What took me so long....sharpening chainsaws...

[MBAtarga]

I've got a sharpening stone (cylinder shaped) that I pop in my Dremel and go to town. Sharpening a dull chain takes no more than 2 or 3 minutes.

[Superman]

I have a Harbor Freight sharpener too. You have to know how to use it. Perhaps the more expensive ones do better, but the HF model can do the job.

The goal is to get the point sharp. The saw cuts with the TIP of the blade, not the flat part. The corner, not the edge.

[dan79brooklyn]

I like to keep my Stihl chainsaw in good condition so I clean and sharpen it after every use. I bought the dremel attachment and some diamond bit for sharpening the chain. It’s pretty foolproof and takes just a few minutes I do use a hand file to keep the depth gauges at the right height.

https://www.amazon.com/Dremel-A679-02-Attachment-Sharpening-Gardening/dp/B003BIFMK6

[aigel]

I am trying to reduce tools that I don't use often. The chain saw may even qualify, but I sure don't need any sharpener!

It is $8 to sharpen the chain (well done) at the local Stihl dealer. I have 2 chains, so always one on hand ready to go on sharp. A new chain is 30 bucks or less.

So, for $180 I can have my chains sharpened 15 times and buy a couple new ones on top of it. Yes, I have to run to the store but it is close by, next to the post office and my wife knows what to do.

G

[dan79brooklyn]

Originally Posted by aigel

I am trying to reduce tools that I don't use often. The chain saw may even qualify, but I sure don't need any sharpener!

It is $8 to sharpen the chain (well done) at the local Stihl dealer. I have 2 chains, so always one on hand ready to go on sharp. A new chain is 30 bucks or less.

So, for $180 I can have my chains sharpened 15 times and buy a couple new ones on top of it. Yes, I have to run to the store but it is close by, next to the post office and my wife knows what to do.

G

Dremel attachment tool is $15 though...
Hopefully you have the dremel already.

[KFC911]

Can't "justify" the $180....don't have to . I did it really 'cause I wanted one...no regrets. This was an entry level Oregon....can't imagine what the ones 2x+ are like. Differences between the HF....more options on the adjustments (like the side-to-side on the tooth stop, etc.), and a firm clamp instead of the hand brake...but I never used the HF....just a glance. Some of my tiny Stihl chains dull fast (13' pole saw and little powerhouse TC....though I don't climb). I'm out in the woods, clearing storm damage, etc. on lots of acreage....I tote my 14" TC the most. Then move up to the beasts with longer bars if a larger tree....up to 20". Sorta like purchasing a log splitter a couple of decades ago after splitting manually for years....ain't going back....nosirreebob .

[ckelly78z]

I think I got my HF chain sharpener for $30 on one of their super sales....it works better than hand filing, and don't have to drive the 8 miles (and again to pick them up) to the small engine shop to have the chains done. One trip taking 4 chains paid for the HF unit.

There are very likely much better units out there, but I wanted to try it out to see if it were something I could, and was willing to do.

[mattdavis11]

Ditto on the dremel. Any of you guys use full chisel chains? I won't go back to semi chisel. MS 270, 20 inch.

[DanielDudley]

I usually sharpen the chains on the saw with a cutoff wheel in an angle grinder. If you have a good eye, this is the fastest and very sharp. I started doing this when I was replacing the oak sills on my 200 YO farm house. I cut all the joints with a chainsaw, but it was hell on the chains, working over a stone foundation.

I do this all the time now, and I don't suggest it to anyone, but it works for me, It is very fast if you use a chainsaw for demo work, or hit a lot of rocks. My chains come out very sharp, better than when I sent them out. I also have an electric bench sharpener in teh shop, but I rarely use it anymore. That is the best for most people.

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by mattdavis11

Ditto on the dremel. Any of you guys use full chisel chains? I won't go back to semi chisel.

Exclusively...several of my smaller Stihls came with "safe chains".... total crap, and a couple of dealers even said "won't work"....BS. Stihl has the green and yellow codes on bars and chains these daze....all my "green" bars wear "yellow" chains . If you have a "green" link on yer chain...well, that just won't make the cut in my world. Never had a kickback of note in my life....ever...technique is key.

[flatbutt]

Originally Posted by KC911

Never had a kickback of note in my life....ever...technique is key.

Once...only once...didn't bother trying to remove the stain in my pants, just threw them out.

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by flatbutt

Once...only once...didn't bother trying to remove the stain in my pants, just threw them out.

