A well sharpened chain?

[North by Northwest]

https://www.arboristsite.com/posts/7668187/react?reaction_id=1

Top plate is at about 25, couple degrees on the side plate which gives close to 45 degrees on the underside if I had to guess. It's not a real fast cut, but its durable and smooth. The smoothness is one thing that makes it safer and helps to keep it sharper longer because you can control the cut better as it's not grabby so you're not as likely to hit the ground.
The Oregon EXL is one of my favorites out of the box and its quite hard. The new husky x-cut chains are also very hard and cut nicely out of the box. Both the x-cut and the EXL are very difficult to mimic the original angles on. It can be done, but it takes a couple steps with various files/techniques. At least it sharpens well using a standard single file/technique.
That's pretty cool you had someone to teach you. I learned sharpening on the internet and personal experience, would have been a lot easier and cheaper to have had someone to teach me .

I think a little more abuse angle that we are utilizing really makes for a smoother cutting & more durable chain . I found with the more acute angles the cut was perhaps faster but much more aggressive , especially in the harder grained species , also dulled quicker in knarly woods . As for my uncle , he was a task master , you would have loved the slap in the back of the head , when ever he caught you dragging the file back across the tooth lol. I miss him dearly , I cherish his old file holders !

 

[North by Northwest]

"Smooth" and "Durable" are faster at the end of the day, and will always be my preferece over "The Fast Slice" type of chain.

100 % agree !

 

[HumBurner]

Milling chain. Got hot on the last cut yesterday and picked up some sappy goodness. Filed at 10°\0°, semi-chisel, 23-24 strokes,
and took the rakers down a solid lick plus rounding.

The original grind job on these chains are sort of shallow with a small hook, probably great in hardwood. Only cutting Doug fir for now, the chains can be made to take bigger bites than they came. Little more hook, opened gullet, and wider edge.


I'm wishing this was skip!






Photos are from before sharpening the other side. Note profiles of opposite side cutters. There was marginally more edge and hook than what is currently visible.

 

[North by Northwest]

Semi chisel is my current chain . I have ran full house & semi skip in soft woods back when I production felled for a local pulp company back in the 70's as a youngster . Carleton solid tip bars .404 with a lot more hook in the chain back in the day !

 

[GrizG]

Milling chain. Got hot on the last cut yesterday and picked up some sappy goodness. Filed at 10°\0°, semi-chisel, 23-24 strokes,
and took the rakers down a solid lick plus rounding.

The original grind job on these chains are sort of shallow with a small hook, probably great in hardwood. Only cutting Doug fir for now, the chains can be made to take bigger bites than they came. Little more hook, opened gullet, and wider edge.


I'm wishing this was skip!
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Photos are from before sharpening the other side. Note profiles of opposite side cutters. There was marginally more edge and hook than what is currently visible.

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Geez... I've never done any logs of the SPF variety with my mill so I haven't seen that kind of buildup. To date ash and cherry have been milled and they leave the chain quite clean in comparison. Did you get actual smoke coming off the chain?

 

[HumBurner]

Geez... I've never done any logs of the SPF variety with my mill so I haven't seen that kind of buildup. To date ash and cherry have been milled and they leave the chain quite clean in comparison. Did you get actual smoke coming off the chain?

No smoke or coloration, the teeth aren't hardened. Chain was mostly clean until the last cut. For whatever reason, the oilers clogged halfway through. Combine that with being the last cut before needing sharpened anyways.....pitchy chain.

It'll clean off in the cuts following. Worst case a soak.

 

[GrizG]

No smoke or coloration, the teeth aren't hardened. Chain was mostly clean until the last cut. For whatever reason, the oilers clogged halfway through. Combine that with being the last cut before needing sharpened anyways.....pitchy chain.

It'll clean off in the cuts following. Worst case a soak.

Do you think the bar groove may have clogged with swarf and oil?

 

[HumBurner]

Do you think the bar groove may have clogged with swarf and oil?

Yes. One port was totally clogged, the other partially. Largely the thing to have done there, instead of pushing against the clock, would have been stop, clean out the bar, and swap chains. This is the larger diameter husqy circular oil ports, too.


Three slabs cut in a fraction of the time and energy with that sharpened chain pictured, starting with the matching widest cut going downward. I'll give it 4-6 licks each tooth and likely round the depths again to shave another fraction off, but not a full pressured lick across the top.

 

[GrizG]

Yes. One port was totally clogged, the other partially. Largely the thing to have done there, instead of pushing against the clock, would have been stop, clean out the bar, and swap chains. This is the larger diameter husqy circular oil ports, too.


Three slabs cut in a fraction of the time and energy with that sharpened chain pictured, starting with the matching widest cut going downward. I'll give it 4-6 licks each tooth and likely round the depths again to shave another fraction off, but not a full pressured lick across the top.

Yeah... I get that. I've occasionally made less than optimal choices when under time constraints too...

Milling puts some extraordinary demands on the saw, bar and chain and trying to get one more cut out of it never seems to be a good idea. Cross cutting a 30" dbh log is a whole different story from slabbing a 10' length that wide!

 

[North by Northwest]

When ever I have milled a lighter viscosity oil has always provided better flow characteristics , which also provided better cleaning or flushing of the bar groove . I always use a secondary or auxiliary external oiler also to provide additional bar cooling . I use more oil most likely , but have reduced downtime on chain & bar issues , which helps the bottom line !