Best Way to Sharpen Chainsaw Chain

[joeyd]

I use the Pferd and really like it.

 

[John_Mc]

Pferd makes the same file (I believe they came up with the design) and it is less costly.

Not only did Pferd come up with the design, they also make the ones sold by Stihl.

 

[John_Mc]

I知 guessing there痴 another problem. I致e never been a strict follower of the sharpen equal rule and my chains have always cut straight. Usually when I end up hitting a gravel it only damages one side. It takes a lot of work to take a lot of metal off without ruining it so usually I don稚 take the undamaged side down and I致e noticed no ill effects for doing that. I知 guessing your bar is worn and that痴 causing the problem.

I described in another post here about the difference between a progressive depth gauge height tool (which also sets the height of the depth gauge solely in relation to the tooth that follows it) and a "constant height" tool: the basic concept of which is like laying a straight edge across two teeth and measuring down from there a specified distance. The former is very tolerant of different lengths of cutters. The latter requires keeping the teeth fairly close in length when comparing left-hand to right-hand cutters, or the saw will start to cut on a curve (and/or will wear one rail of your bar more than the other).

progressive depth gauge tools

Constant height depth gauge tools:

 

[4570Man]

It’s a lot easier to just hit them a lick with a grinder. I’d rather have mine too deep vs not enough. There’s nothing worse than a good sharp chain pulling dust.

 

[John_Mc]

I'm guessing there's another problem. I've never been a strict follower of the sharpen equal rule and my chains have always cut straight. Usually when I end up hitting a gravel it only damages one side. It takes a lot of work to take a lot of metal off without ruining it so usually I don't take the undamaged side down and I've noticed no ill effects for doing that. I'm guessing your bar is worn and that's causing the problem.

A worn bar may well be the problem. It is important to occasionally dress the bar: deburring and squaring things up.

The question is, what caused the bar to wear unevenly in the first place. Cutting with a dull chain greatly accelerates wear on the bar, and also makes things run hotter. (A dull chain requires more down force on the saw, increasing the friction between bar and chain, thus increasing wear. In extreme cases, the lube can break down, leading to the bar overheating.) A pinched bar can also cause issues, making the bar run hot and preventing the lube from being properly distributed.

Uneven cutter length can also cause uneven wear - mainly when all or most of the cutters on one side are shorter than the ones on the other (a single short cutter does not seem to make much difference). How much of a difference this makes depends on how you are setting your depth gauge height. Basically, you want the left handed teeth to be taking the same size "bite" of the wood as the right hand cutters. Traditionally, this has been accomplished by keeping all of the teeth the same length, and setting all of the depth gauges to the same height. Other methods of setting the depth gauge height have come into use which makes keeping even lengths much less critical.

I described in another post here about the difference between a progressive depth gauge height tool (which also sets the height of the depth gauge solely in relation to the tooth that follows it) and a "constant height" tool: the basic concept of which is like laying a straight edge across two teeth and measuring down from there a specified distance. The former is very tolerant of different lengths of cutters. The latter requires keeping the teeth fairly close in length when comparing left-hand to right-hand cutters, or the saw will start to cut on a curve (and/or will wear one rail of your bar more than the other).

progressive depth gauge tools
View attachment 609043 View attachment 609042


Constant height depth gauge tools:
View attachment 609044

 

[ericm979]

The progressive depth gauge tool is easy to use. I only need to file the rakers every 5 or so sharpenings, and even then they don't change much. If you do a couple strokes of the file every time you file the teeth, the rakers will get too deep. It's sharp cutting teeth that make a chain cut well, not deep rakers.

 

[John_Mc]

The progressive depth gauge tool is easy to use. I only need to file the rakers every 5 or so sharpenings, and even then they don't change much. If you do a couple strokes of the file every time you file the teeth, the rakers will get too deep. It's sharp cutting teeth that make a chain cut well, not deep rakers.

I agree with everything you said, with the possible exception of the last sentence. It takes both properly sharpened teeth and rakers set at the appropriate depth. Filing the depth gauges way down will make the chain more aggressive. It will also be harder on the saw and on the operator. Leaving them too high will make sawdust, rather than chips, losing a lot of efficiency in the process.

It's one thing if someone is tweaking the settings lightly for the conditions in which they are cutting (softwood vs hardwood, for example). It's quite another to ignore filing the depth gauges entirely or to file them way down to make your chain more aggressive.

 

[m1garand762]

Go on YouTube and check out Buckinbillyray he does an excellent job of teaching how to hand file a chain

 

[turnkey4099]

Keep a quality chain sharp (do not let it heat the dirt etc.)...by "touching it up" with a file...learn to look at what the files is doing and only remove enough metal to keep a sharp cutting edge...

once a chain is beyond "touching up" let a pro sharpen them...

Also files do not last forever...when a file quits cutting smoothly and quickly get a new one...

I'm late to the thread but...the above is the best advice ever....it took me too many years to finally learn that. Now I buy them by the dozen which lasts me about 2 years. I cut around 10 cord/yr.

 

[dennis103]

I bought a electric rotary sharpener at Home depo. It's basically a dremmel with a guide so you do each tooth at the same angle. This has worked for me for several years. I hate a dull chain. It takes me 10 to 15 minutes to sharpen the blade and I'm ready to go. By the way I'm no pro at wood cutting just weekend warrior.

 

[Molalla1]

I'm late to the thread but...the above is the best advice ever....it took me too many years to finally learn that. Now I buy them by the dozen which lasts me about 2 years. I cut around 10 cord/yr.

turnkey, exactly how I do it . . . I keep several chains on hand and when dull I change it out and when I'm getting low on fresh chains I take them into my Stihl dealer to sharpen them . . . he doesn't charge me much probably because I have bought so many Stihl products from him. :laughing:

 

[5030]

Despite what they tell you very few weekend firewood cutters can freehand file a chain and do a good job. Itç—´ not a skill youæ±*e going to master overnight or probably ever with light use. I had a Timberline jig and it worked really well but it was slow and tedious. I ended up buying an Oregon chain grinder. It has the disadvantage of having to remove a chain but it works well once I got the hang of it. Removing a chain isn稚 as big of a deal as it might seem if I didn稚 rock the chain or cut dirt one chain would easily cut more than I wanted to split in a day. Thereç—´ plenty of tools available to assist in sharpening a saw but I致e never dealt with most of them.

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Same as you but I use the Timberline with a stump vise in the woods if I need it and a grinder in the shop. I don't sharpen very often. I'm careful what and where I stick the bar into. I agree, the timberline is slow but in the woods, it's fine. I'd rather grind them but it's not always convenient.