LOL...details man, details .

I saw a "rookie" tree service guy years ago...fresh out of the military....I just shook my head...

[MBAtarga]

I remember reading the Reader's Digests magazines my parents got when I was much younger (teenager.) They always had those gross stories of life threatening events where the victim miraculously survives and retells the story.
One involved a young man with an injury around the PTO of a farm tractor. Yanked both arms off and he ran into the house and got in a bathtub so the floors wouldn't be stained from all the blood.
Another involved a chain saw injury. The victim was somewhat remote in a wooded area and experienced a kickback. He didn't think much of it other than being startled from it. Bent back down to continue the cut and realized blood was gushing out all over. It had cut up his neck near his shoulder blade and he was bleeding profusely. He was able to get through the woods to a nearby road and tried to flag down someone to help. I think he ended up getting in his own truck and driving himself to the hospital while applying pressure on the wound using his grubby t-shirt covered in blood and wood chips.

[vash]

our landscape dept, saves a few bucks and dumps quality wood into our parking lot.

it just happened. free firewood. i bet there is 50-cords of wood right now. i am gonna pull some chunks within my chainsaw skills and season it for campfire wood.

it's on!! there is oak the size of my toyota tacoma in there!!

[VincentVega]

Originally Posted by willtel

I used to struggle with this too until I discovered this thing.

https://www.stihlusa.com/products/chain-saws/filing-tools/2in1file/

It is simply amazing and was way cheaper than $180. I use my saw all the time and I'm always cutting dirty wood that is tough on chains. I've had the same chain for three years now and my saw stays razor sharp.

It is a little hungry in this video because I filed the rakers low but I like it that way.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TR4zIPvjHq0

I have the pferd version of that, great tool. Still some room for error but pretty simple and consistent.

[VincentVega]

Originally Posted by vash

our landscape dept, saves a few bucks and dumps quality wood into our parking lot.

it just happened. free firewood. i bet there is 50-cords of wood right now. i am gonna pull some chunks within my chainsaw skills and season it for campfire wood.

it's on!! there is oak the size of my toyota tacoma in there!!

That would be a dream. I need some white oak for the boat and am running low on firewood, too damn cold here this winter!

[Bill Douglas]

Originally Posted by MBAtarga

grubby t-shirt covered in blood and wood chips.

My Mom made me promise I'd never use a chainsaw without taking a course.

The two day course was safety, how to use the chainsaw, and basic maintenance including sharpening (using a simple chainsaw file correctly - nothing gimmicky).

To summarize the safety side of it. Don't ever be looking straight down at the chain. No if, but when, you get a kickback it will cut your face or throat wide open. Always stand to the left of it, using the left side of the front handle. So the kickback will go harmlessly over your right shoulder.

[vash]

Originally Posted by Bill Douglas

My Mom made me promise I'd never use a chainsaw without taking a course.

The two day course was safety, how to use the chainsaw, and basic maintenance including sharpening (using a simple chainsaw file correctly - nothing gimmicky).

To summarize the safety side of it. Don't ever be looking straight down at the chain. No if, but when, you get a kickback it will cut your face or throat wide open. Always stand to the left of it, using the left side of the front handle. So the kickback will go harmlessly over your right shoulder.

yup. when i bought my chainsaw, the owner of the shop asked,"do you want the safety presentation?"
"yes"
"okay, have a nice..wait! did you say YES!?"
he dug around and found a video to play for me. uncovered a tube TV. i watched the video and took notes. hahah..about 30minutes long.
after the video, the owner asked if i had questions. he answered a few. i got a great homeowner saw, and i left the anti kickback guard on the front in place.

he showed me a few tricks. how to hold it to start,..it was time well spent!!

[ckelly78z]

I've been cutting/splitting/stacking/burning about 4-5 honest 4'x4'x8' cords per year for 25 years now, and still respect a running chainsaw. I only once had a sprung limb come back and hit me in the head....didn't drop the saw, but rather bloody. The thing I have learned recently is to work in small segments, and rest in between. Getting fatigued is dangerous.

[KFC911]

I've been using chainsaws for 45 of my 58 years....hell, I ain't even read the instructions, much less take a course on safety. I plan to get 'round2it one of these daze though...mebbe.

Then again, I've been shooting since I was 6....same, same.

But I've never eaten a pod of Tide....I took a two day course on that though

I keed.....just the last sentence though.....gotta be safe....second nature to me with some stuff...

signed....

Lefty