Best chainsaw grinder

[cscltd]

Does anyone have the Stihl HOS or USG?

We have 2 and are close 50 years old. Sharpened 1000s of chains over the coarse. One needed housing after 3rd fall from pedesta, motor casing cracked on first fall 40 years ago when I was a kid, now used for rakers only. Other is maybe 10 years younger and is used so much that the spindle threads are worn on shaft that now we have to spacer it to work(the spindle knob is aluminum to give you an idea on how many times the wheel has been reversed or changed etc that the aluminium wore down the steel shaft) the knob is changed about every year or so.
In short the Stihl grinder in bullet proof- may not be as fancy as a silvey we had, but I found the Silvey we had underpowered compared to Stihl motor

 

[Old2stroke]

If any Canadians are watching this post, the expensive one ($150) from Princess Auto is a great deal and is currently on sale for $65.00. I prefer it to the Oregon 510, same quality and a tilt adjustment if you think that's important. Comes with the standard 3 wheels but the 1/4" one has a round edge and has to be squared for doing the rakers.

 

[president]

I have a Stihl USG that I bought used. It is a quality built machine that will last me the rest of my life. Might want to consider one of these. I believe Tom Hall uses one of these in the shop that he runs.

T1

 

[president]

Does anyone have the Stihl HOS or USG?

Yes, amazing machine.It is precise ,well built,and multi adjustable

 

[LoveStihlQuality]

I have a Stihl USG. I also have a Maxx grinder. The HOS has a fixed head whereas the USG allows you to adjust the head. I just received the USG so I haven't assembled it yet. I can tell you this about it though. It does not come with a light whereas the Maxx has a built in light. The USG spindle is 12mm (1/2 in) whereas the Maxx and others use a 7/8 in spindle. The grinding wheels on the USG seem coarse and are slightly smaller in outside diameter. Overall the USG is a well built quality machine. If you are going to sharpen mostly Stihl chains and are a perfectionist, the USG corresponds directly to the angle recommendations on the chart that comes with it for Stihl chains. I am not sure you can achieve all of these angles with the other grinders. I have CBN wheels for my Maxx grinder and have ordered a ABN wheel for my USG grinder from Edge and Engine. They have an ABN wheel with the 12mm spindle. The CBN wheels do an excellant job on my Maxx grinder. The nice feature of the Maxx grinder is that it clamps the chain automatically when you bring the head down. Also the head can be positioned left to right allowing you to reverse the chain in the vise and grind at the same position for left and right cutters. I like the Maxx grinder and have found nothing bad about it. A couple more things about the USG grinder. You can get accessories for it that allow you to grind hedge clippers and rotary saw blades. You can also get a light attachment and an foot petal attachment to clamp the vise as you grind. Of course these accessories drive up the already high purchase price.

I use the Maxx grinder as well. Smooth. I really like the auto chain clamp. I usually do all my chain on one side then flip to do other side.
I "bought " a new USG from retired dealer. Good deal but post office lost or stolen out of NJ. He refunded me but built raped by USPS.

Sent from my SM-T377P using Tapatalk