Another JD 4700 Owner!

[cowboydoc]

Hey Dan don't go buy a new chain. It's easy as heck to sharpen a chain saw chain. They make a tool that you can get at any hardware store that you just file the grooves at a 45 degree angle and then another tool to file off the points. Works great. I sharpen mine before I go cut wood everytime. Never have to fight the saw at all. I just put the saw blade in the vice and go to it. Takes about 5 minutes to do if you keep it up. A little longer if you go longer in between sharpening. I can cut about 10-15 cords of wood before I ever think about changing the chain. I've got a Stihl 036 pro with a 24" blade and it does great.
Richard

 

[Anonymous Poster]

You're absolutely right about keeping up with sharpening your saws. I have a simple hand grinder (similar to a Dremel Tool) that does a great job in no time at all. With some practice, you get a razor sharp chain in just 10 minutes. A sharp chain makes a HUGE difference in the speed of cuts. I just bought a Husky 372XP with a 2' bar and it will cut a 2' diameter trunk in 8 seconds with a well-sharpened chain. A little grinding ahead of time saves alot of time in the woods!

 

[Bird]

Somewhere on here recently we had a long discussion about chain saw chain sharpening; the different types of chains and sharpening tools and methods, etc. I never quite got the hang of it with a file; just always paid a pro to sharpen mine, but now he's retired and gone. I got a Dremel Tool for Christmas; wonder if one of those little attachments might be the right size for the job?

Bird

 

[cowboydoc]

Hi Bird,
Hey I was the same way growing up. I hated to sharpen chain saw chains. Then they came out with this tool that has a flat piece on top and the lines to guide you with it. It works really well.
Richard

 

[dmccarty]

Hey Cowboydoc,

I sharpen my chains by hand with a chainsaw file. Every time a refulel/oil and clean the air filter I sharpen one side of the chain. It sure makes a difference. I have two bars and three chains. One chain to let the pros resharpen when I really mess it up and a chain for each bar. One of the chains is the origional and I'm wondering how much life it has left.

We had a great discussion about chains and sharpening tools and I was set to go buy one but I figure the hand files are working just fine.

Later...
Dan WithAPulledBackMuscleFromSplittingFirewoodAgravatedFromADayOfChainSawing McCarty

 

[dmccarty]

GVW,

Here is part two of my homework assignment. Part one is in the 4n1 FEL thread in the attachments forum.

I measured as close as I could the width of my tractor from OUTSIDE tire to OUTSIDE tire. It was tough to do this since I was by myself and the backhoe is on the tractor. The width was about 72 or 74 inches.

My front tires have the stems on the outside. Rear tire stems are on the inside. I can't tell which position the wheels/tires are mounted.

Hope this helps...
Dan McCarty

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Hi Dan,
You say you get 72 0r 74 inches...so let's call it 73.

The inflated width of your tires (R1s? / catalog #48D645) is 17.8 inches (from Titan tire-spec book, page 6).

Taking the inflated width (1/2 tire on each side) away from your "outside" measure gives us a "center to center" width of 55.2 inches.

Position three in your owner's manual, shows 55 inches... just about "right-on", I'd say.

Reversing the tires on your tractor (while also switching sides... to keep the 'directional" treads going the right way), gives position six.

The center to center measure given for pos.6 is 67 inches. Adding the 17.8 inches for the inflated tire width gives 84.8 inches. This should be your overall ("outside") width with "reversed" wheels.

So it looks like you can cover your tracks with a 6 foot mower with the narrow setting (your sidewalls "curve-in" to contact the ground - so your "track" will be a little less than your overall width).

And you can have a 7 foot (or so) "wide-stance" for maximum stability, if you want to switch sides with your wheels/tires.

My previous assumptions that the nomenclature of your tire (16.9/24) indicated an inflated width of 16.9 inches was wrong. I assumed this to be so because, in the case of the Michelins which I am putting on, that is the case (i.e., 19.5/24 DOES have an inflated width of 19.5 inches). The Titan spec-book straightened me out. sorry, if this caused any confusion

Hope this adds something to the info-pool.

Be looking for your next "report"!

Larry

 

[dmccarty]

Larry,

This tire width conversation has helped me out a bit. I just never thought out this stuff. I knew the capability was there, I was just more concerned with making sure my implements covered the rear wheels. Between my two home work assignments and greasing the tractor/backhoe/FEL I spent a good a hour before I did anything else! I'll have to look at the tire positions in the manual while looking at my setup to get a better understanding of all of this.

Later....
Dan McCarty

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Dan,

The JD literature I have seen describes the MX-6 RMwr as having a cat.2 hitch... what did you do about this?

Larry

 

[dmccarty]

Hmmm,

Nothing. The MX6 hooks up just fine, well its a PITA to hook up any 3ph and the PTO but it fits. Are you looking at the MX 6 manual? I'll have to check mine and see what it says. But there was nothing done to make things fit as far was I know. The MX 6 hooks up just like the box blade.

I have only used the MX6 for a couple of hours and won't really touch it again for a couple more months. But I have hooked it up a couple of times without problems.

Curious....
Dan McCarty