Very hard old white oak

[bhd21478]

I have been cutting on an old oak. Its huge, maybe 3 to 4 feet in diameter. It blew over around 5 or so years ago and it seems the longer its down the harder it is to cut with my saw. The trunk that I have been cutting is up off the ground. It seems like I cant cut for 20 minutes without my saw getting dull. Is this a know things that people have had trouble with. I dont notice this type of problem with the red oaks. It s bad enough that Im considering not even messing with it from here on out, as I have plenty of other good wood, and I can be choosy. I can cut maybe 20 big rounds and my saw is dull. I have a Stihl 290 farm boss, 18 in bar. thanks,bd

 

[oldspark]

When cutting dried or frozen wood a different angle on the cutters can be used and maybe the chain will stay sharp longer.

 

[cptoneleg]

20 big rounds sounds about right to me for a little sharpining. Are you good at sharpining your own chain?? Does it cut like a new one when you are done?? Till I got good at it I would touch up my chain about 4 times and change it out and drop off at a place to sharpen it. I don't do that much anymore at 5$ achain you learn fast.

Good Luck

 

[jeff_t]

That sounds about right. At 20 rounds I would have blown through all of one tank of gas in the big saw, and probably most of another. I almost always give each cutter 2-3 file strokes when refueling. 'Big rounds' is also a relative term. For me, it's the max I can cut from one side. I've been cutting lots of ash trees that have been dead for a long time. Pretty hard on a chain. I'm kinda excited when I get into some green wood.

If it's nice, straight white oak, I'd keep at it. I never get any that big. I'd love to make some big, thick slabs and burn them in about five years. Plus, it smells nice when you split it.

 

[smokinj]

Full chisel chain and very good sharpening skills is needed for big redds!

 

[Dune]

Long dead oak is hard for sure. Ever since I learned how sharpen my chain, I take a few strokes after every tankfull of gas. Now and then I buy a new file too. They do wear out, and then they don't do much.
A shiny file is generaly a dull file.
I would be inclined to keep worrying at the oak, since it is such good fuel, but maybe not if I had easier pickings available.

 

[Woody Stover]

I cut some White Oak recently. It was storm damage from last Spring so it was still pretty green. Chain seemed to last pretty long on that stuff. I have seen mentioned here a couple times that White Oak is harder on chains, dried wood is definitely harder to cut, and 3-4" rounds are pretty big!
I've got a fairly large trunk of White that's been down five or more years, so I'll see how it goes...

 

[clemsonfor]

When oak drys out there is very little water in it. 5 years its prolly close to bone dry on outside, inside will be damp still. Anywhay there is little moisture which helps lubricate the chain as well and acts to cool the chain. Also the wood is hard as crap when its dry and just wears the cain faster. I can tell a huge difference. in fresh cut and year or 3 old stuff. I can go 3 tanks easy in green wood usually and one to 2 in dry wood before i need to sharpen.

 

[Thistle]

Oh yeah long dead/dry White Oak & especially Bur Oak is quite rough on chains.Not too unusual to see a spark or two when cutting during early morning or late evening hours too.That & Shagbark Hickory I save for the coldest days/nights.Hickory bark contains silica,is even harder than the wood itself,it dulls saw chains,axes & any cutting edge very quickly.

 

[bogydave]

Sounds like something is wrong.
Chain brand & type?
Try a new "out of the box", Stihl RSC or Oregon LPX"
If they last longer it may be the angle you are sharpening.
Have yo adjusted the raker height?
The dead trees get hard & dry, extra oil helps keep the chain cooler. Change the oil setting for this wood to max, might help.
Good premium wood to leave behind, you must be close to the end with 20+ rounds cut.
Pictures?

 

[TreePointer]

Just curious--is your 290 set up with .325 or 3/8 pitch chain?

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Sharpen often. More often in that hard stuff but I surely would not pass on it.

 

[ScotO]

Just curious--is your 290 set up with .325 or 3/8 pitch chain?

Good point, TP. Also, when you sharpen your cutters, are you also watching the rakers (the teat that sticks up in front of the cutter)? after a sharpening or two, you HAVE to bump those rakers with a flat file, if they stick up above the cutter you're just peeing into the wind. But DON'T TAKE TOO MUCH off of those rakers

 

[ScotO]

Full chisel chain and very good sharpening skills is needed for big redds!

+1! Actually, that is a must for almost anybody that heats with their own cut wood......

 

[ScotO]

It s bad enough that Im considering not even messing with it from here on out, as I have plenty of other good wood, and I can be choosy.

There's NO WAY I would walk away from a solid, dead-and-almost-ready-to-burn oak....NO FRIGGIN WAY.....stay with it brother, get that chain sharp, make sure you clean your bar channels out to (where the drivers slide along the bar) they frequently get clogged with sawdust and gunk and won't let the oil get to the chain. Make sure your oiler hole in the bar (where the oil leaves the saw and enters the driver channel on the bar) isn't clogged either. Keep an eye on your bar slides for mushrooming too. In time, esp after a lot of cutting, the bottom bar slide gets "mushroomed" and is hard to get through the kerf. You have to periodically grind the rails flat and file the sides of the bar to keep it going through the kerf smoothly. I flip my bar often on big jobs and use the top as the bottom, if the rails start dragging while cutting. Then clean and dress the bar when I get home. So, as a rule of thumb, keep the bar channels clean, the chain chisels sharp, the bar slides dressed, and the oil flowing heavy. It'll make a huge difference.

 

[Dune]

It is just long dead white oak. Sparks fly when you cut that stuff. Carbide tipped teeth would be good.