The chainsaw thread...

[Timberridge]

Gracias gents, I will try this suggestion.

[TAFKALVS]

Gracias gents, I will try this suggestion.

Make sure the stuff you're cutting isn't dirty, that'll dull the chain really fast. Also if the wood is really pitchy a squirt of ballistol might help. Also make sure your bar isn't proud at the edges - if your bar gets hot you can start to get a lip that hangs up and causes issues.

[BCMtnHound]

Chain dulling and bar oiling/overheating are two different issues. Is your bar oil rated for the temp? Using summer weight during cold conditions will under-lube the bar even with the oiler set to max.

[Timberridge]

I have no problem ripping thru oak or sugar maple with either of the saws with the existing chain and oil combo, though the smaller 450 takes longer. I get a nice chip for most of the day on one chain when I cut those woods. The hornbeam is something different. I make 20 cuts through 12" dia and I'm already making some sawdust. No groundstrikes, and I felled the trees, so the wood is clean. It's just really hard on the chains I have.

[bodywhomper]

I've been happily sawing with my newly revived ms361 quite a bit lately until this evening, when in the middle of a big cut wot, it starts revving like crazy (full tank of fuel). the idle seems unchanged. Under no load, i open the throttle and it accelerates well to where i had set the carb but then keeps revving higher. Release the throttle and it slowly revs down to idle, slower than previously, and it almost seems to hang up in what seems like a half throttle. It was starting to get hot, too. So something suddenly changed today ( i cut wood for a little under 2 hours today; all long cuts bucking big logs) that's making it run lean with open throttle. Fuel filter/pickup? That's something that i have not yet replaced. Would it cause a sudden change like that?

[Dhelihiker]

Im looking to buy a saw for harvesting firewood. We have some pretty big trees around here. Im not cutting them down, I'll be cutting up fallen logs. Can I get away with a 24" bar or do I need to go 36"

[Bronco]

I have an old Stihl 046 with a 24" bar and a 36"(ish). I use the 24" 98% of the time. Theoretically, the 36" is only necessary on logs wider than 48".

[bodywhomper]

Trunk of the dead pondo next to my driveway the butt end was 38" and I was able to buck it with my 24" bar.

I'm still learning as I go.... you may run into fun times trying to roll a really big log when bucking to keep your chain out of the dirt; all dependent on terrain and the situation of each log, I have to do a fair bit of adjacent sapling clearing to access some of my bigger logs, let alone roll them.

[LaBelle23]

I'm running a 291 now, but started the season on a 170, then toasted a 251 that I'm still trying to fix (melted a bunch of plastic and ruined the crank shaft/needle cage and maybe the clutch). Somehow I just lost the needle cage out of my 291 and was on my way to damage there, but noticed the change in sound in time. Apparently I also probably have a tiny leak in the carb. I only got this saw in Sept, but the dealer said I've used it more in 6 weeks then is the usual annual work expected on the saw. If I pay $60 for a tube-up they can probably warranty it for me. I'm kind of sad I'm done with all my bucking for the year. I think I'll have to keep gathering while the weather is decent and there isn't skiing. Best upper body condition I've been in for a decade!

Do you guys sharpen your own chains? How long does it take? I've been going through 7-8 chains a week lately and I don't have the budget for the machine sharpening I've been getting done.

[Meadow Skipper]

Do you guys sharpen your own chains? How long does it take? I've been going through 7-8 chains a week lately and I don't have the budget for the machine sharpening I've been getting done.

Go back one page in this thread. My input:
http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...24#post4790524

It takes me about 15 minutes if I do the rakers and the teeth, less for just the teeth.

[~mikey b]

7-8 chains a week? I don't go through that many chains in a year.

[LaBelle23]

Yeah I've been pretty busy on my wood project this year Once I realized this is the road to being as fit as I can get along with running/biking I don't want to stop.

[LaBelle23]

Thanks MS. I need to get the file and work on it over the winter.

[kootenayskier]

I'm running a 291 now, but started the season on a 170, then toasted a 251 that I'm still trying to fix (melted a bunch of plastic and ruined the crank shaft/needle cage and maybe the clutch). Somehow I just lost the needle cage out of my 291 and was on my way to damage there, but noticed the change in sound in time. Apparently I also probably have a tiny leak in the carb. I only got this saw in Sept, but the dealer said I've used it more in 6 weeks then is the usual annual work expected on the saw. If I pay $60 for a tube-up they can probably warranty it for me. I'm kind of sad I'm done with all my bucking for the year. I think I'll have to keep gathering while the weather is decent and there isn't skiing. Best upper body condition I've been in for a decade!

