Chisel grinding and fileing. NOT SQUARE !!

Arborist Forum

Help Support Arborist Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
fool skip

fool skip

ArboristSite Operative
Joined
May 24, 2015
Messages
108
Location
Williams. Or.
I don't have any pics but I will try to explain. Sharpen your chain with your round file like normal. Jam a wedge between your chain and bar so your chain is tight in the bar. You are going to make your strokes into the chain rather than out like a round file.Put the corner of the file into the corner of the tooth and stroke down and in. You will remove some of the excess material from the top plate and out of the corner. This will make it cut smoother and somewhat faster. You will notice your chips look different if you are doing it right. Hope this does not screw you up too bad. It takes a little practice. I used this method quite a bit working in frozen pine which would take the edge right off a ground chain.
 
Knobby57

Knobby57

Peeing outdoors
Joined
May 19, 2012
Messages
1,010
Location
Wilkes barre
Frozen pine is almost as bad as standing dead oak with the bark off . Eats a chain like your in the dirt . Still haven’t learned to thrown on a loop of semi chisel “before “ a blunt out a full chisel in a half tank of fuel .
I have a factory stihl ground square chain . No matter how I hold that file it doesn’t seem to look like it’s hitting the same angles . I’m going down the shop in a few to take another look with my new glasses :rolleyes: maybe I’ll takes some pics . I haven’t looked at the square grind in a few years after I looked at the files I got and it didn’t look proper . It’s very possible I’m I high functioning Retard .... sometimes simple things don’t register in my brain when explained . Show me and I understand instantly
 
Dolmar Enthusiast

Dolmar Enthusiast

Saw Stalker
Joined
May 27, 2017
Messages
133
Location
Where the tumble weed roll
Close to Springfield. I'll warn you I'm slow. Lol.
Perfect I have been needing to go to Grizzly (my wife has learned not to let me go, without a good reason)
I am about an hour south of Branson, come see us if you're ever lost in Arkansas. The trout are biting...
 
Stihlone

Stihlone

New Member
Joined
Aug 19, 2016
Messages
1
Location
Farm
Thought about buying a Oregon grinder, have always hand filed but I'm not as good as I used to be and wondered about buying a grinder, suggestions please? Brand names, prices? Been looking on EBay
Thank-you
 
tramp bushler

tramp bushler

Addicted to ArboristSite
Joined
Feb 3, 2007
Messages
3,376
Location
Interior ,Alaska, Copper River Valley,, Coastal Al
I missed this last night. The Stihl hex file has a smaller sideplate edge which leaves a considerably larger gullet & it won't work well for clearing them.


Why not ? As the file sits basically in the position to file the cutter. You file down and twist the file into the gullet. The flat takes out the gullet.
 
tramp bushler

tramp bushler

Addicted to ArboristSite
Joined
Feb 3, 2007
Messages
3,376
Location
Interior ,Alaska, Copper River Valley,, Coastal Al
6 evenings a week filing 2 or 3 105-127 driver full or semi skip 3/8 or 404 . 6 to8 months a year. Till I got a grinder. That's what it takes to keep bushlin . My filing jig was a hard nose. 28" bar . With 4. 1/2 ton pick up leaf springs welded on for legs. And a stool to sit on. Hook the toe of my romeo into the belly of the chain to hold it tight and use 2 hands-on the file. When touching up a chain out in the brush . I always file on 1 spot on the bar up by the tip. But, filing out in the brush takes time. And time is money. At a dollar a minute , a guy doesn't want to waste too many minutes fooling with a chain . A chain swap takes a minute or 2 . And is a welcome break while I would get ready for my 10 minute lunch.
 
Knobby57

Knobby57

Peeing outdoors
Joined
May 19, 2012
Messages
1,010
Location
Wilkes barre
Thought about buying a Oregon grinder, have always hand filed but I'm not as good as I used to be and wondered about buying a grinder, suggestions please? Brand names, prices? Been looking on EBay
Thank-you
I have the Oragon ax and a usg . Both are wonderful . I predicted the usg . It’s just built better and is tighter . Have can wheels for both . They are worth every penny
 
northmanlogging
Joined
Jan 17, 2012
Messages
8,121
Location
western washington
Thought about buying a Oregon grinder, have always hand filed but I'm not as good as I used to be and wondered about buying a grinder, suggestions please? Brand names, prices? Been looking on EBay
Thank-you
Depends on type of grinding you want to do.

Round, anything with a metal base, that isn't from horrible fright aka hazard fraught aka harbor freight for sure a case of you get what you pay for.

chisel your pretty much down to Simmington for new stuff, or paying the same for a Silvey assuming you can find one
 
Knobby57

Knobby57

Peeing outdoors
Joined
May 19, 2012
Messages
1,010
Location
Wilkes barre
Looking good, now all we need is a log...
Just blew out a 16” chain in about 30 mins . It was round ground . Pretty easy to file oragon chain . I’ll try it out this week and see how it cuts . Looks like I’m getting into the side a bit much . I’ll have to adjust for that . But I’ll try it like it is for now . Me thinks it will blunt fast how it is . A1E414BA-C990-40AA-93B9-47A207C2B3CB.jpegA10EB9D9-21D6-4EC2-A540-DF37AFA0A528.jpeg
 
tramp bushler

tramp bushler

Addicted to ArboristSite
Joined
Feb 3, 2007
Messages
3,376
Location
Interior ,Alaska, Copper River Valley,, Coastal Al
Frozen pine is almost as bad as standing dead oak with the bark off . Eats a chain like your in the dirt . Still haven’t learned to thrown on a loop of semi chisel “before “ a blunt out a full chisel in a half tank of fuel .
I have a factory stihl ground CHISEL chain . No matter how I hold that file it doesn’t seem to look like it’s hitting the same angles . I’m going down the shop in a few to take another look with my new glasses :rolleyes: maybe I’ll takes some pics . I haven’t looked at the square grind in a few years after I looked at the files I got and it didn’t look proper . It’s very possible I’m I high functioning Retard .... sometimes simple things don’t register in my brain when explained . Show me and I understand instantly

There , fixed it for ya.
 
tramp bushler

tramp bushler

Addicted to ArboristSite
Joined
Feb 3, 2007
Messages
3,376
Location
Interior ,Alaska, Copper River Valley,, Coastal Al
Just blew out a 16” chain in about 30 mins . It was round ground . Pretty easy to file oragon chain . I’ll try it out this week and see how it cuts . View attachment 627144View attachment 627145


Your gettin there. You have a bit of an eagle beak on it . And you might look over the top of the cutters again to make sure they are Sharp.
But That is looking pretty good for getting started. It will be a bit grabby. If you were falling big red cedar It would feed well. Putting a humbolt in a hard western hemlock would be a challenge.
But all in all its good. Everyone that starts chisel filing has a ways to go before they are producing awesome chains every time.
 
Knobby57

Knobby57

Peeing outdoors
Joined
May 19, 2012
Messages
1,010
Location
Wilkes barre
Do you guys go a bit aggressive on the depth gauges ? I have mine set on the 16”at .25 . Usually I set them at .30 on round ground . I prefer my chains a bit on the aggressive side and self feed well . I don’t like using the dogs for anything but felling . Most of my cutting is bucking
 

Latest posts

Top