Chain sharpening

[WadePatton]

yo yo yo!

best piece of how-to-prevent-this advice i ever got and would have never figgered out on my own was from these very forums and i'm really surprised it hasn't been mentioned here yet.

sure, check the bar-straight with square rails-- and then flip the saw over and now the previously "easy" side to sharpen is now the opposite side. sharpen it inverted a few times and see how she cuts.

stump vice--i gotta cut some of those, now that i've seen the vid. tired of chasing my saw all over the tailgate.

 

[Walt41]

I have never been able to come close to machine results with hand filing, we have an old local here that does any size chain for $5 and they come out like new.

 

[WadePatton]

I have never been able to come close to machine results with hand filing, we have an old local here that does any size chain for $5 and they come out like new.

i use the granberg jig at home and "touch" up in the woods. carlton site info is grea-i learned about too much hook there.

 

[rtrsam]

Cheap grinders can cause problems; usually if they don't hold the tooth perfectly while the grinder wheel is applied, it can cause uneven sharpening. I use a Silvey Model 510 which is pretty accurate, but no better than I can do by hand (a LOT faster, though, especially on full comp chain and longer chains). Also the grinder wheel can wear quickly, and lose its profile for shaping the tooth properly.

If you used the same grinder for 1/4" chain (uncommon chain these days) you might have the wrong size wheel for 3/8' chain (think a 5/32" file or a 3/16" file or 7/32" file).

If you've got crooked cuts, before I even looked at the bar I would evaluate the chain. If you are not 100% certain that the chain is properly sharpened (not the word "properly"), make certain.

I've known people to carry or save one or two teeth of factory chain (get them from a saw shop when you buy new chain) jsut so they have somethig to refer to; file your chain until each tooth looks like the new one

 

[blackdiesel]

This is not true, in fact it is very close to the opposite of the truth. To say an electric sharpener can't even come close to hand sharpening is almost like saying the best machine shops use guys with files rather than modern machinery....

I can out sharpen any new chain or any of your reground chains. granted, if you have a 500 dollar professional grinder you may be able to get a reground chain to cut "like new". but it still cant compare to an experienced hand filed chain. A new chain is sharped for any idiot can use it, If someone that don't know what there doing trys to use my saw, that wouldn't be good. I file down the drags more than new, so it will kick back bad, but will cut ALOT faster. I have the northern sharpener it works ok for my processor 404 chains, but I hand sharpen my saw chains. P.S. I cut wood for a living I know what I'm talking about