Bar Reconditioning

[mpyoung33]

Thanks for all the replys and advice. I picked up the disc today and I'm going to attempt to do this sometime this week. Maybe I'll post some before and after pics.

 

[mpyoung33]

I rough dressed the rails today on my table saw and I'd say it was a success so far. I used a Craftsman 100 grit stick on pad because I didn't want to take too much off and that's the finest grit that came with the disc. I did about 6 passes on each side and wow is it tricky to finesse a 68" bar on a cheap Craftman table saw. Good thing I built a table extension on the saw or it would've never worked. After about the third or fourth pass I had the process down. I'm curious do sparks fly at the ends of the bar because it's hardened? I guess the tricky part starts tomorrow with the bar rail closer. I'll update how it cuts when I'm finished. Thanks again for all your help.

 

[watsonr]

Sparks fly, just don't get the bar to hot or it will alter the temper of the metal. Nice easy passes, a little at a time. That big table made quite a difference, bet your glad you didn't waste your money on a small sander?

 

[heimannm]

My experience with hard nose bars is a lot less sparks fly from the nose (I guess it's just too hard to lose much material to a mere sanding disc) but plenty of sparks come off the rest of the bar.

I've done a few smaller bars on my Craftsman 6" disc sander with the plastic dust extractor, it has melted pretty badly by now.

I enclosed the bottom of my 10" table saw to help keep the dust down, so I have to clean it out thoroughly before I start dressing bars to avoid a catastrophe there. I'm not concerned about a dust explosion but I reallydon't want a bunch of smoldering sawdust in my shop either.

Mark

 

[mpyoung33]

My experience with hard nose bars is a lot less sparks fly from the nose (I guess it's just too hard to lose much material to a mere sanding disc) but plenty of sparks come off the rest of the bar.

My bar is doing the opposite. It sparks a lot at the ends and nothing on the rest of the bar.

 

[mpyoung33]

I tried the WoodlandPRO bar rail closer today and it didn't work out so well. This tool might work good for a small bar but I don't have the time or patience to use this thing. I'm resorting to plan B which is closing the rails with a hammer. I don't have an anvil but I do have a piece of I-beam long and wide enough to get the job done. I don't have any .063 shims either. Does anybody have a source for something like this?

 

[madhatte]

Put a spare drive link under where you're hitting with the hammer. Move it for each successive blow.

 

[mpyoung33]

I thought about that but it would take me forever. I need like a 6" piece of metal.

 

[watsonr]

Sheet medal shop? Strip of medal from Lowes/HD, they sell flat stock. Maybe fold a piece in half? Don't forget it needs to be just a hair smaller than .063 to allow it to "spring" back.

 

[mpyoung33]

Sheet medal shop? Strip of medal from Lowes/HD, they sell flat stock. Maybe fold a piece in half? Don't forget it needs to be just a hair smaller than .063 to allow it to "spring" back.

I think I'm going to shoot for .060 and see if that works. My dad's a welder and I'm going to visit him this weekend so maybe he'll be able to get something from his shop that will work.

 

[heimannm]

Don't give up so soon on the bar rail closer. Clamp your bar in a sturdy vise, then lightly tighten the clamp while you drag the tool down the bar. Continue to gradually increase the tension the clamp and draw it down the bar checking the fit of the chain frequently. If you're having a hard time pulling it down the bar, your clamp is too tight.

It won't take more that a few minutes for each side (top/bottom, what ever you want to call them). Don't over do it though as opening them back up can be pretty tedious as well.

If you find you have tight and loose spots, you can focus on the loose spots until it evens out.

Mark

 

[mpyoung33]

Don't give up so soon on the bar rail closer. Clamp your bar in a sturdy vise, then lightly tighten the clamp while you drag the tool down the bar. Continue to gradually increase the tension the clamp and draw it down the bar checking the fit of the chain frequently. If you're having a hard time pulling it down the bar, your clamp is too tight.

It won't take more that a few minutes for each side (top/bottom, what ever you want to call them). Don't over do it though as opening them back up can be pretty tedious as well.

