Just got 8 chains sharpen at the dealer (50.00 bucks WoW) so I am in the market for a chain grinder Looking for a good one as I go through some chains in a month time. Any advice?
Chain grinder
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general consensus is harbor freight plastic no, $100 Northern Tool china copy quite serviceable, and the oregon or others preferred but much more money.
general consensus is harbor freight plastic no, $100 Northern Tool china copy quite serviceable, and the oregon or others preferred but much more money.
not afraid to spend the money just drop 50 bucks on 8 chains got another 8-10 chains that need sharpenkevin j said:
Try hand sharping just no chance of keeping up
J I bought the harbor freight one a year ago total piece of crap. I like to use the Stihl 3/8 file set. Works well.
Ok Ive got 8-28 in. chains how quick can YOU file them? and if your as good with the file as you are the maul should go quick ( iam looking at the new maxx or oregan 511)when i hand file it just seems like a big chore thats never going to get done I usally just buy more chains so i dont have to file! Or thake them to the dealer where they charge me 50 bucksMMaul said:
J I use a 7/32 file on a 20" chain...takes less than 5min to sharpen by hand. It's worth the time to have some old timer or tree pro show you how, it's not rocket science.
I would spend 5 min. but on a 28 in. chain seems to take me about half an hour to get one rightsavageactor7 said:
smokinj said:
Don't worry about what country it's made in. Main concern is many cheaper chain sharpeners do NOT have all the adjustments needed to properly sharpen all chains - especially many full chisel chains that have several different angles needed - that differ from standard round-chipper chain.
Some of the best sharpeners are made in Italy, and one of the worst I ever used was made and sold by Stihl.
The Oregon sharpener that Northern and Harbor Freight sells, from time to time, is an excellent sharpener. Sold with the Oregon name on it, and comes with the Oregon spec book to give you all the different angles for various chains. The sharpener is actually made in Italy.
grinder won't eliminate hand filing. even with the grinder you will probably still hand file, not? touching up way before it gets really DULL enough to grind it. I only have it ground when rock or steel the chain.
k
k
kevin j said:
All depends on how you do things. I haven't touched a chain with a file in over 20 years and I cut a lot of wood. For any of my saws, I have 4-6 chains. When any chain gets dulled, even slightly - I swap chains quickly and machine sharpen later. Saves a lot of wear on chainsaws when the chains are always sharp.
personal preferences and style I guess.
I have mostly longish bars for the motor sizes, and am a stickler for absolute sharp.
touch it up every couple tanks, or if it even touches the dirt. I'd be going through half dozen chains per day at that rate.
Ultimately though, it is what works for each of us.
I do like the consistency of angles with the ground chain.
I have mostly longish bars for the motor sizes, and am a stickler for absolute sharp.
touch it up every couple tanks, or if it even touches the dirt. I'd be going through half dozen chains per day at that rate.
Ultimately though, it is what works for each of us.
I do like the consistency of angles with the ground chain.
J, I recently bought a smaller oregon grinder & so far, everything seems good. I like to keep sharp chains on hand, don't like to hand file niether. Cutting mostly oak lately & chains are lasting 1-2 days, Here is a link for the sharpener I bought. Cheaper than some of the others, but not chinese junk. http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_351196_351196 Sorry if the link doesn't work, just copy & paste.
Dean
Dean
Here's what sped up my hand filing: I started buying round-bit, skip-tooth chains. Half the teeth to file and the round bits stay sharp longer. But I've only got a couple hundred posts, so what do I know?
I got one of the cheap plastic sharpeners from Harbor Freight. Don't waste your money. I had to make numerous mods to mine to get it to work at all, and it still isn't precise enough and lacks adjustment controls. It is about to be replaced. Go with the one from Northern Tool or Bailey's has a similar one and better models too.
For years and years I hand sharpened all my chains until my hands got so bad that I could no longer do it. I went to the local Stihl dealer and bought a little dremel type tool for sharpening. It was one of the best buys I ever made! Makes sharpening very quick and easy and anyone can do it. The only thing you have to be careful of is to not hold that grinder on the chain very long else you can burn the tooth. So just go a little at a time, which means sharpen more often so all you are doing is touching up the chain.
Since I've started using one I've since talked to many others who have switched and they all love them. Here is the tool sold by Northern Tool and it is the same one:
https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/newreply/31308/
Notice that the price is $30, which is less than what you are paying each time you go to the shop.
Since I've started using one I've since talked to many others who have switched and they all love them. Here is the tool sold by Northern Tool and it is the same one:
https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/newreply/31308/
Notice that the price is $30, which is less than what you are paying each time you go to the shop.
kevin j said:
Shortest bar I have is 20" and the longest is 30" (not counting my old two-man saw with a six-foot bar). When I go full-bore cutting my firewood, I'll cut for 8-10 hours and maybe go through half-a-dozen chains. I cut a lot of dirty wood - and old large hard-maples that often have old iron sugar-taps in them, or bits of barbed wire. When I say I go through half a dozen, that's because I change as soon as one gets even slightly dull. By having very sharp chains - all the time - I get a lot more wood cut and it's easier on the saws. I'll add that if I hit an old tap with full chisel chain - it's just about impossible to sharpen it correctly by hand.
