Thread: Chain Sharpening Angles

I an currently sharpening with a Tecomec grinder and always use the angles reccommended by the chain manufacturer. Normally I grind all my chains 10-25-60. Are there better angles to use that will make the chain cut faster? Stay sharp longer?

In general, steeper angles cut faster, blunter angles stay sharp longer.

Depends on the wood you are cutting. I always sharpen by hand, and if I am cutting cedar I put more angle on the top, and file deeper into the gullet, say 10-40-45. For froozen hardwood I would use 10-25-70. essentially you can have a sharper cutting edge on softwood, while for hardwood you need a blunter edge. A chain filed for hardwood cuts softwood ok, but if its filed for softwood it screams through it. A chain sharpened for softwood, cutting hardwood will just get dull quickly, the edge being too fine, peens over. Hhmmmmm I hope this makes sense.............

woodtick, you might try going a little closer to 45 degrees with the angle you set on the grinder arm. I have that grinder. This controlls the relative sharper / blunter of the top plate cuttinng edge. This will do the same as lowering a file on the tooth. The top plate mainly splits fibre and not severs it so it is not so challenged as the side plate. This may get you slightly faster cutting without much loss of stay sharp. Sorry, but If you really want a lot faster you will have to go to square ground / filed, but that is a lot more fooferah!

It depends on the chain.... Unless you know your chain you need to use a side guage to judge the results for hook angle, and not go so much on the grinder vertical angles. The shape of your grinding wheel will greatly affect the outcome so dress it often and accurately


For Stihl chain, its all 0, 30, then 60 to 80 (vertical) depending on the type. Whether you use 25 or 30 it doesn't really make much difference, but hook angle will matter greatly for staying sharp, particularly on Chisel chain.

In our shop we grind (and sharpen by hand) all chain to the same angles as stihl chain and nobody ever complains.

Sorry to hijack this thread and drag it off track.

WoodTick007 do you think the Tecomec grinder is as good as the 511A ? Or is the Oregon grinder worth the extra $120?

Thanks, Jeff

The Tecomec and the Oregon are the same grinder I believe.
Back to grinding. I recently got my first grinder and have been fooling around with it a bit. the problem I am running into is I cant get the working crober sharp enough for some reason. The top plate and side plate are both great, but the working cornewr isnt as sharp as my hand filed. Another thing with grinding is thats its slower for me unless the chain is reall fooked up. I can sharpen a 20" loop twice as fast as grinding using a hand file and oregon roller guide. maybe my technique sucks?

Originally Posted by bwalker

The Tecomec and the Oregon are the same grinder I believe.

That`s true. Tecomec, Efco, Oregon, and the Windsors that I have seen are all the same grinder.

Originally Posted by bwalker

Back to grinding. I recently got my first grinder and have been fooling around with it a bit. the problem I am running into is I cant get the working crober sharp enough for some reason. The top plate and side plate are both great, but the working cornewr isnt as sharp as my hand filed.

Ben, I assuming that you are grinding from the outside in vs filing from the inside out? If not, you should be. A finer stone like a Borazon or CBN will also make a cleaner, crisper cut. You might also experiment with the profile of the stone and how deep you go toward the gullet. I do agree that a filed chain is ultimately sharper.

You should also just barely contact the tooth so that you don`t put too much heat into it. It will probably take several quick passes around both sides of the chain to fully sharpen it.

I do all the grinding on one side until I`m satisfied then back off the screw on the chain pawl and set up to grind the other side. When I feel that I should be close to equal from one side to the other, I remove the chain from the vise and fold it over in several places so that the teeth are back to back and I compare length this way instead of relying on the grinder to produce symmetry

Russ

Oregon 511, is probably the same basic machine as Tecomec, others.

Keep playing with the angles until you find something you like.

