Introducing the Chainmeister

[Tree Machine]

I am sorry. Jim

I don't think I'll ever try to write a big reply on my phone again. Alas, my crowning wisdom is lost.

Too bad. An inspired thought and an effort to express it, and in a nano-instant, it is stolen from the readership Madhatte, whatever it was you were going to say, I am still all ears.

Thank you all, by the way, for your input.

You, too, Kiwibro, I hold no problem with you, I looked back and can see my fault at work, you are right, I am a guest here. And I need to stay in touch with that.

I also need to value all opinions, knowing that all the opinions, at this time in history, are not founded on actual, hands-on experience. Nor has there been any presentation by me at all yet. So there's very little to go on. That's where things start, though.

 

[Tree Machine]

What do we call this?

What better review for potential buyers than a glowing review from someone like me who was critical of the merits of this device, after you guys send me one to try. Tell you what, you guys pay and if I like it, I'll pay you back and let everyone reading this thread know how wonderful it is

Currently being discussed.
Will report back on this very soon.

 

[HuskStihl]

This chainmeister thing seems to be just another gadget waiting to get lost in the kitchen drawer with the egg slicer, apple corer, lemon zester, etc. Probably sell a few to the types of guys that like to collect gadgets, but it's not going to be a tool for the working man.

Shaun

You are not seriously suggesting that a lemon zester is not a tool for the working man?!

 

[roberte]

You are not seriously suggesting that a lemon zester is not a tool for the working man?!

Everything has a place, even a lemon zester, there grate.
Now as for the $108 gadget.....

 

[HuskStihl]

Everything has a place, even a lemon zester.

I formally apologize for ever thinking you were an uncultured barbarian!

 

[roberte]

I formally apologize for ever thinking you were an uncultured barbarian!

No need to be sorry ur half right, about being a barbarian

 

[Tree Machine]

I like the metaphor. To some this would say the ChainMeister will be about as useful as a lemon zester.

The lemon zester is only used regularly by those whose specialty can benefit from it.
To anyone who does not consume chains, the ChainMeister may as well be a lemon zester.

The ChainMeister was not designed and built for the casual user. This is professional-level gear, made to be a specialty item to perform a specialty task. Clearly not built for the average guy.

You guys do know that you're not average, right? This is a top-level community in our overall industry. You're not prima donnas. You're some of the best saw talent anywhere. I am listening closely to you.

As far as sending a unit out for demo, I've pulled together a meeting to discuss this. I don't make these decisions. It was requested from you guys, so I will bring it up as a serious consideration and will get back to you very soon.

 

[roberte]

I like the metaphor. To some this would say the ChainMeister will be about as useful as a lemon zester.

The lemon zester is only used regularly by those whose specialty can benefit from it.
To anyone who does not consume chains, the ChainMeister may as well be a lemon zester.

The ChainMeister was not designed and built for the casual user. This is professional-level gear, made to be a specialty item to perform a specialty task. Clearly not built for the average guy.

You guys do know that you're not average, right? This is a top-level community in our overall industry. You're not prima donnas. You're some of the best saw talent anywhere. I am listening closely to you.

As far as sending a unit out for demo, I've pulled together a meeting to discuss this. I don't make these decisions. It was requested from you guys, so I will bring it up as a serious consideration and will get back to you very soon.

It could have just as easily been a mandolin instead of a lemon zester.
My first comment on this still stands.
Your asking us what do we think, and your getting it. Me I think I've been minmally supportive.

If you can swing I would like a test drive. So would a couple other guys I'm sure.

 

[Tree Machine]

See, this is what we did during the development of the ChainMeister, we would send prototype units to a few key guys.
Gerald Beranek got two versions along the way. I see him at TCIA Expos.

The ChainMeister was looked at by hundreds of saw users along the path of it's development.
We sent one to Australia a year ago, but that was my idea and I had to pay for it. The idea was to pass it around the continent.

I have to quote a couple guys, early, who said

it becomes more useful the longer you use it.

This device was designed to last a long, long time and not wear out. It is meant to be integrated into the chain management of the serious professional saw user, to be a useful addition to the specialized tools in the sharpening kit.

If you have it for a couple weeks, how will you ever derive the long-term benefits and advantages?
Convenience in certain moments, and time savings whenever it is employed.

Honestly, a trial period is going to tell you this, the device is well-built and does exactly what it is claimed to do.

It will cost me $108, plus shipping to hear that from you guys. I don't want to 'buy' your positive feedback, that is not ethical. It would be like bribing you to get a good review. I want this device to stand on its own merit, OK?

Personally, I am with you in thinking it is a good idea to pass one around. I don't know if you caught this earlier in the thread, but the ChainMeister has not yet been released to the public. It has been a crowd-source project the whole way, and you guys are the final 'committee' before launch. I am literally here asking you all permission if it is OK to release this to our professional communities. It is my acknowledgement of your collective importance, enough to be directly included, and made aware, prior to the rest of the world seeing it. You are the final tribal council, I am not kidding.

As a crowdsource project specific to our industries, here I am talking face-to-face with the industry I personally chose to talk with.

And the industry says they want to pass a ChainMeister around amongst themselves.

I can pitch that.

Give me another day.

 

[Tree Machine]

promo gear or gift?

If I was going to offer up a piece of gear to 'get' something in return, I would go about it differently.

