quote:

Originally posted by thumperfbc:
That cones back to a 18” bar and the chain is 68 links long, with the .325 and .063 as mentioned above.
Are any aftermarket chains good or should one just stick with OEM?

Yes -- based on the bar you have .325" pitch, .063" gauge, 68 link, 18" chain. I recommend buying a decent chain brand -- Stihl, Husqvarna, or Oregon. Among these three, keeping the chain sharp will be more important than the chain's brand. I have the most experience with Stihl chains. They cut well and last a long time.

There are two primary Stihl chain models.
- RM (Rapid Micro) is their semi-chisel model. I recommend this for you. A semi-chisel chain cuts just slightly slower than a full-chisel chain, but it maintains sharpness noticeably better than a full-chisel chain. If you chain is likely to encounter non-wood stuff (dirt on the ground, dirt in the bark, etc.) definitely go with a semi-chisel chain.

- RS (Rapid Super) is their full-chisel model. This would still work for you, if you can't get a RM chain. The full-chisel really shows its capabilities for felling -- larger trees, or many trees at a time -- especially for a saw with with a larger engine. The cutting "point" of the full-chisel is a smaller than with a semi-chisel -- the saw cuts the wood really well as long as the chain is sharp.

Well, I don’t see any tree felling in my future… at least not for a few years. My use is really just cutting up firewood for ambiance fires.

Seems the Stihl chain is about $30 at my local Ace. I’ll have to grab one of those and a file.

3/16” file is correct for my chain?

Cutters Choice is a good place to buy chains and parts.


https://www.cutterschoice.com/ShopFrontPage

quote:

Originally posted by thumperfbc:
3/16” file is correct for my chain?

3/16" is the proper file for a .325 chain. This size file is included in the 2-in-1 device.

The 2-in-1 guide does the following things:
- Sharpens the teeth at the right angle.
- Sharpens the teeth at the right depth. This is accomplished by the guide rails.
- Files the rakers to the proper height, so the teeth cut at the proper depth in the wood.

If you have little experience filing a chain free-hand with a single file, you have good chance of seriously reducing the chain's cutting ability. Possibly even making the chain effectively unusable, until re-sharpened by a professional with a grinder.

Get a 2-in-1 file guide. Seriously.

quote:

Originally posted by fritz:

quote:

Originally posted by thumperfbc:
3/16” file is correct for my chain?

3/16" is the proper file for a .325 chain. This size file is included in the 2-in-1 device.

The 2-in-1 guide does the following things:
- Sharpens the teeth at the right angle.
- Sharpens the teeth at the right depth. This is accomplished by the guide rails.
- Files the rakers to the proper height, so the teeth cut at the proper depth in the wood.

If you have little experience filing a chain free-hand with a single file, you have good chance of seriously reducing the chain's cutting ability. Possibly even making the chain effectively unusable, until re-sharpened by a professional with a grinder.

Get a 2-in-1 file guide. Seriously.

Ordered. Thanks for the guidance!

This message has been edited. Last edited by: thumperfbc, January 26, 2025 08:49 AM

quote:

Originally posted by fritz
Get a 2-in-1 file guide. Seriously.

Good call. I found it super easy to use the 2 in 1 and went out and cut some more wood, thanks to the city having taken down another diseased tree in my neighborhood. It cut much better than it had at the end of my last cutting session. Clearly this file should travel with the saw when doing any cutting.

quote:

Originally posted by thumperfbc:
Good call. I found it super easy to use the 2 in 1 and went out and cut some more wood, thanks to the city having taken down another diseased tree in my neighborhood. It cut much better than it had at the end of my last cutting session. Clearly this file should travel with the saw when doing any cutting.

Nice. Glad that it works for you. I pack the 2-in-1 file with the saws each time.

Don't worry about over filing -- just file so the teeth are sharp & true. Chains can last a long time and they're not all that expensive to replace.

Here's an old 3/8" chain on the old bar on my Stihl 310, with an almost-new chain above. Much of the steel on the teeth has been ground away on the old chain, but it cuts very well. The upper chain is a full chisel. The lower chain is an old semi-chisel, with bumpers. You likely won't see a chain like this anymore, as it's from the early 2000's. The bumpers have to be filed down occasionally just like the rakers, so filing can be slower. In theory, the bumpers reduce kick-back and make it harder to bore cut. But the bumpers make the saw very smooth when cutting rock-hard dead limbs -- no vibration and jumping.




Here's an old 3/8" Pico (low profile) chain on my EGO battery saw. I just retired the upper chain (off the saw), when 2 teeth broke off. The chain cut really well first thing that day, until the teeth broke. The lower chain (on the bar) is an almost new chain, and the teeth have much more steel.

It was warm here yesterday. This thread inspired me to get out the chainsaw and cut up some limbs from a tree cut down last fall. It took a couple of minutes to warm up and bogged down the first couple of times I hit the throttle, but after about 3 minutes it was fine.

Large branch on a tree 3 doors down from my house broke overnight, taking out a garbage can. Doh.

The trees in my neighborhood are failing pretty fast. Given the large wound size on the tree and the general poor aging these ash trees show, I figured the city would be along to take the whole thing down. They were on site by 9am.

We got to watch them cut off all the limbs, leaving a small fork at the top of the trunk. They then tied a line from the fork to a pull hook on their truck and applied some tension as the saw guy did his cuts. Perfect drop right ibto the cutoff pile, not even touching the sidewalk or asphalt.

After the cut down crew left my son and I walked over with the O25, the resurrected Stihl blower, and a wheelbarrow. 3 very quick cuts (having just sharpened the chain, thank you Fritz!) and we made off with 4 16x16 rounds of ash. One is actually about 19” in length but close enough.







The saw hasn’t ran in several months and it took a good dozen pulls to get going. I’m guessing most of that was getting the fuel where it needs to go as there is no priming bulb on my saw.

Can anyone assess the sharpness of my chain by looking at the chips/dust? It looks ok?

This message has been edited. Last edited by: thumperfbc, May 09, 2025 09:08 AM

If the chain is cutting straight the chips look great, good job sharpening the chain.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: p113565, May 08, 2025 02:30 PM

quote:

Originally posted by p113565:
Is the chain is cutting straight the chips look great, good job sharpening the chain.

It is indeed cutting straight, no issues there!

quote:

Originally posted by thumperfbc:
...we made off with 3 16x16 rounds of ash.
Can anyone assess the sharpness of my chain by looking at the chips/dust? It looks ok?

Almost all the wood I cut is pine, and thus my chips look a little different. But your chips look good -- they're chips and not saw dust. The larger the hunks of fiber the better. Your cuts are cross grain -- 90 degrees from the orientation of the trunk. Cut parallel to the trunk and you will see longer peels of chips. With a dull chain you only get dust, not chips.

When you sharpen the chain, adjust the chain tension so that it's a little too tight for actual cutting work. This reduces side-to-side chain wobble while filing and produces a more consistent tooth angle. After sharpening, loosen the chain back to your normal cutting tension.

In the event that the saw struggles to produce a straight cut with a sharp chain, then there are other issues to address. But that's likely done the road quite a ways, after consuming many tanks of fuel.