I hand sharpen on the bench, ever couple times when done by hand the Silvey 510 works great. The last pic is a cheap Tecomec with a prototype Silvey style vice made by Kevin in Ohio. This is configured for grinder rakers right now, note the wheel has been profiled with a diamond in the shape of OEM rakers.
Grinding was every bit a game changer as learning to file square. It allowed me to run full comp chain on my 36” bar for the SCarr394. Holy cow, if I rocked that chain hand filing, my hands would be screaming. Last thing I want is a constant relationship with Uncle Arthr. I do keep in practice though as I hand file my BIL’s chains.
He is not a pretender for sure, he is the real deal. Chains with different length cutters and different angles will cut, will cut a lot of timber; he is living proof. Like you said, 'good enough for who it's for'. I like his technique in that he is looking straight down at the chain, and using both hands. IF I hand file again, I may try it. That is a big IF
Profiling the wheel to the OEM shape greatly reduces vibration and aids in plunge/bore cutting which I do a lot on cable skidded logs. Normal flat wheels have a lot more vibration when cutting.
I don't know, it was a cheap one at Farm and Fleet, all the cheap grinders are made by Tecomec and rebadged.
