Gopher Hunter
ArboristSite Lurker
- Joined
- Apr 2, 2014
- Messages
- 46
- Reaction score
- 16
Greetings again from a newish member
I'm going to setup my newly acquired Husq 261 (likely converted to a 262 shortly) with a 20" and 24" bar for the larger trees in my North-central Az area. The trees I'll be cutting with that combo are usually old dead (hard) Junipers and Pinion pine of <30" diameter. Seems like some of these old dead trees are very hard/knotty. Might find an occasional tree larger than 30".
The 20" bar will have a standard full comp semi-chisel chain and will probably be on the saw most of the time.
My question is mostly about what chain I should use for the rarely used 24" bar (with a 261/262). After doing a bunch of reading I think I want a semi/half skip chain due to the modest power of the 261/262. Problem is I can only find square chisel chain in 24" loops or links. ??? Not sure if there is a round filed half/semi skip chain.
Anyway, from what I have read, square chisel doesn't look to be the best option for hard/knotty/dirty wood that tends to be found in my area. I've also seen mentioned that square chisel chain can be "converted" to a round profile (more forgiving) with a few swipes of a round file. So, my initial thought is to try the Oregon 72CK series semi-skip chisel chain on the 24" bar and round file it. Anyway, that's what I was thinking but I'd really like to get some expert advice before I order the chain. I should mention, I'm not really concerned about ultimate cutting speed here. More important to me would be controllability/smoothness of the saw and chain life.
regards
JohnG
I'm going to setup my newly acquired Husq 261 (likely converted to a 262 shortly) with a 20" and 24" bar for the larger trees in my North-central Az area. The trees I'll be cutting with that combo are usually old dead (hard) Junipers and Pinion pine of <30" diameter. Seems like some of these old dead trees are very hard/knotty. Might find an occasional tree larger than 30".
The 20" bar will have a standard full comp semi-chisel chain and will probably be on the saw most of the time.
My question is mostly about what chain I should use for the rarely used 24" bar (with a 261/262). After doing a bunch of reading I think I want a semi/half skip chain due to the modest power of the 261/262. Problem is I can only find square chisel chain in 24" loops or links. ??? Not sure if there is a round filed half/semi skip chain.
Anyway, from what I have read, square chisel doesn't look to be the best option for hard/knotty/dirty wood that tends to be found in my area. I've also seen mentioned that square chisel chain can be "converted" to a round profile (more forgiving) with a few swipes of a round file. So, my initial thought is to try the Oregon 72CK series semi-skip chisel chain on the 24" bar and round file it. Anyway, that's what I was thinking but I'd really like to get some expert advice before I order the chain. I should mention, I'm not really concerned about ultimate cutting speed here. More important to me would be controllability/smoothness of the saw and chain life.
regards
JohnG