Sharpening A Chain Saw
Posted by Jacquelyn,
Sharpening a chain saw takes a bit of skill, as is easily seen by looking at the teeth after a typical hand sharpening job. Usually, the angles are irregular and the cutting edges are not uniform. This makes the saw grab or act as if it were dull.
One simple, but slightly expensive solution is to have multiple sharp chains on hand, and just change the chain when dull. This works great, but you have to buy the chains and have them mechanically sharpened. For the homeowner who is cutting his own firewood, this might not be the best.
A better method is to learn how to manually sharpen the chain, either with just a file and guide, or with a small grinder. The file and guide method works great, as long as you do it properly. Many people do not have the patience to file each tooth exactly the same, but this is necessary.
If you cannot file by hand, spend a few bucks to buy a grinder, such as a Dremel tool, and you will get excellent results.
Randy Hough has a website: http://BestWoodHeat.com that talks about sharpening a chainsaw.
