Heating With Wood

Sharpening A Chainsaw- How To Do It

Even if you get the best chainsaw chain in the world, eventually it will need to be sharpened. Sharpening a chainsaw is not complicated, but does require some basic knowledge and skill.

You can easily tell when your chain needs sharpening because it takes longer to cut and the chips look more like sawdust than chips. Most people tend to keep on sawing anyway, hoping somehow that it will just go away and cut like before.

Once the chain reaches a certain point, you really need to have it sharpened mechanically by a grinding machine made just for this purpose. It is well worth the money to have this done, but you can certainly do it yourself, using a file, before the chain becomes that dull and worn.

The simplest, but not necessarily the best, way to sharpen the chain is to simply use a round file. If you are skilled enough to do this without a guide, it certainly works. Most people, however, just don't do it often enough to get that good at it, and need to at least use a file guide.

Even with a good file guide, you must understand the basic geometry of the cutting edge. If the angle is too steep, the saw will cut too fast and be hard to control. If the angle is too shallow, the saw will have a hard time cutting and you will quickly tire.

The guide helps to keep each tooth approximately equal, which is very important. If the teeth vary greatly, the saw will be hard to manage and tend to vibrate and grab into the wood. Not only is this a bother, but it is dangerous as well.

One simple method is to take the same number of strokes on each tooth. This works OK, assuming that each stroke removes the same amount of metal. Rotating the file occasionally helps to keep the file cutting.

A good file guide is the Granberg Bar Mount Chain Saw Sharpener, which sells for about $30.00. It is somewhat of an industry standard and has been in use for over 35 years. Another simpler tool is the Oregon Sure Sharp Chain Saw Manual Filing/Sharpening Guide. This tool is easy to use and quite common.

For the professional, there are several very good grinders that do an excellent job, very quickly and accurately. The Oregon Bench Mount Chainsaw Chain Sharpener is a portable tool that is precise and very compact. It sells for around $200.00.

Another professional grade sharpener is the Oregon Bench Mount Chain Sharpener- Model 511A. It cuts up to a 12 in. pitch chain size, is 110 volt and costs around $300.00.

It is always a good idea to have at least one extra chain on hand when cutting firewood. You can have a sharpened one on hand in order to keep things moving along. If you have a helper, he can change be sharpening the dull one and getting it ready for the next go around.

Gas chain saws are amazing tools that can do a tremendous amount of work. It is important to have the right accessories to make your life easier and your work more efficient. Your firewood shed will soon be full of nice seasoned hardwood, just waiting for your new or used cast iron wood stove to keep you and your family cozy all winter.