I helped my BILs buck up a huge pin oak yesterday...about 36" or so. When it fell the main trunk split in half right down the middle into two pieces. Anyway, I was cutting with a couple new in box chains and noticed that my cuts were drifting a lot to my right...about 3-4" over the course of the 36". The last time I worked up a big oak tree it did this, but I blamed it on the chain and my sharpening skills. Anyway, am I right in thinking it's time for a new bar? This one has about 20-30 cord (at least) on it over the past 4 years. If so, should I get another "E" bar, or are the other brands good too?
You can have the bar dressed. Cost $5-10 around here. If you get a new Stihl bar es is the way to go.
For the $$$ , ES bars are hard to beat . You can look at Cannon ,Sugihara ,Tsumura as well . But like I said for the money,it's the ES bars. That,and you can get them at any local Stihl shop .
Check for burrs on the outside of the rail where the chain rides.. Any burrs there will stop the cutter from cutting on that side.. I go around with a raker file on both sides.. Lay the bar flat and file away ...I file the bar from the outside in..In towards the grove.. Takes like a minute a side.. You can feel when you have all the burrs gone, file won't bite anything.. Some raker gauges have a line on the side to be uses as a go-no go gauge , the line on the side tells you if your rails are worn down lower then the drive link... If so the bar has seen it's service life...
Flip it over and see what happens... Also, in big wood you need your oiler turned all the way up. Insufficient oil = friction = heat = chain stretch. Make sure your chain is tight so it doesn't lay over in the cut.
I flip the bar pretty often and deburred it recently. It looks good good to the naked eye and everything feels normal. Oiler is always cranked to the max. After thinking about it I wonder if one of the rails has gotten slightly lower/shorter than the other causing the chain to sit at a bit of an angle? I might pull it off and set it on the cast iron table saw top to make sure it is flat and then try to stand it on edge and see if it sits 90* to the top.
X2... ^^ and have bar dressed if it has a burr. And also, the way you lean on the saw. Some people push to hard. The way the AV is on these new saws, the handlebar may be straight, but because of the torque you apply, the power head (engine and bar are separated from handles) it will cause the springs to lean the power head at a slight angle.
I don't lean on it too hard, especially with a 20" bar completely buried in oak. I just set the dawgs and give it a little pressure. It self feeds for the most part.
if you don't want to have someone else dress it for you you can do it yourself on a grinder. i've been flamed for this before but i still do it. just don't try to take too much off or it will overheat. be sure to keep it normal to the center axis of the grinding wheel. not hard to do. i set my bar on the tool rest and slide it across the wheel. do this until the surface is shiny. always give it the eye ball test to see that both shoulders are equivalen heights. or you can always do it with a big file
Easy and cheap. Works like a charm and the finished product is top-notch. 5605 773 4400 As far as a replacement bar goes, for a 361? 20" and ES is my favorite way to fly with that one. Do they do a 20" ES Light? THAT would make a 361 even more of a pleasure to run.
