bar maintanence

[gew]

hi guys, I am new to chainsawing and a buddy of mine told me that I had to do bar maintainence. All I ever heard of doing was taking a file to it if it got lipped. So what else are you supposed to do, also how do you tell when you need to work on your bars. If someone knows of a website that has a complete walkthrough on how to do this I would appreciate it (pictures or a movie or something).


Also how do you tell when you need a new chain. thanks

 

[JohnJr]

Welcome! I just clean the groove periodically and flip the bar at the end of the day. I havent had to grind a bar YET but maybe someone with a little more experience can say what would cause a need to. As far as new chain; I just go to the witness marks on the top plate.

 

[371groundie]

if its a replaceable tip bar make sure that the tip is still tight. you can just hammer on the rivet that holds it to snug it back up.

clean the bar grove out so the oil flows good.

make sure the oil holes arent plugged.

some people would say to grease the tip, i saw thats what bar oil is for.

take the burr off if its there.

while the bar is off i clean all the crap out of the clutch and sprocket area.

also make sure that the bar, clutch cover, and crank case where the bar clamps is clean. if stuff collects in there it can make the bar sit crooked and cause extra wear where the chain enters the bar.

thats what i do.