not stop me from sharpening my chains though. No sir ree Scott.

:censored: sponsors...

 

[tawilson]

Well, Mr Sponsor, dude, with that kind of attitude, you will be losing respect and business from the likes of me very fast on this site with posts like this. Show a little respect, eh?

Geez... steamey in here. Some guy posts a simple question that I and many others have had to deal with, and others want to beat up on an old blind person like he is the world's dumbest idiot. I have better than 20/20 distance vision. I had LASIK surgery about 5 years ago. Great out there in the woods. But up close, like when sharpening chains, things are fuzzy w/o reading glasses. That will not stop me from sharpening my chains though. No sir ree Scott.

:censored: sponsors...

You did a great job putting into words what I was thinking. Also throw in a dose of "you don't do it my way so you must be an idiot" syndrome.

 

[tawilson]

Seriously... I hear you guys. I just think that sometimes sharpenin' chains gets way overengineered sometimes. My vision sucks... (I'm 39 BTW), I should be wearin' glasses most times but I don't.

I just hold the file as close to 30 deg. as I can, file until all cutters are shiny, hit the riders, and dog in and cut... EZ-PZ ... all my chains run through wood like a raped ape. Been doin' it that way for damn near 25 years.

Gary

Enjoy it. It's all downhill from 40 on. I'm just trying to hang on to what I got.

 

[GASoline71]

Enjoy it. It's all downhill from 40 on. I'm just trying to hang on to what I got.

I know... I'm not lookin' forward to it... LOL

Gary

 

[Fish]

This mess is all my fault..........

Darin has paid for my anger management counseling, and I have finished
the 12 step political correctness classes, and I still dropped the ball on this one.

I started this snowball rolling, and for this I am truly sorry.

I am getting to be an old geezer, but my vision up close is still good,
far off, forget about it.

I have always been a stickler for my sharpening, and I guard my rep
closely, but I closely watch every edge on every cutter, for burns, damage,
etc., so I know when I get done, I know it is good to go.
Occaisionally I get a "comeback", where the customer says I sharpened
it incorrectly. I stop everything, remove the chain, and show him the damaged cutters, as he must have hit something early on, but I do not
"accuse" him of anything, even though he knows what he hit.
I will resharpen it free that one time, but I let him know, I only do it once.

If he still has a problem with my sharpening, then he needs to find someone else.

That is usually the last time they complain, and they keep coming back.

But I apologize for my jumping in this post, as I should have known better.

But you guys have to admit, if you cannot see what you are sharpening,
how in the world can you know if you have got the chain sharp?
Other than taking it out and trying it? How can you be that outraged
with the other members that ask this?

I have found out after working on this junk a long time, that a "pro"
cutter, semi "pro", or whatever, ..., takes no advice or critiques on his/her
sharpenings, as they have been doing it this way for years................................................................., and so on.

 

[tawilson]

Uh, you file at the correct angle, make sure the cutters are the same length, and check the depth gauges. I don't have to "see" each and every gullet. Now tell me again how I'm doing it all wrong.

 

[tawilson]

And to make sure there is no confusion, that was not outrage, it was sarcasm.

 

[Gologit]

Uh, you file at the correct angle, make sure the cutters are the same length, and check the depth gauges. I don't have to "see" each and every gullet. Now tell me again how I'm doing it all wrong.

Nothing wrong at all. Take ten chainsaw people and they'll have ten slightly different ideas on how to sharpen. If you're cutting straight, pulling decent chips and (most important of all) you like the way it cuts it must mean you're doing it right.

 

[Sawin]

"But you guys have to admit, if you cannot see what you are sharpening,
how in the world can you know if you have got the chain sharp?"

I guess it is because the world is not perfect, and that includes my sharpening of chains. I do the best I can. I am the one using the saw, so I have to put up with my sharpening abilities.

I have old eyes and cataracts. Should I just not use the saw because I cannot see the chain as well as I could 10 yrs. ago. I think not.

For what it is worth I have always used a lumber crayon to mark the first tooth sharpened. As someone stated, this makes it a no brainer. I try to do things like this because then I don't have to think. The less I have to think, the better I get along.