I used to be a tree-climber/cutter for Aslplundh in the 70s. Back then we hand sharpened everything - and for saws had nothing but big Macs and Homelites that were constantly stalling, not restarting when hot, had manual oilers, etc. When cutting big wood, often had to stop half-way through and resharpen. Chains were neve quite as sharp as machine sharpened - and - even when sharp - did not stay sharp near as long when only done by hand.
Nothing wrong with not using a machine if that's someone's preference. For me - I cut a lot of wood and, every year, have less time and less endurance (I'm not gettting younger). I find machine sharpening to work much better for me - and I'm pretty good with a file. Just don't want to waste time filing when I could be cutting.
I always hand filed with much success, but I also got bogged down with the time I was spending on them so I ended up buying a grinder (well actually two grinders).
I picked up the NH grinder first and found it to be a decent machine for the money. I bought mine on sale ($85) and can't say there's much wrong with it. In fact, it appears to be an okay copy of the Oregon grinder. I would doubt you'll find a better chain grinder on the market for the money as it has everything you need to get the job done.
I also bought a used Silvey grinder for doing square grinding. Now that I've been spoiled with the square ground chain, I have little use (or desire) to ever use round ground chain again... what a difference! I'm holding on to the NH round grinder for taking down the rakers and using it with my small chains, but I don't plan on using round ground on 3/8" chain again if I can help it.
BTW, I think I paid $300 for the used Silvey grinder, which also included a new 32" bar, three new matching loops of square ground chain, and a hand full of new wedges... quite a bargain! If you're in no rush, watch CL for high end used grinders, they do pop up from time to time.
I picked up the NH grinder first and found it to be a decent machine for the money. I bought mine on sale ($85) and can't say there's much wrong with it. In fact, it appears to be an okay copy of the Oregon grinder. I would doubt you'll find a better chain grinder on the market for the money as it has everything you need to get the job done.
I also bought a used Silvey grinder for doing square grinding. Now that I've been spoiled with the square ground chain, I have little use (or desire) to ever use round ground chain again... what a difference! I'm holding on to the NH round grinder for taking down the rakers and using it with my small chains, but I don't plan on using round ground on 3/8" chain again if I can help it.
BTW, I think I paid $300 for the used Silvey grinder, which also included a new 32" bar, three new matching loops of square ground chain, and a hand full of new wedges... quite a bargain! If you're in no rush, watch CL for high end used grinders, they do pop up from time to time.
Thats what i got but I have 18-20 cords to get done by the end of Jan. and I also work 60 hrs. a week.Thats why I took them to the dealership 50 bucks later Iam thinking Its time to buy my one!Bigg_Redd said:
MMaul said:
Most of the little grinders are useless. Angles are inaccurate for one. Other big problem is the lack of other adustments that are needed for certain chains.
Most standard round-cutter 3/8" chains get sharpened at a 35 degree angle - with the file at a right angle to the chains - i.e. 90 degrees. Most cheap sharpeners are fixed at that 90 degree angle and cannot be changed.
Many full-chisel chains require that angle to be 80 degrees - sometimes 75 degrees to the bar - along with the chipper angle being 25 or 30 degrees instead of 35. If the sharpener does not have those extra adjustements - it can be pretty useless. There is also a third adjustment needed that only comes with the better machines.
Over the years, I've had access to many, high priced sharpeners since I worked as several places that sold and repaired farm and logging supplies. We has Bell Saw, Peerless, Stihl, Oregon, etc.
The best sharpener I've used - for a fairly low price is the Oregon # 511A. Northern Tools and Harbor Freight both sell it at times. I bought mine for $159, on-sale, a few years ago. I see now it's over $300.
Iam looking at the maxx The new Italian-made MAXX grinder allows bi-directional grinding because it's designed with a head that tilts left and right (90 degrees to 50 degrees) and a table that's fully symmetrical. Unlike other grinders, this unique design allows you to get the same results on both left and right hand cutters. The automatic chain clamping mechanism is activated when the head is lowered. Additional features include a built-in light and cast aluminum base, head and table (no structural plastic)It will clamp anywhere from .043 gauge chain to .080 without the 3/4 adapter. And also the 511 ajdemaris said:
Oregon 511, Bailey's SpeedSharp, Tecomec 136, or MAXX would be grinders worth considering. The chinese copy of these (Northern Tool or Bailey's version) would be OK, but have slightly inferior motors and require some work to get it to work as well as the others do out of the box.
I have had the cheep Northern Tool grinder for about 4 months now and really like it. When I cut I always have 3 or 4 chains for each bar ranging from 12 to 36 inch and depending on what were cutting I might go through a few chains on each saw. I mainly only cut hard wood red elm oak mulberry and its all down in the river bottom where past floods have left plenty of sand and dirt in and on the bark plays hell on your chain. So my routine goes like this cut wood for the cabin and machine shed at the river on sat and then cut wood for home on Sunday head home late afternoon unload wood put up the saws. Then on Monday after all the family obligations have been met its off to the shop to clean and inspect the saws and let me tell you that little grinder has been a life saver this year makes keeping your chains sharp fun. All the chains get hit unless they pass the ultra sharp test and if your worried about chain life don't be you can take as little or as much need be. I have also found when you do it yourself you get a better job since its yous you will pay more attention to the details, I don't know about you but I have gotten some chains back from sharpening that weren't so stellar.
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