Using my Poulan "Wild Thing" chainsaw this weekend, and a lot of burnt wood where I made my cuts.
Don't recall the chain being so bad, but a new one --- on Amazon --- is $20.
My question is, is that the definitive answer of an unsharp chain? Slow cutting and burnt wood?
And, as a follow up, if I may, youtube showed me how to sharpen with a tool. Doesn't look that hard, but if the tool is as much as a new chain, well, you do the math.
thanks in advance.
When you do the math, bear in mind that the tool may be able to sharpen many chains many times, saving quite a bit of money in the long run. You'll also be able to have a really sharp chain more of the time, which you will grow to appreciate quickly.
Howdy,
You could learn to sharpen your chain, but it is not nearly as easy as it might appear (particularly with the relatively inexpensive tools that are available.)
A likely better bet is to have the chain sharpened professionally. It costs a few bucks, but you will have a functionally new (perhaps better than new) chain, and will not have to buy the tools.
Check with any place that sells chainsaws. Many offer the sharpening service.
And one final thought:
If you use the saw frequently, consider having more than one chain. That way, you can still use the saw while one (or more) of your chains is being sharpened.
All the best,
I use a small file I bought at HD for about $4.00. I've been using the same chain ever since. I don't do a lot of cutting but I usually sharpen it just about every time I use it.
It's very easy but a bit time consuming. Less time than it would take to drive the saw to a "pro".
On 9/23/2008 11:46 AM ng_reader spake thus:
Yes; do the math. You only have to buy the sharpening tool once, after which you can resharpen the chain many times before needing to buy a new one, which ought to save you much $$$.
A dull chain will burn the wood and the chainsaw will bog down. Many hardware stores can sharpen a chain (on the saw) in a few minutes on a machine for about $4, a good deal. I guess a Dremmel tool can sharpen a chain, but still it would take much longer.
Avoid hitting nails, rocks and things. Anything you touch will dull the chain in a second when it's running. Carefull when setting it down you don't touch the pavement and such. Sharpening is easy and quick depending on how bad you ruined it and it sounds like you creamed it. I have NEVER seen a chain saw burn the wood! It normally only takes one or two file strokes on each tooth. BUt if you bunged it all up, who knows. You may need a new chain anyway.
ng_reader wrote: ...
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As someone else noted, a simple chainsaw file will do quite nicely although he didn't mention the requisite guide.
Be sure to determine the proper diameter for your particular chain.
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Gee, is it really practical to hire out this sharpening job. I have to sharpen mine almost everytime I use it. I figure if you dont use it enough to keep it sharpened you would probably be better off just renting one for the day than owning one. My father owned a few hundred acres of timberland and maintained it himself back in the 60s so I learned when I was a teenager to use a chainsaw. I have to wonder whether a not a person who can not sharpen one can handle one safely. Its obvious the OP used his way past the time it needed sharpening and I think most homeowners tend to do that. I know since I bought my Sawzall I hardly ever use mine.
Jimmie
A chain already in good condition, but not sharp, is sharpened by 5 to 10 strokes on each tooth (say 15 seconds per tooth) x say 30 teeth = less than 10 min. A file and angle guide cost about $12 and fit in your pocket so you can sharpen at lunchtime when out in the bush (or any time you encounter dense, blunting timber, or a tree so dangerous as to deserve a quick precise cut.)
The wood smokes and the saw doesn't cut worth squat (your symptoms) if the chain is on backwards.
Might be something to check...
I've never seen a saw burn wood to the point where it's smoking unless, like Bub suggests - backward chain. The sharper the saw the larger the wood chips it produces. Learn how to use and maintain the tool before you attempt to use it. A dull saw may not cut wood but can still take your leg off.
Oh, I will miss my easy Usenet findings once Comcast opts out of Usenet all together.
Likely for $25 I can get a tool and chain. Sharpen the old, put on the new, have a spare.
- Do you really think it's a good idea to call your chainsaw "Wild Thing"?. I mean, really, do you?
jim wrote: ...
Try some about 20-yr dead ash sometime... :)
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"Wild Thing" is the actual Poulan name for the chainsaw. I have one and oil pump went under warranty so I had it sharpened while in the shop and just resharpen with file as others suggest. Maybe not as sharp as shop made it. Slow cutting and burnt wood was my observation too the last time I used it. I had taken to son's house to help remove a downed tree and did not have file.
All the time. Burn lots of ash, maple, cherry and oak in the wood stove. I use a Husqvarna. Sharpened every time I use it - never a problem.
Or mock orange. Its the only wood I've cut that is so dense that it makes the chain throw sparks.
BTW, nothing will dull a chain faster than cutting a downed tree and letting the chain cut into the dirt as it exits the tree trunk.
KC
You sure you don't mean Osage orange (bodark)?
This ash will/does, too...standing but dead for so long it's completely dried out. I've a bunch yet to finish cleaning up in but they're so much work I just hate it. Plus, the way ash grows w/ that fanning out of the branches in all directions makes it such a pita to get into one even w/ the lift...
I use the two-chain method because the darn thing always seems to get dull half-way through a sawing project. Switch chains to finish the job for the day, then drop the dull one off at the hardware store the next morning.
Paul
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