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Tool Talk Discussion Forum

Sharpening a Chainsaw.

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Jaledu

06-19-2006 07:52:51

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I am need of a way to sharpen my chainsaw blades. Just wondering what everyone here uses.

A friend used to do them for me with his Oregon Grinder, but he no longer has it, and most shops are charging $5+ a blade around here.

Has any one tried the Dremel tool attachment for saws?

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RayP(MI)

06-21-2006 16:31:18

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Jaledu, 06-19-2006 07:52:51

I use a dremmel tool with a grinder the same diameter as the file I would use to file the saw, (if I filed it, that is!) Quick, works better for me than file and that clunky filing jig. I do it freehand with the dremmel. Much faster, and when you get the hang of it, you can produce well sharpened chains.

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Mark - IN.

06-20-2006 03:42:22

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Jaledu, 06-19-2006 07:52:51

My brother and I use rat-tail files and a piece of tape, and he"s legally blind and goes by touch. Different diameter file depending upon the blade and tooth size. Put a piece of tape on a blade for a marker, give a tooth a few good swipes, skip a tooth (cuts the other direction), indexing all the way around until you get to the tape. Then turn the saw around and work through the teeth that cut the opposite direction. Takes a few minutes. Keep the bar still, hold the blade down in the bar so doesn"t move, keep a level steady filing motion so teeth don"t get jazzed up. Should use a guide, and do before putting the saws up, but when are out cutting, I usually cut, he usually sharpens, fills, and oils the other saws so can keep cutting in a non-stop rotation of saws. Thankfully don"t have many pine or cedar around, that tar really gums things up and slows you down. Then you gotta really go through and cleaning the saws before storing them. Helps to have bar protector sleaves so don"t get dinged up or banged around.

Neither of us have ever used a grinder, and being blind, my brother sharpens them better than I do. Guess its because he takes more time and is more careful and thorough about the angle. He gets me good chips everytime. Dosen"t drive as good as me though - Ha Ha Ha Ha.

Mark

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Jaledu

06-19-2006 21:02:50

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Jaledu, 06-19-2006 07:52:51

Thanks for all of the good replies. I am leaning towards a good file and some practice for now. Maybe one day I will come across a grinder at a sale for cheap.

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TomR Ont

06-19-2006 18:38:04

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Jaledu, 06-19-2006 07:52:51

amozon.com Your chain saw by Robert Scharff (Unknown Binding - 1980) Books: See all 608 items Used & new from $2.50

Old but a lot of good info

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TraceS

06-19-2006 16:12:27

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Jaledu, 06-19-2006 07:52:51

I work for a hazardous tree removal company and I am sharpening saws all the time. We have both ways to sharpen saws grinder and chainsaw files.. I am from the old school and I like to sharpen saws with a hand file over with a grinder.. My reason for this is that by the time you take off your chain put it in the grinder and start grinding teeth I have already hand filed 7 teeth or so.. We have set it up so one person uses the grinder and I will use the hand file and surprisingly enough we both are done in about the same amount of time during normal sharpening. But when you have either neglected your sharpening for awhile or you have hit something while cutting then it is often faster with the grinder to bring them back to cutting good.. The other thing I would like to say is the angle does matter for the type of wood you are cutting.. Back when I was logging when we were in a stand of softwood we would make a steep angle on the teeth to cut faster and better.. The sawdust coming out was more like 2 inch long streamers coming out of the saw.. Now when you are in hardwood most cases make the angle of the teeth less steep and bring them back to the way they were when you bought the chain if you dont then the teeth will dull quickly and you will build more heat in the chain making it so you have to tighten your chain often.. If you are having problems finding the right angle when filing then they do make chains out there that have a line right on top of every tooth so all you have to do is line your file up with the line and file away.. The other thing I will cover is the rakers, these are the things sticking up in between every tooth.. Take your flat file and lay it across two teeth and look under the file to where the raker is, this should be 1/16th of an inch.. Now there are people out there like me that file the rakers down further because we like the way the saw cuts, this is good for cutting firewood or falling trees however the more you file these rakers down the more of a chance the saw will kick back or buck on you first touch the log with the saw tip or while limbing and sometimes you will have to hold up on the saw at times to keep it from bogging down..
The last thing I will add here if you hate sharpening like I do, this sounds like a real no brainer but when cutting with your saw clean the area of dirt and if there is dirt on the log that you cant avoid always make sure the dirt is on the saw side of the log instead of the backside.. This way the teeth are not pulling the dirt into your cutting area.. When the dirt is on the saw side the tooth never really has to be pulled through the dirt making so you dont have to sharpen as often.. I hope this helps people and I know it is very long explaination and I apoligize for that..

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GrampaBiluga

06-19-2006 15:53:13

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Jaledu, 06-19-2006 07:52:51

I was advised to stay away from the cheaper Chicago Unit that Harbor Freight sells, because it only sharpens one direction and the really expensive ones can be reversed!! I flatly disagree!! I happened to get one when they were on sale for 29.95. For those of us that are getting shaky and can't see too good anymore this unit is great. Iv'e sharpened both chisel and regular tooth chains many times, and noticed that at first, with a fresh sharpening it might not bite quite as good as it should because of the burr on the off angle. After a few cuts it starts coming in fine. And you get a perfect angle every time.

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Charles (in GA)

06-19-2006 15:34:12

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Jaledu, 06-19-2006 07:52:51

I use nothing but a hand file with a guide on it. It isn't rocket science. A pair of gloves, sharpen all of the teeth angled one way, turn ir around, do the rest. Ocassionally the kerfs in front of the teeth have to be cut down as you cut the teeth further back.