I would first offer whatever piece it is, free to the universe (i.e. never expecting to ever get it back). I would put it out there, as a gift with positive intent. I would tell the recipient any projected goals around the device, then hand it over, no obligations, no expectations. That is the spirit of a gift. Karma takes over. If the goal is meant to be, eventually it will be.

If I hold the recipient to a promise of something, then it is a trade, a negotiation. A fabricated, set-up to get someone to say what I want them to say. Ha, ha, I would be a complete idiot to think I have any sway over anyone's behavoiur other than my own. I don't want that kind of relationship with anyone, though I try with my wife now and again, just doesn't work.

All the workings of Tree Machine's life revolve around the theme of win/win.
Not competition.
Intention for whomever I connect with to come out better than before.
If I help other people win, I win myself, almost predictably.
This is a highly sustainable life-model, and that is what I bring to the table.
There is no need to fear me. I do not seek wins at others' expense. That to me, is asking for a train wreck.

We are all in this together. I hope this means something to you.

So, in the spirit of the gift, long term goal of helping Treestuff sell a kajillion devices, I have a thought on how to create a real-life example. I'll be back with you shortly.

 

[Tree Machine]

Bar vise promotion

This is how I would go about

So, in the spirit of the gift, long term goal of helping Treestuff sell a kajillion devices, I have a thought on how to create a real-life example.

First,

I would tell the recipient any projected goals around the device, then hand it over, no obligations, no expectations. That is the spirit of a gift. Karma takes over.

First, I would decide who the recipient would be, and would write them a handwritten letter. For impact, I might write it on fluorescent green paper.
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I would tell the recipient the goal:

"Hey, Philbert. Treestuff wants to sell a kajillion of these new bar clamps. If you like them and find that they are an advantage to your system, then please, don't hesitate let the community know your feelings."

Then, in the spirit of the gift, I let the black, painted bar clamp and the stainless steel bar clamp go, never expecting them to be returned, and I have no expectations, now, or ever of the recipient.

If Philbert wishes to share his personal experience with the community, that is up to him how and when he goes about it, if at all.

 

[Tree Machine]

If I actually wanted something in return, I would be very clear on that.
That's a trade.

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[Tree Machine]

For the guys who want to test drive this device, the device would be put out on loan.

I don't loan out tools.

 

[Tree Machine]

I had two ChainMeister units, a zinc-galvanized model and one of stainless steel.

I traded my stainless model for one of those Timberline sharpening systems, so I don't have an extra to loan out, even if I wanted to.

You see, I would have to buy one to get it out there to be passed around. Treestuff would also have to buy you one. They have a display model at the shop, but no hand-outs.
The manufacturer made no 'extras', no production overrun.

I have all the prototypes, and they are interesting and functional, but not to the exceptional degree like that of the commercially available ChainMeister.
These stay in the collection.

 

[Tree Machine]

Also, the guys who have decided this device is not for them, I respect your opinion. It may very well be of little advantage to you.

For the guys whose sharpening duties involve juggling numerous chains throughout any given week, this may be the cat's meow.

 

[Tree Machine]

files box

I would like to share a photo with all of you. I took this awhile back. It has nothing to do with the ChainMeister, except that like the ChainMeister, the actual files are a part of my overall sharpening system.

I use 4 sizes of files to cover the two sizes of chain I am currently running.

View attachment 303548

The picture is of the plastic storage box. My four boxes of files fit very well inside it. Note the gasket running around the perimeter? And the locking cam latches? This baby is waterproof, and it will not spill your files if it takes a fall off your shelf and hits the floor. I think would be good, also, in coastal areas.

Treestuff does not sell these, but Bass Pro shops does, as well as many sporting goods or department stores that host a fishing department. The manufacturer name is Plano and it can be gotten at a really reasonable price.

 

[Philbert]

"Hey, Philbert. Treestuff wants to sell a kajillion of these new bar clamps. If you like them and find that they are an advantage to your system, then please, don't hesitate let the community know your feelings." . . . .If Philbert wishes to share his personal experience with the community, that is up to him how and when he goes about it, if at all.

Since methods of clamping a guide bar for filing chain is really a separate issue from tensioning the chain, I started a new thread to discuss the clamps (samples? prototypes?) that Tree Machine sent:

http://www.arboristsite.com/chainsaw/240030.htm#post4408158

Philbert

 

[roberte]

A chainmiester to a bar clamp? What a bait and switch.
I guess I don't understand.
Bunch of balogna over stuff most of us have, a vise and a saw.

 

[ptjeep]

Regarding the chain meister tensioning device,,,,,,, they are a very handy tool to have if you have multable chains to sharpen at one time. After seeing this product a couple years ago, i decided to build my own. Its very crude compared to whats available here for sale but it works. I sharpen chains for a friend of mine who owns a landscaping company, i usually get 20-30 chains at a time. They are usually all very rough so they go to the grinder but i dont care for the way my grinder does rakers. This is where the chainmeister comes in handy. Separate the chains, grab a bar for each group, slap the chain meister on a bar and file away, with no power head in the way. Very very efficient! If you come back from cutting with two or three dull chains of the same size, you could throw this thing in a vise and be done in a hurry.

Just my $0.02

 

[WhistlePunk99]

?

The idea is like alot of them,ends up being more work then having extra chains and using a good quality grinder at the end of the work week.