Sharpening woes

[bobh]

Hi all

Been milling some spruce recently, large boards, 4m long and up to full width of the mill (30" bar giving about 24" cut)

Been having a problem with the vibrations when I hit a knot.

I am 100% sure this is due to my sharpening as it wasn't doing it on the first couple of cuts.

I suspect that I may have taken the depth gauges down too far, would this cause vibrations?

Any thoughts?

Set up is MS650 with a Oregon 75RD chain.

 

Some photos

 

 

 

[agg221]

For what it's worth, I've found spruce one of the most difficult timbers to mill. It was much harder on the chain than oak or even elm.

 

I'm hand sharpening at the moment and I suspect that, however good you are, it will never be as absolutely even as if you set the lengths with a jig. I'm going over to one of Rob D's sharpeners once my wife gets round to ordering it (it's last year's Christmas present!).

 

Alec

[Rob D]

Yep taking the depth guages down to far can def cause this.

 

I reckon a filing guide is a must for chains. Depth guages are always a pain to get right - why a good tool has not been developed for depth guages yet is a mystery

[Rob D]

I'm hand sharpening at the moment and I suspect that, however good you are, it will never be as absolutely even as if you set the lengths with a jig. I'm going over to one of Rob D's sharpeners once my wife gets round to ordering it (it's last year's Christmas present!).

 

Alec

 

 

Ha ha! Yes she's been threatening that for a while Alec!!

[gensetsteve]

I have a radial arm saw with tct blade the other day it was grabbing in the timber. I was cutting pine I had some green oak and that cut like butter with no problems at all. It could be the sap builds up in on the blade or because the wood is so soft the teeth dig in more.

[bobh]

Thanks for the replies

Seems to confirm what I thought.

Alec glad to hear you found spruce hard on the gear as I thought it was just me, had milled oak and elm before with no problems and was expecting to fly through the spruce.

Keep on at your wife about the sharpener, they're great but I wasn't using it in the field this time as it would have meant taking a battery up the hill with me and I had enough gear with me already.

Must pay more attention in future.

Agree with you Rob, it seems amazing that there isn't some form of easily used and easily carried tool on the market, business opertunity for somebody.

[spudulike]

Had a 630 once that had a chain where the depth gauges/rakers were well below where they should be and it shook like hell as the cutters tore and bounced off the cut - bit like taking a plane across a piece of wood where it is set far too deep - similar feeling!

[bobh]

Just what it feels like Spud

Certainly giving the GHS pot and cylinder a really good work out! at one stage yesterday I used a full tank in one cut, but then I really should have stopped a while before and had a sharpen up

[spudulike]

Just what it feels like Spud

Certainly giving the GHS pot and cylinder a really good work out! at one stage yesterday I used a full tank in one cut, but then I really should have stopped a while before and had a sharpen up

 

Glad it is holding out OK, touch wood.....or is that cut wood:lol:

[Rob D]

Just what it feels like Spud

Certainly giving the GHS pot and cylinder a really good work out! at one stage yesterday I used a full tank in one cut, but then I really should have stopped a while before and had a sharpen up

 

 

Yes be a little bit careful here as this is worse for your saw than you might think... You need to train yourself to pull that saw back out the cut and sharpen rather than "I'll get this board done then sharpen".

 

I used to always plough on but I think this then causes the saw to start overheating and further down the line you get idling problems and such.

 

Rest the saw 2 or 3 times down the log and let it idle for 30secs (I usally tap the wedges in while this is happening). When you finish the cut let the saw idle upright for 2 or 3 mins with a light rev in between - it just lets that cooling air though the fans and pulls out excess sawdust trapped in the bar.

 

Will be doing a vid on some chainsaw milling tips this summer and this will be one of the main ones (I may do a thread in the meantime...). I have found my 880 runs as sweet as after 2 years and a lot of milling and I think this is down to the above - treating the saw a bit kinder and allowing it to cool itself.