Cs5000

[trailerguy]

I've always run a 16" bar on my Echo cs5000, I hate forcing the saw. But I recently picked up a 20" bar from my local dealer, to cut some larger trees. I was slabbing off firewood this afternoon, with the 16" bar and a new full chisel chain. The chips were pretty small, and a lot of just dust sized particle's, but it cut through pretty fast. I decided to try the 20" bar with it's new full chisel chain, the chips were large and stuck together well, but it cut slower, both chains feel sharp. What would the difference be in how they cut?

 

[Lobo]

Sometimes in very dry old wood you may get sawdust like material instead of large elongated chips as in wood with humidity, sap, water in it. But most times it is because your saw chain is getting dull or poorly sharpened.

 

[woodshop]

Trailerguy you said "slabbing off firewood"... you weren't by any chance ripping down the length of the log were you? Cutting WITH the grain? If so you will get sawdust, as opposed to crosscutting, which is normally how you cut wood with a saw.

 

[trailerguy]

I was cutting across the grain, on a green log that was felled a couple of months ago. The chains both came fresh from my Echo dealer, he makes them up off a roll, they likely could be off the same roll just different lenghts. Both were used the same day, same log, the only difference was I changed bars, but the chips were different and so was the ease in cutting. You'd think the longer curls of chips would have indicated a faster cut but it didn't.

 

[hobby climber]

With your saw & the 16" bar you should be slicing through wood with no problem. Did the wood have dirt in-bedded in the bark or did the tip tough the ground? That could have dulled the blade. Hard to comment on the chain from your dealer because he made it from a bulk role and we don't know what he used. I'm a big fan of the "Windsor" brand chain and have had good luck with it. Going from a 16" bar to the 20", you may notice a bit of a difference due to the increased resistance. Don't forget that new chains will stretch a little and your tension will need to be adjusted but you already knew that!