Just Purchased My First Saw

I bought an electric one five years ago. Now I've got Stihl files, electric sharpener plus a 12v dremmel-like rotary sharpener and now I want to buy the Timberline.
The electric one is great if you have a badly damaged chain (hit a rock) but you lose the proper roundness of the cutting tooth. It cuts OK but nowhere like a new chain and that's the holy grail you want to achieve. Manual files are best but a PITA unless you do it regularly. You need to file every time you fill up with fuel and I am just too lazy - or too eager to get the job done. The rotary sharpener is great but the teeth are not all identical which is not good.

So, saving up for a Timberline. Much more $$ here in Canada with our looney sinking lower every day. Waiting for a knockoff from China on ebay that will be 24.95 including free shipping.

MacinJosh said:

$100 ain't bad at all

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That doesn't include the carbide blade ($25.) plus another $10 for shipping. In Canada, the best price is about $150. That's what I paid for my used Stihl 026's.

I can buy 3 Stihl files for $10 but that involves manual labor.

BrotherBart said:

He just burns wood because he likes to show us pics of all his stuff and make us drool.

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Lol... my saws and stoves are all 20 years old, Bart!

MacinJosh said:

Ok guys, I think I got about 90% of my PPE ordered. Just need some steel toe boots now. Welcome all recommendations. Thanks!

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Red Wing still makes good boots, but they also make a lot of crap now. Be careful. IMO they are also overpriced, that's what you get for wanting a popular name brand boot. Their USA made stuff is good, but overpriced.

I rank both Chippewa and Thorogood ahead of Red Wing now, and they cost less. Also, they're made in the US of A. Not all, but most. Chippewas made in the States will have a flag in the laces, Thorogoods will have a flag tag sewn into the side stitching.

DougA said:

You need to file every time you fill up

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Who told you that? File when your chain needs filing - whether it's every 2 cuts or every 200 cuts. There's nothing magical about refueling that causes a chain to need sharpening.

Bigg_Redd said:

Who told you that? File when your chain needs filing - whether it's every 2 cuts or every 200 cuts. There's nothing magical about refueling that causes a chain to need sharpening.

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I prefer swapping chains in the field, rather than stopping in the middle of a day's cutting to file. I don't understand those guys who want to stop and file, burning even a few minutes of their valuable and sparse daylight hours in February, when I can grind chains by the radio in a heated garage on a Tuesday night after work.

If I'm out cutting all day, and I haven't rocked the chain or otherwise needed to change it in the course of the morning, I'll usually just swap it at lunch time. That will get me thru the day. If I do try to run the same chain a full day, it's usually dull before the day is done, so this is just my habit.

Another chain swapper here.

I do keep a stump vise in my saw bag, but it's only there for the rare unforeseen circumstance. The last time I used it was three years ago when my brother showed up in the field with a dull chain on his Stihl 025.

MacinJosh said:

So has anyone used this? The video on the site makes it look pretty easy. Anyone recommend it?

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Got mine a couple weeks ago and have used it four times now. I'm not cutting that often yet, but use it at every fill up. The 3 or 4 minutes it takes is about the same as swapping chains, I think. It works great so far. It was said that it would make a big difference even on new chains. I bought an extra stihl chain for my 362cm 20" bar and sharpened one out of the box and it's a lot more aggressive cutting.

jtstromsburg said:

...it takes is about the same as swapping chains, I think...

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Not on a big saw, it don't. I can't do a 28" full comp in 3 minutes on my grinder, let alone on the bar.

Joful said:

Not on a big saw, it don't. I can't do a 28" full comp in 3 minutes on my grinder, let alone on the bar.

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That is actually one of the reasons I went with a 25" bar rather than 28" on my 440 - those few extra links kill my ambition.