Chains won’t self feed.

[SamT1]

Guys I’ve been messing with my sharpening technique a lot lately and cant get chains to self feed aggressively in dead mesquite wood. Mine are slightly better feeding than factory new chains, but I hear lots of guys talk about them self feeding. Of course I’m running a big saw with a little bar and you can lean on it crazy hard. Am I greedy for speed or what can I change to make them feed more? I have a few with the rakers taken down as low as .050 as well as angles up to 30* on the tooth. Huge gullets trying to get the chips out. They will eat, but I can’t get them to the point where they will stall a saw if you lean on them just a little. I’m able to lean hard and feel like I need to to maximize cut speed.

I’m kicking butt lately on speed. I’m getting 2 face cords cut, split, and loaded on the trailer in less than 1.5 hours by myself since doing some modifications to my 440, improving sharpening, buying a Fiskars X27, and finally getting myself in shape for hacking wood. But I’ve had bar life issues all my life and while there’s lots of theory’s why (sand in mesquite from storms) the only thing left in my control is how hard I lean on the saw. Time is money so bars are cheaper than time, but if I can do something to stop leaning so hard that frees up bar life as well as reduces fatigue on myself.

 

[huskihl]

Guys I’ve been messing with my sharpening technique a lot lately and cant get chains to self feed aggressively in dead mesquite wood. Mine are slightly better feeding than factory new chains, but I hear lots of guys talk about them self feeding. Of course I’m running a big saw with a little bar and you can lean on it crazy hard. Am I greedy for speed or what can I change to make them feed more? I have a few with the rakers taken down as low as .050 as well as angles up to 30* on the tooth. Huge gullets trying to get the chips out. They will eat, but I can’t get them to the point where they will stall a saw if you lean on them just a little. I’m able to lean hard and feel like I need to to maximize cut speed.

I’m kicking butt lately on speed. I’m getting 2 face cords cut, split, and loaded on the trailer in less than 1.5 hours by myself since doing some modifications to my 440, improving sharpening, buying a Fiskars X27, and finally getting myself in shape for hacking wood. But I’ve had bar life issues all my life and while there’s lots of theory’s why (sand in mesquite from storms) the only thing left in my control is how hard I lean on the saw. Time is money so bars are cheaper than time, but if I can do something to stop leaning so hard that frees up bar life as well as reduces fatigue on myself.

Gonna need Left, right, and top pics of your chain

 

[Tml061583]

Are you setting the height of the depth gauges or rakers?

 

[jakethesnake]

That hard as s wood is dulling your chain so fast it’ll never self feed.

A little sand Dust. High chain speed.

You’re cutting sandpaper with tin.

Bring the top plate out the other way say 20 degrees.

It’ll at least last longer. 50 is very deep in depth guages. .035 is like as far as I am personally willing to go

 

[rd35]

I agree with jakethesnake! You are likely starting out with a sharp chain and losing the razor edge half way through the first cut you make. After that the edge is tougher and lasts a while. Are you running Semi-chisel chain? If not, you may want to consider using it as it will stay sharp much longer in your type of conditions. Using a shallower angle, like 25° or, as Jake suggested, even 20° will also make your edge last longer. Yes, it will not be as aggressive, but over the course of a day you will get more work done.

 

[Little Al]

Agree with other posts if you can buy 3 chains suggest semi chisel & file top plates/rakers to the different angles /depths keeping notes on the angles try & see which gives the nearest to your expectations with the best perormer next sharpening 's go a bit either side of the the default filing angles you should after 4 or so touch up's get the best settings to suit your cutting Bit trial & error but once found with the required angles it"s straight forward

 

[SamT1]

This is a stihl RS that I ran for maybe 5 minutes to finish up where the archer quit.

 

[SamT1]

Here is an Oregon 72 old school chain that came on a saw I just bought. It was hand filed on a 15-20 angle and I recut it on 25 and evened all the cutters up.

 

[sunfish]

As said that's some nasty hardass wood! Use semi chisel chain!!!

 

[Allar]

i feel ya. Whatever i do my chains won't self feed.
I'v used grinder and husky roller guide.

The only time i got my chain to self feed was when i ground my chain at 55.30.10 and then sharpened it with husky roller.

If i sharpen it with just grinder or roller guide, it doesn't pull into the wood at all.

325 oregon 21bpx.

 

[Natty Bumppo]

If I understand what the original poster meant by "self feed", he's referring to the chain digging into the cut with very little effort or "push" on the sawyer's part. Once in a while I notice my chain doesn't dig in but instead seems to "skate" over the wood. This may last a couple seconds and then it starts to dig. It may not happen with a razor sharp chain, but it does happen with a chain that I wouldn't consider dull yet. I don't know if there's a reason for it beyond dull teeth or needing to file the rakers down. We cut a lot of red cedar and hardwoods. I can't really recall if it happens more often on the hardwoods and less on the cedar or not.