Trx250r180
Saw polisher
from what i have seen ,the triangle does the top fine ,but not so good on the side plate
there is also a "goofy " file ,but it gives kind of a rounder side plate
the 6 sided seems to give the sharpest outer corner
New chains cut like a knife thru butter-how to keep them that way?
- Thread starter eriklane
- Start date
Help Support Arborist Forum:
from what i have seen ,the triangle does the top fine ,but not so good on the side plate
there is also a "goofy " file ,but it gives kind of a rounder side plate
the 6 sided seems to give the sharpest outer corner
Nuzzy
Trail Gnome
Cutter shape and file type aside, do you understand why someone would choose full comp vs half skip vs full skip...?
The only reason I know of is when you are using a bar that is long for your saw, the chain will keep moving at a decent rate (but cut a little slower). I have also heard because there are less teeth to sharpen, but the teeth are what cut.
poulan thrower
ArboristSite Lurker
a goofy file also called a chissle tooth file look them up
Hedgerow
HACK
Last year in Iowa, we did a pretty good test of chain brands and cutter types on "out of the box" chains. I can't find the dang thread anywhere, but if memory serves me correctly, the Oregon square was the fastest followed by stihl square.
they were followed up by Oregon LGX then Stihl RS, then carlton/woodland pro
shootingarts
ArboristSite Operative
- Joined
- Jan 4, 2010
- Messages
- 448
- Reaction score
- 486
Responding to the push/pull comments, I think I will try pulling to the outside. I do like pulling when round filing, might like it better square filing too. Got to be on the outside of the tooth to see what I am doing but pulling should work if I just reverse the file.
Hu
Hu
poulan thrower
ArboristSite Lurker
you need to be carful when using the goofy file dont tap it on the chain like people usually do with round files i find they are more brittle and you can easly bend the grooves in them and they dont sharpen as well
Locust Cutter
Sawing for Sanity
I need to get my vise bolted down to my bench and either pick up a goofy file or a 6-sided... I wouldn't do anywhere near all of them that way, but it might be the ticket when dealing with Cedar, Pine and piss elm...
Hedgerow
HACK
Leave more metal to support the cutting point, and I've cut hedge with square ground chain.. Got 3 tanks use out of it before having to touch it up.. I'll use anything for chain.. I'm a chain whore...
Locust Cutter
Sawing for Sanity
Matt, next time we can hook up I'd like to borrow you a few minutes for a hands-on tutorial... I'm sure I can figure it out, but it's nice to learn from someone who already knows...
Hedgerow
HACK
Drive on over this weekend... I won't be at the Grantsburg races...
Trx250r180
Saw polisher
Like Mike mentioned the depth guages are not touched when using the 6 sided file ,i do not use this file for the rakers ,i have a raker file ,basicly a flat file with rounded sides ,and a guage i just set across a few cutters ,i have a .025 and a .030 guage ,there are others availible ,but any more than that i find i get a grabby chain ,and it goes dull real fast ,the rakers seem to protect the cutters somewhat
Ruark
ArboristSite Lurker
New chain works fine for me. I used Oregon 72JGX on my 24" Husky 576XP-AT. Cuts like the devil. When I sharpen, I give each link 3 to 5 pushes with the correct file, and a couple of pushes on top of each raker with a flat file, and it's back to work.
Locust Cutter
Sawing for Sanity
I'd love to, but I think that a trip to your place is going to require a bit of planning on my part both from a scheduling and financial point of view. What are you about 3 hours away?Drive on over this weekend... I won't be at the Grantsburg races...
I did a little research on square ground chain and this is what I learned:
1) Full Chisel (round) cuts about 10-15% faster than semi chisel, and square ground cuts about 10-15% faster than full chisel.
2) In less than ideal conditions (dirty wood, etc) it will dull faster than round ground, just as full chisel will dull faster than semi chisel.
3) I believe there are two reasons it cuts faster, the geometry is a little better, and the cutting angles are at about 45 degrees (instead of 30). This is also why it is more vulnerable to dirt, etc. Also the Top Plate angle is 15-20 degrees, compared to 30 on full chisel and 10 on rip chains.
4) The main reason it is less popular is because it is far more difficult to sharpen properly, and there are additional steps required, such as Gullet Maintenance.
I highly recommend anyone considering square ground to view the "Madson's Shop & Supply Inc." instructions for sharpening square ground chains, and make sure to pop up "Sharpening Angles of Square Ground Saw Chain" and "Chain Gullets Explained". These things will really help you to understand what is going on.
Of course competition chains will have different angles, but I'm interested in an everyday cutting chain. After using full chisel I never went back to semi chisel, and if I can get this sharpening thing down right, I may be going to square cut, but will likely keep a round cut available for backup for quit a while.
1) Full Chisel (round) cuts about 10-15% faster than semi chisel, and square ground cuts about 10-15% faster than full chisel.
2) In less than ideal conditions (dirty wood, etc) it will dull faster than round ground, just as full chisel will dull faster than semi chisel.
3) I believe there are two reasons it cuts faster, the geometry is a little better, and the cutting angles are at about 45 degrees (instead of 30). This is also why it is more vulnerable to dirt, etc. Also the Top Plate angle is 15-20 degrees, compared to 30 on full chisel and 10 on rip chains.
4) The main reason it is less popular is because it is far more difficult to sharpen properly, and there are additional steps required, such as Gullet Maintenance.
I highly recommend anyone considering square ground to view the "Madson's Shop & Supply Inc." instructions for sharpening square ground chains, and make sure to pop up "Sharpening Angles of Square Ground Saw Chain" and "Chain Gullets Explained". These things will really help you to understand what is going on.
Of course competition chains will have different angles, but I'm interested in an everyday cutting chain. After using full chisel I never went back to semi chisel, and if I can get this sharpening thing down right, I may be going to square cut, but will likely keep a round cut available for backup for quit a while.
Yeah, all chains need their gullets maintained to some extent.
The gullets carry chips. In an extreme case, the side of gullet could stick out as far or more than the sideplate of the cutter. (square ground illustration below from Oregon Maintenance and Safety Manual)
I think that on square ground chain this is emphasized more because the top of the gullet forms a sharp point which is more likely to stick in?
After I sharpen a chain I sometimes go back for a second pass with the grinder, or a bare file, to clean up tke gullet. Like depth gauge maintenance, this is usually not needed each time.
Philbert
The gullets carry chips. In an extreme case, the side of gullet could stick out as far or more than the sideplate of the cutter. (square ground illustration below from Oregon Maintenance and Safety Manual)
I think that on square ground chain this is emphasized more because the top of the gullet forms a sharp point which is more likely to stick in?
After I sharpen a chain I sometimes go back for a second pass with the grinder, or a bare file, to clean up tke gullet. Like depth gauge maintenance, this is usually not needed each time.
Philbert
