Chainsaw chain sharpening with your own hands Chainsaw chain sharpening with your own hands The chain tooth planes wood like a plane, and the thickness of the shavings is regulated by the height of the limiter. Intense sawing results in rapid dullness
Chain teeth parameters
To achieve optimal cutting properties, the tooth blades are angled. The back of the tooth falling back at an angle forms the posterior angle of the upper blade. This angle is needed to cut the upper blade into the wood.
The backward tapering blade of the tooth forms the back angle of the end blade. This angle is needed for side cutting of the chips.
The edge of the end blade forms a rake angle with the sliding surface of the cutting link. The rake angles for different types of chains range from 60 to 85.
The back angle of the top blade refers to the backward tilt of the top blade.
This angle is measured relative to the sliding plane of the cutting link and, depending on the type of saw chain, ranges from 50 to 60. The upper blade is the main blade and the rear angle of the upper blade. This is the most important corner. The clearance angle of the upper blade is difficult to measure, and the correct value is obtained by observing other prescribed values.
The grinding or entering angle is obtained by measuring from the top cutting edge at right angles to the guide bar.
The sharpening angle can be changed, depending on the application. As a rule of thumb, the larger the sharpening angle, the higher the cutting performance when cutting non-frozen softwood. Reducing the sharpening angle when cutting frozen and / or hard wood contributes to a smoother saw blade and less vibration. However, sharpening angles greater than 35 and less than 25 should be avoided (except for rip chains, where this angle is 10).
The rake angle, sharpening angle and upper blade angle change during sharpening. These angles have a decisive influence on the cutting performance of the chain. Be sure to observe the prescribed values.
A depth gauge is located on each cutting link in front of the tooth blade. The difference in height between the top edge of the depth gauge and the front edge of the back of the tooth is defined as the distance of the depth gauge.
The depth of penetration of the upper blade into the wood (chip thickness) and thus productivity depends on the distance of the depth gauge. The distance of the depth gauge is set depending on the chain pitch and type of execution. Normally, it should be 0.5-0.8 mm, more often 0.6 mm. High values will result in an increased tendency of the chainsaw to kickback, too much grip and chain vibration. Low values lead to a drop in performance. Since the distance of the depth gauge decreases with each sharpening of the saw due to a decrease in the upper edge of the tooth, the depth gauge also needs to be filed periodically. After 5-10 chain sharpenings.
Do-it-yourself chainsaw sharpening
The chain tooth planes the wood like a plane, and the chip thickness is adjusted by the height of the stop.
Intense sawing will quickly dull the chain. Several sharpenings may be required within one day. The problem is aggravated by the fact that the tooth quickly dulls when it meets the ground. It is enough to hook the soil with the tire once or twice, and the work can be stopped. The shavings become fine and the saw stops going deep into the wood.
The sooner dull teeth are sharpened, the less material needs to be removed during sharpening, as a result. The service life of the saw chain is longer. Determining the moment when sharpening is already required is quite simple. An important feature is the feed force. A properly sharpened chain is pulled into the cut with just a little pressure. If, on the contrary, the chainsaw is forced to cut by increased feed force, then the teeth are dull. A dull chain can also be recognized if only small chips fly out of the cut instead of coarse, thick chips.
In this situation, the chainsaw must be sharpened urgently. Do not cut with a dull or defective saw chain. The consequence is high stress in the body, high cyclic load, poor cutting results. In addition, this means reduced productivity, high fuel consumption and increased wear on all parts of the chainsaw.
General rules for sharpening chainsaw chains
Features of the structure of the saw chain teeth
Chainsaw teeth are complex, so sharpening them can be tricky. Each tooth has two cutting edges, a vertical side and a horizontal top, beveled at an angle. Each cutting link is also equipped with a depth stop, which determines the thickness of the chip and the productivity of the work. The height distance between the leading edge of the back of a tooth and the top surface of the depth gauge is called the depth gauge distance. On average, it is 0.5-0.8 mm. Since this distance decreases after every next sharpening of the cutting edges, it is necessary to regularly sharpen the depth gauge. This should be done approximately every 5-10 sharpenings.
The structure of the cutting link of the chainsaw chain
Before starting work with a chainsaw, it is imperative to check the sharpness of the chain, because the earlier the dull blades are sharpened, the less metal will have to be removed. The service life of the saw will be increased accordingly. Of course, it is impossible to sharpen the chain ad infinitum there is a limit that is knocked out on the teeth in the form of dashes. It is impossible to grind metal beyond these lines; the chain will not work normally. As a rule, this happens after 10-15 sharpenings.
When is it time to sharpen your chainsaw?
By the way, you can’t wait until the tool stops sawing and then only start sharpening. There are signs by which you can determine in advance that it is time to take out the file (this is the main tool used to care for the teeth of chain saws).