If you find you have tight and loose spots, you can focus on the loose spots until it evens out.

Mark

I have a really good 6" vise to hold the bar securely. The problem I was having today was tight and loose spots all over the bar. I was working in lengths of the BRC about 5" increments checking it every time. You have to pull the BRC because I found that pushing it just sends it off the rails. I had to keep loosening and tightening the adjusting lever because some spots were tight and some loose. I wish there was some sort of gauge or marker so I could reset the adjusment lever back to the perfect setting. I'm not going to give up on the BRC just yet but I just think I'll have better luck with a hammer. I'll give it another shot next week.

 

[zogger]

man....

....every boy *needs* one of those things.....

 

[heimannm]

The tool is definitely designed to be pulled. As for tight and loose spots, you can start in the middle of the bar (or where ever the loose spot occurs) and lift it out as to go along to help prevent over closing the tight spots.

I try to keep track of the position of the adjuster handle and advance it 1/8 of a turn or so at a time. Because I work on a lot of narrow bars (old 10 Series McCulloch) there are time when the handle hit the vise and I have to give it a little more to clear, the point is you can ususally judge where you are by the relative position of the adjuster handle.

Though I've never tried it, I expect you could cut a shim, or several strips of shims to lay in the bar groove as you go along to help prevent over closing the rails.

16 gauge material is 0.0625" thick, 18 gauge is 0.050" thick, may have to get creative in selecting the material to achieve enough closing and allow for the spring back.

Mark

 

[mpyoung33]

The tool is definitely designed to be pulled. As for tight and loose spots, you can start in the middle of the bar (or where ever the loose spot occurs) and lift it out as to go along to help prevent over closing the tight spots.

I try to keep track of the position of the adjuster handle and advance it 1/8 of a turn or so at a time. Because I work on a lot of narrow bars (old 10 Series McCulloch) there are time when the handle hit the vise and I have to give it a little more to clear, the point is you can ususally judge where you are by the relative position of the adjuster handle.

Though I've never tried it, I expect you could cut a shim, or several strips of shims to lay in the bar groove as you go along to help prevent over closing the rails.

16 gauge material is 0.0625" thick, 18 gauge is 0.050" thick, may have to get creative in selecting the material to achieve enough closing and allow for the spring back.

Mark

My dad was able to get some 16 gauge shims from work. I'm going to give it a shot tomorrow.

 

[mpyoung33]

I gave the bar rail closer another shot and it worked ok. I think I can get good at using it over time. As for the 16 gauge shims they were a bit too small for pounding out the bar. I have a new respect for any blacksmith out there. Working with metal just isn't my cup of tea.

 

[mpyoung33]

Used the BRC on my other bar today and I think I've got it down now.

 

[mpyoung33]

Ok so I thought I'd leave a 6 month update. I'm pretty much an expert at bar reconditioning now. I must admit that it did take some time to get good with the BRC. It takes some finess and skills. It's so easy to over tighten the rails. Thanks to everybody that offered some advice on this site. Now I feel like it's my duty to help anybody with the same scenario so if anybody has questions for me I will do my best to answer them.

 

[Gologit]

Ok so I thought I'd leave a 6 month update. I'm pretty much an expert at bar reconditioning now. I must admit that it did take some time to get good with the BRC. It takes some finess and skills. It's so easy to over tighten the rails. Thanks to everybody that offered some advice on this site. Now I feel like it's my duty to help anybody with the same scenario so if anybody has questions for me I will do my best to answer them.

Thanks for letting us know how it turned out.

 

[mpyoung33]

I would just sand off the rails until smooth and straight. Now if the depth of the groove needs changed thats another problem, you don't want the links hitting the bottom and the side straps with a gap under them. .063 would be the easiest to fix...Bob
Here is a great vid...
YouTube - ‪The chainsaw guy LONG SAW BAR REPAIR 10 13‬‏

I know it's been a while but I need to make a deeper groove in my bar. In this video he uses a .063 grinding stone to open up the bar groove. Where do you get a .063 grinding stone and what kind of machine is he using?