Does anyone else find it amazing how many people simply cannot sharpen a saw?

[Wood Doctor]

So, men, when the saw pulls to the right, sharpen the _______ side more to make straighter cuts with the same chain. When the saw pulls to the left, sharpen the ______ side more to make straighter cuts.

If you have no file available when all of this is happening and you have to make straight cuts, what do you do then?

 

[gunrac]

In my experience i can get a straiter tooth with a grinder ,but a sharper tooth with a file ,think of the edge of your tooth as a knife blade ,yes a grinder will sharpen your knife ,but a file will get a sharper edge if done right ,most all square race chains i have seen are done by hand

K' push mower or zero turn......I'm gettin old.......time is of more valuable to me.......to each his own.......

 

[Molan Labe]

This was a waste of money for me... maybe a bad brand selection? I have no idea??

http://www.clarkforest.com/shop/cha...2-inch/vallorbe-7-32-chainsaw-sharpening-kits

 

[mdavlee]

This was a waste of money for me... maybe a bad brand selection? I have no idea??

http://www.clarkforest.com/shop/cha...2-inch/vallorbe-7-32-chainsaw-sharpening-kits

Vallorbe makes some good files. Some of that stuff would be handy.

 

[CR888]

I find that there is'nt a 'one grind suits all' situation with chain. Differrent brands, pitches and gauges like slightly different filling. I run into this with carlton for example, with a stihl picco semi chisel 050 vs carlto n1 low pro semi chisel l find what works for the stihl chain does not work well on the carlton and vice versa. Just my little input....

 

[72thing]

I can get the job done by hand filing but could definitely do better with more practice. If I ran a saw more often, then I'd dull more often and have to sharpen more often. When I worked for a logging company, the rule was "you dull it, you sharpen it." I spent a lot of time sharpening, lol. Those rocks came out of nowhere.
One thing I've seen is people trying to sharpen a chain with a wore out file. I've been guilty of it before when I didn't have an extra. It sure makes a huge difference!

 

[stihl sawing]

Hand filing with a good file is not hard, Once you get the angle down you can sharpen one pretty quick. Mine will usually last most of the day cutting oak. Just don't let it hit the dirt.

 

[lambs]

Does anyone make a diamond file for square sharpening?

I do not know about square filing, but I noticed no one responded to your post yet. i do not think diamond files are recommended for saw chain use. Not sure why though.

 

[Tnshaker]

2 best I have ever seen at are both former professional loggers. One of the two is on here. His name is Terry Land rum. I still have a chain off his personal 562. That chain was even more amazing than the saw.

 

[mdavlee]

I've heard of a few people having them made but I don't think it's economical. The regular ones work great and I don't know if they could get one to last long enough over the regular steel.

 

[branchbuzzer]

A lot of the mistakes that I see from beginners on hand filing is from trying to jump into it too fast without knowing the reasoning behind it, i.e. why are the rakers set at a certain height, why are the cutters filed at a certain angle, why is the file supposed to be a certain amount under the top plate, etc. What happens when those things are done incorrectly and recognizing it.

For sure everybody has a different level of coordination as well. Making a fast, long and straight stroke with a file takes a bit of coordination and practice to achieve, especially if it's done freehand without a guide, but that's how a lot of beginners try to do it the first time. They see someone with experience zipping through a whole chain in a few minutes, then they try and emulate that themselves too soon and it ends up predictably.

Take your time. Use short strokes if you're just starting out. Don't sharpen in the field unless absolutely necessary. Use guides, a vise and sharp files. Learn WHY you're doing that way, don't just copy it.

 

[bigblackdodge]

[quote="bigblackdodge, post: 4660517, mem


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And will lead to premature wear of the Operator, Saw & Chain. I've even had many, fresh out of the box chains, that were grossly under prepared for being put on a Quality Saw and used on a wood.

Dang u type a lot of noise......go w/short. simple an quick.....if i wanted to read a book......i'll go to the
library.......no offence.......but to much BS
......[/quote]

LOL! No offense taken gunrac. I actually have to agree with you 100%. I have a very bad habit of making a Short Story Long! Always been that way. Not sure why. Seem to talk way too much, yet not really say much when it's all said and done. I do envy those who seem to be able to let their mind think about what they want to say, without speaking. My Grandfather and my Father have always been that way. Me? Nay Nay. For some reason I can't stand silent spots during conversations among folks, makes me anxious.

What's Ironic about it, is that I've always loved the old adages about Speaking Less, and Saying More. Seems so hard for me to do. Lol.

No, I'm not offended at all. Honestly, I appreciate it. I do. I needed that, so Thank You gunrac. I'm gonna work on that. ;-)

Oh wait, now I remember. ADHD! Lol. Gotta go now, just saw a Squirrel go by.....


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[lone wolf]

So, men, when the saw pulls to the right, sharpen the _______ side more to make straighter cuts with the same chain. When the saw pulls to the left, sharpen the ______ side more to make straighter cuts.

If you have no file available when all of this is happening and you have to make straight cuts, what do you do then?

Cut half way go to other side finish.

 

[Philbert]

This was a waste of money for me... maybe a bad brand selection? I have no idea??