If you are interested, I have a diagram on how to reverse the motor for grinding the other set of cutters. I can email it to ya

-Pat

Tecomec builds the 511A Oregon, but they make more grinders than that as well. Just make sure that the Tecomec model you are looking at is the same grinder as the 511A, as they do make smaller grinders that are not the same, and are less capable. The Jolly and Super Jolly are the same grinder with the difference between the two being the hydraulic chain clamping. The Midi Jolly and Baby Jolly are their lesser grinders.

Here is some more info on the Tecomec line http://www.tiltonequipment.com/Tecom...L150_page.html

How the stone is dressed as well as how often and with what carborundum stone is the important part.
Get a good dressing stone from a tool and die maker. Also dress one side of the wheel round as this it the only side that touches the tooth. Also dress the bottom of the wheel flat so you have a nice flat gullet.
Now, with a nicely dressed wheel, see how little you can take off, not how much. A little side pressure is what does it. It's totaly sacreligious to burn cutters. I lay my grinder over at 60 degrees I think, but experiment with angles and dress often.
John

Has anyone ever used the Diamond grinding wheels? I see them for about $100.

This plated CBN (Borazon) wheel is used to sharpen saw chain on the Speed Sharp, Effco, Model 7700 saw chain grinders, or other grinders capable of receiving wheels with the following specifications.
The wheel measures 5-3/4” diameter, it has a 7/8” arbor hole and is 3/16” thick. The maximum R.P.M this wheel is rated for is 7250.
CBN wheels are long lasting wheels for sharpening steel saw chain that will not need reshaping and possesses the long lasting attributes and precision grinding qualities of a diamond wheel.

Thoughts?

03-08-2003, 11:04 AM #54
G-MAN
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Join Date: Feb 2003
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G-MAN is off the scale

As an average I would say the I sharpen 2000+ chains a year. One borzon wheel lasts about 3 months, and I can sharpen 3 to four chains in the same amount of time as one chain with the stone.
I hate sharpening chains, if I had to use a stone again I would quit doing it. My advise is try one! I get my wheels from a company called Triatic. I will post the phone number for those who are interested.
I'm not to knowledgable on the square ground chain, so I couldn't speak intelligently about it's relation with the borzon wheels.
__________________
Gambrills Equipment Co., Inc.
STIHL Gold certified technician

Originally Posted by WoodTick007

Has anyone ever used the Diamond grinding wheels? I see them for about $100.

This plated CBN (Borazon) wheel is used to sharpen saw chain on the Speed Sharp, Effco, Model 7700 saw chain grinders, or other grinders capable of receiving wheels with the following specifications.
The wheel measures 5-3/4” diameter, it has a 7/8” arbor hole and is 3/16” thick. The maximum R.P.M this wheel is rated for is 7250.
CBN wheels are long lasting wheels for sharpening steel saw chain that will not need reshaping and possesses the long lasting attributes and precision grinding qualities of a diamond wheel.

Thoughts?

I put one one a few weeks ago... Mine was closer to $300, but I'm "evaluating" it Did sharpen a 36 inch .404 carbide chain, and it did a nice job. I've only run a dozen or so "ordinary" chains though it to date. Takes some getting used to - In comparison to stone wheels, it throws a lot less sparks and they are finer, so it's really easy to take off too much metal. Does make a nice cut and it's nice to not have to dress the wheel for shape. You do have to touch it with a ceramic cleaner stone to unload the wheel from time to time. I figure that if I set it up with a coolant (messy), the finish would be as good as a factory (Stihl) grind.

Originally Posted by WoodTick007

I an currently sharpening with a Tecomec grinder and always use the angles reccommended by the chain manufacturer. Normally I grind all my chains 10-25-60. Are there better angles to use that will make the chain cut faster? Stay sharp longer?

I also just bought a Tecomec grinder and am using the angles of 25 and 60, but I am not sure about the 10. Is that 10 degrees on the base of the unit? I can't get my chains all that sharp. They are sharp, but could be sharper Also, center the chain in the clamp can kind of be a pain, so that the cutter on the left and right side remain the same lengh after grinding. I usually end up adjusting the stop pawl when proceding to grind the left hand cutter and grinding the right.

Any ideas?
Thanks Mark