Used Dirty chainsaws

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Mr. LaForge owner of Great Lakes Tree Removal, uses compressed air to clean his saws after every days use. Blows out air filter, chain cover, bar grooves and sharpens chains while having a beer at his shop bar. His chipper, dump trailer, lift truck, dump trucks, backhoe, loaders, excavator, tractors and other equipment is not new but well maintained. Pride in his equipment shows, he is an anomaly!
 
Mr. LaForge owner of Great Lakes Tree Removal, uses compressed air to clean his saws after every days use. Blows out air filter, chain cover, bar grooves and sharpens chains while having a beer at his shop bar. His chipper, dump trailer, lift truck, dump trucks, backhoe, loaders, excavator, tractors and other equipment is not new but well maintained. Pride in his equipment shows, he is an anomaly!
I pretty much follow that routine. The beer part anyhow.:innocent:
 
Really does help in post sawing clean-up. Only takes about 3 minutes to apply the spray wax and wipe off. One thing I always wondered is how many people pull the chain brake mechanism cover off and clean under it. Any saws I worked on for other people it was always filthy even if the rest of the saw was fairly clean.

No doubt it would help with the cleanup but all my saws get is a compressed air wash after use , it may be years before a cover comes off but our conditions are different here and I mostly only cut hardwood in the winter, much cleaner than cutting softwood that is full of sticky sap.
 
My saws get top cover, clutch cover, air filter, bar groove and entire saw blown off after each time cutting. Touch up chain when done. Mainly cutting Red Oak here and it still makes a mess. I am anal and time is not a concern.
 
I like dirty on the outside, pristine and ported on the inside. People don't steal dirty, scratched up saws.

The work saws need too much to be shiny anyway. Just keeping the chains sharp and the internals clear is most of what I can keep up with.

I have a soft spot for dirty saws, especially when I'm buying. They go cheap and often don't have as much time on them.
 
Just wondering how you all clean up dirty saws before working on them. I use air but I have a couple of saws that need complete rebuilds and are filthy and it's hard to clean them up. I usually pressure wash them at work but I'm not sure it's best.
 
As Gomer Pyle would say, shame, shame, shame.

I was blowing them off with a air hose. But some of the used saws I purchased were neglected so bad I may soak them with brakekleen. The fins on the cylinder are crusted with dirt and grime. Clean them up once, keep them clean, run the snots out of them.
 
Different areas take different treatment. I start with air, then simple purple, then a plastic pick, more purple, lite pressure wash, air. I put a rubber glove over the air intake with a rubber band before I use water.

Cylinder fins get dental scraped and degreased, then I wait until my wife isn't home and scrub them in the sink with long bristle brushes. Sometimes I torch cylinder exteriors and almost always mufflers and shields.

Take off parts like covers, recoil and brake handle get soaked, scrubbed and hit with air. If I'm reviving plastics I do the above then scrape with metal/razor blades and sand to 2000grit. Urethane thinnned with mineral spirits, finish sand and Pinesol.

Wire brush cases and paint if they are missing a lot of paint, but I almost never do that. Paint darkness around the muffler is usually tolerated.

I don't bother deep cleaning my own saws, but saws I sell often get a deeper shine.
 
Dirt, grease and grime are no big deal in the great scheme of things. I love dirty saws, the more covered with muck, the better. Why? Nobody wants to deal with them. People pass them up and they go for very cheap. Usually, under all that schmutz you find a decent saw. It amazes me how much more sellers could get with a little degreaser and pressure washing.
 

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