Those are nice kits for those who free hand file (or would use it with a file guide). Vallorbe makes nice files. Maybe you can put it on CraigsList or pass it on to one of the members here who will use it.

Philbert

 

[Trx250r180]

K' push mower or zero turn......I'm gettin old.......time is of more valuable to me.......to each his own.......

I grind most of my chains on my silvey grinder, I was just pointing out what I found works from my experiences, a lot of guys here cannot afford to drop 1 k or more on a grinder and are not confident they can file,I was hoping by posting it can be done ,more guys may try a file to maintain their chains, I don't have a zero turn yet so I will have to push what i have for now,it gets the job done

 

[ReggieT]

Power sharp.

How does that Power Sharp do with RSC or just in general??

 

[Terry Syd]

Here's what I wrote in another thread -

"Can you sharpen a knife? It is the same concept, you have to remove the 'glint' off the edge. If you take a dull knife and look at it under the light you will see the light reflecting off the dull edge.

The reason it reflects off the dull edge is because the edge is ROUNDED. If it was sharp, the light would reflect off either side of the sharp edge and you wouldn't see the reflected light - it would be reflected away. Because the edge is ROUNDED it will reflect light back up to your eyes. A sharp knife doesn't do that.

The 'glint' on the edge of a chainsaw cutter is the same concept. The light will not reflect off a sharp edge, it will go either side of the edge.

Try a Husky 'roller guide' to get the hang of it. Unlike some other filing devices, you can look down on the cutter edge as you remove the glint'. When it is gone, the edge is sharp. The guide also sets the right height of the file to get a proper 'hook' on the cutter. The hook is the progressive edge that goes from sharp at the edge to a steeper angle after the edge.

The guide also has a 'progressive' raker plate. The rakers need to be taken down progressively as the cutter edge is shortened by the each filing. The 'cutting angle' is a function of trigonometry mathematics between the length of the 'gullet' (tip of the cutter to the contact point with the wood on the raker) and the depth of the rakers. The progressive raker plate takes out all the mathematics and makes it simple, just file off the raised portion of the raker."

OK, that Husky roller guide is very simple and was the key to me learning to sharpen a chain, in more ways than one.

As a newbee I slipped on the guide for the first time and proceeded to file away. After finishing one side, I turned the saw around in the vise and started on the other side. After about 3-4 cutters I noticed they didn't have the same shape as the other side. I had filed the entire first side with the guide on BACKWARDS!

So back to the first side again and resharpen them properly, then on to the other side. I tried cutting with the chain and discovered what happens when one side of the chain has longer cutters than the other side. I eventually got it all figured out, but that chain was more abused by my filing than by the wood - it is now my 'stumping' chain.

 

[Molan Labe]

How does that Power Sharp do with RSC or just in general??

RSC?
It took me awhile to settle on a power sharp. A bunch of members on here said they are a gimmick. I don't see it that way, for casual user who doesn't have time for mess'n with files or spend money to pay someone else to do the sharpening.
I will finish 4-5 acres sometime tomorrow with only a couple times sharpening at a few seconds each time... stupendous!!
I am told they aren't for commercial use. Maybe that is what they were thinking?? Don't know, I can't file so problem solved.
Plus, they seem to be going down in price.

 

[griffonks]

RSC?
It took me awhile to settle on a power sharp. A bunch of members on here said they are a gimmick. I don't see it that way, for casual user who doesn't have time for mess'n with files or spend money to pay someone else to do the sharpening.
I will finish 4-5 acres sometime tomorrow with only a couple times sharpening at a few seconds each time... stupendous!!
I am told they aren't for commercial use. Maybe that is what they were thinking?? Don't know, I can't file so problem solved.
Plus, they seem to be going down in price.

Weedeaterman.com, an AS site sponsor has the Oregon power sharp. I thought about buying a setup for dirty wood, but wound up buying an Oregon 511 AX bench grinder instead. I used it for the first time today, rocked out on some rocked chains! Very cool! of course after I ground the cutters and set the rakers I filed them... old habits die hard.

 

[Dan_IN_MN]

RSC?
It took me awhile to settle on a power sharp. A bunch of members on here said they are a gimmick. I don't see it that way, for casual user who doesn't have time for mess'n with files or spend money to pay someone else to do the sharpening.
I will finish 4-5 acres sometime tomorrow with only a couple times sharpening at a few seconds each time... stupendous!!
I am told they aren't for commercial use. Maybe that is what they were thinking?? Don't know, I can't file so problem solved.
Plus, they seem to be going down in price.

I agree with you. PowerSharp works.

Being a member of AS I have learned what a sharp cutter feels and looks like.
I can hand file and use a grinder. Both are good to know how to do.

I wonder how many guys grew up using hand tools like I did? Probably not that many. I'm sure using hand tools from a young age has helped me using a file.

Knowing when a chain is dull, stop and sharpen I believe is the key. The more rounded over the cutters are, the more work it takes to get them back.

Also, like others mentioned, files do wear out. I've found myself using a certain part of the file because it was sharper.

Depth gauges. If the cutter can't dip into the wood to cut it, ...... well...

A properly sharpened/adjusted chain will make any saw cut better!