Getting started in chain grinding

I had a RM on an 024s. I ran over a gallon of gas through that saw and it was still cutting good. I keep kicking around the idea of going back to RM. The dealer where I was buying my chains on stocked RS. Now I am cutting logs that have been skidded. They rarely have dirt visible on them, but you know they have dirt on them. With RS I am only getting a couple of tanks before they need a touch up. I don't like to let it get real dull.

It would be cool to do a comparison and see how much faster RS was than RM. Then cut with both chains til they got dull, keep track of how much wood was cut or fuel was burned. Then factor in how long it takes to sharpen the chain. Then figure up if the faster cut time with RS is worth the more frequent filing.

 

94BULLITT i run into that a lot too....if I know there is possibly dirt in the wood, I use RM....

 

Most of the wood I cut is logs that have been cable skidded. So the wood is between dirty and mud covered. I use chisel chain anyways because IMHO when it is time to sharpen, (which can be half a tank) it still cuts better than semi chisel fresh off the grinder. I will touch up with a file and be good to go.

One tip when cutting very dirty wood and the guys working the log landings do this to is to plunge cut through the log, then cut up towards the top of the log throwing the dirt/bark away from the powerhead. It helps is slowing down the dulling effect of the dirt. Dirt is just the price of admission when working on cable skidded wood.

 

That is why we always cut where it falls. We helped a guy cut up wood that had been put into pile by a dozer. he had a deadline before it was set on fire and what a nightmare. spent more time filing and changing chains than cutting. What you mentioned about plunging would have helped some if we had thought of it. I run full chisel too and I've gone 4 days days of full cutting on a sharpen on occasion. Keep it out of the dirt and it last a long time and will throw heavy chips. That is unless you are cutting dead Hedge or Mulberry. That stuff dulls without dirt in a hurry.

I've gone to just taking several loops of chain with and change them. I sharpen them at home when it is dark or raining. I don't like burning daylight sharpening on sight when I could be cutting. It just works out better for me that way.

 

I just read the entire thread. I've been thinking about buying a grinder like bocefus78 did, and sharpening my chains for my firewood use.

I learned a lot more than I knew about chains before, but I didn't know much about them to start with.

 

I run Stihl RS on everything but the two little saws. 011 & 192T. I carry 3-4 sharp chains for whatever saws I'm using. Chains are 30-55-10 angles & cut pretty well. A sharp chain will run me all day or even two in Oak Ash or similar wood. Dirt cuts that time considerably, I swap chains & sharpen with a grinder in the shop after work, rain day, whatever. As Firewood Bandit stated, the plunge cut method does help in dirty skidded logs. When I'm cutting, I wanna cut not sharpen. I'll change saws at times rather than swapping chains if it's more efficient. I'm blessed to have a pile of saws, nice grinder, & a warm comfy shop to work in, so when I get to the woods, I wanna make firewood. Skidding logs & dirt are just a part of it sometimes. So are rocks & other debris. If you like what you're getting done keep doing it. If not don't be afraid to try something different. I figure I'm cutting firewood, not launching a satellite, close counts if the trailer goes home full.

 

Kind of like a bass fisherman who never ties new lures. Just grab a new saw and go.

It's much easier to have saws sharp, ready to cut, fueled and oiled on shop bench. Buck till it won't buck no more and grab a fresh one.

 

You won't regret it. Go for it. For me it was the fact that I could resharpen 5 years of rocked out chains and put them back in service vs just keep piling them up and replacing them.

I made 18 chains new again, learned a chit load, and found a new hobby. It's already paid for itself in my book.

 

Yep I say go for it. There no big mystery about it and once you see the mechanics involved it will just make sense.


I won that match by strictly grinding a chain. I did nothing by hand with a file. My point is that you can get a chain pretty dog gone sharp with a grinder and you do not have to file it.
Just practice is all it takes.

 

1+
Great thread!

 

Ditto, I never bothered to learn to sharpen chains because I had an old-timer a couple miles up the road from me that basically sharpened and made new chains cheaper than I would bother. Unfortunately, he's had a heart attack and it looks like he may get out of it. If he does I'll look at buying some of his equipment, he was probably 80 and basically made chains for 4 for 20 bucks and sharpen however many for 20. Basically, allowed him to smoke his stogies in heated shop after he retired. Great guy to visit and learn from. Bring him a case of his favorite beer put it in his fridge, and chat. Always felt guilty about price he charged was too low. Got 20 sharp chains now, but apparently he has heart attack shoveling in last storm. Hoping by spring I can stop by and let him teach me some tricks if I give him a dozen hours of help.

 

Sounds like a perfect situation to gain some knowledge.

 

If I don't clean the dirt off, I try to saw up through it.

Hard to tell how much faster it would have been if it was filed

 

Here is a chain I sharpened Saturday for a guy. It had not been sharpened before.

Here is what the chain looked like before.



I measured the chain before sharpening.



After sharpening, the chrome was chipped way back.



I measured the chain at the throw away marks. At this rate it may make it 2 more sharpenings. This is the 3rd chain I've done for him. The other 2 were just as bad.

 

Harbor Freight caliper!
Gentleman needs some education btw! Poor saw.

 

It is a Blue Point caliper.

He said it is hard to not hit rocks where he is cutting. The sad thing is he has an 044.

 

Maybe he's cutting rock elm? Lol

How many the cutters had rock witness marks?

 

Most of them on the right were damaged.

Sent from my KFAUWI using Tapatalk

 

Maybe it is me but I see no point in measuring the length of cutters. When the amount to grind is set you need to take off enough so that the working corner is profiled correctly. If you go through the loop and find a badly damaged cutter such as the one in the picture, you of course have to take off more metal. Grinding all to the same length will take off a lot of metal that really doesn't need to be.

I would imagine I can get 20 sharpenings on a chain with the electric grinder, since I take off such a small amount.

I have seen chains that once severely "rocked" never seem to come back ever. I believe the cutter angle can be distorted/bent and even though the working corner is sharp, never seem to be the same again.

 

I have ground chains for my neighbor. One had wood actually packed in the cutter face that I had to remove with a pick before grinding.