For my apprentice...

[Muggs]

Hello all, I am building a website to teach my apprentice the basics during the off-season and I would love some feedback. My newest articles are about saw chain - how and why it works, and how to maintain and sharpen chains. You can view them here:

1. How Saw Chain Works - The terminology and concepts of what saw chain is, and how and why it slices wood.
2. Saw Chain Maintenance & Sharpening - The equipment and techniques to keep your saw chain sharp

The site is called EducatedClimber.com and I would really appreciate opinions and feedback from the TreeBuzz community. Thank you all.

Cheers

 

[twiggysapswell]

Hey Muggs!
I'm kind of a newbie (I've only been at it for 1 season) and I feel like your site is an intelligent and comprehensive intro to saw maintenance. I learned much of what you have on your site at school, but unfortunately a lot of what I learned was forgotten on the job. I, too, have succumbed to the mentality that 'oh, well those guys are doing it, I bet I can do it too, pass it here". I guess it's nice just have a proper refresher on the right technique, terminology and why we employ the practices in the first place. Keep it up! Let me tell you, newbs like me need people like you.

Cheers,

Matt.

 

[surveyor]

As the chain teeth wear down with repeated sharpening, I sometimes have problems with the saw cutting a curved kerf, usually curving to the left. I suppose it is because I have removed more material on teeth on one side of the bar than the other, and so I try to go back and remove more material on one side or the other. What is your suggestion for this situation? Also do you recommend getting a new bar with every new chain?

 

[Muggs]

Regarding the cut pulling sideways, there are many factors at play. Some people just don't pivot on the dawgs properly or they don't hold the saw solidly enough. I have seen saws cut sideways for one person, and then someone else picks it up and it seems to cut fine for them. It can also be a problem with the bar. But most often it is the chain that is to blame. The cut will tend to curve towards the side of the chain that cuts better and more aggressive. The ideal situation is to have all of your teeth of equal length on both sides of the chain, but we all know this is often impractical. One side of the chain may have some shorter teeth after hitting a nail or stone. Now if ALL of the teeth on one side are shorter than the other side, then you can run into trouble. Side dominance issues can play a large role in this as well. Most people tend to do a better job of sharpening on one side than the other.
I am by no means an expert on anything, but I would focus on the relative size of the teeth, and then the relative sharpness and aggressiveness of the chisel edge and corners between the 2 sides of the chain. You will frequently find that one side is just sharpened better than the other.

As for bars, I only replace my bars when they are worn out. Keep the sprocket greased, watch for burs on the rails and signs of overheating, and you can get a lot of life out of a good quality bar. They are so expensive, better to just take care of them

You might find this helpful, short article from Madsen's supply: Saw Won't Cut Straight - Bad Bar or Bad Chain?

 

[Muggs]

You can also find the videos from my site on my Youtube channel, available here. Always looking for feedback and constructive criticism to help make better content. Thanks to everyone for the support, I sure do appreciate it.

 

[Ragnar]

I have been enjoying the videos on youtube.

Nice articles. I still struggle to file chains well. I took it on as a challenge a few years ago, and my motivation comes and goes. BobL on AS has some outstanding posts about filing rakers progressively. There are a lot of good threads there about filing chains. One thing I did not see mentioned in your article is filing the gullets.

Also, may be worthwhile to include a few comments on safety vs non safety chains. Single, double, and triple humpers....

I found it was easier to file a chain off the saw/bar. A chain vise was a key tool for me learning. For the left and right cutters, it helped me get myself on the correct side (can be done rotating chain in vise or walking to other side, etc)

Tried a pile of file guides from simple to the venerable Stihl FG2. They are great for learning but free-hand is so much faster.

 

[CutHighnLetFly]

@surveyor i used to have a tendency (occasional still happens) where I was putting uneven pressure on the file when doing one side of the chain compared to the other. It might take doing it a couple times, but eventually it's cutting curved.
I use both hands to file the saw so it goes quick, but having a consistent stroke with both hands is tricky.
But it will confuse the hell out of you cause you know the chain was never damaged and the bar's in good shape. ....assuming I'm not the only person who did this...

 

[surveyor]

I do struggle to put even pressure on one side as opposed to the other. I use a file that has the flat on either side of the file to aid with the depth of the round. When I file right handed, I use the thumb on my gloved left hand to apply pressure to the face of the cut while grasping the chain and bar, works great for me, but my left hand is not so coordinated with the thumb of my right hand, so I generally use my right hand on that opposite side without the aid of the thumb pressure. I have also tried lowering the rakes a touch on the left side if it is curving to the left.