Does bulk ripping chain make sense?

[MervMaster]

I'm new to milling, and I'm about to upgrade to a 42" bar.


For the cost of a 50' roll of chain, and the tools to break/repair chains, does it make more sense to buy a few loops instead? At that bar length chain loops seem to start to become cost prohibitive.

Any and all opinions welcome. In the end it all comes down to math.

Is there somewhere other than baileys that it makes sense to order reels from?

Thanks![emoji1] [emoji2]

 

[Guido Salvage]

Unless you are making a lot of chains, have odd link counts or simply like the convenience of spinning a loop, it is cheaper to buy ready made loops.

 

[watsonr]

Buy standard chain and grind it to 10 degrees for milling. Milling loops seem to be about twice as expensive as regular chain. Catch a role cheap and buy the tools for the same price of a ripping role. Next time around you'll save money..

 

[Chris_In_VT]

Yeah, I'd just re-file standard chain, if you have to use rip chain.
You don't even have to buy a grinder, use a flat file then restore the profile with a round file. That's how I resharpen rocked or very dulled chains, works pretty quick compared to doing it all with a round file.
Flat files are cheaper than grinders

 

[Boondock Journeyman]

I have found that milling is either a once every few years thing or a passion.

If the former, buy loops, custom or not. If the later, invest whatever it takes in time and money to be the best chain expert you can be. Tools, different styles of chain, grinds, chain speeds, mill types, ect., all interplay with chain issues. Most important, you will learn a huge amount by investing in tools (grinder, rivet pusher, rivet spinner, calipers, a full box of several file sizes, guides if you like and an ultrasonic cleaner at a minimum.)

I have watched many people struggle to learn milling. I started asking questions. More often than not, they were doing things like using a 4-1/2" grinder to pop rivets and hand peening rivets closed. But wait, their dad taught them when they were 8.

Seriously, invest, study, experiment and be the best you can be at all things chain. That is hands down the road to better milling. Put down the MIG torch. Buy a cheap mill. Forget about all the in and outs of chainsaw hop ups. Use anything with chain speed as high as a stock MS660 (with 3/8" pitch and 7 tooth rim). Spend the money and time on chain.

Obviously, I voice an extreme opinion. Others will and should differ. I am just sick to death of working hard with people only to find out they can't file a chain or think they should be filing 0 degree scrapers, etc., etc. Take me with a grain of salt, but think about what I am saying.

Best of luck.

<edit>

These guys sell custom loops of what they have found to be a good ripping chain - http://granberg.com/. I have found this stuff too aggressive in many situations. Your mileage will differ.

In response to the email from a friend - aggressive in my hands means - porpoises up and down with grain reversals. The nickers seem to lead the scrapers about. Just my guess. When I milled the top plates half as much as Granberg does, I had better luck. I used a Bridgeport milling machine to do it. Out of most peoples wheelhouse. Too much work for me so I gave up on this line of experiment.

 

[zogger]

If the difference between a loop you spun yourself, and pre made factory is only a few bucks, just buy the premade. As to reprofiling, do you want to cut wood or dork around. That's a lot of drivelinks on big bars at a few loops to get all nice and neat the same, when you can just buy the stuff.

Disclaimer, don't chainsaw mill myself. I would if I lived remote and needed to like knock together a cabin or something.

 

[mdavlee]

You can mill with regular chain. The finish will be a little rougher but it will work. I mostly use square filed chain and on longer lengths it's skip. Anything to improve torque in the saw for milling is an improvement. A good muffler mod will help to keep the saw cooler and to direct the exhaust away from you.

 

[Chris_In_VT]

Yeah, the whole rough finish thing with regular chain never convinced me ripping chain was better. Dimensional lumber will probably be planed, and what else do you need a smooth finish for? Large slabs, bartops? If selling rough, so what? If not, belt sander?

 

[Oliver1655]

Bought a roll of chain, PS 3/8 LP/picco, through my local saw shop & they made the loops from it for me for free.

 

[MervMaster]

Awesome info guys thanks. I always try to maximize what I get for the money but for the time involved in reprofiling chisel chain I may just skip it and get some already set up loops.

That's true that the finish of lumber even when using ripping chain is less than perfect.

I'm gonna try to mill some lumber, then build staggered saw horse type items to set up my logs in the future. Any ideas there?

 

[mdavlee]

Awesome info guys thanks. I always try to maximize what I get for the money but for the time involved in reprofiling chisel chain I may just skip it and get some already set up loops.

That's true that the finish of lumber even when using ripping chain is less than perfect.

I'm gonna try to mill some lumber, then build staggered saw horse type items to set up my logs in the future. Any ideas there?

I just cut blocks of wood and stack them. A floor jack works well to lift them up to a nice working height. If you get it all set up right with a good slope and good chain all you have to do it hold the throttle and catch it at the end.

 

[Boondock Journeyman]

I work so hard on chain issues for two equally important reasons:

1) Final surface, including smoothness and "straight line" dimensionality. Both of these are critical when looking for ways to get that final "for sale" or ready to use surface. And,

2) Getting the most power applied to the cut (rather than struggling with chip clearance.) Once you get a single power head on a bar over 36", you will start to struggle with chip clearance if you have either the wrong chain profile or a non-optimum angular grind.

Milling is more complicated than cross cutting in a lot of ways. If you think it is all about surface, you might waste a whole lot of power munching up chips in the kerf. One sure way to see this is to take a cross cut profile like Stihl 36RS reground to 15 degrees and a ripping chain, say Carlton A3EP-RP or Granberg. Use the same rip width, wood, bar, power head, etc. Look at the chips. Is one dust? Is that the reground 36RS?

Do some actual milling with a variety of chain. You will see what I am talking about. If you think this sort of thing is dorking around, milling will not be in your future. Your results will be a reflection of your attitude toward the work. I would avoid anyone who thinks learning is dorking around. They will end your growth in a hurry. Ask around. There are real live people working this trade. There is a really good group in London and they have a strong net presence.

I am not sure what you mean by staggered saw horses. Are you talking about work piece support? For me, that always depends on what I am milling. 52" diameter redwood or twisted big leaf maple 30'-5" long. No two jobs are the same. Am I misunderstanding you?

 

[MervMaster]

By staggered saw horses I just mean one being slightly taller than the other so that I'm milling slightly down hill.

When you compare a crosscut regrind, and imply that it shoots dust instead of chips, are you saying that larger chips are more desirable than dust?

It was my thinking that the cutters being ground at 0-15° would cause the chain to create smaller particles. I always want to learn everything there is, but I'm new still.

Thanks again for all the great info.

 

[mdavlee]

You'll get smaller chips but it shouldn't be all the way to dust. I'll take some pictures of different types of wood.

 

[MervMaster]

Yeah please do. My chips are pretty tiny but not dust exactly.