Chain grinder?

[davidwyby]

2n1 is good because it hits raker at same time, faster and more efficient.

Doesn’t work for skip.

One must know that pushing down will put more hook in the cutter and lower the raker more, making the chain more aggressive.

 

[Nutball]

I found the 2in1 would lower the depth gauges too much, and the depth gauge file would also dull quickly.

 

[Marc-Antoine]

Dulling wise, I was guessing something like that. The flat file sees a lot of travel with really almost anything substantial to remove. So just the very teeth's edge does all the work and instead of removing shavings (where the body of each tooth would participate a lot more), it scraps out only some metal dust. More over, it skids on the thin layer of work hardened steel instead of digging frankly through. Not good for a long life.

 

[cory]

Great thread, I've learned some stuff, including that I"m glad I only hand file

Re the OP, why doesn't your buddy just bring a bunch of dull chains to the saw shop/hardware store whatev and have them sharpened there?

 

[SkwerI]

Great thread, I've learned some stuff, including that I"m glad I only hand file

Re the OP, why doesn't your buddy just bring a bunch of dull chains to the saw shop/hardware store whatev and have them sharpened there?

Do you really think the $15 per hour kid at the saw shop is going to do a better job sharpening your chains than you will? And he said he hadf over 100 dull chains stockpiled. At $10-12 each that would cost over twice what he spent on the grinder and stand.

I just spoke with him last week and asked how it was working out with the new grinder and he says it is great. He does a couple chains every day and now has lots of extra sharp chains ready to go for each saw. It didn't take him long at all to dial in the grinder and get the feel for it. He was never great at hand filing and with 4-6 employees he really had no other good option for keeping up with the sharpening.

 

[Burnham]

This post is applicable to Brians' friend's situation, I think.

Someone Might Care... Who Knows?

Do you use a grinder, Cory, to true it up? No, have never used one. Nice idea, Nutball Yes Sean, the head scratchers must be bar related.

www.masterblasterhome.com

 

[Kaveman]

Stihl files suck. Can't find anything else locally, so I've been using a 12v grinder. Wax the stone with an old beeswax candle and get at it. Rewax every tooth if your grinding out a rock kiss, every other to every second tooth, if just touching up.

I desperately need any kind of proper bench mounted chain grinder, but I've gotten on with my little 12v buzz box for longer than I'd like to admit.

 

[davidwyby]

Husky intensive cut files, or Pferd classic

 

[lxskllr]

You don't like Stihl files? Those are my favorites, but Pferd is acceptable also.

 

[CurSedVoyce]

Sthil are pretty good. Oregon suck, Pferd better than Stihl. Have had good luck with Woodys.

 

[CurSedVoyce]

Get your mind out of the gutter Rajan

 

[SeanKroll]

I've found Stihl to be good. Never tried Pferd.

 

[Kaveman]

Gonna hafta order some files on line. Wish I could find some like this...
That's a quarter for scale. This thing is 3/8th of an inch diameter! The tree murder machine this thing is for, where BIG!

I have no history on it, other than how it came to me. My mother-in-law got it in a knife block from a thrift store in Bryan Texas. Until I pulled it out, saw that the teeth were cut as a file, not a sharpening steel, nobody ever spotted the stamp that said "Chain Saw 186"

Anyone got info on old Nicholson files? What was this for? A drag saw? A harvester? Or just some big old power like a Mac 125 super pro?

 

[Nutball]

Lots of people say Oregon files suck, and Stihl or Pferd is good, but my experience is the opposite. The Oregon files of 2-4 years ago have been great for me, while Stihl and Pferd wear out fast. Oregon might start going dull kind of quick at times, but it chugs along for a while before it is finally done.

 

[CurSedVoyce]

If you are sporting Oregon chain, the Oregon files work ok to fine.
If you are sporting a Stihl or Carlton chain, no bueno.
Files dull quick. I stopped buying them when all they would give me is a couple of sharpenings and dull out.

 

[CurSedVoyce]

Also tossed their raker files. Same shat. Maybe worse.

 

[Kaveman]

The last half dozen Stihl files I bought wore out IN LESS THAN ONE CHAIN!!! OK, so I've got a 32" bar, 105 drivers I think, yeah that's a lot of teeth, but I seriously had to use multiple files on a single chain! Phuk me to tears that's not OK!

OK, I'm taking off my ranty pants...

 

[lxskllr]

I figure 3 files per chain. I get a bit more out of them, but that's a good figure. Buying by the box, that adds about $5 to chain cost, so $n for the chain + $5 to keep it sharp.

 

[Kaveman]

Let me elaborate, I mean to say I can grab a new file and all but count the strokes before it's trash. Unacceptable.

 

[Nutball]

Also tossed their raker files. Same shat. Maybe worse.

Huh, my Oregon flat files are even better than the round.

I think hard chains, like the new Husqvarna stuff, are hard on any file, but I just bear down on them with the saw in a vise, and the files keep going for longer than most others. I should give Stihl a try again. I've never tried a top quality machinist file to know what I'm missing out on. I used to use 2 Oregon files per rocked 32" chain. Now I use 1 per 3-5 rocked chains, and it does get slow going, but they don't flat out stop like Pferd. I've got enough Oregon files to last a few years at least.

 

[lxskllr]

Files are like lighters and magic markers. There's always 'one more use' you can get out them with sufficient effort. After it starts taking force to file a chain, I semi retire a file. I save a couple for hacking on trash chains, or filing non saw stuff, but I like a nice cutting file.

 

[Kaveman]

That Nicholson is 80 years old. It belonged to my great grandfather, Holly Lynn Allen, a precision tool and die maker from Detroit. This thing will still move some metal. Good files are something I'm a bit passionate about, because I have a pile of the old man's, and they're GOOD. I've judged all files I've used against them, and the oldies are the best.

Modern manufacturers have no viable excuse for their lack of quality.

I didn't math good, that file is closer to 100 than 80...

 

[SkwerI]

Also tossed their raker files. Same shat. Maybe worse.

If you can't buy Pferd raker files, try Saveedge. You can find them at Bailey's or www.saveedge.com.

 

[lxskllr]

My Oregon raker files seem ok. I've been using them a good bit, mostly on Stihl chain, and they continue to cut well. I got two sets. They came with a file and a gauge for about $7 each.