Chain saw sharpening advice sought

[beowulf]

OK, guys, as usual this forum has come though for me- THANKS! I decided to go the hand filing route and will order a chain sharpener combination file and guide which sharpens the chain and takes down the rakers at the same time to the correct depth - all matched to the chains I use. Reviews for that are at 100%. So I will re-read all the advice here, watch the videos you have recommended, observe the sharpening process when I have a few chains sharpened, and tackle my box of chains. What seemed to me this morning to be a daunting task is now one I am ready to take on with some confidence. Thanks again to all of you.

 

[4570Man]

I've been unable to get satisfactory results filing by hand. I can improve a chain, but I can only get them to about 75 percent as good as new. That's with a 3/8 full chisel chain. I can't do a 1/4 semi chisel worth a flip. IMO the 1/4 chain is harder to sharpen and doesn't stay sharp as long. I bought a timberline sharpener and it's great. I've seen the results of some of the cheap electric sharpeners and the timberline works better. With a price tag of around $100 you're probably better off with alternative methods for 3 chains a year. The local co-op "sharpens" them for $3, but they do an awful job. My not so good hand filing produces way better results.

 

[beowulf]

4570Man, I have a 3/8 size chain and will give it a try to see how I do. I did read reviews and watched a youtube video of the Timberline unit and it looks very easy to use and should sharpen well. But, yeah, at $100 plus the carbide bits, I will try to sharpen by hand first since I don't use the saw all that much now. A few years ago when I was taking out a few trees and cutting those all up - well, then I should have had something like the Timberline. I took out about 6 large oak trees, a pepper tree and a tall 67' fir, and a few others. Now I mostly take out dying trees or oak tree branches that have broken off and use for firewood, or cutting up trees that have fallen over fence lines, or back roads. Those large oak trees can look healthy but will break suddenly, and especially under any snow load - as we rarely get much snow, when we do, they are not used to the load so we will hear the cracking and crashing.

One problem tho, I don't really want to mount each of my used chains on the chainsaw one by one to sharpen them. So, an inexpensive electric sharpener might make sense to handle those (I have at least 20) - and I see I can get one of those at H-freight for about $20 with a coupon.

 

[turnkey4099]

I have never tried to master chain saw sharpening so have a box full of used chain saw chains/blades. I usually try to keep a new one around but hate to see all those blades in the box that I can still use. My plan was to take them down the road to a guy who sharpens them - if he is still around. I estimate that I only go through only about three blades a year - so not really a heavy user. Anyway, I think I need to learn to sharpen these blades myself, if only to save me a trip to town when I need a sharp blade and have none. Saw is Husqvarna 455 Rancher 20 inch.

So, I see on Amazon that there are a number of options, a sharpening machine, a file kit, a bar-mount chain saw sharpener, and perhaps more. My current thinking is that a bar mount chain saw sharpener would work out - found one on Amazon for $35 without the files. It seems that it would be fairly easy to use and I can get the files separately.

Best advice?

Go with the bar mount sharpener - it sets all the angles for you so when you are done, you know everything is correcct.

Now to the actual sharpening. A bit of advice that it took me waayyy too many years to learn. Buy the files by the box (dozen) and THROW THEYM AWAY WHEN THEY QUIT CUTTING. And by that I mean cutting without having to put real pressure on them. You soon get used to what a sharp file cuts like, it almost 'whistles'. I get around 4 - 5 cheains sharpened on each file.

I quit taking my chains to the "professionals". EVERY one of them overheated the teeth so they could no longer be sharpened with a file.

I do a 24" chain in about 10 minutes and that counts mounting the saw in a vise and getting the guide and file set up.

People who claim they can get them sharper than a file guide are wrong, probably just as sharp but no sharper and their angles are not going to be 'exact'.

Been at this since 1976, carry 3 saws, sometimes 4, everytime I go gcutting and at least two sharp chains for each saw.

 

[turnkey4099]

ovrszd, Thanks for the information. Hey, at $5 a chain - if that is what the local guy would charge - it would be a bargain since I am not a really heavy user. I probably have 20 chains that need sharpening. Still, I want to learn how to do it myself as well - hate to always depend on someone else. So, likely I will check out the local guy and also get a set of files and/or a bar mount unit. I see H-Freight has a cheap electric one (may be enough for my occasional use)- and there are several youtube videos re how to set up and use that. So, that may also be an option. It seems with the electric sharpener I can sharpen chains off the saw which is what I now need to take care of my box of chainsaw blades. Then if I learn how to use a file to sharpen the chain saw blades on the saw in the field I should be set. Thanks again.

I bought one of the HF grinders, not bad for a cheap unit, got some slop in it but I find that I can hand file faster than doing it on the grinder.

 

[turnkey4099]

Not sure about Husky chains, but Stihl chains have a small slash mark on the top of each tooth, almost to the rear of the tooth. That's the angle to file the cutting edge at. I refer to it when I'm doing a quicky sharpening in the timber. Then all I have to worry about is keeping the file holder horizontal laterally across the chain.

Dunno about the squre shaped teeth but the round shaped (sorta like a question mark) had sharpening angels of 35 degree across the tooth and 10 degree up angle. I just kept using those settings when I change to all square profile teeth. That's the benefit of a bar mount file guide.

 

[beowulf]

I bought one of the HF grinders, not bad for a cheap unit, got some slop in it but I find that I can hand file faster than doing it on the grinder.

Turnkey, I do intend to do hand filing but don't really want to mount and dismount the 20 plus chains I already have in a box that need sharpening so thought it might be worth it to get those done with a grinder. Then once that task is over I can sharpen by hand on the saw.

BTW which bar mount would you recommend. I am not sure I want to pop for a Timberline at $100 plus carbide files when my chainsaw use is much more limited now?

 

[Sonny580]

On the job I will do 4 or 5 light touch-ups but after that it's on the grinder for a very LIGHT grind to keep cutters even and to lower depth guages a tad, (if needed). thanks sonny580

 

[Rustyiron]

Fi I hear GREAT things about this product. Timberline Chainsaw Chain Sharpener | Timberline Filing Guides | Chain Filing Guides | www.www.baileysonline.com.com

I, right or wrong consider myself a pretty good "filer". Been hand filing for ever but by the time I'm half way or more (from sharpening's) through the tooth, my chains are starting to cut circles. I seem to favor one side a little. I got the timberline and highly recommend it. I've quit filing all together. If you sharpen all your 20 chains, you'll only need to pitch in about $30 more bucks to buy the Timberline instead of paying the $5.

 

[beowulf]

If you sharpen all your 20 chains, you'll only need to pitch in about $30 more bucks to buy the Timberline instead of paying the $5.

I see the point - sort of. But now that I have learned a bit here and from youtube videos I think I can sharpen the chains myself. And what I would not be looking forward to though is mounting and taking off all those chains one by one in order to use the Timberline on each one. I could sharpen the ones that are already off - the first time - with a cheap grinder ($20), and would have 20 chains available which I could thereafter sharpen on the bar as necessary. I am thinking I may never need to buy another chain as each one could then be sharpened many times. For as much as I contemplate using the chainsaw in the future I may only be sharpening a chain once or twice a year.

If I was going to be using the saw a lot I would definitely go for the Timberline. But I guess I could also not sharpen all 20 at once and only do so one by one on the bar as I needed a new chain - I could just mount a new (used) one and sharpen it on the bar.