How to correctly sharpen the chain on the saw

There are a number of factors that will tell you when it’s time to sharpen your chainsaw chain:

  • Productivity decreases. The cutting time has increased.
  • Unnecessary stress on the saw is felt.
  • Increased vibrations.
  • Small chips.

For beginners, it’s hard to notice the first 3 points, so it’s advisable to keep an eye on what chips are flying out of the cut.

Small chips during sawing, especially brown ones, are a sure sign of bluntness.

Sharpening instructions

To properly sharpen the chain at home you need to know and follow a few simple rules:

  • The cutting angle of the electric saw blade can only be maintained by means of a fixture or a machine;
  • When sharpening with a file, the amount of movement of the file along the cutting edge should be the same for the whole cutting edge;
  • The file is only used for dressing (sharpening not severely blunt cutting elements);
  • The rotational speed of the sharpening machine disc should be minimal (ideally 0,5. 1,0 thous. RPM);
  • The file only moves forward;
  • If more than 90% of most of the tooth is worn out, the cutting assembly should be discarded;
  • If chain tooth is worn out by more than 50%, feed stop height can be resharpened by 0.5 mm, but the feed stop must not be resharpened before then.

correctly, sharpen, chain

The last two points require a little clarification. If more than 90 % of the tooth length is ground, there is a great risk of fracture while working. If this happens the operator feels a strong jerk forward that can cause him to fall on the saw while it is in motion. The same thing can happen when you cut the height of the feed stop. the tooth cuts very deep into the wood, the cuttings are not chipped and the saw jerks forward.

How to properly sharpen a chainsaw chain on a machine

It’s much faster and more accurate to sharpen a chain on a chain sharpening machine than with your own hands. Many different electric sharpeners are available. Household apparatuses are compact, working from 220 V. They are easy to replace abrasive wheels, they can be easily reconfigured for different chain parameters: tooth pitch, top edge thickness, sharpening angle. All processed cutting edges are identical. The process is fast.

Electric chain sharpener for chainsaws

The electric motor is the main part of the machine and the sharpening disc is mounted on its shaft. There are controls on its handle. There is a clamping base for securing the machine to the chain. A spring clip adjusts the amount of pressure needed to sharpen the point. Differential clamping provides self-alignment of the product in the machine. For safe working, a folding safety plate is available.

Electric chain sharpening machine

Sawing chain is installed in a guide rail mounted on a turntable. The clamp holds the tooth to be sharpened and an electric grinder is mounted at a preset angle. Operator switches on the motor and controls the plunge of the blade

Machine tools with manual drive

There are units designed for sharpening, but without an electric drive. These are manual machines for sharpening saw chains. An ordinary file is used as a sharpening tool. The machine is mounted directly on the guide rail. Special stop, holds the tooth to be sharpened. Sharpening angle is adjustable.

How to Sharpen a Chainsaw by hand with a file

The picture shows a stationary sharpening machine with a sharpening block driven by a crank via a gear unit. The saw chain itself is clamped in a machine vice. The machine has a frame that can be screwed onto the table.

Manually operated chain saw sharpening machine

Machine for sharpening chainsaw chains: selection criteria, design features, technical and operational characteristics of the equipment, the principle of operation of manual and automatic devices, review of popular models of sharpeners.

How do you know when a chain is blunt??

There are several signs which tell you that the chain is not currently serviceable:

  • Needing more physical effort for the same action.
  • Stretching the chain.
  • Feelings of vibration when working with the tool.
  • Unevenness of the sawdust, which in addition becomes more like dust.

A chain can also become blunt for a number of reasons:

  • Improper handling.
  • Contact with too hard objects, such as rocks.
  • Excessive and time-consuming work.

How to choose the right angle?

Cutting of hard wood is characterized by low productivity and high load on all chainsaw components (we recommend to read about chainsaw construction in details). The most “popular” hardwoods are ash, beech, birch, elm, maple, oak, and hazel.

The picture shows a sharpening attachment that securely holds the file in place.

In order to cut these types of wood effectively it is necessary to keep the angle of sharpening at 25°. Such a value ensures optimum chainsaw performance at medium output.

Increase of the angle will lead to the increase of engine rpm and consequently to the increase of fuel consumption and chainsaw components load.

Softwoods include all softwoods except larch: spruce, pine, fir, cedar, as well as deciduous alder, linden, aspen, willow, and poplar.

For longitudinal sawing

As previously stated, the recommended sharpening angle is 10° with a possible variation of up to 2°. This is due to the need to quickly cut deep into the wood when making a longitudinal cut.

