Economical chain grinding

[fields_mj]

I had a random thought this morning (which can be very dangerous for me). I've used a few different ways to sharpen chains over the years (file, Dremel tool, timberline), but I've never used an actual chain grinder. I do some volunteer work with a group that does disaster relief, including storm cleanup. I remember seeing a video of a guy YEARS ago who did this kind of work, but he would go and just sharpen chains for people. He used a Dremel tool, and I'm guessing he either had an inverter or a small generator. If a guy were going to do something like that, is there a reasonable chain grinder that could be used in conjunction with a small generator? I'm thinking a person would want 2 or 3 of these (one for each size: .325. 3/8, 3/8 LP) so a high end system doesn't make sense. I guess I'm thinking more along the lines of a harbor freight type system. There are VERY few people that I've seen on these crews that are particular about their chains being sharp, so I would think that an expensive setup would be a wasted effort. However, we're normally cutting in a neighborhood somewhere where the trees have rocks, nails, wire and such in them so it would be good to have a way to make things sharp again rather quickly. I'm thinking of something along the lines of bolting a couple grinders to different sides of a 2' x 2' or 4' x 4' piece of 3/4" plywood and either clamp that to the tailgate or a portable table. Not sure if the $30 HF grinders are worth messing with or not, but a +$200 Oregon is certainly out of the budget.

Any thoughts, or ideas?

Thanks,
Mark

 

[Del_]

Don't take this the wrong way but sharpening chains for such a crew would be much like waking up in hell.

People who run dull chains are usually pretty good at getting them dull.

$200 isn't much of a budget.

 

[SimonHS]

There are various inexpensive chainsaw sharpeners available that work from either 12V car batteries or proprietary 18V batteries.

Here is a selection found in the UK. There will probably be more available in America.

 

[fields_mj]

Don't take this the wrong way but sharpening chains for such a crew would be much like waking up in hell.

People who run dull chains are usually pretty good at getting them dull.

$200 isn't much of a budget.

As someone who is known to have a bit of an obsession with keeping things sharp, I totally understand where you are coming from and I've met some of those people. I'm not going to say that such people are not in the groups that I'm talking about, but I will say that there are a lot more opportunities to dull a chain doing storm cleanup than what I encounter cutting firewood. I insist on keeping my chains sharp at all times, but I accept the fact that I'm not normal (in a lot of ways).

I know there are a number of "inexpensive" systems out there. I also know that there are people (like me) who would never be happy with systems like this and would insist on having a system that costs several hundred dollars if I was going to own one to use on my own equipment. I also know that places like HF, ebay, and Amazon have some cheap junk that's worthless at any cost, but they also have some stuff that does a reasonable job at a very good price. When it comes to grinders like this, I have way of knowing which one is which. In this application, the saw has likely run through at least 3 or 4 tanks of fuel, the chain was sharp to begin with and has not been sharpened since, and we'll assume it was only cutting clean wood. In my book, that chain is dull and I'm looking for a grinder that will get it 80% - 90% back to where it was at the start of the day. If a cheap grinder just won't do that job, then its good to know that now. However, if there are grinders that will do the job, it would be good to know which ones or (better yet) how to tell the difference so that only acceptable grinders are purchased.

 

[BeatCJ]

Read this. @Philbert does a great job breaking down the pros and cons.

https://www.arboristsite.com/threads/hf-chain-grinder-thread.268303/

tl;dr

They can be made to work, but you truly do get what you pay for. The Oregon 410-120 or Tecomec Evo or Compact are just over $200 and are supposed to be superior tools