What is the best way to square off the bar rails?

[Crofter]

Here is a few pictures of a method of quick checking your bar rails for out of square. I use a welding rod here, but a chain file works dandy. Simply place it between chain and bar and tuck a chip or so on opposite side of bar to hold chain tight. Sight from end of bar and it will be obvious if one rail is higher than the other as the rod gives an extended dimension to the rails.
In the first picture I place a single thickness of paper on one rail to show what three thou out of square woould look like. The next two are checking top and bottom of bar.

 

[sedanman]

Neat trick, simple and effective.

 

[Mange]

Here is a few pictures of a method of quick checking your bar rails for out of square. I use a welding rod here, but a chain file works dandy. Simply place it between chain and bar and tuck a chip or so on opposite side of bar to hold chain tight. Sight from end of bar and it will be obvious if one rail is higher than the other as the rod gives an extended dimension to the rails.
In the first picture I place a single thickness of paper on one rail to show what three thou out of square woould look like. The next two are checking top and bottom of bar.

Wery good tip about checking the rails.

 

[njforestfire]

Good tip Crofter. Flipping the bar does extend life but one can only flip it so many times over the years. I do agree that the chain has all the blame for the rail issue - especially if the length of the cutting teeth are not the same.

 

[Crofter]

Mike, you are a scourge! Your teachers must have been relieved to see your tail lights Lol!

 

[Al Smith]

I take it all back,Mike,you do have a sense of humor

 

[Stumper]

Perhaps more humor than sense.

 

[a_lopa]

raker file

 

[Redbull]

I use a special tool used for tuning snowboard/ski edges. Seems to work quite well. I've seen similar tools in Bailey's.

 

[1953greg]

with bar removed from saw and chain, clamp bar into vise horizontal. get a piece of angle metal (bout 10" long x 1-2" side) and c clamp a flat file to the inside of the angle. now you have a file w/ a 90* guide. run this lengthwise the bar w/ the file on the rails. really simple. if you can find a piece of angle that has a very tight radius on the inside of the angle the file wil take off both rails at the same time. if not then flip the file/guide around. lay a stright edge on the rails to check for squareness. go slow w/ little pressure. doesnt take much force. 1953greg

 

[galde]

The big advantage of using a large-diameter disk sander or a stone or disk in a table saw is the relatively large flat area that contacts the bar rails. This avoids the problem of going too deep in places, which produces dips in the bar contour. The bar should be everywhere convex, so that the tension in the chain keeps it in the groove. Always stay away from the very edge of the disk to avoid making notches in the rails. I use the disk edge only when cleaning upthe area of the nose sprocket. After trueing up the rails, I use a flap wheel to polish the rails and to put a slight fillet on the outer edges.