Sharpening saw chain

[KevSauce]

What is everyone's opinion on electric saw chain sharpening tools; specifically, the Dremel OEM attachment?

Or would you rather just do it by hand????

 

[howellhandmade]

Not a big fan of the Dremel stones; I've used them and filing is better IMO. More accurate, doesn't burn the teeth, cheap(ish) and quiet. I bought a NT grinder a while back because I had a bunch of cutting to do in dirty conditions, but I still prefer filing.

Jack

 

[mark360T]

I prefer the dremel chainsaw attachment imo

 

[Arrowhead]

I have the dremel attch. for sharpening chains... it did a decent job, but not as good as a file.

 

[spudulike]

I use a diamond grit grinding dremmel bit on chains that are pretty bad and then finish with a file - just makes it easier to get the chain in to reasonable shape first before putting in the elbow work!

Spud

 

[BarkBuster20]

Filing by hand is better every time unless your doing A LOT of chains without much time, otherwise the qaulity alone speaks volumes.

 

[Meatco1]

Been hand filing for 40 + years, chains last longer, no burns, no reason to use a machine that I can think of.

Richard

 

[bullseye13]

I can burn through 5 chains in an afternoon and have them hand sharpened real quick. Better edge than from a ginder by far, and it dosent cost me $7 a piece. I can grind rocks with the chain and get it better than new with a file.

 

[CGC4200]

Learn to use a file first

A dremel type tool is good for damaged chains, but filing is better for
touch-ups, just my experience. It is easy to get carried away running
an electric tool and make a mess of a chain.

 

[galde]

The Dremel grinder (the variable speed model with precision ball bearings on both ends of the shaft) is my choice of grinder ( I have accumulated a dozen or so different types of chain grinders over the years ) but their chain sharpening guide is inferior in my opinion to that on the Oregon 12V grinder. The Dremel attachment rests on the tooth on only one side of the stone, so the depth of grind ( and hence the tooth profile ) varies if the grinder is rotated, which is impossible to completely avoid when grinding. The Oregon guide rests on both the tooth and the depth gauge, and can be easily adjusted to get the "perfect" cutter profile. The perfect grinder would be the Dremel with the Oregon guide. The Granberg 12V grinder (Stihl sells this one also) also has the guide on one side only. When using any rotary grinder I use only diamond bits at a speed about half the 24,000 to 30,000 RPMs the grinders deliver at full speed. Diamond bits run cool and keep their size and shape, even when grinding carbide chains. With 12V grinders I use a power converter running off a 120V outlet. I also use a foot-activated switch so my hands and eyes are focused on holding the grinder properly. This lets me position and steady the grinder, start grinding, and stop the grinder with the bit in place in the tooth.

 

[DSS]

Hand job only, here.



:spam:

 

[Anthony_Va.]

Yea I'm a hand filer myself, not bragging but pretty good at it too. Just can't get the same proper edges with a grinder. Easy to get your teeth out of size with each other also. I use a grinder to hit my guides every now and then though. Works good for that.

 

[biggenius29]

I prefer to handfile over the dremel.

 

[ptabaka]

hi im with the other hand filers i have a 511a for my bad chains but found out that hand filing comes out a lot sharper good luck

 

[dingeryote]

I have just about every widget,gadget, and gizmo short of a Proper Oregon Grinder collecting rust and dust in a Toolbox drawer.
The latest is a Granberg filing guide.

In the time it takes to set up the gadgets and correct the booboos, I can hand file the dadgum chain and get a better edge.

Start practicing now, and by Fall, you should be thumbing your nose at the gadgets.

Stay safe!
Dingeryote

 

[Anthony_Va.]

I have just about every widget,gadget, and gizmo short of a Proper Oregon Grinder collecting rust and dust in a Toolbox drawer.
The latest is a Granberg filing guide.

In the time it takes to set up the gadgets and correct the booboos, I can hand file the dadgum chain and get a better edge.

Start practicing now, and by Fall, you should be thumbing your nose at the gadgets.

Stay safe!
Dingeryote

I hear that! I admit I've tried alot of different ones, but just never could get the touch for them. I remember when I had chains cutting C's if they would even cut at all when I first started filing. It was'nt until a man who was logging up the road on my neighbors land showed me how to do it right and what all not to do that I began to get better. Now I think it's safe to say I can get one cuttin good....and straight.

Does get hard on the ole arm when you grab a piece of wire in a stump.

 

[dingeryote]

I hear that! I admit I've tried alot of different ones, but just never could get the touch for them. I remember when I had chains cutting C's if they would even cut at all when I first started filing. It was'nt until a man who was logging up the road on my neighbors land showed me how to do it right and what all not to do that I began to get better. Now I think it's safe to say I can get one cuttin good....and straight.

Does get hard on the ole arm when you grab a piece of wire in a stump.

I hate me some wire!!!

Only good excuse for a grinder IMO.

I thought maybe the Granberg gizzie would take some work outta getting cutters back to a similar length after such things....Nope.
It's more work setting the gizzie up correctly. LOL!!

Stay safe!
Dingeryote

 

[Zig]

Tryin' to stay humble too, but...

I gathered the courage to start(properly) filing all my chains by hand, this past January, after reading all of the tips on this website, and Stihl's, and I can sharpen a dulled chain, much better than I thought I could trust myself to! I worked with my old boss(who got me started in the business) a month ago. He offered to sharpen my chain, so i was hoping to pick up some pointers from a pro, and when I watched him take my 390, I witnessed him take way too much off the first 2-3 teeth before I offered to finish up, coming up with the I've got a brand new file, and I think your groundie's have a stump stuck in the chipper excuse! His angles were off, the file he was using was too large, he wasn't going to touch the rakers...but, I digress. It just feels really rewarding to have the skill, when you're out in the middle of nowhere, and have to get the job done with only the two chains, for each saw you have. BTW, I have the dremel sharpening jig, tool/thing, and mostly due to inexperience, and not consulting this site first, ran the rpms too high and blued a chain so bad it had to be junked...but I can definitly agree as to how it'd work fine, for really badly damaged stuff, or for out and out production speed if you have too many teeth to touch-up or a small shop to run, and can't afford a high dollar grinder.

 

[BarkBuster20]

I just finished up hand filing my chains for tomorrow - takes less than 5 minutes a chain if im taking my time.

 

[MCW]

I both grind and file although am still a big fan of grinding, particularly in abrasive conditions, but still generally file when clean conditions present themselves. There are angles you can replicate on a file that a grinder struggles to match and vice versa. By grinding deeper into the gullet you can actually get a "chisel" type edge on a chain that you can't get with a round file or round stoned 12v sharpener, although it will cut slightly slower it definately wears better - some people may argue but it's true. In clean wood I still think filing has an edge in speed although it is minimal over a well prepared, ground chain.
I am not a fan of tools such as the 12v chain sharpeners, mainly because the stones that come with them are crap and they really do have an amazing ability to completely wreck teeth quickly, more so than a poorly operated grinder in my opinion. When trying to sharpen a chain they wear that quickly that your chain profile changes from tooth to tooth. I have had two rechargeable units in stock that will stay there, unless one day I hate someone really bad and maybe I'll throw one in a parcel as a freebie