What's wrong with this picture? Sharpening question

I bought a MS391 a few years ago off Craigslist. I paid $300 and if I hadn't seen the invoice with his name on it, I would have assumed the guy selling it had stole it. I bought it as a backup and also to have a saw for when my brothers show up and want to help out cutting firewood. It doesn't get a terrific amount of use. Today I broke out the Harbor Freight sharpener. I was in the tool and die apprenticeship program so I know how to make it work.

Anyway, while I was sharpening the chains that came with the saw, I came across the chain pictured in this post. I'm not sure whoever the previous owner had sharpen his chains knew what he was doing. Even if he had a real sharpener.

Here is the differential height in the depth gage and cutter.



I'm not a "pro" wood guy. Is there a reason a consumer grade saw with a 20" bar would have a depth gage ground/filed to allow for a .073 cut? Seems to me the thing will grab and bog down the saw. I usually keep them filed down to .025/.028.

Another question, why would the radius of the wheel or file not be tangent to the top plate?


Here's what it looked like as I was touching it up.




The angle of the tooth was 30° but for some reason whoever did this seemed to have under-ground the top plate (best way I can think to describe the grind), leaving a somewhat blunt edge.

Is there an application (ripping?) that would call for a profile like this?

As I said, I'm not a pro, but this just seems odd.

Thanks in advance.

 

My guess is the guy is a psycho that mutilates victims with his custom "mangle" chain. You got such a good deal so he could be rid of the evidence.

 

That could explain the the ivory colored chips I found under the clutch cover.

 

My chuckle for the day....thanks Grizz.
Welcome aboard Casper !

 

I know lots of pro fallers on the West Coast will have their rakers at .050 or .055 for skip chain in certain softer fibrous woods such as Douglas Fir or Redwood. But they're using 70 to 90+cc saws also..

I've been a bit aggressive when filing my rakers a couple times then forgetting about it.Like ripping a bunch of large green Silver Maple blocks a couple years back then doing the same on some 2yr old + very large Honey Locust a few weeks later.... Talk about rattling your fillings!! I cant imagine using that chain on a smaller saw or especially hardwoods however.

 

There is some kind of pitchy stuff on the chain. It's been awhile and it's hardened up pretty good. They could have been used to cut pine. I soaked the chains in some old gas but they still refuse to clean up. I'll leave them soaking in the parts washer tonight.

 

God help the poor soul that ever touched a piece of wood not strapped down or not still part of the tree with that chain! I'm guilty of taking the rakers down a bit much now and then, but that would be brutal. As for the file job on the cutters...no clue what's going on there.

 

So there is no confusion, I do not plan on using the chain in the pic. There were others included that I can use.

 

For one there no dam rakers on it, somebody has hacked them off. And looks like there might not be enough hook on the cutters? And you have not totally gone back into the corner of the cutter. File may be too big?

 

Looking at it that chain has just been destroyed, rocked and tried to be filed and not enough taken off of it to right it back.

 

Did you get that saw from Jake Phelps?

 

Is he from Andover, Ohio? I don't remember the guy's name, it's been a few years.

ETA:. Why do I get the feeling I walked into something here?

 

Another thing I just thought of. If you have not bought another wheel for that HF grinder and are useing the one that came with it, that is for 3/8" loPro chain not real 3/8 chain like is on the MS391. So your wheel is undersized and won't ever sharpen that chain right, it can sharpen them OK though but never right.

 

Thanks for the info on the wheel thickness. I don't use the sharpener but once a season, I touch up with a hand file every tank or two while out in the woods. Just to be clear, I didn't cause the damage to the chain in the pic.

 

This peice of work.

 

I couldn't remember why that name was familiar! ! HahaI forgot about that guy.

 

Thanks for posting that video Grizz, I am now dumber for having to sit through that. The few minutes I did watch were extremely painful.

 

Great, now I gotta go find my drywall tool bag and see if the 1/4 router bits I use will be big enough for my blades. Oh, and hitting those other things to each time. Wish me luck! The only problem I saw in the video is he threw away a perfectly good lighter.


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