How sharp is sharp?

BC WetCoast · Dec 9, 2015

How often I file usually depends on what I'm cutting. If I'm cutting soft maple street trees, I may go a couple of days between filings as the saw stays sharp.

Trx250r180 · Dec 9, 2015

You can check your sharpness with a piece of paper ,it should cut the paper clean if sharp ,if it hangs up and tears it is not sharp yet .

tidy · Dec 19, 2015

a rough guide is to use your finger tips (lightly), sharp cutters will will feel "sticky", they will also trace a line through your finger nail if you lightly glide over them. Blunt cutters will not do this. Visually a sharp cutter has a crisp edge, if you can see light reflected from the edge its not sharp.

beastmaster · Dec 22, 2015

I think I'm a pretty good saw sharpener. I use to do tool and die work, I have a good understanding of cutting edges. I sometimes go weeks of daily saw work with out having to sharping my climbing saw. Ground saws I sharping as needed. It only takes a little dirt to dull a chain. Lots of guys like a big hook in each tooth. That makes for a sharp saw that'll quickly dulls. The angle of the face of the tooth top and sides is what's important. I sharpen using just a file. After 5 or 6 sharpens I'll use a jig ,especially on longer chains to even them up. I'll hit the rakers then too.

crowbuster · Dec 22, 2015

Anymore I just don't have the time to sharpen while cutting. So I swap to a sharp chain and keep cutting till It's time to swap again then sharpen on the grinder when time allows. I was pretty good at filing, just like the time saved using the grinder at the end of the day or when time allows. As screwy as our weather has been we really have to make hay while the sun shines. 60 degrees and thunder storms tomarrow. good day to sharpen chains

Macman125 · Dec 22, 2015

I usually do the same as what most have previously mentioned. I go two to three tanks in between touching it up depending on how dirty the wood is. I try to keep all of the angles and cutter lengths the same. A lot of what is missed by most people is raker height. I usually take a couple licks off each one every other time I sharpen it. Another big thing is making sure the saw is stable while you sharpen it. trying to deal with a saw wobbling all over the place is a pain while trying to sharpen.

Kor · Dec 23, 2015

blkcloud said:
Once I put a chain on I never take it off until it's worn completely out..

Hi, wouldn't it be better for evenly wear on your sawbar and clutchdrum to wear out four chains while changing them every time you sharpen them? And what adds to the lifetime of your sawbar is placing the current upside down every time you change chains. After your four saws are gone, you better change clutchdrum and sawbar (or at least the nosetip) too.

jwilly · Dec 23, 2015

I can file my chain faster than I can swap it out. I buck the trees on the landing and quite often they are dirty and I need to sharpen every hitch. In winter if there is snow I can go sereval tanks of fuel before sharpening. My son cuts down and has more hook on his chains, they cut faster but dull quicker.

The thing I have learned is not to wait till it is butter knife dull, I use a vise on the back of the truck and a touch up only takes about 1/2 a cup of coffee.

Philbert · Dec 23, 2015

jwilly said:
I can file my chain faster than I can swap it out. . . .I have learned is not to wait till it is butter knife dull, . . . and a touch up only takes about 1/2 a cup of coffee.

A common issue in these threads is a different definition of 'sharpening'. For some, it is 'touch-up' sharpening, or maintaining an edge. For others, it is bringing back a severely dulled or damaged chain.

It may also depend on where you are working. Some guys mostly cut at home. Some guys cut with a work truck near by. Others are deeper in the woods, or on a trail.

I prefer to sharpen at home, with good lighting etc. So I take extra chains with me. I may touch up in the field, but often hit stuff doing storm damage cleanup, and prefer to clean up those chains with a grinder.

Philbert

Macman125 · Dec 23, 2015

If you are worried about getting the correct angles; a lot of chain manufactured by stihl has score marks on both top and sides of the cutter for reference.

JeffGu · Dec 23, 2015

Philbert said:
...I prefer to sharpen at home, with good lighting...

Yeah, I'm not sitting around on the tailgate of a pickup or plopped down on a log to sharpen a saw chain. I can swap the chain out in a couple of minutes and clean up the saw a bit while I'm at it. Temperature and conditions in my shop are a whole lot nicer than where I'm cutting, most of the time... I can do a better job of it.

Philbert · Dec 23, 2015

Whatever works for folks. Personal preference accounts for a lot of it.

Philbert

jwilly · Dec 23, 2015

If I happen to rock a chain I will swap it out, otherwise I just try to keep it sharp.

Westboastfaller · Dec 23, 2015

I'll put it into perspective.
What you consider sharp.
I call "factory dull"
It will bite in the back of my finger nail.
I will shave it.
You need a good file
Some of the fine grade files I don't like. I don't like fine grade Stihl files on Stihl chain. If you 'back file' or not clean it out every 3-4 strokes you will wear it out in no time . water is the enemy too.

Macman125 · Dec 23, 2015

I don't like fine files. I like to be able to hear that it is taking meat off as I am making a stroke.

JeffGu · Dec 23, 2015

maclovercp125 said:
I like to be able to hear that it is taking meat off as I am making a stroke.

beastmaster · Dec 25, 2015

I sharpen a lot people's saws for them,and it seems most people even professionals don't know how to sharpen a saw. One side the teeth will be way shorter, no two teeth the same. Rakers down to far. Longer the bar the crazier it'll cut. Fixing a chain like that by hand is difficult, that's the only time I like a grinder.

Jackbnimble · Jan 28, 2016

Macman125 said:
If you are worried about getting the correct angles; a lot of chain manufactured by stihl has score marks on both top and sides of the cutter for reference.

Thanks. I've noticed.

Jackbnimble · Jan 28, 2016

Well Boys,

I was in the pits, unable to be certain the chains were getting sharper, regardless what I did. NOW, NOW I have to say that I could very well be one of the elite chain sharpeners of all time! I began to feel, hear and see when the file was sharpening consistently. I fit the file into the angles of each cutter as they existed. My chains are pretty new so the angles are already set. I adjust the horizontal position of the file making sure it is correct, which isn't hard. I position the file in there nice and snug. Then, easily, softly at first, I start to guide the file the length of the file, adding mild pressure up into the top plate while increasing the pressure on the side plate and in the cutter. I can feel the file grinding the steel. I can feel it make the cutter sharper. And, I can see it is considerably shinier after each pass. It is too cool. Never thought I'd get the hang of it. But, you boys saw me through with your excellent advice and by humbly admitting it wasn't easy for you to master, either. THANKS!