Tungsten Carbide Tipped Chain.

I know you can get TCT circular blades, is it possible to get TCT chain saw chain, has anybody used it? does it make a difference is it expensive etc

Your thoughts please.

Think the rescue saws have that chain, they cut concerete!!

Yes you can get them.

They a great for timber that is contaminated with soil or mud, IE after winching.

BUT they are no good for steel contamination, nail's etc, as if you hit a nail it will simple remove all the tips, ruining a very expensive chain.

i know a chap that bought a couple tct chains and he was saying that they are great while your cutting clean timber but as soon as you start to cut and contaminated timber they dull just like a normal chain but a bit slower. I think they are usefull on jobs where like skyhuc said you have been winching or your working on a building site etc but i certainly would not use them that ogten at all , the cost of a tct chain out weighs the time it would take me to sharpen a normall chain - also something you could not do with a tct chain it needs to be sharpened by a specialist

Stihl Rapid Duro

http://www.arboristsite.com/showthread.php?t=74670

http://www.stihlusa.com/chainsaws/types.html

No-dont need to be sharpened by a specialist -you just put a 'green' grit wheel in yr saw chain sharpening machine-grind as normall. Those chains are worth while for stump grinding teams as the stumps are often grit contaminated, road salt ect, or highways work. Careful use will pay back its initial high outlay.

K

i had one on my lucasmill,worked well for 2 years then i hit a nail, every tooth flew off

also got a 395 18'' bar with one works great on dead Ironwood and dirty stumps

very good for firewood processors and harvesters

I'd read all the forums and debated with other members the pros and cons but still I had to try some myself! Spent around £400-00 on rapco tungsten tipped chains for both milling and cross cutting. Got them in a range of different hardnesses so I could put an end to the debate in my head 'is there any place for carbide on a chainsaw'.

The answer was an emphatic no!

If you hit a stone or a nail you have pretty much written off the chain. They still wear (but perhaps slower than normal chain), you can sharpen with a dremel style tool and diamond file, but it is a physical impossibility to get it as sharp as a steel chain. They cost 5 times as much as a normal chain.

I'd even question using them for stump work and gritty wood as you would still have a chance of hitting a larger stone and writing the whole thing off and/or I found they still needed regular sharpening.

Better options are Oregon multicut chain (used this a lot but very hard to tell if it lasts longer than normal steel chain... still needs regular sharpening) which has thicker industrial chrome top plate and also Baileys diamonised chain (which I'll be trying next week and selling if the results are good) which is impregnated with tungsten carbide chips.

Don't waste your money buying (or your time thinking) about dedicated carbide chains IMO there is no place for them for 99.99% everyday hand held treework!

I was talking to a firm who supply the mentioned chains to someone who cuts railway sleepers,he can cut 8-10 of them before they need sharpening,on standard chain he could only manage a couple,the ones he used were made by oregon,he rated them alot.