Dremel Chain sharpener device Vs. Old school filing?

Those are good questions. The raker is also called the depth gauge. Before each cutter is a depth gauge and they will determine how deep the cutter bites into the wood. As the chain cutter is filed or ground away it becomes shorter and you have to drop the raker or depth gauge to keep the cutter biting into the wood. If you drop them to low then the chain can become to aggressive not cut smooth and will sometimes stick in the wood and stop the chain from spinning. I am not sure about the kit you are looking at.

 

I agree 100% with the above opinion. For me, chain sharpening is a break from cutting and somewhat relaxing. I have a jig set up that clamps on my tractor bucket and I can just stand there, clamp the saw in the jig and sharpen comfortably. I get through a 24" chain in less than five minutes and that includes all the setup time.

I have offered to teach several people how to sharpen a saw chain, all they have to do is show up with a dull chain and willingness to learn. Still have no takers.

 

Personally I think you should learn to hand file correctly first, intimate contact with your chain, which will facilitate setting up a high speed sharpener.
I used to use just a round file, but I tended to file a little too low. I got a old fashioned wood handled file guide and it only takes maybe 3 or 4 strokes on each tooth and I'm back in business.
Some people dress every tank and that kind of makes sense. I've always done every night or morning and if I was cutting all day again when I took a break for lunch. Or if I hit something or the ground or a rock. Cut enough and file correctly you kinda know when your chain's teeth aren't cutting their best. Especially if your chain's teeth are no longer carving out out nice big chips .
But it's a lot easier to keep a chain sharp than to get one sharp again when it is so dull it is only making dust instead of chips.


and I want to see those two rounds under the electric pole in your truck tomorrow. LOL.

 

There is a sticky in the chainsaw forum on sharpening. I always thought if I could go back to day one I'd like to learn square filing first. I have a grinder and the El cheapo file guide you put on the regular file made by stihl. Either one gets me close enough to where I want to be but I realize I ain't no pro at it lol.

 

I use the 2 in 1 Stihl shapener for touch ups in the field but when they get to far gone I use the dremel to put a good sharpening on them when I get home! And as someone else mentioned don't over heat the cutting edge (when using a dremel or grinder), if it turns to a blue or purple color you just took the temper out of that tooth!

 

The Stihl 2 in 1 sharpener is great because as your sharpening the tooth it is also taking down the rakers as well. But use caution this sharpener IS NOT DESIGNED FOR A SKIP CHAIN! The rails on the sharpener ride on the tooth in front of the one that you are sharpening so that all of the teeth are filed evenly. This is how it was explained to me by my Stihl dealer.

 

Does this stihl sharpener I keep hearing about only good for stihls? I use craftsman chainsaw with Oregon chains?


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I also don't have dremel yet and dunno if I wanna buy a dremel pretty much just for that although I'd def use it for other stuff....it just seems easier and faster with a dremel but . I am sick of these 10+ chains sitting around for years when I can attempt to refurbish them


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What the heckkkkkk


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I must be a stubborn old Yankee.

 

I believe that you can use it on other chains as long as it's not the safety chain type. That would be the type that has the shark fin looking thing between the links.

 

Just last week, I decided I'd do something about all my rocked and metal finding chains I have hanging on the chain rack.

I'd never done it before, but I fired up my Dremel with Oregon stones. This rig was normally my raker grinder, and I'd handfile the cutters.

Well, it worked great! I didn't use the Dremel angle attachment, and this is where learning to hand file will be greatly beneficial. You still have to hold it at the 30 and 10 degree angles, but you dont move from there.

I did 3, 20 inch rocked out chains (and rakers) and it seemed to need a new stone at that point. Maybe it was justhe operator error? The results were great however. Chains threw great chips, and it seemed like a new chain.

I won't be going back to files except for in the woods touch ups.

So bottom line, you need to understand what the Dremel machine is doing and why it works and what doesn't work. The little guide may help, but not nearly as much as some tries with a file. Nothing beats real life experience.

In 30 minutes or so, I saved myself alot of $, got chains working again, and discovered I may not need the bench grinder and cbn wheel I was drooling over.

 

I use both, a file and the Dremel. Scotty is right, sometimes the grinding stones don't last long. It's easy to get your cloth glove wrapped up in the stone.

 

Ok nice advice and Info

 

I sharpened with a Dremel for years and I hand filed before that. A few years ago, when I joined this forum I purchased a Northern Tool bench sharpener. I now sharpen my own and for others every once in a while. It keeps me in beer. I sharpen my splitter rental friend Andy's for free but everyone else I get a six pack for a couple of chains. I still have the Dremel and the hand file to touching up things.

 

Are you referring to chisel chain? I tried the 2-1 file on a chisel chain and would been better off using a Hershey bar to sharpen my chain