Weird problem with Forester bar, ( anyone else experience th

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Arky217

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Have used chainsaws to cut firewood and pulpwood for many years, but have never experienced this:

Milled my first log today with my Logosol M7 csm.
It came with a Husky 395XP powerhead and a 20" Forester Pro Series bar by AEI (whoever that is).
The chain is a low profile Stihl, model 63PMX. The chain is .375 pitch, .050 gauge.

The 395 was a demo, so it was already broke in, but the bar and chain are new.
Before milling, I noticed that the chain was somewhat hard to pull around the bar by hand even though the tension was correct, but at the time I didn't make too much of it, thinking that it was just the roughness of the bar rails ( they still had paint on them). After I made a couple of cuts, I noticed that the chain had become fairly loose. I went to pull it a little by hand and it was quite hard to pull at first, then became somewhat easier, but at the same time, the slack disappeared.
I took the saw to the shop and after removing the bar and chain, I discovered the problem.
Turns out that the points of the nose roller were too thick to go between the side straps of the chain; each point was wedging itself between the straps as the chain went around.
Got out the ol' dial micrometer and went to measuring.
* chain drive link - .050 (as expected)
* between chain straps - .052 to .053 (as expected)
* bar groove - .060 to .061 (seems too wide to me)
* roller points - .057 to .058 (the very tip of the points are slightly beveled, that's how they were able to start wedging between the chain straps)
This Forrester bar is stamped "3/8 050 72DL"

Got out the old Stihl Farmboss firewood saw (which also has a roller nose bar) and did some comparing:
The Farmboss bar and chain are .325 pitch and .063 gauge.
* chain drive link - .063 (as expected)
* between chain straps - .065 to .066 (as expected)
* bar groove - .065 to .066 (as expected)
* roller points - .059 to .060 (as expected)

The drive links on the Farmboss chain are fully supported on their fore and aft edges by the roller, whereas the drive link edges on the 63PMX chain can't reach the roller due to the roller points hanging up trying to wedge between the straps.

To me, it appears that the Forester bar is not kosher.
Surely the roller is not designed for the points to be forcefully wedged between the straps and then forcefully pulled out again as the chain goes around.
Is this Forester bar a cheap junky import or what ?
Anyone else run across anything like this ?

Jim (retired and loving it)
 
Ask PES+ about your problem, he sells them and should be able to fill you in on them. I believe they are imported, I've bought three of them from PES+, one for a Husky and two for Stihls. All three have been good performers and have held up well too, sorry to hear you're having problems with yours!
 
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I thought the last post I read on forester bars , it was said their made in China.
I've got some decent stuff from China, but I have had junk to. The orange scrench by forester I found out is a light duty tool.
 
Sounds like what you have is a standard 3/8" bar of sloppy quality (maybe even the drive sprocket is std.) with a picco chain on it - no wonder it is acting oddly.......
 
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The Forester bars are imported from China. AEI is a wholesale company that only sells to dealers. The Forester bars are either Oregon or Windsor knockoffs. Which one did you get?

We have sold quite a few of these bars, with no complaints. They seem to feel slightly heavier than their Oregon and Windsor counter parts, but guys are happy with the way they wear. AEI are good people and I'd expect them to correct this problem if you bring in back to the dealer where you got it.
 
If you want to run lo pro 3/8ths on a full 3/8ths nose sprocket you need to shorten and relieve the tips of the sprocket......most tips will do the same thing when trying to do what you are doing.

I am curious why you are attempting to use lo pro for milling as it has a multitude of issues that need to be dealt with to make it into a ripping chain.
 
wrong chain, 63 is low pro 3/8, dont think it will work on your saw..
 
The Forester bars are imported from China. AEI is a wholesale company that only sells to dealers. The Forester bars are either Oregon or Windsor knockoffs. Which one did you get?

We have sold quite a few of these bars, with no complaints. They seem to feel slightly heavier than their Oregon and Windsor counter parts, but guys are happy with the way they wear. AEI are good people and I'd expect them to correct this problem if you bring in back to the dealer where you got it.

Some Forester bars are repainted GB ProTop's like wanab's Husky bar LOL


Scott
 
I have used Forrester chain and a bar. Decent quality. Measured an .058 bar, the sprocket tips were .057/.058. You have an .058 gauge bar with an .050 low pro chain. The bar is stamped wrong, the chain is for small saws. Dealer could just send a new 3/8 .058 chain. But I would try and to get a longer bar and chain. Nice saw!!
 
Appears the Forrester bar mystery is solved !

I have used Forrester chain and a bar. Decent quality. Measured an .058 bar, the sprocket tips were .057/.058. You have an .058 gauge bar with an .050 low pro chain. The bar is stamped wrong, the chain is for small saws. Dealer could just send a new 3/8 .058 chain. But I would try and to get a longer bar and chain. Nice saw!!

Thank you much for your reply, it appears to have solved the mystery of this problem.
I've always used either .063 or .050 gauge bars and wasn't aware that there was a .058 gauge.
Evidently, this bar is a .058 gauge and received the wrong stamp at the factory. Probably when this bar was made, someone at the factory grabbed the stamp for a .050 gauge and used it on who knows how many bars before the error was found.
Just looked at the stamp on the bar again, it definitely is "3/8 050 72DL"

Quote from PES+
"If you want to run lo pro 3/8ths on a full 3/8ths nose sprocket you need to shorten and relieve the tips of the sprocket......most tips will do the same thing when trying to do what you are doing.

I am curious why you are attempting to use lo pro for milling as it has a multitude of issues that need to be dealt with to make it into a ripping chain."

This 20" bar ( Forester 3/8 050 72DL) and chain ( Stihl 63 PMX 72 ) is standard issue from Logosol.
Roller nose tips that measure .057 to .058 are not meant to go between the tie straps of a .050 gauge chain regardless of any other conditions.
 
Contact Logasol then.....the tips of the nose sprocket need to be shaped properly to accept lo pro....

Do you have a Forester laminated or a Forester with replaceable tip?

And no bar sprocket teeth are supposed to fit inside the the tie straps......it is not a roller chain
 
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Contact Logasol then.....the tips of the nose sprocket need to be shaped properly to accept lo pro....

Do you have a Forester laminated or a Forester with replaceable tip?

And no bar sprocket teeth are supposed to fit inside the the tie straps......it is not a roller chain


As far as I know, Logosol bars for the 63pmx etc is availiable somewhere for the large Husky mount - but I don't know where, except Logosol themselves.

They are standard on the MS660 Logosol here, with a special lo-pro spur sprocket (sold by Stihl, not Logosol), but the mount pattern is different from the Husky one.
 
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And again....contact Logosol as you are going run into binding problems running picco chain on that profile bar body as soon as you sharpen the cutters of the chain
 
And again....contact Logosol as you are going run into binding problems running picco chain on that profile bar body as soon as you sharpen the cutters of the chain


Surely, yes!

The sprockets on both ends should be different, even though the pitch actually is the same - but the drivers are totally different.......
 
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Got the story

Contact Logosol as there was a small batch of Forester laminated bars which is what Logosol offers that were indeed .058 but marked ,050

The tip issue is puzzling though as the Forester laminate nose sprockets are all made to accept the full 3/8ths as well as the LP

The newer pro bars are also made that way now
 
Forster Brand Great prodect for the price.

Forster bar chain Combo has worked great for me. I have been cutting cedar, hedge (Osage orange) and oak for several years with this brand on my 357xp. Semi chisel
 
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