Advice on cutting straight on trunks of hardish wood

[HarleyT]

You will never get it to cut straight until you get the chain sharp, which means you will have to remove all of the damage.

You ought to try some semi-chisel for cutting this stuff.

 

[MattG]

What horrible thing has happened to that bar? It looks to have jagged edge.

No the bars fine! The darkness you're seeing is just from my bench light casting a shadow from the chain, whose tips are a few mil higher. (I'll read the rest of your post now....)

 

[MattG]

What I have done to such chain is just keep filing until worse teeth is straight and sharp again, then I have filed others to match.

Of course now I would try to file cutters enough so they are straight and then set rakers to match each cutter, might get more life out of the chain that way.

I would not use flat file on cutters, just use round file enough many times that they become straight, keep angle of file same trough whole push.

Yeah, I thought that might work - eventually. I guess if I tried speeding things up by using a flat file on the top plate, it probably end up just scr*wing up the side plate angle - so was a bad idea, now I think about it more.

You will never get it to cut straight until you get the chain sharp, which means you will have to remove all of the damage.

You ought to try some semi-chisel for cutting this stuff.

Yes, fair point. I've just installed my 25" B+C setup, and since I'm down to just the last trunk, and I've straightened out pretty much all the root+gnarly end of it, then hopefully that won't suffer like my 20" did.

Perhaps I get semi-chisel chain later on time, if needs must. Would that be the Stihl RM that you mentioned earlier Harley?

 

[lone wolf]

Yeah, I thought that might work - eventually. I guess if I tried speeding things up by using a flat file on the top plate, it probably end up just scr*wing up the side plate angle - so was a bad idea, now I think about it more.


Yes, fair point. I've just installed my 25" B+C setup, and since I'm down to just the last trunk, and I've straightened out pretty much all the root+gnarly end of it, then hopefully that won't suffer like my 20" did.

Perhaps I get semi-chisel chain later on time, if needs must. Would that be the Stihl RM that you mentioned earlier Harley?

A 25 is way harder to get right when filing because the longer the bar the more it will cut rainbows if your filing isnt perfect on each side!

 

[HarleyT]

Yeah, I thought that might work - eventually. I guess if I tried speeding things up by using a flat file on the top plate, it probably end up just scr*wing up the side plate angle - so was a bad idea, now I think about it more.


Yes, fair point. I've just installed my 25" B+C setup, and since I'm down to just the last trunk, and I've straightened out pretty much all the root+gnarly end of it, then hopefully that won't suffer like my 20" did.

Perhaps I get semi-chisel chain later on time, if needs must. Would that be the Stihl RM that you mentioned earlier Harley?

Yeah Stihl RM is semi chisel. Holds up much better to dirt/damage.

 

[MattG]

A 25 is way harder to get right when filing because the longer the bar the more it will cut rainbows if your filing isnt perfect on each side!

Thanks for your words of encouragement there Lone Wolf!!!

Well it's a good job that I've had all these 12" and 18" and 20" chains to practise on!

Anyway I'll let you know when I finally conquer this darn last cherry trunk. I will succeed!

 

[lone wolf]

Thanks for your words of encouragement there Lone Wolf!!!

Well it's a good job that I've had all these 12" and 18" and 20" chains to practise on!

Anyway I'll let you know when I finally conquer this darn last cherry trunk. I will succeed!

Try to stay away from the dirty spots.

 

[lone wolf]

Thanks for your words of encouragement there Lone Wolf!!!

Well it's a good job that I've had all these 12" and 18" and 20" chains to practise on!

Anyway I'll let you know when I finally conquer this darn last cherry trunk. I will succeed!

Just trying to give you helpful info! Better off with the shorter bars. You will see what I mean after you hit a rock or dirt and try to sharpen that.

 

[MattG]

Just trying to give you helpful info! Better off with the shorter bars. You will see what I mean after you hit a rock or dirt and try to sharpen that.

Yeah man I know - appreciate it. I don't look forward to sharpening the 25" when it goes. Just needed it though cos some of the cherry is at least that wide. And I don't like tackling from both sides that much.

 

[MattG]

A 25 is way harder to get right when filing because the longer the bar the more it will cut rainbows if your filing isnt perfect on each side!

So what's the best advice with sharpening my RSC type chain you reckon - same length cutters, or same depth (raker tip to cutter) - given that I don't to spend forever on the job, but want to try my best to get it right, and not keep "buying another chain".

Thanks again for help

 

[lone wolf]

So what's the best advice with sharpening my RSC type chain you reckon - same length cutters, or same depth (raker tip to cutter) - given that I don't to spend forever on the job, but want to try my best to get it right, and not keep "buying another chain".

Thanks again for help

Getting the angles correct on both the rt and left sies is the hard part dont file too deep look at the top edge for sharpness count how many strojes keep it all even and straight just file the rakers slughtly every time you shapen

 

[LoveStihlQuality]

So what's the best advice with sharpening my RSC type chain you reckon - same length cutters, or same depth (raker tip to cutter) - given that I don't to spend forever on the job, but want to try my best to get it right, and not keep "buying another chain".

