bar repair

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dt6266

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hello all. i was given a bar for my saw but the only thing is it was a bit worn. what i mean by worn is the rails of the bar sit a bit higher then where the chain rides. is it ok to file down the rail so its smooth and level with the bar groove.
 
Also, if your rails appear burned or discolored in some way, dont file it just replace. I would also recommend replacing the chain too because your old one that was on the bar, is likely worn on the uneven pattern and will make your efforts useless if you use it on the bar after truing up the rails.
 
i didnt get a chain for it yet , only the bar was given to me. as far as it being discolored thats ok to....actually there may be a slicht discoloration but i didnt look much for that but if it was bad enough im sure i would have noticed
 
Make sure that it isn't bent before you work on it, use something straight, like a 4' level.
 
The best way to "true" the bar rails is with a bar grinder. As you probably don't have one, the next best thing is a 12 inch woodworking sanding machine with a 90 degree table. Use a coarse paper with hard grit. Just run the bar past the disk smoothly, and the rails will quickly both be the same height and exactly 90 degrees to the bar. Look for nice even material "machining" along the length.

I don't worry about burning etc. If the rails true with enough depth for the tangs, then they work fine. File off the burrs on the edges with a flat file held against the bar. If the rails are spread, you may need to use a bar-closer to get them true.

Filing down badly uneven rails is really difficult on high quality bars as the steel is very hard. Grinding (or using a sander as a grinder) is really your only option except for light work or touch-ups. If you do file, use a machinist square to check the evenness of the rails all the way along the bar. Unless you are doing a lot of boring, don't worry about uneven wear around the tip. It hard to get them true anyhow as the sprocket gets in the way.
 
I just had a bar trued on a bar grinder for $9. Its just like new again.
 
Cut4fun said:
I just had a bar trued on a bar grinder for $9. Its just like new again.

Good price. We charge $14 for short bars, $16 for medium and $20 for long bars. That includes hand work and straightening as required.

Bars almost never get ground.. I figure 1 saw in 10 I get for service has a bar that DOESN'T need at least a quick pass on the grinder.. and some of them are in horrible condition. I wouldn't put a new chain on a bar unless the bar was touched up.
 
Yeah Andy it was the short one, 16" for my 79cc saw. Didnt think to ask for longer bar prices, But I do know he measured before giving the price and $9 was total with tax.
 
Lakeside53 said:
Bars almost never get ground.. ....
It shouldn't really be nesessary, if people bothered dressing away the first signs of groove development with a raker file, as soon as they appeared......
 
I always wondered. How much can you grind a bar down? Is it a matter of how much clearance do you need for the drive links or does the groove serve some purpose of moving the bar oil?
 
Back in the day they would use the Barshop to cut the grooves deeper in the bar when it was dressed down far enough to be a problem.

Now we just throw them away.

Fred
 
RES said:
I always wondered. How much can you grind a bar down? Is it a matter of how much clearance do you need for the drive links or does the groove serve some purpose of moving the bar oil?


It's really just the tang depth. Very few bars get ground down to the point where the tangs touch the bottom - the bar is shot well before that point. The bar cleaning or racker measuring tools often have a depth measure on them.
 
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