Sharpening Thread

The Stihl dealer will either get you for chains, or sell you lotsa files...

 

Madsen's has some tutorials on their website that are very informative. Most of their links are the standard of the industry.

http://www.madsens1.com/muu_barchain.htm
http://www.madsens1.com/bnc_cb_angles.htm
http://www.madsens1.com/PDF/RacingTechfacts_93099.pdf
http://www.madsens1.com/mnu_grindjack.htm
http://www.madsens1.com/sim_tuning.htm

 

I have been doing square so long i forgot how to file round

 

That's pretty close to the truth for me. Made it too aggressive for a ported 70cc saw. Hopefully soon I'll have some cutting done with a ported 390xp and maybe a round/square shootout in big wood.

 

If it was easier to bog you put more hook on it and it's biting harder on its own. Does it pull the saw into the cut or try to jerk it into the wood?

 

For good filing of square, one must get in "The Zone"...
A whiskey on the rocks helps at times...
Then hurts at times...
But knowing what you want to do, then doing it over and over, helps with the muscle memory.
I can square file a 72dl chain in 10 minutes, but when the results really matter, I've spent several hours...

 

I've spent up to 11 hours on one 60 DL chain over the course of 2 days. A quick touch up with a square file is about 10 minutes for a 24" semi skip loop.

 

some "chips"?

 

Riders are too high

 

For a work chain, yes...
But do ya think they too high for a race chain??
Didn't plug up in a 10" cant.. Sooo...
Not real sure at this point...

 

i like min high too ,does not overwork the saw that way ,plus chain stays sharp longer ,doug fir chips ,that wood must be dry to have the splintered edges ? look how crisp mine are here wet off the stump ,rakers were at .025 here ,chain sharpened almost halfway in life

 

Ya... Test cant been sitting around for 7 or 8 months... What I thought was interesting was how clean the cut side was and the chips were actually wider than the cutters... The end of the cant was like glass. We'll see how fast that chain is this Saturday...
So jury is still out... It has been stoned and thinned also...

 

Depends on the saw, operator, and size of wood.

 

Well??
Not always... I've seen fast chains at almost 40 thou under cutter... And some like this one about 20 thou...
A normal work chain for me would be anywhere from .025 to .035.. depending on application.

 

I've always liked a more aggressive chain for three cut racing, so you could focus on changeovers instead of pushing on the saw.
But too aggressive, and you got a crazy chain that stuffs itself full of crap.. I learned that the hard way...

 

A fast, sharp chain is a fast, sharp chain... But if a heavy handed operator ran one chain made special for his 3120, on his 346, he'd have to completely change the way he fed the wood to it. I have used one of Mike's chains one week on a hot 54cc Dolmar, then the next week on a strong ported 394, both with good results, but the race the 394 was in was an aussie style race where you had to bore cut in, then down to the bottom, then come back up to finish the top off..
In other words, make the chain suit the power, and application of the saw or race..