Checking your tune in the wood

Tuning a chainsaw is often discussed on the forum here. Anytime I use a chainsaw, I listen closely to make sure that it is tuned properly. It's easy to tell by simply taking the load off the saw during the cut and listening for it to 4-stroke. This short video gives a good example of what it should sound like.

Cool. It sounds like the saw in the Jackal song/video. Till My Chain Saw You...Bob

GREAT -
Another excellent training video.

Thank you! Now I understand the 4 stroke sound .

Perfect example Brad. On another thread you used a huge cant to test saws on, I imagine that reduced varibles. Good stuff as always, nice pics and vids.

Thanks for all of your educational videos.

My 7900 does just what you demonstrate in the video but could it be hitting the rev limiter instead of 4 stroking? I do not think so but it is a possibility so I thought I would ask? It feels like it has plenty of power in the cut. I would think it would not have power in the cut if it were lean enough to cause it to hit the rev limiter.

Thanks for the video! This stuff is what this site is about. Valuable content. Keep'em coming.

Adirondack said:

Thanks for all of your educational videos.

My 7900 does just what you demonstrate in the video but could it be hitting the rev limiter instead of 4 stroking? I do not think so but it is a possibility so I thought I would ask? It feels like it has plenty of power in the cut. I would think it would not have power in the cut if it were lean enough to cause it to hit the rev limiter.

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Unless you're in really small soft wood a 7900 should sit on around 11-12k rpm in the cut (maybe less) so shouldn't get near the limiter. Even modded 7900's like I own will only sit on around 12k rpm in reasonable wood.

thanks good information

Rep sent.

Thanks Brad!
Very helpful.

MCW said:

Unless you're in really small soft wood a 7900 should sit on around 11-12k rpm in the cut (maybe less) so shouldn't get near the limiter. Even modded 7900's like I own will only sit on around 12k rpm in reasonable wood.

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I see. I was thinking about the saw out of the wood. In theory out of the wood it could sound the same either 4 stroking or hitting the limiter? Without a tach it would be hard to tell. How would you know by ear if your hitting the limiter? I would think it would hit the wood and have much less power if the 4 stroking sound is from hitting the limiter. I do not have the confidence to to remove my limiters because I do not have a tach. for testing.
I think my saw is right on the money from what little I know. It 4 strokes out of the wood and pulls like :censored:in the cut. I have not found much change in the saws performance changing the H setting within the limits of the limiter so I just leave it a little rich. Thanks

Adirondack said:

Thanks for all of your educational videos.

My 7900 does just what you demonstrate in the video but could it be hitting the rev limiter instead of 4 stroking? I do not think so but it is a possibility so I thought I would ask? It feels like it has plenty of power in the cut. I would think it would not have power in the cut if it were lean enough to cause it to hit the rev limiter.

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In your case. To be safe, I'd make it pig rich, run it through a cut 4stroking all the way through, slowly lean it a little make a cut, now keep doing that until it clean's up in the cut and stops 4stroking and goes to 2stroking.

MCW said:

reasonable wood.

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I was under the impression that you guys down under had precious little of this! :biggrinbounce2:

parrisw said:

In your case. To be safe, I'd make it pig rich, run it through a cut 4stroking all the way through, slowly lean it a little make a cut, now keep doing that until it clean's up in the cut and stops 4stroking and goes to 2stroking.

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Great advice for a rev-limited saw.

ChrisF said:

I was under the impression that you guys down under had precious little of this! :biggrinbounce2:

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We get the odd little bit There are varying degrees of Hardwood. Redgum for instance is quite easy to cut if it's been grown where there is good rainfall etc. Then you'll find that old dead Redgum log on a river flat where the average rainfall is less than 10" and it's WAY harder.
Then of course there is River Box (or other Box species) that take hardness to the next tingsten tipped level Wood that dense that even when dry it won't float.

This is how I test and or tune a rev-limited saw. I tune it dog rich then slowly lean it out in the cut until it just stops four stroking under load.

Personally I think that Andyshines vid, and Brads vids of checking your tune in the wood, as well as the video of tuning that 3120, should be put together and made a sticky. Nice job you guys.

Andyshine77 said:

This is how I test and or tune a rev-limited saw. I tune it dog rich then slowly lean it out in the cut until it just stops four stroking under load.

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That's a GREAT vid Andre. There's no better way to tune a rev limited saw, especially one that's modified and revs well above the rev limiter.

It took me a while to learn this technique on my own. It seems so simple now.
Your videos will be very useful to many. Thanks for taking the time to record it.

oscar4883 said:

Personally I think that Andyshines vid, and Brads vids of checking your tune in the wood, as well as the video of tuning that 3120, should be put together and made a sticky. Nice job you guys.

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Make it a link in the Chainsaw FAQ sticky. "how to tune your saw"