 

[Stihl-in-Ky]

Been marking the first tooth with a magic marker for 33 seasons always just made sense to me. /still works :rockn:

 

[tawilson]

Uh, you file at the correct angle, make sure the cutters are the same length, and check the depth gauges. I don't have to "see" each and every gullet. Now tell me again how I'm doing it all wrong.

Thanks guys, I left out the most important part, first I find the shortest tooth and mark it with a red Majic Marker.

 

[Fish]

What about chains that have hit something, like rocks or nails?
How do you know when you have removed the damaged material?
When the cutter gets sharpened over halfway, do you go to a smaller file?

Not trying to fight, just curious.

 

[turnkey4099]

What about chains that have hit something, like rocks or nails?
How do you know when you have removed the damaged material?
When the cutter gets sharpened over halfway, do you go to a smaller file?

Not trying to fight, just curious.

Answer to this and one aways back. How do I tell? Without the eyes to see well with, I have had to resort to feel. I use (or did) a file guide that sets the angles, count strokes and then feel the point. If thepoint feels sharp, the rest of the tooth will also be sharp. It is not the best way to get a good sharp job but it beats the alternative of having to give up the saws.

Due to the vision problem I bought one of the HF grinders last year. To say that I am disappointed in the results so far is an understatement. By the end of the season, I used the grinder to even up the teeth about every 3rd sharping and then finishing with the guide.

Harry K

 

[tawilson]

What about chains that have hit something, like rocks or nails?
How do you know when you have removed the damaged material?
When the cutter gets sharpened over halfway, do you go to a smaller file?

Not trying to fight, just curious.

I liking hashing this stuff over, I may learn something. I lost interest a while back in filing down damaged chain. Too much wear and tear on the files and my wrists. I saved them for my dealer. I have a couple of the NT grinders now and I use them for the banged up chains. I probably take too much off, but I don't care. Chains aren't made of gold and I was never one to complain about my dealer grinding a lot off. I know some people who do. And no, I've never switched to a smaller file, and I like the way a chain cuts near the end of it's life. I dunno why.
But when it comes to just touching up a chain, a couple of files strokes, and I can't tell which cutter I've worked on, and I've tried. I've seen some of the closeup pics of filed cutters that have been posted here, and I can see the difference then.
Turnkey, I'm not one to spend money on junk, and I was real hesitant on ordering one of the NT grinders even though it was only a $100 bucks, but after getting one I ordered the 2nd shortly. I'm surprised they are still selling them for that. They may not hold up under constant use, but for a one man show they are a good deal.

 

[Fish]

Well, being the guy that works on saws, and sharpens chains for a living,
I am in a different situation. Yes, a few of the guys bring in the chains
to get the angles trued back up, but not many. Most people are leery
of paying someone to grind/sharpen their chains, as they have been
screwed by other shops before, and I cannot blame them. They are also
real touchy about tooth loss, and again, I cannot blame them. In my
previous shop, where I was the mechanic, parts guy, the whole deal,
I took time to explain what and why I was going to do to their chain,
explain why I was going to have to remove this much material, true up
the angles, etc, so they wouldn't go all over town telling everyone how I
butchered their chain, so to me, seeing, watching, what I was doing
precisely is quite important, as I am very protective of my rep as a
chain sharpener and mechanic.
If you get good results with your method, then stay at it, and ignore
pharts like me.

And most of all, do not get mad at me, I just like stirring up the muck.

 

[windthrown]

File switch half way

When the cutter gets sharpened over halfway, do you go to a smaller file?

Not trying to fight, just curious.

According to my Stihl dealer here, on RM/RS 3/8" .050" chain, rather than go with a 13/64 file (which Stihl recommends), he recommended a 7/32 file to start, and after the teeth are worn down about half way, switch to a 3/16 file.

 

[rahtreelimbs]

I've been marking the tooth I start with since day one!

Seeing what tooth you start out on on a rocked out chain is easy...........if you are just touching up an otherwise slightly dull chain that is another matter!

Guess my eyesight sucks!!!

 

[Jaxx]

Try fingernail polish -- white or yellow. Clean the oil off the link first...

 

[SawTroll]

That is true, I seldom mark the cutter I start with - no need to.

Counting as you file also helps......

Works great on the short loops but it's a bit of a pain on the long ones, especially if you get interrupted mid-loop.

That may be true, but you can allways fall back on the look of them......

But I have nothing against using an ink marker as a backup either, when the lighting isn't too good.......