Chain Saw chains

I do it after every second tank and depending on what I am cutting sometimes even after every tank. I just use a little hand file and normally take it to the shop to get professionally checked and sharpened/adjusted after about 10 home sharpens.

Have used chain saws for years and it was always better to touch up the chain at least every tank of fuel. It is much easier to keep sharp than to actually sharpen.

Neil

My Stihl is now almost 24 years old and has done a pile of reasonably heavy work. Trees with diameter up to twice the bar length. Mostly yellow box, red gum or iron bark along with a bundle of old rail sleepers and power poles for firewood. Drive sprocket has been replaced twice.

Have worn out 7 or 8 chains but still using only second bar which has been professionally side dressed twice. The original had three dressings from memory.

Resharpen after each tank of fuel or after each use which ever comes first. Any time used to do this is well and truely worthwhile. I use hand file only.

Resharpen any and every time the chain makes contact with the ground. This can be a real problem when cutting old logs etc which have been in the ground so I try to avoid that situation.

Never put the saw away without cleaning, sharpening and resetting chain tension. The acids in some timbers can attack the body materials if you leave them sit. Particular palms are bad news.

Always use a top quality bar oil and never ever cut without checking oil flow. As little as 30 seconds without oil can cause damage to the bar.

As with any cutting tool accidents are more likely to happen when the edge is off.

Works for me

Kevin J

Simco
My story is very similar to Kevin's. I have a 1987 model Stihl. It was the second smallest one they made at the time and was only supposed to cut a small amount of bbq wood each year. A transfer to the bush with my job meant it cut 15 tons of hardwood each year for six years and it is still going well.

I treat it the same way as Kevin and sharpen the chain by hand after each tank. Each tooth is like a little wood chisel and the sharper they are the better.

Be very careful of dirty wood. I always carry a small tomahawk and a wire brush to either brush bark or cut it off completely if it has dirt on it. This leaves a clean area for the chain to go through and makes a big difference to its condition.

It is actually an impossible question to answer, it is entirely dependent on what timber you are cutting, hardwood or softwood, dry or green, clean timber or dirty etc.
As mentioned above, it is a good idea to get a professional machine sharpen after a few hand sharpens.

While you are waiting for the motor to cool a bit so you can refuel is a good time to touch up the chain.
So I say every time you refuel or more often if necessary.

Scrubby.

I give it a sharpen after every 2nd tank as well. Dont forget to check the scrapers as well for height and shape.

I give it a good going over, airfilter clean, bar rotation ect every so often and get it serviced once a year, more often if i'm cutting professionally.

Ive got 3 saws Stihl 990, 311 & 170 and treat them all the same way.

Cheers Wilko

Well it all depends.
I have been using only wood for all my heating needs for over 30 years so have cut many hundreds of ton of wood over this time.
I have a property in the mountains & another in the Mallee. When I cut in the wet mountain forest I can go all day without sharpening till I finish for the day as long as I do not hit the ground. However its a different story in the mallee. I have to sharpen at every tankfill due to the termites that bring up the sand into the timber.
Also as a few have mentioned use good quality bar oil & keep the oil galleries clean to ensure max lube to the bar. Also its much better to keep the edge nice & sharp with minor touch ups than stress the saw (& yourself) with a blunt cutting edge.
And we all know there are 2 things you DO NOT lend out to friends. Your saw & your wife!
Cheers
Stu

Yes all answers are correct in my view. It depends on what you are cutting. A sharp chain protects the cutter bar. Some chains are better than others and some logs are harder/dirtier than others. As soon as you detect a change in performance, sharpen the chain. On fencing jobs I'd sometimes sharpen before the tank was empty, but just a touch up.

Being a serious firewood cutter, I sharpen my chains frequently to avoid unnecessary, excessive wear. If the teeth on the chain don't have that sharp, clean cutting edge you're only going to prematurely wear out the chain, bar, sprocket, power head and more importantly your back. A dull chain is also a safety concern.

Of course, sharpening frequency all depends on the timber that you cut. If it's green, clean hardwood then a chain will last about 2-3 trees. As soon as you hit dirty or rotten wood you'd be lucky to make a dozen cuts before sharpening again. I usually cut (either green or dry) stringybark, peppermint, swampgum and paperbark (I think). Peppermint is my favourite as it cuts beautifully and splits very well.

I have used different sharpening tools over the years and have never come across anything better than the Jolly Star grinder that I bought a couple of years back. A nice Italian machine, it's made by Tecomec and set me back $550.

I started out using a file and file holder and I found this was OK, but over time (and no matter how much one tries to keep the angle correct) you will eventually need to get the chain sharpened in a shop to true it out. I also upgraded later to a battery operated grinder (Stihl Quik Sharp) that runs off a car battery and found that the results were similar to using a file.

I then decided to make a purchase that I'll never regret - buying the Jolly Star. This grinder has the capacity to sharpen anything from a 1/4" pitch chain to a 3/4" harvester. Down angle, sideplate angle and the sharpening angle can all be set and will ensure a consistent grind. The machine came with three wheels with different thicknesses for a variety of chains.

I use only Stihl chains and have found them to be the best. I have used Windsor, Oregon, Carlton and they all good, but I have my grinder set for the Stihl chains as they don't have a down angle setting. Just makes sharpening easier.

When sharpening I use the "pickering" method where I just touch the grinding wheel on the tooth a few times without holding the grinder on the tooth for extended periods of time. Grinding the teeth heavily, or holding the wheel on them for too long will cause heat build up and will weaken the metal that the tooth is made of, making it softer and vulnerable to premature wear. Of course, when using a file you don't have to worry about this. Just 3-4 strokes of the file are enough for a touch-up sharpen.

I clamp the bar (with the powerhead still attached) in a vise using wood blocks when sharpening with a file. When using the file, push the file away from you (forward stroke) to sharpen the tooth. Then slightly lift the file away from the tooth when pulling the file back in (backward stroke) for another forward stroke. File the left-hand cutters in this manner. Then clamp the bar the other way around and sharpen the right-hand cutters the same way, pushing the file away from you to sharpen, pulling the file in to prepare for another forward stroke. The rakers can be done in the same way, with a flat file and filing gauge.

Depth gauges (or rakers) are probably the most overlooked part of the tooth when sharpening. Leave the rakers to high, and the chain won't cut. File them down too low and the chain will "bite" into the wood roughly (to say the least) and will become a safety issue (increased kickback). I always use the correct filing gauge to file the rakers down to the proper height. When the rakers are filed, I then 'radius' them slightly to give them a round edge (not lowering them any further of course).

When I know that I'll be cutting dirty wood, I switch to semi-chisel chains (Stihl Rapid Micro). They are a bit more 'forgiving' in dirty or rotten wood and don't seem to wear down as fast as my standard-use chain (full chisel Stihl Rapid Super). Semi chisel chains have a different tooth design and have different sharpening angles as well.

You can always spot a dull chain by the wood chips it produces. Big chips means that it's cutting as it should, and sawdust means it needs a sharpen (unless you're making a rip cut).

There are super-automated sharpeners available (for an arm and a leg). These make mince meat of the sharpening process and use diamond wheels as well. I have seen one in operation and was thoroughly impressed but the price tag put me off lol.

I hope that's enough info for you lol and not too much confusion.

Cheers.

i have also found out the age of the file makes a big difference. and I clean my file after every sharpen