Breaking in a New Chain Saw Chain

[Darkness77]

Any thing under 1000 acres is a Hobby Farm. I operate with my Inlaws 2200 acres cash crops consisting of Wheat, Corn, Soy Beans, Both Non GMO, and GMO beans, Edible Beans, and Alfalfa Hay Crop. We also do 4000 acres of Custom Work as well, consisting of Cultivating, Planting, Spraying, Plowing, Combine work, Custom Hay Cutting, Custom Small Square Baling, Round Baling, and this year Large Square Bailing of Hay and Wheat Straw. As well as Custom Trucking. Also do Custom Forage Harvester Work for Haylage, and Corn Insalage
Sure things break down, But Preventive Maintenance goes a lot further than you think.
Bruce.

Bruce isn't custom spelt with a K?

 

[Bruce Hopf]

Bruce you must come from old school. I've had many many old timers tell me that's exactly how they do their chains, new ones and old ones alike. Many have told me as they store all their chains in oil when not in use. They claim it prevents stretching but I've never tried it myself. My oldest brother is a big believer in soaking chains in oil before using them. I myself merely rip it out the box, toss it on the saw and go for wood. Does seen a new chain requires a few adjustments fairly early before it settles down with the stretching so your theory may well have some merit there.

Thall.
No I'm not from the Old School, LOL, But I've been taught the Old School Ways. I Guess I'm like an Old Dog, that can't be taught new tricks.
Now I've never heard of chains stretching when not in use. Seizing up yes. I've had a few links get seized now and again while not being in use. Some times they get a little wet from a few snowflakes if I'm cutting in the winter, and the snow isn't too deep.
When I go to the Bush, and cut wood, I take a few chains for each saw, and when my chain gets dull, I put a sharp one on, and keep cutting. I was never any good at sharpening free hand, so I always sharpened my chains in the basement with an Oregon Filing Guide, up until 6 years ago I bought a Bench Chain Saw Grinding Machine for Sharpening my Chains. Bruce.

 

[Bruce Hopf]

Bruce isn't custom spelt with a K?

Darkness.
Sorry, Custom is spelt with a C, not a K.
Being you are from Australia, have you ever heard of a Company Called Pro-ma? They are an Australian Based Company. Have you heard of their Performance Products they have out?
I don't know too much about them, and I was wondering if you know any thing about them, or Their Products.
This Ethanol Gas that we have is Reeking Havoc with my Vehicles, and Small Engines. I have 6 of my Chain Saws down right now with Carburetor Troubles, and waiting for a Shipment to come if with Repair Kits, and I'm looking for something good to combat the moisture from the Ethanol Gas.
A friend of mines Neighbor was telling me about it, and I'm a little Skeptic about it. Thanks. Bruce.

 

[retired redneck]

Soaking Chains

Some do some don't, some will some won't, do what ever turns your crank....

 

[tdi-rick]

Darkness.
Sorry, Custom is spelt with a C, not a K.
Being you are from Australia, have you ever heard of a Company Called Pro-ma? <snip>

Bruce, I've heard of Pro-Ma, but have usually lumped their products in with most snake oil.

Two good fuel additives that you can get in NA are Fuel Power Plus from LCD Inc ( http://www.lcdinc.com/ ) and a fuel additive from Renewable Lubricants. ( http://www.renewablelube.com/ )
They both combat the problems with the aromatics in ethanol added petrol. (which is also playing merry hell with the lubricating oil too)

Neither is easy to get here, so I use Redline RL2 in all our diesels, but I have to talk to Bill Garnier from RLI soon so I can use some of their products for a couple of problem applications.

 

[Darkness77]

:agree2:

 

[GASoline71]

Bump...

LMAO

Gary

 

[Fastcast]

Bump...

LMAO

Gary

:notrolls2: :hmm3grin2orange: :hmm3grin2orange:

 

[redprospector]

Bump...

LMAO

Gary

Garry, that was just plain mean!
I saw the title and thought gawd, I can't believe this crap.

Andy

 

[gafirefighter]

Back at it I see. I wonder if this could make it to 1000 posts.

Adam

 

[Fish]

He is after my title.

He can be "vice" instigator, and I would be cool with that.

I just couldn't turn my back.

The title itself is not that great, but that quarterly stipend check sure comes
in handy..

I almost got promoted to moderator, but they told me I was too much of a "softy", they bring down the big bucks..........

 

[belgian]

A few hundred years from now, scientists will probably wonder where the expession " Go soak a chain !" came from.

they will probable find the answer here in this thread !:hmm3grin2orange: :hmm3grin2orange: :wave:

 

[SawTroll]

.....
I don't know about you guys, but after looking at it this way does make some sense. I don't know, you tell me. Thanks. Bruce.

