Electric Chain Grinder

[Wolfking42084]

Quick question,
I mostly file my chains with hand files and really have never used a bench mount electric job. anyone have an opinion on the stihl bench mount or the oregon either one? i like the hand filed chains better, but it seems like the electric will save a lot of time and effort for a lot of chains.

 

[sILlogger]

i can tell you this, if u are running round chisel chain. and your are felling trees, you will not be as happy with the chain that has been sharpened with an electric grinder. hand filing is the way to go for this. if u are just crosscutting, as in cutting firewood, it would prolly be ok. i think it ought be quicker to hand file, by the time u take the chain off, sharpen it, and reinstall it, it only takes me 5 minutes tops to sharpen a 24" chain, (square chisel would be a completely different story, i run round)

 

[Wolfking42084]

yeah round is the way to go. everyone i know runs full chisel. it seems like they can still be sharp, but they rely on the point so much that it is useless. round may not cut as fast, but sure do seem to stay sharper longer.

you have anymore pictures of your current jobs???

 

[ropensaddle]

Quick question,
I mostly file my chains with hand files and really have never used a bench mount electric job. anyone have an opinion on the stihl bench mount or the oregon either one? i like the hand filed chains better, but it seems like the electric will save a lot of time and effort for a lot of chains.

I have a bench saw sharpener tecomec and have not had any problems
getting either type of chain sharp as new. I have filed chains for years
and wish I had bought a grinder instead. It takes a good eye and practice
but the grinder does a much better job once its mastered. I have had
chains sharpened on a grinder and was not impressed but it was because
the operator and not the grinder. You have to dress the stone to get good
results and calibrate machine read the instructions first. I sharpen ten chains and slap a sharp one on the minute I notice chain is starting to get dull.

 

[ddhlakebound]

I have the Oregon industrial grinder, and it saves much time and trouble of sharpening chains on site. Slap a sharp chain on it, and go back to work. Sharpen all the dull chains at once, in a third to a half of the time it would have taken with a file, and have every single angle on the chain consistent.

It does take a little practice to get them sharp without blackening the cutters from too much friction/heat. But once you've learned to use it correctly, it's great.

Oregon makes two models of chain sharpener, the smaller plasticky one looked worthless to me, if you're going to go with Oregon, get the bigger, stronger, well built, expensive one.

 

[sILlogger]

I run 72LG/LGX and i can get it sharper with a file than i have ever seen a grinder and they cut better than a ground chain. the grinder (or the ones that i have used or been around) don't put as much of a gussett in to the cutter the way that a file will, this makes the chain not dig in as much, electrically ground chains will throw more sawdust powder rather than the saw chips that a hand filed one will. there was a time whenever i prefered ground chains over hand filed.....i was on 25 acres of bulldoze timber--lots of dirt on the tree stump and we were stumping and topping the trees for the logs, now a guy would have wore himself out trying to handfile all those chains. and the grinder helped in squaring up the chains after they had been rocked. to me, i think i can hand file one faster than...caring a chain around w/me in the woods, take old chain off, install new chain, carry old chain around woods, and sharpen later.....just my thoughts

 

[ropensaddle]

I run 72LG/LGX and i can get it sharper with a file than i have ever seen a grinder and they cut better than a ground chain. the grinder (or the ones that i have used or been around) don't put as much of a gussett in to the cutter the way that a file will, this makes the chain not dig in as much, elictrically ground chains will through more sawdust powder rather than the saw chips that a hand filed one will. there was a time whenever i prefered ground chains over hand filed.....i was on 25 acres of bulldoze timber--lots of dirt on the tree stump and we were stumping and topping the trees for the logs, now a guy would have wore himself out trying to handfile all those chains. and the grinder helped in squaring up the chains after they had been rocked. to me, i think i can hand file one faster than...caring a chain around w/me in the woods, take old chain off, install new chain, carry old chain around woods, and sharpen later.....just my thoughts

Sorry but it still depends on who does the grinding I can get a saw sharp with either method but the grinder is way better on index knuckle and faster than filing.

 

[sILlogger]

that might be the case, but it would be a PITA for me to be swapping chains in and out of the woods. would prolly need 2-3 chains a day. and i can do alot of hand filing before i can justify a grinder. just my thoughts

 

[hornett22]

i agree with the grinder guys.

Sorry but it still depends on who does the grinding I can get a saw sharp with either method but the grinder is way better on index knuckle and faster than filing.

i use a file for light touch up in the field but the grinder is the way to go.i have the stihl grinder and it works great,you do have to keep the stone dressed but i pull nothing but chips.

 

[Haywire Haywood]

I have the NT grinder as I couldn't keep an angle straight with a file to save my life. That said, I need a hands-on seminar on running the grinder too. The NT grinder isn't very precision, so when you go from one side of the chain to the other, the tooth length changes. I need to get a caliper out and give my chains a "tune up" to get the tooth length even again.

Ian