Do you guys sharpen your own chains? How long does it take? I've been going through 7-8 chains a week lately and I don't have the budget for the machine sharpening I've been getting done.

If you're running a saw that intensively, you should be using a pro-model such as 261. 7-8 chains a week seems crazy. When I'm putting in 40 hour weeks clearing windfall in the Spring, a chain lasts me at least a week, doing a minor touch-up (half a file stroke) each refill.

[LaBelle23]

Seriously? A week out of a chain? Do the residential models go through chains quicker?

I would like to get a pro model with less plastic and more metal, but don't have the budget. I have been cutting big wood up to about 36 inches from the NF. Most of the big wood was felled a couple years ago and I'm bucking it up. Though I have also been felling green trees and bucking them and feel like the chains last like 15 cuts doing that. I'm using the green anti kickback chains and have 6 I rotate through. I'm just learning as I go though so any input is appreciated.

[bodywhomper]

Are you dropping the chain in the dirt while it's running? Are the logs that you're bucking have a lot of dirt in the bark that could be dulling your chain? Some of the logs on my property have been sitting around for over a year and are in relatively deep forest debris and soft soil. a lot of the dirt on the bark goes pretty far up the log. For bucking, I've been doing a partial cut, rolling the log, chopping off the uber dirty bark where I will be cutting, and finishing the cut. Doing all of that has been keeping my chains sharp, but it can really slow me down without the right tools, like some sort of log roller.

[irul&ublo]

For those of us who are less than fully informed....

http://www.madsens1.com/bnc_sequence.htm

[Meadow Skipper]

This video is drier than a popcorn fart, but...

[Bronco]

I'm using the green anti kickback chains and have 6 I rotate through.

I noticed quite a difference when switching from those "safety chains" to a more aggressive chain. Ask at your local shop, I'm sure they'll hook you up.

[bodywhomper]

As noob, my chains have been staying sharp using the husqv tools that xxx-er shared. I'm always a little confused about raker height to use because I'm working with pine, incense cedar, oak, manzanita, and madrone. I've been erring on a conservative side and picking the taller raker setting on the guide.

[XXX-er]

I would like to get a pro model with less plastic and more metal, but don't have the budget...

yeah so you can buy cheap homeowner saws with the plastic engine cases, after you have burnt out 2 or 3 cheap saws you spent as much as you would have if you just bought the pro saw except all you own is some melted plastic

Buy once buy pro, I bought the 261 which is a small pro saw, almost wish I bought the next size up which is the 361 but I',m hiking the saw and you gotta stop somewherr

I carry 2 chains, in case one goes dull I just swap it out cuz its faster than fucking around in the snow on a stump and its way easier to do a good job at home

Maybe you aren't sharpening them properly ? I got the Huskavarna roller guide, I found it idiot proof

[kootenayskier]

Seriously? A week out of a chain? Do the residential models go through chains quicker?

I would like to get a pro model with less plastic and more metal, but don't have the budget. I have been cutting big wood up to about 36 inches from the NF. Most of the big wood was felled a couple years ago and I'm bucking it up. Though I have also been felling green trees and bucking them and feel like the chains last like 15 cuts doing that. I'm using the green anti kickback chains and have 6 I rotate through. I'm just learning as I go though so any input is appreciated.

There's two parts to this. The first is the discipline and control to avoid all the things that will blunt your chain teeth. A chain will last a a long time if it's just dealing with clean wood. The second is your sharpening technique - a consistent angle, just enough filing to keep the teeth sharp, and even on both sides. I've been regularly sharpening saws for 20 years, and have spent way too much time cleaning up after employees who mangle chains while trying their best, and it's art. Get someone who knows to show you how, and practice.

[XXX-er]

I was running saw with a guy who used to fall the big wood out on the coast, he said they were issued 3 chains at the start of the shift which he would swap during the day, chain filing was not allowed because it wasted time

The trees were so big they were only falling 12 stems in a shift and spent the rest of it bucking trees that were 30ft in the air, the bucking freaked him out so much he didn't last long on the really big wood

[highangle]

"And after work, we'd get drunk and beat the livin' Hell out of each other."

[claymond]

Im looking to buy a saw for harvesting firewood. We have some pretty big trees around here. Im not cutting them down, I'll be cutting up fallen logs. Can I get away with a 24" bar or do I need to go 36"

Why not a 28 or 32"?