Sharpening chainsaws

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Being new to life on a small acreage, work, work work... I went out and bought myself a mini-chainsaw (battery powered, lightweight, I can't lift the heavier ones) because fighting back the forest is a full time job here, the trees just come up like weeds everywhere.

So, after assembling the thing I had my first go today, seemed to go okay, quite impressive power wise - it only runs for about an hour, but thats about my stamina level too. They recommend sharpening the blades periodically and I have no idea how you do that. Any one got any experience in this?

You need to purchase a saw-file. It's a round file about 3/16" in diameter(depends on chain). You have to put your saw in a vice, and sharpen each tooth individually. Try to match the angles that are already ground onto the chain. Hit each tooth with a couple strokes and then move to the next tooth, until you have hit them all.

The counter person should be able to help you purchase the right size file, and give you some more sharpening tips.

Great info thanks... just one question: You have to put your saw in a vice, and sharpen each tooth individually...so do you put the whole chainsaw (ie with chain in place) in a vice to sharpen it? I can't quite picture that bit. I suppose you'd need the tension quite tight?

...or take the chain out and do it?

I sharpen my chainsaw occasionally. The kit consisted of a round file and a file guide. Remove the chain then place the little metal guide over a tooth and run the file over the guide. Repeat for each tooth. You can blunt a chainsaw very easy - all it takes is one nail in the timber or to hit the ground / pebbles. Mine is a proper petrol one. A violent thing. The instructions read like something from a horror movie. Basically if you make a mistake using it you lose limbs or spill your brains on the ground and it all happens in a split second. So watch out for things like kick backs, pulls and bounces. Not a tool to mess with.
The guide is useful for sharpening because it aids you to get the angle right for sharpening the teeth. It is worth wearing leather gloves to remove and work on the blade.

I forgot to add... if you buy a file and guide make sure you get the correct size because chain saw teeth come in different gauges. If you use the wrong file or guide you will ruin them.

By far the best way to sharpen a chainsaw is on a few zombies.

No, do not take the chain off unless replacing it. Also, a vice is not not needed, just place the saw on a level surface. Do not adjust the tension of the chain unless it is too loose. If the chain is too tight, you run the risk of either splitting the bar or breaking the chain while using it.

What type of oiler does the chainsaw have? Manual or automatic? If you have a manual oiler, keep the chain well oiled, as this will increase the life of the chain, and also reduce the intervals that you need to sharpen the chain. Furthermore, cutting trees at the base, or getting the bar/chain in the dirt wil dull the chain quickly. The reason why cutting trees at the base will dull the chain is because tree bark holds dirt quite well, and there is a lot of dirt in the bark, the closer you get to the ground.

It is all to easy to become complacent with chain saws. My instructions said to check the tension before every use and one day I didn't do it. I was cutting some old hawthorne trees and the chain flew off. Thankfully it didn't hit me, just tangled, but it was a warning to me. I always wear a full face visor and heavy leather gloves and a heavy old coat. Nasty things if they misbehave.
Mine has a little tank to hold the lube for the chain, but I find sawdust tends to get into the outlet of the feeder to the chain and block the supply sometimes. Like you say a dry chain blunts very very quickly.

Thanks peoples, lots of good advice there.

Being a newbie I'm following the instructions, they say to check the tension frequently with a new chain as it can change a lot. It's a little manual pump (thumb pump) for oil, it also says to oil before every cut, so I been doing that - you're supposed to hold the machine at a certain angle for that (gravity flow). When I took it apart to clean it and there seemed to be a reasonable amount of oil on the chain.

There's several pages of really interesting stuff on angles and types of cuts for tree felling and general logging stuff but I just had to get in there and have a go, it was getting too daunting letting it sit there in a box. I have seen my neighbour fell and cut up a tree so that was a bit of a guide.

I'm mainly doing saplings and smaller trees which is why I bought this small size saw. I've been ringbarking medium size trees (over 6 " diameter) that are too big to fell with this size machine. Anything bigger than that I'll have to hire someone to come and fell.

So far so good.

Last edited by Postperson on 25 Jul 2008, 6:23 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Also, on the subject of tree killing, do you folks have a preferred cheap poison, I was thinking just salt or kerosine poured onto the fresh cut? Because they will resprout from the cut, or some of them will unless you use a poison as well.

I have bought one tree poison but it's extremely expensive and quite scary stuff, has a long soil life etc. I think some of the tree poisons are a version of agent orange.

I think salt or alcohol should work fine

If trees could scream, would we be so cavalier about cutting them down? We might...If they screamed all the time for no reason ~Deep Thoughts by: Jack Handy~