question on bar and chain?

[stihlman27]

Ok so I bought two new full chisel chains for my 20" 290 farm boss decided to do some firewood cutting today and I put the new chain on the bar and low and behold the links don't fully set in place like it should on the sprocket on the nose of the bar now I have the chains for about a month now since I bought them so I'm not looking to return them but I'm thinking about getting a new bar since the one I have now is a couple years old and its worn pretty good from the use my question is how do I know which bar to get that will work with my new chains I have for it?

 

[peter92]

Ok so I bought two new full chisel chains for my 20" 290 farm boss decided to do some firewood cutting today and I put the new chain on the bar and low and behold the links don't fully set in place like it should on the sprocket on the nose of the bar now I have the chains for about a month now since I bought them so I'm not looking to return them but I'm thinking about getting a new bar since the one I have now is a couple years old and its worn pretty good from the use my question is how do I know which bar to get that will work with my new chains I have for it?

if its a 3/8 chain, nose sprocket needs to be the same

 

[nathon918]

matching is your friend...

you likely bought a 3/8 pitch chain instead of .325 which is standard on a 290...
to switch to 3/8 you would have to also swap out the clutch sprocket/drum to 3/8 pitch, also have to match slot it bar to thickness of chain .050, .063 etc... the bar should have all of the information stamped on it near the mounting slot

 

[CTYank]

It would help you to determine a few things first, like pitch & gauge of bar and chain. Post that, and we can talk. Otherwise, it's just slinging stuff against the wall to see what sticks. When you know what the chain specs are (pitch, gauge, #DL & cutter type) you can easily get a chain to suit. For one, I can't see it from here.

You could try that line of questioning on your friendly local stihl dealer and see what sort of response you get. Sy Syms: "an educated consumer is our best customer." Words to live by.

 

[stihlman27]

Ok damn that suck haha my bar is worn so I deff need a new bar but I wasn't planning on switching out everything else I guess I should have asked before I bought

 

[Philbert]

If you bought the new chains at a saw shop, and plan on buying the bar there too, take everything in and set them down on the counter. Have a talk about what you need. If the chains are new, and not what you needed, maybe they will swap them out when you buy the bar.

If you are buying things on line, post photos of the: drive sprocket; old chain; new chain; and bar, along with any numbers that you can read on any of them.

Philbert

 

[stihlman27]

Ok yeah I bought the chains of ebayy well actually I bought four two for the 290 and two for the 391 haven't yet put one on the 391 to see how it fits

 

[Philbert]

The drive sprocket, chain, and bar have to work together as a system: pitch, gauge, drive link count.

Send us the info above for both saws and we will help you out. If the chains are 'wrong', maybe you can list them in the Trading Post.

Philbert

 

[stihlman27]

Ok I'll have to get the info tommorow after work everything's down in the shed

 

[svk]

Ok damn that suck haha my bar is worn so I deff need a new bar but I wasn't planning on switching out everything else I guess I should have asked before I bought

What makes you say it is worn? Unless it's visibly bent or the grooves are worn so badly that a proper chain wants to tip/cut sideways then there's no problem.

 

[William Maxwell]

I'll have to get the info tommorow after work everything's down in the shed

 

[stihlman27]

It was bent a little shop had to straighten it out the grooves by the nose look to be worn but I could be wrong

 

[jerrycmorrow]

I'm a firewood burner; been cutting 4-5 cords for 30+ years. course I own/use many saws, so take what I say for what its worth
Many years ago I straightened out a bent bar (with no kinks) on my bench vise; still using it. if the grooves are deep enough so that the links rest on the rail you got no problem. just make sure the rails are flat and the same depth.
no sense springing for a new bar unless you just want to. how old is your bar? how much time on it?
ditto on matching chain/bar/sprocket

 

[stihlman27]

I'm a firewood burner; been cutting 4-5 cords for 30+ years. course I own/use many saws, so take what I say for what its worth
Many years ago I straightened out a bent bar (with no kinks) on my bench vise; still using it. if the grooves are deep enough so that the links rest on the rail you got no problem. just make sure the rails are flat and the same depth.
no sense springing for a new bar unless you just want to. how old is your bar? how much time on it?
ditto on matching chain/bar/sprocket

The grooves were bad I took it to the dealer where I get all my things from and he even said they were bad I had about 4 years on the bar I used it hard those 3 years but I got the whole chain situation taken care of though

 

[Whitespider]

I've got two bars for my saw.
This is the third saw that's worn the 16 inch bar, it something over 20 years old and there ain't a speck of paint left on it... it's the bar I use 95% of the time, and I still can't find a reason to replace it.
*

 

[Vibes]

The only bar I ever ruined as firewood cutter was an old Craftsman bar that I was using to cut out roots in a ditch. Another one I had the tip replaced on.

 

[cmsmoke]

I don't know how far off the tip your chain sits, but I don't think the links are to rub the bar when there is a sprocket. There should be a little clearance. Mine don't and they are both in good shape. The sprocket style tip reduces friction, which saves on frequent bar tip replacements and is more efficient because it frees up some horsepower. Hard nose bars are used in abrasive conditions. Put one of the old chains on and look at it...you probably just didn't notice it before. I learned this not too long ago and even looked at 2 other saws to find out.
Edit: I just did some checking and there should be at least 1/32" clearance between the links and the tip.

 

[stihlman27]

Ok thanks

 

[mga]

Ok yeah I bought the chains of ebayy well actually I bought four two for the 290 and two for the 391 haven't yet put one on the 391 to see how it fits

click on some sponsor links above. you might find chains cheaper than ebay.