The sharpened chain tooth is the ideal to strive for
Dull sawtooth needing sharpening
So, if you find yourself using more force than usual when cutting wood, then the saw is most likely dull. Chip quality is also an indicator of poor tooth condition. Ideally, it should be large, about the same size. Dark shavings mixed with dust and fine chips indicate that the chain needs sharpening. On average, household chainsaw chains are sharpened 1-2 times a month. The tools of professional lumberjacks working in AL-KO forest should be sharpened more often, about once a day.
How to sharpen a chainsaw chain, the tool will tell you yourself!
A chainsaw without a normal chain belt is like a machine without a motor. This proven postulate will be confirmed by any tech-savvy person. The chain must always be well sharpened if you want to always use your chainsaw. Otherwise, she will not forgive you for miscalculations. This means that you will not see accuracy, efficiency and safety of work.
Any professional will confirm from sharpening the teeth of your tool, even more than from the motor itself, and the final result of such a laborious event as working with a chainsaw will depend. Experienced lumberjacks give the following good advice to sharpen as the sharpening sharpness deteriorates. If you have to put in a lot more effort than before, the saw starts to cut as it pleases and changes angle, slowing down your work, in which case you have no choice to start sharpening.
Pay attention to the sharpness of the chain and escaping chips. If everything is in order with sharpness and sharpening, then your chips will be almost uniform, and the resulting sawdust is square in shape. If the need for sharpening is ripe, then this will be seen by the dust in the shavings and sawdust in the form of needles.
A file and a chainsaw are a successful tandem!
Remember to pay attention to each link in the chain. The rule should also be taken into account that the efficiency of the saw is determined by the difference in heights: we are talking about the distance between the cutting teeth and the limiter itself. Differences in height parameters allow the teeth to cut into the tree (usually a stop tooth in its characteristics should be about 0.7 mm lower than the cutting tooth).
How to sharpen a chainsaw chain instructions for action
Do you want to use sawing equipment for a long time? Then take care of its timely prevention. It is necessary to sharpen the tool as needed.
Sharpening angle grinder
Professionals consider this work to be primitive. There is a risk of tire damage, and more.
Process (seemingly easy, but really difficult)
- The chain also stays on the bus;
- We attach a metal cutting disc with a thickness of 1.5-2 mm to an angle grinder. It is advisable to take not a new one, that is, with a worn edge;
- We put an obstacle in front of the chain and the tire (the chip will come off);
- We sharpen at the right angle;
- Upon completion of work, the chain must be properly tightened.
With a professional approach and a full hand, the number of sharpenings in this case can be more than 7.
For a beginner, it’s best not to experiment with a saw, chain, etc. With your body parts!
Advantages of the method: Fast, cheap and does not take away energy;
Disadvantages: You need special skills, a steady hand and the ability to comply with safety techniques.
We sharpen the chainsaw chain with our own hands. All possible and available ways
A lumberjack working with a blunt ax was advised: Sharpen the ax.
He replied: There is no time. The forest must be cut down.
Greetings to all readers!
Today I decided to tell you about the tool, without which, it seems to me, today it is simply impossible. A good tool should work well, and this largely depends on its owner.
Cleaning the autumn garden, preparing firewood for winter, building a bathhouse, repairing a wooden fence will require not only time and desire, but also the readiness of the cutting tool. If it is a chainsaw, then it must be properly sharpened.
Of course, there are paid specialists, and you, for example, have extra money. But we know that such a procedure is performed periodically, and therefore a natural question arises: how to sharpen a chainsaw chain at home? I’ll tell you about that. Go!
In this article, you will learn:
First about horror stories
If you cut with a blunt chainsaw, you will get three negative factors:
- Reduce the efficiency of your process. For example, instead of two cubes, cut one (at the same time);
- Expose the mechanism to intense wear, with the risk of destroying the drive sprocket and tire;
- Get increased fuel consumption;
There is also a fourth, perhaps not so significant factor, the ragged cut of the saw cut.
And of course, you will get tired more, you will (perhaps) be angry with yourself, what kind of fool should I not sharpen in advance, now suffer
Here is a test question for you (photo on the right). Guess what kind of shavings came out from under the sharp and dull chain? (the answer will be below).
How and how to sharpen a chainsaw chain?
Any owner who has a chainsaw in his possession sooner or later is faced with the fact that the chain loses its original sharpness. And here, many do not see any other way out of the situation, how to acquire a new one. But the one who is used to making everything with his own hands and does not like to spend money on what he can do himself, begins to look for an answer to the question: How to sharpen a chainsaw chain? Let’s figure out step by step how to do it right.
First, without removing the chain, determine its size. For sharpening, it is better to use a whetstone, which almost everyone has on the farm, and a (special) file for a chainsaw. Today there are several sizes of chainsaw teeth.
Before sharpening a Stihl or other chainsaw chain, position the file correctly on the surface of the individual link. In this case, the angle must be maintained within 25-30 degrees. These values are optimal.
Before sharpening the chainsaw, clean it thoroughly. To do this, you need to use any cleaner you have, such as acetone, gasoline, but white spirit is the best option. At the same time, you can clean the body of the chainsaw, just be careful so that the tool does not get into the engine.