I've been thru a couple of chains that way, and never a problem. A huge waste of time removing the chain, and taking it to someone and paying them to do what I can do in about ten minutes.

Charles

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John F in MD

06-21-2006 10:06:12

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Charles (in GA), 06-19-2006 15:34:12

I'm with Charles. I use nothing but a file. I use the guide about every other time I sharpen. It's not hard and only takes 5 to 10 minutes.

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Rod in Smiths Falls, ON,

06-19-2006 15:07:33

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Jaledu, 06-19-2006 07:52:51

The guy who sold me my saw in the '70's also showed me how to sharpen it. He had no use for the electric sharpeners: too slow and hardened the teeth too much. To watch him sharpen a saw (no guides) it looked as though he was ruining the teeth, because on the left-side teeth he seemed to file up and the right he filed down, but the chains cut beautifully.

All he seemed to care about was getting the tip and the top surface of the tooth sharp. If the risers were too high he would file them down, but usually my saws wore the risers down faster than the teeth.

When I was cutting up three huge elm logs one time he filed me a special chain for my 30" Pro-Mac 850, one with the risers almost filed off. I had to hold it up to keep it from bogging, but man, would it cut!

When sharpening, make sure the tips of the teeth are sharp and the rest should take care of itself. Angles don't seem to be critical. If the chain won't cut, even though it is sharp, file down the risers.

Buy a few extra files.

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mjbrown

06-19-2006 13:59:56

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Jaledu, 06-19-2006 07:52:51

I use a saw file. It only takes a few strokes to keep it sharp if you do it every couple hours. If you let it go till its throwing saw dust instead of chips you not getting the best out of your saw and it will take a lot more work to bring it back to sharp. It's not hard to learn how. Your dealer should be glad to show you how. If not find another dealer.

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BBx

06-19-2006 10:04:17

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Jaledu, 06-19-2006 07:52:51

I have never used anything but a hand file with an attached guide. Carry it with me in the field in case I need to touch it up. Takes about 5 minutes to give the chain a good sharpening.

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Vern-MI

06-19-2006 09:55:30

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Jaledu, 06-19-2006 07:52:51

Try a Dremel chainsaw sharpener kit. They have the 5/32", 7/32", and 9/32" grinding stones and fit on the end of an existing Dremel tool. They can be found for $10 - $15 at stores like Meijers, Home Depot, Lowes, Ace etc. If you already have a Dremel you just unscrew the end cap and put the chainsaw adapter in it's place. If not you would have to buy a Dremel tool which will run approximately $30 additional. The adapter has a guide for depth and angle and you can run through a 20" chain in about 10 minutes with this tool. You could even get a battery operated Dremel and use it in the field.

Dremel chain saw sharpener attachment

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Mike in Utah

06-19-2006 09:15:35

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Jaledu, 06-19-2006 07:52:51

I don't know if this chain saw sharpener works very well but saw it in a sales flyer. If anyone does have one maybe they could post a review on its usability and quality.

Harbor Freight Chain Saw Grinder

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06-19-2006 10:26:00

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Mike in Utah, 06-19-2006 09:15:35

We have the one from Harbor Freight and it has paid for it's self multiple times. When you factor in the time and gas to go get chains shapened, it paid for itself during the first use. It's not built like a brick house, but for occasional use it is fine.

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Tib B from MA

06-19-2006 09:14:42

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Jaledu, 06-19-2006 07:52:51

I use a sliding guide that Oregon makes - clamps to the top of the bar, holds the file in a cradle that slides back and forth. Has adjustments for the appropriate vertical and horizontal angle for your chain.

I used one for about 18 years and a few hundred cords of wood, I use my chains until the teeth are nearly gone and about to start breaking off. My original sharpening guide broke and I bought a new one at Lowe's a year or two ago. Basically the same as the old one, and works fine. It is about $20 if I recall correctly.

My opinion is there is no need to pay $5 or $7 to have a $25 chain sharpened.

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cj3b_jeep

06-19-2006 08:28:28

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Jaledu, 06-19-2006 07:52:51

I agree, get them professionally sharpened once in a while, but keep the file and the guide handy to touch it up when needed. Be sure to follow the directions with the sharpening kit and use the guide.

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nballen

06-19-2006 08:24:50

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to Jaledu, 06-19-2006 07:52:51

$5 sounds like a bargain to me ;>) I'm pretty sure I was paying ~$7 for sharpening an 18" - 20" chain in Moscow, ID. since moving to Southern Idaho, I haven't cut enough wood to need the chains professionally sharpened.

Personally, I sharpen my chainsaws with a round file and a file guide - helps keep the file up in the point of the tooth and gives a visual guide to keep the angle consistent.

When cutting a lot of wood, I would hand sharpen 3 or 4 times per day, or as required when the chips start getting too fine.

Every 10 to 20 cords of fire wood, I would probably have the chain professionally sharpened, just to keep the teeth consistent.

Nathaniel

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TimS

06-19-2006 08:38:36

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Re: Sharpening a Chainsaw. in reply to nballen, 06-19-2006 08:24:50

I bought one of those wheel grinders from Cummins tools, it works real nicely. I think I spent $40 on it, I have sharpened a dozen chains on it already, so it has paid for itself.

http://www.cumminstools.com/browse.cfm/4,1554.htm

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