Chainsaw Use & safety questions

[mbcijim]

1. Every once in a while, say once per 5 tanks of gas, the tip of my bar (the spinner part) gets full of sawdust/chips and locks up. I then need to take the blade off and put a screwdriver/wire in there to clean it out and getting it spinning again. Is this normal? Am I doing something wrong?

2. I have the full hard hat/face shield/ear protection, which I use when cutting down trees. But when the tree is down and I am just making rounds, I just wear my eye glasses and hearing protection. I don't feel there is a need for a hard hat & face shield when doing this. Am I wrong? Are eye glasses adequate eye protection?

3. What good are the chaps that are sold for chainsawing? Should I be using them?

 

[heffergm]

Chances are your chain is locking because it needs tightening. If the chain isn't snug along the bottom of the bar all kinds of junk can clog it up.

I don't wear a hat when cutting rounds, but I do wear safety glasses as opposed to just regular eye glasses, which is what it sounds like you're wearing.... I wouldn't. They offer no protection except directly from the front (safety glasses have sides that curl around your head a bit). My dad got a splinter in his cornea a long time ago sawing with just his eyeglasses on.

Hell yes, wear chaps. They're designed to stop a spinning chain, and while they're not a guarantee, they're a whole lot better than just denim and your leg tissue.

 

[Bigg_Redd]

1. Every once in a while, say once per 5 tanks of gas, the tip of my bar (the spinner part) gets full of sawdust/chips and locks up. I then need to take the blade off and put a screwdriver/wire in there to clean it out and getting it spinning again. Is this normal? Am I doing something wrong?

2. I have the full hard hat/face shield/ear protection, which I use when cutting down trees. But when the tree is down and I am just making rounds, I just wear my eye glasses and hearing protection. I don't feel there is a need for a hard hat & face shield when doing this. Am I wrong? Are eye glasses adequate eye protection?

3. What good are the chaps that are sold for chainsawing? Should I be using them?

1) Using thinner bar oil might help but I really don't know as I've never had to deal with this problem. Next time buy a Stihl.

2) Ears and eyes are fine when bucking

3) There's lots of good chaps out there. Any of them are better than nothing, which is what I use.

 

[CarbonNeutral]

I was bucking a tree that was down and at about waist height (supported off the ground). It had a thin limb on the far side of it - somehow, and I'm still not sure of the physics of this, the limb on the far side whipped round so fast as the round fell, the first I knew about it was when I felt the thud through my teeth. If I hadn't been wearing my helmet it would have been painful. More importantly I would have been hit in the head while still holding a running chainsaw...

Ok, if the tree is flat on the ground that's not going to happen, but I like to wear my helmet whatever..

 

[Adios Pantalones]

I wear a hard hat with a face thingy and ears built in. I never have kickback issues, but I aint getting complacent. It may be overkill- but I'd lose my ear protection if it wasn't attached to the big orange hat.

Tighten your chain if it's getting stuff stuck in there. If it's relatively new- you may be surprised at how long it takes to break in a stretching chain- especially if it's a cheap one.

I don't own chaps but prolly should. Get them at a chainsaw store (find a Husky/Stihl dealer)- they have fibers that will stop the chain. You standard weekend assless chaps won't do it for the saw- but maybe it will do it for other lumberjacks. Grr!

 

[savageactor7]

mbcijim on #1 yeah that very very occasionally happens to me as well and I grease the sprocket too. Except for once or twice over the years with the saw off I could free it up by lacing the chain over a log one way then the other to free it up. A couple of times I had to soak the sprocket in gas or diesel to free it up and on closer inspection I could never determine why it did that. Friends 'in the know' told me it was a big wood chip that did it and not to worry about it. It's just the nature of the beast.

I'll take a bye on #2-3 since I usually cut after a few hit's of prime hydro. I think the paranoia factors been good for my wood processing longevity and it makes this drudge labor...'fun'. Yup safety first.

 

[LLigetfa]

Do you grease the sprocket nose? I'm guessing not. There are two schools of thought on roller nose greasing. Some think that normal b/c oiling is enough. That depends on how much it oils and if you let the oil run down the groove at low speed. At high speed the centrifugal force will fling the oil away from the roller bearing. If you choose to grease, you have to grease it consistently as the grease will prevent bar oil from entering. The grease that is pumped through the roller form a barrier that helps to keep the chips out.

If you're getting a lot of chip buildup in the groove and around the sprocket, you are probably doing something wrong. The chips are probably getting sucked into the end of the bar at the drive sprocket. This usually happens if you don't keep the area open enough for the chips to clear. Running the saw flat on the ground will do it. Instead of bucking on the ground up against the dogs, put the log up on skids or work the tip of the bar more but be REALLY careful about kickback!

It is worse when noodling as the noodles tend to get carried back around. Chip buildup will also clog the oiler port and cause excessive heat and wear.

 

[mbcijim]

Yes it is a stihl saw. No I do not grease the nose sprocket. I'll try to tighten the chain a little bit more than I do and I think I will try greasing it too. Last gallon of chain oil was orange container (I think that was Stihl brand??). This gallon is Poulan. It only happened once so far with the Poulan and I used about half the gallon so far. It is very thick, but I've been using the oil in 20-30*F temps, so I am sure that isn't helping anything. I typically only use my saw in the winter & cold temps.

Thanks for all the safety tips.

I have the pair of chaps, but honestly I can't bring myself to wear them. I usually work when it is cold, but I work hard & stay warm with just a pair of blue jeans & sweatshirt. If I am working really hard then a t-shirt in lieu of a sweatshirt. I think I am going to roast with them on. I just wonder if I will regret my choice one day.

 

[heffergm]

They make winter bar and chain oil that's less viscous for use in cold temps. In leiu of that, just do what I do and mix some motor oil (10w30 will do) in with your bar oil to thin it out.

 

[computeruser]

Wear chaps. Cutting your leg sucks under the best of circumstances, and is fatal under the worst.

A hardhat is not necessary when there is no chance of something hitting you on the head. Regular eye and ear protection is perfectly suitable for cutting up downed wood.

Some bars seem to collect chips more than others. Oftentimes the narrow-tip bars do it more than the larger profile bars, in my experience. Cutting buried in a cut full of chips and sawdust, without occasionally flushing them out, can add to the likelihood of this happening. Long bars with significant chain slack (meaning the top of the chain can climb up while the bottom cuts) will often suck in chips and jam (I'm talking 40"+ bars, but the principle applies generally). Sharp chains that take big bites and evacuate chips from the cut seem to produce optimal results, including preventing chain bind.

 

[EKLawton]

Do you grease the sprocket nose? I'm guessing not. There are two schools of thought on roller nose greasing. Some think that normal b/c oiling is enough. That depends on how much it oils and if you let the oil run down the groove at low speed. At high speed the centrifugal force will fling the oil away from the roller bearing. If you choose to grease, you have to grease it consistently as the grease will prevent bar oil from entering. The grease that is pumped through the roller form a barrier that helps to keep the chips out.

.

gas, oil,grease. if they didn't want the bar greased the would not have put the holes in it.. It is impossible for oil to get in the bushing when the saw is running.

 

[colebrookman]

Yes it is a stihl saw. No I do not grease the nose sprocket. I'll try to tighten the chain a little bit more than I do and I think I will try greasing it too. Last gallon of chain oil was orange container (I think that was Stihl brand??). This gallon is Poulan. It only happened once so far with the Poulan and I used about half the gallon so far. It is very thick, but I've been using the oil in 20-30*F temps, so I am sure that isn't helping anything. I typically only use my saw in the winter & cold temps.

Thanks for all the safety tips.

I have the pair of chaps, but honestly I can't bring myself to wear them. I usually work when it is cold, but I work hard & stay warm with just a pair of blue jeans & sweatshirt. If I am working really hard then a t-shirt in lieu of a sweatshirt. I think I am going to roast with them on. I just wonder if I will regret my choice one day.

If you are not going to wear chaps,( steel toed boots would be nice) at least make sure that you carry your cell phone so when the chain takes a bite out of your leg, you can at least call for an ambulance before you collapse and bleed out. Sounds gruesome but sh't happens. Be safe.
Ed

 

[southbound]

Chaps are hot! I still wear them when I'm out cutting in the hot tn sun in the middle of summer...I figure it's better then loosing a leg/life....

As for the bar tip it has happened to me once or twice Stihl 20 inch E bar in .325 X .63... Only happens when I pinch the tip and like a moron go to pulling and bending instead of getting my backup saw out....I have a routine at the end of every time out I sharpen the chain then take off the bar a clean it out real good. I made a tool to get inside and remove all the crud.. Then and I know it's not what is recommended but I spray out the tip with PB Blaster till it spins nice and smooth... Then I reinstall it flipped over from the way it was the last time. I have had the same bar for well over 20 full cords of firewood....

 

[wendell]

OMG, something went wrong with a Stihl saw? That can't be right!

 

[LLigetfa]

OMG, something went wrong with a Stihl saw? That can't be right!

Redd??

 

[Apprentice_GM]

I wear a hard hat with a face thingy and ears built in. I never have kickback issues, but I aint getting complacent. It may be overkill- but I'd lose my ear protection if it wasn't attached to the big orange hat.

I don't own chaps but prolly should. Get them at a chainsaw store (find a Husky/Stihl dealer)- they have fibers that will stop the chain. You standard weekend assless chaps won't do it for the saw- but maybe it will do it for other lumberjacks. Grr!

+1. My hard hat has muffs and the face protection grill is a perforated screen (as opposed to a clear plastic screen) and I wear my prescription eyeglasses whilst cutting. I don't put safety glasses on as well as I figure the grill + eyeglasses is good enough - only pretty fine dust / specks can get through the grill and then can't hit the eye directly due to glasses - and safety glasses + eyeglasses cause one or both to fog up.

A hardhat is not necessary when there is no chance of something hitting you on the head. Regular eye and ear protection is perfectly suitable for cutting up downed wood.

Even though it's extremely unlikely with good technique, it is possible to get kickback when bucking. Ground and logs can shift, chains can break, when I get tired my technique can suffer (when I realise this I stop cutting, but there are times I probably cut when I shouldn't as I don't realise I'm too tired to handle a deadly weapon). For these reasons I wear a helmet when bucking and limbing.

I am also guilty of cutting without chaps and knowing I should buy some. Even at the rip-off cost of $130 Down Under it's cheaper than a leg and all the sports I love would be hard to impossible without 2 fully functional legs.

 

[Gooserider]

Proper chain tension and grease seem to keep me from having sprocket problems...

I feel that FACE and ear protection is essential even when bucking, as I've occasionally found angles where you get chips hitting you in the face, which is distracting and painful, plus I like the dual layer of eye protection... I started out with separate face shield and muffs, found that awkward, so I got a muff & shield combo, but found that it tended not to stay in place real well with the physical movement involved with using a saw. Now I wear the hat setup just because it keeps the muffs and shield in place better.

Yes, chaps are hot - but IMHO risking chopping up your leg is not "cool" - I don't start the saw w/o my chaps, and chainsaw rated safety boots.

Gooserider