Anyone using an electric chain saw?

  • Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.

    We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.

    We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
I got a Powerworks 60v, 16" for $169 with a charger and 2.5ah battery. It work well with one exception, which is a deal breaker. After 10 cuts in 14" hardwood, the saw (or battery) goes into some type of protection mode. The saw shuts off; a couple seconds later I hear a click and the saw will run, but only for a few seconds, then shuts off again. I am going to run the battery completely dead and recharge to see if that helps, if not, it goes back. I have seen other people with this same saw who are not having this problem. I may try just getting a replacement to see if it is just a defect in the one I got.

20230323_170051.jpg20230323_170122_HDR.jpg
 
This is something I always wondered about and probably blatantly obvious, how do you sharpen the chain on an electric saw? I know how to sharpen a gas saw, by manually rotating the chain around the bar while sharpening the top cutters and then moving the chain to the next row of cutters, but an electric saw has no clutch. I don't think turning the saw on to bump the chain a few inches to get to the next row is terribly safe.

I have two electric saws, one on an extendable pole (used a couple times in the past 15 years or so) and an old 70's Craftsman saw that probably has never had the chain sharpened.
 
This is something I always wondered about and probably blatantly obvious, how do you sharpen the chain on an electric saw? I know how to sharpen a gas saw, by manually rotating the chain around the bar while sharpening the top cutters and then moving the chain to the next row of cutters, but an electric saw has no clutch. I don't think turning the saw on to bump the chain a few inches to get to the next row is terribly safe.

I have two electric saws, one on an extendable pole (used a couple times in the past 15 years or so) and an old 70's Craftsman saw that probably has never had the chain sharpened.

Both of my Ryobi cordless electrics sharpen exactly the same as a standard gas chainsaw. The motor and chain turns freely when not in use, only stopped by the brake.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Tom1 and colin.p
Same here. Clamp the bar in a vice, mark the link you.start with, file, rotate the chain, file until you're back at the mark.
 
  • Like
Reactions: colin.p
I guess I'll have to buy a more current saw, and leave the old Craftsman hanging on the shed wall.