It does make sense, the real question is if it makes enough differense to mirit the trouble........

 

[heimannm]

Like so many other advances in technology and design, chain materials & manufacturing & lubrication at the factory have improved. As a result, the need to soak a new chain is virtually eliminated.

Certainly it can't hurt to soak a chain in oil other than being a bit messy, and it may help for those first seconds (or parts of seconds) before the automatic oilers start pumping oil to the bar.

All of the old McCulloch instructions stated soaking was needed to insure a the longest possible life of the chain. Maybe they knew something about how the chains were made.

At least one of my old Model 35 McCulloch saws doesn't even have the bar/chain oil feeding through the groove in the bar, it just shoot a stream (manually pumped) onto the surface of the chain.

With our old saws equipped with manual oilers, you can always pump some oil into the chain and even pull it around by hand to distribute if you are so particular. I don't often think to do that except on a saw that has been setting for a long time and is really dry.

Same could be said for old mix instructions, 16:1 was pretty typical for old equipment but with better technology and engineering we can use 40:1, 50:1, or higher (according to the Amsoil gang)and still be O.K. The old McCulloch instructions said 40:1 with their oil, 16:1 with anything else. Later on in a techical bulletin they indicated that 16:1 could be a problem with loss of power, excess carbon, etc. and recommended going to 20:1 or 24:1.

Things change...

Mark

 

[stihl sawing]

Even though he did call me an instine, I will have to agree with bruce on a couple of points. If you are a firewood cutter and don't use your saws that much then i can see keeping you're chains in some oil so they don't get rusty from just hanging in the humidity. Although have never had one rust from hanging, But i suppose it's possible. Now if you use your saw a lot i don't see any point in it as the chains will be used a quite often. I don't soak my chains new or old in anything and never will but it can't hurt anything. Now the pulling the starter cord out when you shut the saw off is a whole different deal. Also the thread is kept alive. lol

 

[buzz sawyer]

Prestretched

Just bought a new Stihl chain for the 361. I didn't see anything about soaking but it did say it was pre-stretched.

 

[Soilarch]

Looks like everyone on AS has commented here...and I'm bored before the usual Friday night festivities. So here's my routine.

I like PB Blaster, works on nuts and bolts that laugh at WD40.

Because of that, PB Blaster is what's on hand. I take my chains that aren't going to be used and throw in a ziploc with a 4 second spray of PB into the bag. When I put a fresh chain on the bar I spray a stream of PB down the length of the bar. Then I go to.


What does this accomplish, likely nothing, other than keeping the used chains from rusting. Certainly wouldn't worry if I suddenly ran out of PB.


A couple pages back there was some talk about farmers believing in over-maintenance. It's true. We go threw everything before and several times during the planting season. If its questionable, it's replaced. I'm usually the grease monkey. And sadly, I know first hand that the one grease fitting that's hard to get to, or that one bearing that's iffy......will take definitely come back to get you. It's better to replace $100 of "high-wear" parts, even if only $20 NEEDED replaced than to be down-and-out for half a day when you've waited a week for it to dry and you've got another 1.5" coming tomorrow morning.

Then again I just cut for firewood. Being down-and-out for a day might be a welcomed relief

 

[heimannm]

Old McCulloch instructions on breaking in a new chain:

Mark

:deadhorse:

 

[SawTroll]

Like so many other advances in technology and design, chain materials & manufacturing & lubrication at the factory have improved. As a result, the need to soak a new chain is virtually eliminated.

Certainly it can't hurt to soak a chain in oil other than being a bit messy, and it may help for those first seconds (or parts of seconds) before the automatic oilers start pumping oil to the bar.

All of the old McCulloch instructions stated soaking was needed to insure a the longest possible life of the chain. Maybe they knew something about how the chains were made.

At least one of my old Model 35 McCulloch saws doesn't even have the bar/chain oil feeding through the groove in the bar, it just shoot a stream (manually pumped) onto the surface of the chain.

With our old saws equipped with manual oilers, you can always pump some oil into the chain and even pull it around by hand to distribute if you are so particular. I don't often think to do that except on a saw that has been setting for a long time and is really dry.

Same could be said for old mix instructions, 16:1 was pretty typical for old equipment but with better technology and engineering we can use 40:1, 50:1, or higher (according to the Amsoil gang)and still be O.K. The old McCulloch instructions said 40:1 with their oil, 16:1 with anything else. Later on in a techical bulletin they indicated that 16:1 could be a problem with loss of power, excess carbon, etc. and recommended going to 20:1 or 24:1.

Things change...

Mark

Exactly! :agree2: