Log Load On The Way

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- working your pile is a lot of fun BUT stop when you tire , before accidents happen

- I've reduced a few pile of Log lengths to stove wood with my Stihl 026 16" bar and it's not bad. Starting anew I'd go 18"

-measure the stove length you want from the tip of your bar back to a point on the saw case and mark it with a sharpie. Makes it easy to eyeball where you want to make your cut( we are not making furniture here)

- if you plan to cut in the woods at all,a longer bar gets in the way more
 
gerry100 said:
- if you plan to cut in the woods at all,a longer bar gets in the way more
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Huh? I cut with saws wearing bars 14" thru 36". Any bar below 30" is a non-issue in the woods, so your comparison of 16" and 18" is just silly, in this regard. I use my 28" bar in the woods more per year than most folks here will do in five years, and it's never been an issue.
 
Typ0 said:
So my saw now seems to spin and not be cutting now .... then it will bite in and cut like a dream. What is causing that?
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If it starts cutting on an angle after it bites, your bar may be worn, or one side of chain wasn't sharpened correctly or at correct angle.
 
I can see it being a combination of the rakers and my poor chain sharpening skills I am working on improving.

But I'm also having a hard time understanding how one second it's cutting fine and the next it's just spinning in the log. That feels odd to me. If the rakers were to high it should never cut right? The poor sharpening makes more sense....maybe the saw needs to change it's alignment a little to bite in.
 
Typ0 said:
I just actually cut wood with a chain saw for the first time. It's easy! I have some other things to do today but this log load is going to be rendered into rounds in the next few days I would imagine...then I will start splitting. I'm excited to get this done and learn some new skills. Thank you everyone for the input and help.
Click to expand...

This thread has been fun to go through. I did chuckle when I read this post, and, here we are at mid September.
 
Typ0 said:
I can see it being a combination of the rakers and my poor chain sharpening skills I am working on improving.

But I'm also having a hard time understanding how one second it's cutting fine and the next it's just spinning in the log. That feels odd to me. If the rakers were to high it should never cut right? The poor sharpening makes more sense....maybe the saw needs to change it's alignment a little to bite in.
Click to expand...

It's likely that one side of your chain is sharper than the other, as @Hogwildz mentioned.

Also, have you been turning your bar over every 2-3 times you sharpen your chain? This will help your bar wear more evenly.
 
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Bars wear very slowly, but they do need cleaning to keep the oil ways clear. Those of us who swap chains, rather than sharpening on the bar, just flip the bar with each chain swap. If you're sharpening on the bar, you need to come up with some schedule for flipping and cleaning. Every two sharpenings ain't a bad idea, depending on what you're cutting.

Clean the oil passage on side of bar, clean groove, and grease the sprocket (unless newer Stihl). Also clean saw and sprocket cover.
 
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What bar model do you have? Does it have a grease hole for the nose sprocket?
 
for years I hand filed and inevitably messed up the chain.

Got a $30 bench sharpener from Harbor Freight, although it is junk as a machine once you get the hang of using it evenly it works better than a hand file.

At least doubled the useful life of my chains.

Also, as you develop more skill with thew saw you'll saw less rocks and dirt which helps a lot
 
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I bought a harbor freight chainsaw sharpener that uses an abrasive wheel. Works great for me! $29 bucks.
I clamped it to the table of my drill press so the height is adjustable and then rolled over a shop chair. Very comfortable to use in my basement.

I had an old chain I hit a nail with and brought it back to life. That was 5 sharpenings ago.
 
Typ0 said:
gerry I have not sawed a rock yet and only a tiny bit of dirt once. I am curious how the machine is junk but works???

Sportrider can you provide a link to the sharpener you are talking about?
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It is a very cheaply made tool. I suggest learning with the hand file as there will be plenty of times when that is your only option. Once you get the hang of it you will be able to sharpen a dull chain in 5-10 minutes depending on bar size.
 
Here ya go. It's not amazing, but we are talking about removing depth (easy to set and repeatable) and angle (also easy to set and repeatable). It is a spinning disk under minimum load and it is much more repeatable than by hand for a beginner.....we aren't going to the moon here. :) Some tools are worth spending a great deal of money on, some are not.
http://www.harborfreight.com/electric-chain-saw-sharpener-61613.html
 
sportbikerider78 said:
Here ya go. It's not amazing, but we are talking about removing depth (easy to set and repeatable) and angle (also easy to set and repeatable). It is a spinning disk under minimum load and it is much more repeatable than by hand for a beginner.....we aren't going to the moon here. :) Some tools are worth spending a great deal of money on, some are not.
http://www.harborfreight.com/electric-chain-saw-sharpener-61613.html
Click to expand...

I like the looks of that thing! Might just have to get one to help out. I probably will get another chain and use something like that to keep things "right" and then I can still use the hand sharpener at gas fills for touch ups. I really like working with a good chain letting it dull is a battle some people seem to like...not me LOL.

I got a snow day today! My school closed due to a power outage. I have done some work on the wood for certain. My log load is still here though LMAO!!!!
 
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Typ0 said:
I like the looks of that thing! Might just have to get one to help out. I probably will get another chain and use something like that to keep things "right" and then I can still use the hand sharpener at gas fills for touch ups. I really like working with a good chain letting it dull is a battle some people seem to like...not me LOL.

I got a snow day today! My school closed due to a power outage. I have done some work on the wood for certain. My log load is still here though LMAO!!!!
Click to expand...


Better pay attention to the directions - pretty sure the chain is on it backwards in two of those ad pics.
 
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