saw chain tension

[drkstaunton]

hello all,ok to get this clear in my head,i always keep my chains sort of loose to have minium wear on the bars and sprockets,when i say loose i mean not so tight,i leave a little air gap at bottom of bar so you can see chain sort of hanging slightly,now to be honest this always worked and i have a sprocket in my 61 saw for 3 years now my question is though which is better,some saw keep them a little tighter for less wear on the bar,but then wouldn't sprockets wear out faster and other parts maybe? you are suppoosed to keep the cain tight but enough so you can turn the chain freely and to be able to lift it from bar a little.what do you lot think?
derek--

 

[TK]

I leave just a hair of a sag underneath the bar on mine. Any tighter and it seems to affect the cutting and slow the saw down.

 

[redoakneck]

I keep mine tight enough so the chain doesn't get thrown off the sproocket and loose enough not to bend the crank.

 

[cat-face timber]

A little off subject, but my Brother in law had his chain so tight on his WildThing, that the chain would not even move at WOT.
He could not understand why, I loosened it for him and showed him how tight to keep it.

So yes it does happen.

And he wonders why I will not let him borrow my big Huskys.....

 

[Sabertooth]

Just loose enough for me to pull the chain by hand when its on the ground.

 

[Dan_IN_MN]

I've gone by the rough guide.... if I'm able to pull up on the chain in the middle of the bar and just show the bottom of the drivers.... has worked well for me. Of course...this is on a 12 - 18" bar(s).....

Too loose the chain is allowed to slap the bar and erode it.

 

[nmurph]

The chain should be tight enough not to sag. You should be able to pull 2-3 DLs out of the rail without arm wrestling with it. Loose chains actually slap the bar as they rotate.

 

[Fuzly]

Loose enough to hook the back of a cutter with the scrench and pull the chain smoothly and easily down the bar, no sag

 

[testlight]

No sag here, its dangerous if you ask me. Also I pull up on the bar while adjusting the chain. I keep my chain so that I can lift a few of the drivers out of the rail.
I personally don't like getting hit by a chain that flies off. I check when the chain is hot and make sure that I can still roll the chain without too much effort.

 

[Landsinn]

No sag here, its dangerous if you ask me. Also I pull up on the bar while adjusting the chain. I keep my chain so that I can lift a few of the drivers out of the rail.
I personally don't like getting hit by a chain that flies off. I check when the chain is hot and make sure that I can still roll the chain without too much effort.

I agree!!!!

 

[c5rulz]

No sag here, its dangerous if you ask me. Also I pull up on the bar while adjusting the chain. I keep my chain so that I can lift a few of the drivers out of the rail.
I personally don't like getting hit by a chain that flies off. I check when the chain is hot and make sure that I can still roll the chain without too much effort.

I would never tighten it up either when it is hot and about to be put away.

I pick up the rear handle so the weight is on the nose when tightening up the bar nuts.

 

[fearofpavement]

I keep my chains fairly tight (ie, no sag and a bit of tension on them but can still expose the bottom of a drive link when raised in the center. I rarely adjust the chain when hot, if I do, I take tension off when I'm done cutting so it doesn't get too tight when it contracts. I rarely throw a chain and get good life out of bars, chains and sprockets. If running a hard nose bar, I use less tension than a sprocket nose.

 

[deye223]

I would never tighten it up either when it is hot and about to be put away.

I pick up the rear handle so the weight is on the nose when tightening up the bar nuts.

so i'm not the only one

 

[drkstaunton]

thanks for the heads up lads,i was thinking not so tight either....longer bar life

 

[procarbine2k1]

Hard to put into words, but I tighten the chain enough- to where I can pull down on the chain (bottom side, as the saw is sitting) and it will snap back into the rail (just barely). It would be easier for me to show you how I do it, but the chain will freely spin without tension drag, and sit snug enough in the rail.

 

[H 2 H]

I would never tighten it up either when it is hot and about to be put away.

I pick up the rear handle so the weight is on the nose when tightening up the bar nuts.

I never would do that either on a hot bar and chain

 

[millbilly]

Hard to put into words, but I tighten the chain enough- to where I can pull down on the chain (bottom side, as the saw is sitting) and it will snap back into the rail (just barely). It would be easier for me to show you how I do it, but the chain will freely spin without tension drag, and sit snug enough in the rail.

me too

 

[stihlrookie]

I watch the bottom of the bar as I tighten the chain and just as the lowest spot contacts the bar I give it about 1/8 more turn. Should be able to set the saw on the ground and without holding it rotate chain around bar by hand. Loose chains wear the bar nearest the powerhead, the chain will actually slap the bar when going around the sprocket. To tight and you risk crank damage.

 

[testlight]

Maybe its just me but the part of my bar that wears out it right before it meets with the tip. I think that is from cutting with the end of the bar? I don't think that chain tension is as much of an issue as long as it isn't way too tight and getting too hot.

I think it has a lot do with the oil you run. And at $10 a gallon for bar oil, and $100 or so for a bar sometimes I wonder why I don't just use waste motor oil, or a mix of waste motor oil and waste vegetable oil.