With active work on trimming dead wood or expanding the area of the infield in the home workshop, there must be a chainsaw. Chainsaw teeth even from a trusted brand (for example, Stihl) periodically wear out, and therefore need high-quality sharpening. In the absence of special devices, a correctly selected file for sharpening the chainsaw chain will help to cope with this problem.
External signs of a dull tooth chainsaw
Among the most popular chainsaws are rightly the tools of the Austrian company Stihl, in particular, Stihl-180 (to be precise, then Stihl MS-180-14 ’’). Such a chainsaw can be cut off and branches can be dealt with with medium-sized branches. a power of 1,500 W allows this completely. Despite the high-quality steel that the indicated trademark (we do not consider Chinese fakes!) Is used for making teeth, self-sharpening will require skill and time.
The following external signs of blunting of the cutting chain should be noted:
- A conical section appeared at the working angle of the tooth.
- In the transition from the working angle to the upper face, the radial rounding visually differs.
- At the time of the initial filing, even at a relatively low intensity, the introduction of the working edge of the tooth into the thickness of the wood is carried out with great resistance.
- At the stage of steady cut, the chainsaw chain begins to vibrate, and the noise level of the chainsaw increases markedly.
- When sawing in the longitudinal direction, the cut surface has rough cuts and chips of wood. The chips themselves become much smaller in size.
A trial test is carried out on dry, and in no case on wood with high humidity. The frequency of sharpening depends on the main direction of sawing. If it is performed mainly in the axial direction, then sharpening will have to be performed much more often.
What is included in the sharpening kit?
In the absence of a special machine, you will have to do with a file for sharpening the chainsaw chain (more precisely, not one, but two). A special template is also needed, with which you can control the current value of the angle of sharpening. Thus, the basic set of tool-grinding equipment includes:
- Round file with a section diameter of 4.5. 5 mm.
- A holder with special positioning fishing lines, with which you can place the tool with the necessary accuracy on the upper edge. The holder is equipped with a section that rests on the surface of the cutter depth limiter.
- Flat file that sharpen the limiter itself.
- A hook that removes sawdust formed during sharpening.
Video: Which File For Stihl 180
It should be noted that manual sharpening is effective only when signs of blunting the chainsaw are set very quickly, and wear is relatively small. Otherwise, more complex and expensive specialized machines will be required. Manual machines of the FUG size range are also suitable for working with the teeth of Stihl-180 chainsaws. Their advantage is that it is possible to sharpen the teeth qualitatively, the wear of which turned out to be sharply uneven.
How to choose the right file sizes for sharpening the chain?
The main difficulty is to determine the size of the round file, because the work performed by a flat tool is much simpler. For Stihl saw teeth, the top end of the file should protrude to the surface of the working angle at 20% of its height. However, you should remember about the pitch of the saw chain, which is usually taken in the amount of 0.325 inches.
The next step in the selection is to clarify the length of the round file. It depends on its size. GOST 1465 sets five numbers for this tool, but only No. 4 or 5 are suitable as a file for sharpening a chainsaw. Files No. 4 have a working length of 200 mm, and No. 5 have 250 mm and 300 mm. With increasing length, the amplitude of the movements of the hands of the worker increases, so the quality of the direction of the file along the tooth increases accordingly. Therefore, a longer file for sharpening is better.
In addition to length, it is important to correctly determine the type of notches available. They can be with chopped or notched teeth. For sharpening, it is better notched, because otherwise the cutting angle fluctuates in a wider range of values (70 ± 10 0), which is unacceptable for processing a tooth.
As a file material for sharpening a chain of a chainsaw, it is worth taking tool steel U13 or U13A according to GOST 1435. Other options for tool grinding with the teeth of a chainsaw are not suitable.
The domestic tool industry produces a special size line of metal files “Zubr”, which are designed specifically for manual grinding of chainsaw teeth. The price of the required instrument numbers ranges from 300. 350 rubles.
Sharpening sequence
High-quality sharpening of teeth implies strict adherence to the following rules:
- The file for sharpening the chainsaw should be placed strictly perpendicular to the direction of movement of the teeth of the saw in the vertical direction, and at an angle of 15. 20 0. in the horizontal. The latter is controlled by a tool holder.
- A round file in the throat of the tooth must be located slightly above its edge (for file No. 5, this is approximately 1. 1.5 mm).
- A holder is mounted on the tooth, the cutting line of which will show the exact direction of file movement in the horizontal plane.
- After several file movements, the sharpening surface is covered with magnetized chips, which should be removed immediately with a hook.
- Sharpening begins in the direction away from you, without applying excessive force: the notches should gently enter the metal of the tooth. It is recommended to make several movements, and then turn the file by 20. 30 0 so that the wear of the notches occurs more evenly.
- Sharpening is recommended to be done “through the tooth”: first sharpen the teeth of one direction, and then the other.
- The pressure on the file during grinding should be constant, as well as the number of reciprocating movements on the sharpened tooth.
When sharpening the depth gauge proceed as follows. A pattern is superimposed on the limiter. When the slot of the limiter enters the groove of the template, set the height of the worn area, which is removed using a flat file. The template is installed on one of two sides. Hard or Soft, which corresponds to hard or soft wood.
Sharpening will go easier if the tire chainsaw clamp in a bench vise. The intervals between sharpening can be increased if the correct chain tension is monitored in a timely manner, the limiter is monitored, all moving parts are lubricated regularly, and the drive sprocket is periodically replaced.