Which bench chain sharpener do stand by?

I became efficient in hand sharpening, nothing quite gets an edge like the hand file IMHO. It's good to be proficient with a hand file. Chain's last me ages, as I bring down the rakers to suit the diminishing tooth. That being said I have a small tree business, if you work for a large outfit the grinder might be the best option. Still good to know how to hand file.
 
I know lots of people that swear by hand filing. That's alright. I bring out the little dremel like device that can plug into a cigarette lighter or connect directly to the truck battery in case I run out of chains in the field. I have a dremel at home.

In case you don't know these devices use the little, round grinder stone that spin underneath the saw teeth.

I have 50+ chains all different sizes hanging on wall hooks, and I'd like to get that bench grinder to get them all sharp and ready to work.
 
Get a "Chain-Meister" from Jim. Pretty slick device.

I think it comes down to what dulled the chain. If you've hit rock, stone, concrete, Metal, etc, it's best to use a grinder to recalim a tooth. Otherwise, it's time saved to sharpen the chain while it's still on the saw with a file and off you go.
 
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I know lots of people that swear by hand filing. That's alright. I bring out the little dremel like device that can plug into a cigarette lighter or connect directly to the truck battery in case I run out of chains in the field. I have a dremel at home.

In case you don't know these devices use the little, round grinder stone that spin underneath the saw teeth.

I have 50+ chains all different sizes hanging on wall hooks, and I'd like to get that bench grinder to get them all sharp and ready to work.

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Used the dremel many times, but I still prefer the hand file. But I do see your pedicament. 50 chains is a lot and they are not on the saw. Bench grinder for you bro, I am outta here. I am small potatoes.
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I'm with nick and swing here. i like to hand file the tooth and the drags when they are wood dull or only a tooth or three damaged by rock, dirt, or 'crete. Anything more than that this oregon bench grinder i got is awesome, the big model. kinda high price wise but worth it when i can fix the chain rather than buying new. When i refurbish them i put them into new boxes and do the drags. the guys think they are getting a new chain unless they really eye ball them. We have three full timers and three part timers in this part of the year. I am starting to issue guys their own saws, thus eliminating maintenance issues by singling out the guys that don't know how and/or are to lazy to maintain the saws. Retraining can occur after the problem is diagnosed. The worst guy i had is now the best guy i have, since he can't just put a saw down and grab another. It has also improved their cutting, planning, crew dynamics, and general craftsmanship; thus reducing my maintenance cost. for the record only my permanent/climbers have two saws assigned one top handle, one 24" saw; ground pounders have one small saw 18" assigned. one "big saw" is assigned per truck. employees have to turn in chains to get a new one, turn in old files to get new, turn in old eye protection to get new etc, etc, etc... That way if there is a problem it can be identified early. I have spent hella dough on maintenance this year. it will change next year now that the guys are accountable for the equipment the use.
 
That sounds like a wise method, Jeff. Accountability is key. What is your protocol during the training period, if a man has a poorly maintained saw that is ineffective on the site? Would he be able to use another saw that was issued to another worker for that time being? Perhaps the learning curve is quick enough to negate that issue in a higher production environment.
 
Jeff, that's a good program! Thanks. Respect for the gear is a must.


And Small Potatoes (Swing), running small ops definitely has it's golden sides to it. I ran a small co. for 5 years at first, and recently I teamed up with a guy who has contracted for 25 years. He sells the jobs, and I finish them. Teaming up with another professional brings things to new level. Unfortunately there is no more time for anything else.
 
I bought a Oregon copy from Tractor Supply for 119.00. I added a diamond wheel to it and will never use a file or dremel again. I would rather have three spare chains on the truck than have to waste time in the field with sharpening. It works beautifully and I have never had chains so sharp...... I get comments all the time. Do chains for several buddies too.....
 
Thanks for the word about grinders. I can't believe they sell a Timber Tuff for $50. I know so many people will file on the job, but I really need the grinder. I'm not going to get much down filing everyone's chains on the job. I have a whole slew of used chains on the wall that I've never sharpened with the intention of buying that grinder, sharpening them up in a slow time of the year, and having sharp chains on the truck. IMO that is the proper use of time.


How about the angle grinder over the vertical grinder? I think the angle grinder would be better than the vertical grinder, but really which is better? Won't the vertical grinder make chains last longer just because it takes out all of the thin wedge on the tooth. I'd think that thin metal in the sharp wedge would wear out faster than the flat metal which can only come from the vertical grinder.

Maybe this will make better sense of what I'm asking about.


> thin wedge from angle grinder - wears out fast

] flat edge from vertical grinder - keeps edge longer
 
You might be over-thinking it a bit.

The disks are a consumable but they don't wear out that fast. In fact when I was originally taking the square edge off my wheel with the grinding stone it took a pretty long time.

I still do most of my chains by hand but every 4-5 sharpenings I like to put them on the grinder to keep things exact.

It's also nice to get the rakers the exact same height.
 
the stihl usg is by far the highest quality grinder out there imo...maybe second to the $25000 automated one from stein...but ive never used that one.
 
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Would you sharpen them yourself if you had a local shop that did a good job sharpening any size chain for $3.50?

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Good job sharpening for $3.50? You'd get my chains. :) The shops around here Charge $9 up to 20" and a bit more for any bigger, so I need a grinder. These shops have a lot of bills to pay for, so their fees is higher.

I'm about to order a grinder now.
 
I hand file either round or square but I do have a grinder , a pro sharp that I modded but it might see 5 chains to file a year , Mostly I just use it on the high tooth .404 race chain that comes unfiled then finish with a hand file
 
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