Sharpened 3 Chainsaw this afternoon

[leehljp]

About 9 or 10 years ago (maybe longer), I bought the HF chainsaw sharpener ($19.99 I think) and used it two or three times. Today, I pulled out and it was a breeze to sharpen my 3 chainsaws - 12 in battery powered, 16 inch gas and 18 inch gas.

That sharpener is great for the price. I have not used a high priced professional sharpener, so I don't know the ease or quality of those, but the HF does an excellent job and it is more consistent and precise than my hand held sharpening is.

Well pleased with it.

[Jim Frye]

You are a better man than I, Gunga Din. I bought a couple of stones for use in a Dremel to sharpen chain saw teeth. I gave up and bought a new chain. Much better result than my feeble efforts, albeit more expensive.

[capncarl]

I am interested in your review of the HF sharpener.
Do you have to remove the chain from the saw to sharpen it?
Is there any option in sharpening the chain while still on the bar?

Having hand sharpened my chain saws for 45 yrs, I’m still partial to hand sharpening my chains on site. After using the saw ( now my only chain saw is a 16” Echo 58 volt ), when I get it in the shop I clamp the bar up in the vice and freshen up the cutters with a couple of strokes with a file. That way it is ready for the next use. I do think it takes a special touch, understanding which way to file and what not to do, and when to throw away the file and purchase a new file. I always carry a file with me when I use the saw and sometimes touch up the cutters several times during it use. I also carry a extra new or sharpened chain, extra bar oil and PPE. The several minutes it takes to re sharpen is saved in lost cutting efficiency.

I have been disappointed in the bars and chains that are used on the new battery powered saws. The smaller gauge chain and cutters do not hold up nearly as long as those on a conventional gas saw. I find myself re sharpening it 3 times as many times as I did on my gas saws. It

[leehljp]

I am interested in your review of the HF sharpener.
Do you have to remove the chain from the saw to sharpen it?
Is there any option in sharpening the chain while still on the bar?

Having hand sharpened my chain saws for 45 yrs, I’m still partial to hand sharpening my chains on site. After using the saw ( now my only chain saw is a 16” Echo 58 volt ), when I get it in the shop I clamp the bar up in the vice and freshen up the cutters with a couple of strokes with a file. That way it is ready for the next use. I do think it takes a special touch, understanding which way to file and what not to do, and when to throw away the file and purchase a new file. I always carry a file with me when I use the saw and sometimes touch up the cutters several times during it use. I also carry a extra new or sharpened chain, extra bar oil and PPE. The several minutes it takes to re sharpen is saved in lost cutting efficiency.

I have been disappointed in the bars and chains that are used on the new battery powered saws. The smaller gauge chain and cutters do not hold up nearly as long as those on a conventional gas saw. I find myself re sharpening it 3 times as many times as I did on my gas saws. It

Yes, the chain has to be removed. There is no option for sharpening it on the bar.

There is about a 6 inch groove on the sharpener that the chain sits in when sharpening. Each end to of the groove has a small knob that turns to move the chain to position it. There is a lever that drops down and fits just behind the head of each tooth - to position the head in place (forward or backward) and a thumb screw that adjusts that lever so that the head is precisely where needed for sharpening by the grinding head.

ON the handle that brings the grinder down - is a bicycle hand brake like lever. Grasping the handle and lever (and squeezing the lever) locks the head in place laterally. At this point, It is locked into position for precise (and repetitive) grinding on each tooth.

IMO: I remember reading some old reviews of this grinder and it worked for those that used it. However, there were (are) those that prefer to hand sharpen it. On the pen turning forum, There is a machinist there that constantly denounces any use of a grinding machine for drill bits, always stating that he can hand sharpen bits better than any commercial sharpener. OF Course he can, He is a machinist and has a huge amount of experience. But for the average guy, a sharpening machine works much better for those that are not as skilled and experienced as he is.

IN that vein . . . this cheap sharpener is far better and consistent than hand sharpening for the inexperienced. But if one is skilled, hand sharpening can put the precise angle that is wanted. A problem of the HF and other similar sharpeners is that the "angle" of the grinding HEAD/DISK is pre-set to one specific angle without the ability to alter THAT angle. The angle of the chain IS adjustable.

Since every other cutting tooth's angle is opposite of the one in front and behind it, sharpening can only be done on every other tooth until finished. Then that angle of the chain is re-set to cut the other teeth. It takes less time to sharpen than it does to write this. The way the machine is designed and set up, both the top and side of the tooth is sharpened. The amount to be sharpened can be set by the adjustment of the lever that drops down behind the head.

Amazon and Northern Tool offers their own version of the HF one and I don't think any of those are any different except for the color of the machine.

HF version: https://www.harborfreight.com/electr...ner-63803.html

[twistsol]

I have this sharpener as well and it is great for restoring a damaged or long neglected chain, but I found that with just a round file I can hand sharpen the chain on my 20" Stihl in about 5 minutes and that's good for a solid day of cutting wood unless I hit something un wood like.

[capncarl]

I 100% agree that a lot of people shouldn’t, or don’t want to sharpen their chainsaw chain. That said, I would question if those same people have difficulties removing the chain and bar and properly reassembling it..... especially with the new “toolless” chain tensioning device?
I wonder how hard it would be to follow up re sharpening a chain after it has been re sharpend with a flat stone?
Sharpening with the grinder stone should give a much sharper cutter over one sharpened with a round file as the round file produces a much smaller cutting surface. I notice that cutters that I have sharpened multiple times have a lot of wire edge or large burr on the top of the cutter. This gets worse with every re sharpening with a round file.

[leehljp]

My two gas chain saws 16 in Poulan and 18in Stihl are both screw driver tensioned. I have never had a problem disassembling them. My 12inch Ryobi battery powered one has two twists knobs, one to adjust and one to lock in place. I didn't have a problem dis-assembling them.

The one area that I have to be careful with is cutting large limbs on the ground. I hate that. 2 seconds in contact with dirt dulls a blade quicker than 15 - 20 minutes of pure wood cutting. I have experienced that more than enough to know better. Now I don't contact the dirt except by pure accident. I do what I can to get something under a large limb or cut to the point it just before it reaches the ground. I stay away from dirt - now!

[capncarl]

Dirt definitely ends the cutting ability of a chain saw.
Has anyone replaced the smaller gauge bar and chain on a battery saw with a standard size bar and chain?

[leehljp]

Dirt definitely ends the cutting ability of a chain saw.
Has anyone replaced the smaller gauge bar and chain on a battery saw with a standard size bar and chain?

I have the 18V Ryobi with 12 inch blade. It does well for 3, 4 and 5 inch limbs but anything bigger will be almost too much. So a larger bar will not help the 18V. If it were a 40V or larger, I can see a 16" bar, and even an 18 inch with a 56V. I think the 40V and 56V can handle 20 - 24 inches but only for 10 to 15 minutes run time at the most. They will have the power, but not the stamina.