Thanks again for help

I hit the cutters a few licks every tank or two to keep sharp. If I hit something I change chains. There are hand filing purists but I haven't got that skill. I use grinder after a few in field sharpenings. That's when I get cutter angles and length evened up and rakers set.

I use almost all yellow chain but same for RSC chain. Depending on how much your cutting, you could also take your chains to a good saw shop.

LoveStihlQuality

 

[Homeowner]

I'm using Oregon file guide, product number 37534 as I really can't file free hand, that guide takes care of height aspect, also it has line for correct angle and I need to just focus to keep angle correct trough the stroke, really simple to use and I can make chain sharper with that than with cheap Chinese grinder I have.

What I need to get is raker depth gauge, I see Oregon has one as product code 27742 with a file, there are probably other options for that too, but as I don't file chains daily, I like to get and use tools that makes it easier to do the sharpening.

It might be that I need to practice on how to use that grinder better though, I have read that it should make sharper chains than hand filing them.

 

[MattG]

I hit the cutters a few licks every tank or two to keep sharp. If I hit something I change chains. There are hand filing purists but I haven't got that skill. I use grinder after a few in field sharpenings. That's when I get cutter angles and length evened up and rakers set.

I use almost all yellow chain but same for RSC chain. Depending on how much your cutting, you could also take your chains to a good saw shop.

LoveStihlQuality

Thanks, LSQ, I don't cut much - just dosmestic firewood + pruning. But I really like the idea of keeping my stuff good myself, so I don't mind the learning cycle. I'm pretty reasonable now I think with a guide mounted file, and I'm trying to get better with rakers.

 

[LoveStihlQuality]

Thanks, LSQ, I don't cut much - just dosmestic firewood + pruning. But I really like the idea of keeping my stuff good myself, so I don't mind the learning cycle. I'm pretty reasonable now I think with a guide mounted file, and I'm trying to get better with rakers.

Pruning with an 064! WOW lol

Getting the angles correct on both the rt and left sies is the hard part dont file too deep look at the top edge for sharpness count how many strojes keep it all even and straight just file the rakers slughtly every time you shapen

LoveStihlQuality

 

[MattG]

Pruning with an 064! WOW lolLoveStihlQuality

yeah, yeah, yeah!!! Come on...



Sorry LoveStihlQuality, but my CAD is reasonably advanced. I didn't mention (at least not in this thread) my ownership of a truly awesome ms200t. So this crazy computer programmer climbs the eucalyptus tree in the back garden with this. Last year I started an AS thread about the mentioned saw, and got lots of help from several folk here about various things - seals, carbs, top handle, not to mention advice from Lone Wolf about the correct sized hammer to use to drift in bakelite seals.



Later Matt

 

[blsnelling]

Your chain needs some serious work. You will have to file/grind back until it's a square again where the top and side plates meet. It's badly rounded off right now. You're going to have to remove a lot of cutter length to get there. Until you do, the chain is not sharp. Once that point is no longer sharp, you're chain is dull.

Like Andre pointed out, slight differences in cutter length are not your issue. However, you'll have to use a progressive depth gauge to get each raker the right height. Setting them all the same is not correct unless all cutters are identical in length.

 

[MattG]

Your chain needs some serious work. You will have to file/grind back until it's a square again where the top and side plates meet. It's badly rounded off right now. You're going to have to remove a lot of cutter length to get there. Until you do, the chain is not sharp. Once that point is no longer sharp, you're chain is dull.

Like Andre pointed out, slight differences in cutter length are not your issue. However, you'll have to use a progressive depth gauge to get each raker the right height. Setting them all the same is not correct unless all cutters are identical in length.

Yeah I'm sure you're right Brad. Thing is we got about 7ish trunks of birch, ash and cherry, from a guy my wife did rodent clearance. He dragged the trunks out with heavy machinery, got rid of the worst of the mud/and the thin roots. Since we wanted to process pretty much all of it (don't have the room to dump, or time to take to the tip), we washed and brushed as best we could. Of course I hit some coarser dirt than I'd planned...

But yeah, thanks for tip, about the cutter length + the depth. As you say - I've got some work to do.

BTW do you know if it's possible to irreparably damage a chain from it overheating? That is, will the tool steel from which the chain is made loose it's temper? Or am I dreaming here?

 

[blsnelling]

I doubt it. However, the best advise is to go with the RM chain, as already mentioned.e

 

[ytee1]

Cherry can be down right nasty stuff. If it's green and not seasoned or dried out it cuts pretty good. But once it's dry it feels like cutting concrete. Chipper style chain works best for me. I also would sharpen my chain every time I filled up with gas and oil. Or I would just swap it out with a sharp chain and put them on the grinder when I got back home. For some reason .325 chains seem to always cut better on the hard stuff. Gotta watch out for the old orchard trees. Good larger wood but supper tough from years of harvesting with a shaker.

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