If the chain is properly sharpened, the sawing will produce quadrangular large sawdust.

25° is ideal for soft wood. The fibers in soft wood are not evenly distributed, i.e. hard wood is interspersed with soft wood. 25° allows alternate fiber cuts without intermittent increase in RPM.

For cross-cutting

For cross cuts in soft and hard wood a cutting angle of 35° is recommended. This value allows optimum power and chain load characteristics when sawing.

Maintaining a cutting angle of 35° will result in a straight cut and square sawdust.

Angle table

Angles of the saw chain are shown in the table below. The table even shows which file is needed for sharpening a specific chain.

Tips

For those who are just learning how to sharpen a chainsaw chain themselves, it will be useful to take into account a few basic tips on how to conduct this process correctly.

  • During any manipulations with the chain the engine must be switched off, in no case is permitted sharpening the chain of a chainsaw on a running saw.
  • The chain should be tightened to its normal operating condition before sharpening.
  • The chain brake must be in the operating position when dressing the saw chain.
  • To protect the chain from being cut by the sharp edges of the cutters use gloves when sharpening.
  • Maintaining the same number of file movements ensures that all teeth are ground evenly.

Below you can watch how to sharpen the chain of a chainsaw with a file on the video, it describes in detail what files should be used. How to best position the chain saw. And of course, how should the sharpening tool be positioned in relation to the bar of the saw?

In conclusion, we would like to mention the main advantages of file sharpening, as compared to the chain dressing in the machine.

How to sharpen a chainsaw chain with your own hands

Sharpening the chain for a chainsaw with their own hands is a certain difficulty even for an experienced master. The choice of tools and methods to perform the work depends largely on the conditions in which it is to be made. Learn more about how to sharpen the saw chain of an electric saw or upgrade it in a gasoline-powered unit with an angle grinder in the home workshop, as well as in other ways, will help to review all available options.

About chainsaw teeth

Chainsaw teeth have specific geometry. It is necessary to understand and know which part is to be sharpened. In general, the “logic” of cutting wood is reminiscent of a planer.

The cutting surface consists of two edges. One is side and the other is slightly bevelled. The depth-of-cutting element regulates the thickness of the chip. Let’s take a closer look. The elements of the cutting-working link are arranged as follows:

  • The base with the holes for the axle;
  • Tooth blade;
  • The limiter of depth of cut;
  • Flank of blade (placement. vertical)
  • Top edge of blade (placement. horizontally);

Sharpened Edge Dulled After touching the ground

After sharpening, the height of the limiter and the angle of the sharpened working edges should not differ greatly from the parameters set by the manufacturer. This is an important condition and must be monitored. Otherwise, saw will not work as it should.

Do not excessively re-sharpen or change the arrangement of the links. Whether they are properly positioned depends on how well the tool operates. Otherwise, there is likely to be increased stress on the body, bar, and engine. The cut may be crooked. There is also a small chance of chain breakage.

Influencing factors

It is inevitable that the chainsaw chain needs sharpening. Inexperienced chain saw operators often touch the ground with the working chain. Any contact with the ground during sharpening causes blunting of the tine’s working surface, even if the contact was short.

Sawing old materials left after wooden building demolition that contain mineral dust and often invisible nails or screws may damage even a new, perfectly sharpened chain. And of course intensive work, e.g. in felling requires that the teeth are sharpened almost every day. otherwise you won’t be able to keep up with the norm.

The need for sharpening can be determined by a number of signs. The most noticeable is the shape and size of the sawdust that is produced. Large “square” sawdust is a sign of normal sharpening, but if the sawdust becomes fine and there are torn wood fibers in its structure, it is time to sharpen the chain.

Certainly, an experienced chain-sawyer can timely notice increasing efforts that have to be made in order to make a cut. Gradually increasing vibration will also give a dull chain back. But the last two factors appear gradually, which against the background of general fatigue may not be noticed by an inexperienced user, but the sawdust is always noticeable.

Unfortunately, there is no universal chain angle for chain saws. For example, a larger sharpening angle is allowed for soft wood, whereas harder wood requires a smaller sharpening angle. In both cases, a correct chain sharpening angle avoids a number of inconveniences:

For longitudinal sawing, smaller cutting angles are also preferable. Sawing frozen wood, even soft wood, also requires a sharper sharpening angle.

Experienced chain saw operators recommend not sharpening the same chain at different angles each time, but sharpening several chains in advance for different working conditions.

This will save time and extend the life of each chain.