NEED ADVICE ON A CHAIN

[Mischa Shashumshkavich]

...Hello Hearth-dwellers. I need some recomendations from those in the know on what chain should i get for going through some huge trunk peices of hard maple....it will be going on a Mak/Dol-6421....has 72 drive links, & the # on the bar is: 35020MK72TR....the chain on it now is the safety chain it came with,and is pretty much shot(been re-sharpened many times)... I need a chain that can be used for bucking and cutting through the grain (noodling?)and some cutting against the grain, as these chunks are very chunky and humongous and will need to be sectioned out to break them down....any advice on wht chain i should get? thanks all.

 

[zzr7ky]

Hi - As luck would had it I did this one to many times and finally got a longer bar. I would get several loops of Oregon LGX. I get them from Amick's Superstore, but Ebay is also pretty good.

I just cut what I can reach and then wedge off the straight grained parts, and then noodle as a last resort. It get's done. The 6400 is fine for this.

On a 5' diameter Ash last week I tried running a 28" bar with the 6400 using Oregon full skip tooth. It cut just fine. After a tank of gas I switched to the 7900 and it was indeed faster, but the 6400 was just fine. Actually I had my buddy make the cuts on the other side with the 20" 6400 after I cut as far as I could with the 28" bar. All told it took a gallon of fuel and nearly the same in bar oil. Several people stopped to get our card. I got a bit more work last week from people that saw that job get done. Paid for the big bar/chain combo Good toys pay for themselves over and over.

Saftey thoughts. The bucked pieces wieght was 800 to 1000 pounds... The tree was a fence row Ash tree and wan't very round or balanced. We evaluated the balance of the trunk frequently so it didn't roll in an unfortunate way. We used several quartered up rounds to crib the trunck up to prevent rolling. We used a sledge and several wedges to quarter up the rounds then loaded into truck/trailer with a tractor/front end loader. Handy, but not required.

Good luck!
Mike

 

[Mischa Shashumshkavich]

is that LGX with or without those safety nubs? i'd like to try a chain without them... as for the size of the rounds, they are not quite 5 ft. in diameter, but may be close....i think 50'' is prob. the widest they get, and they are very unbalanced, but i have plenty of short chunks to put underneath....i had to roll one yesterday with a pry bar and nearly popped a hernee...i am going to get a longer bar eventually, but this is what i have to work with at the moment. I'm definetly going to have to split some of it with wedges to make manageable/moveable...thanks for the chain recomendation.

 

[Jags]

Stihl RS (or whatever they are calling it these days).

 

[zzr7ky]

Both of these recommended chains are real chains with out the added saftey feature. They both cut well. I would use the Stihl chain but I can't justify the expense as the LGX is also great.

I sharpen a few strokes after pretty much every tank of fuel using an Oregon brand file guide. Good luck. Don't get in a hurry.
Mike

 

[clemsonfor]

Get full chisel whatever. That 72dl will be a 20" loop. I like stihl chain but have run oregon and woodland pro and not had any trouble with it. Just go full chisel if its clean wood. If there is dirt or rot with dirt in middle get some semi chisel, its slower cutting but holds an edge better in dirty wood.

 

[jeff_t]

It's 3/8" pitch, .050 gauge, 72 drive links.

I think Stihl chain stays sharp longer. I generally touch up after every tank, so I don't usually spend the extra money. I bought a bunch of Woodland Pro chains when they were sale priced a few years ago. I think they are good for the money. I don't see much difference between Oregon and WP.

If you've only used safety chain, you're in for a treat

 

[Bigg_Redd]

I need some recomendations from those in the know on what chain should i get

This can be accomplished in 4 easy steps:

1) Take the chain off the saw

2) Drive and/or walk to the closest saw dealer

3) Walk up to the counter with your old chain in your hand

4) Kindly explain that you'd like to purchase a skip tooth, round bit version of said chain (preferably Stihl)

 

[Bigg_Redd]

I need a chain that can be used for bucking and cutting through the grain (noodling?)and some cutting against the grain

Pretty much every chain will do that

 

[Fifelaker]

I was a die hard Stihl RSC user until the price went to $29 a loop. Now I use Oregon LGX at $15 a loop. It is not twice as good. Also semi will be a better cutter shape if the wood is even a little dirty. I also touch up every tankful unless I hit something.

 

[clemsonfor]

Your dealer is roving you. Last stihl chain I bought was $24 and they were high!!

I dont touch up every tank, swap chains every 3-4 tanks. I dont run in the dirt or dirty wood usually.

My muffler modded sales are fuel hogs esp the ms650. Id be filing all the time!

 

[Fifelaker]

4 dealers are all the same price up here, so I switched to Oregon. Even @ $24 a loop it doesn't make sense. Stihl chain is better but not $9 better and not even close to $14 better. The stuff I cut is not always clean so.... I do not file for the sake of filing. I file if it needs it. I also file a new chain as I can make it sharper that a grinder (new) can.

 

[clemsonfor]

I buy very few stihl chair s for the record. It is pricey!! I have a half dozen or more I got off a logger buddy. They only file them till they jack them all up. U have various 72dl .050 chains that are husky (I know oregon) and oregon brand that are still 40-80% left on the tooth. Every thing from factory safety semi chisel to full chisel. The safety I am sure came on the saws when he bought them. They get run on my 372s ms390 and ms650 . I just rotate chains.

 

[chrispr1]

I will file down a chain until I lose a tooth then toss it. Don't forget to hit the rakers once in a while also. I'll try to stick with Stihl chains because the steel seems harder than Oregon. I'll run a full comp, semi skip, or full skip depending on the bar length.

 

[clemsonfor]

Yep hit takers!

 

[clemsonfor]

Rakers

 

[Mischa Shashumshkavich]

yep, i hit the rakers....but what happened to the chain was i hit a nail (or 2) buried under the bark of a dead pine when felling it....that took some of the teeth down pretty short and i dont have the time to take all the rest down by hand, plus before that the chain was touched up/re-sharpened multiple times....my local stihl dealer has every chain by stihl and oregon.....except the one i need.....so i may just order a full chisel and semi chisel somewhere online, i think i need both....some of the wood has dirt and debris in the crevices....some of the centers are soft and punky too, which is a funny feeling when cutting,all of a sudden the saw is cutting 5 x as fast....not sure how that affects a chain either, that soft starting to rot punky stuff...