gunnarfan
ArboristSite Guru
I saw a section where .325 chain was used for milling on a big saw with a super cannon bar. Any specifics would be greatly appreciated. The guys at the saw shop think I'm nuts enough as it is.
would like specifics on that .325 conversion
- Thread starter gunnarfan
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mtngun
Addicted to ArboristSite
Aggiewoodbutcher is the 325 milling man. He hasn't posted much this year, but I picked his brain last time he was here.
There is no ready-made 325 ripping chain, and not even a heckuva lot of 325 non-safety semi-chisel. You'll need a reel or partial reel of Carlton K3C, which is 0.063 non-safety semi-chisel. No one that I know of sells it by the loop, hence you'll need a reel and the ability to spin your own loops.
You'll have to regrind it to 10 degree top plate angle, either all at once, or gradually.
Aggie uses an older roller nose bar. The rest of us will have to swap in a 325 nose sprocket. They should be available for just about any brand of bar.
He uses a 9 pin 325 rim, which is readily available, and gives about the same chain speed as an 8 pin 3/8.
Aggie said the 325 was practical for bar lengths up to 40-something inches -- I can't remember the exact length he was using, but it was something odd like 44 inches. He said 325 stretched too much to use on bars longer than that. That's probably negotiable, though -- people told me I couldn't use lo-pro on a 36 inch bar, but I do, you just have to baby it.
He posted one speed test in a cant that showed a 17% speed increase compared to 3/8. That was only one test, so I'm not sure if it is representative, but usually the speed increase will be proportional to the reduction in kerf width. 10% - 15% is probably realistic.
There is no ready-made 325 ripping chain, and not even a heckuva lot of 325 non-safety semi-chisel. You'll need a reel or partial reel of Carlton K3C, which is 0.063 non-safety semi-chisel. No one that I know of sells it by the loop, hence you'll need a reel and the ability to spin your own loops.
You'll have to regrind it to 10 degree top plate angle, either all at once, or gradually.
Aggie uses an older roller nose bar. The rest of us will have to swap in a 325 nose sprocket. They should be available for just about any brand of bar.
He uses a 9 pin 325 rim, which is readily available, and gives about the same chain speed as an 8 pin 3/8.
Aggie said the 325 was practical for bar lengths up to 40-something inches -- I can't remember the exact length he was using, but it was something odd like 44 inches. He said 325 stretched too much to use on bars longer than that. That's probably negotiable, though -- people told me I couldn't use lo-pro on a 36 inch bar, but I do, you just have to baby it.
He posted one speed test in a cant that showed a 17% speed increase compared to 3/8. That was only one test, so I'm not sure if it is representative, but usually the speed increase will be proportional to the reduction in kerf width. 10% - 15% is probably realistic.
gunnarfan
ArboristSite Guru
Yeah I'm impulse posting while downtown at Old Town's riverfest. I'll check with a few older shops in the area as well as a distributor. Hmm now for which saw? The old girl stable is filling up. We'll see which sort of bar is available.
