Looking to buy a new chainsaw sharpener. I have used the cheap ones from Harbor Freight but they flex to much to do a good job. Anyone have a good one they would recommend. Thanks Dave

Oregon 620-120. The hydraulic assist chain holder clamp is really nice.

Granberg Precision 12 Volt Chainsaw Chain Grinder Sharpener

Timberline, hands down. I've used them all and its the most foolproof of them all. Very well made too.

X2 on this. You can take it with you anywhere, use it on your saw on the tailgate of the truck and good to go. I am pretty good with just a file but this keeps the angle and depth perfect.
Drawbacks, like there always are is that it is expensive and a little on the slow side.

Zim

We don’t use a machine unless we have a major problem with one of our big saw chains. When we do need to use a machine we have been using the same harbor freight machine for over 30 years !

Doesn't anyone know how to use a plain old chainsaw file anymore?Todays world sure is full of unnecessary gadjets.

Cutting in your country Boco you will likely never hit a steel post or staple, a brick Or bottle or garden tool that has been laid in a crotch. Why burn a file when you’ve got a machine back at the shop ?

LOL,cut lots of old railroad ties(for building stuff on the section) full of all kinds of crap,sand dirt rock,date nails,always sharpened with a file.We used those old railroad saws for a lot of things from cutting the old ties to felling timber around bridges etc.

I use files exclusively had a electric cheapo and didn't like it.

I can get a lot of cutting out of a chain hand filing and find it fast enough to sharpen on saw than remove the chain and put a new one back on a 20 inch bar only takes a few minutes , I have a vice on my trailer that is very handy but picked up a stump vice that works well also and is much more portable.

if I find a nail chances are I am missing cutters and it is junk

if I hit a rock it generally only takes about 6-9 pulls per tooth vs 2-3 I take on one that just needs sharpening.

if I am cutting around a fence line I put on a chain with just a little life left in it so no big loss if I do hit something

Without a doubt, any saw chain can be sharpened with a file and said chain will last much longer if it’s always done with the file.

If it's flexing that much you are trying to take off to much at one time. Or you angle is set wrong. When sharpening a chain you only want to touch up the tooth is several passes. You DO NOT want to heat up that chain tooth anymore then needed. I usually make at least two passes with small adjustments. If a chain is sharpened correctly on a machine you should be able to touch it up with a file several times before returning to the machine unless you hit something like a rock or fence etc.
Your first pass should sharpen the bottom of the tooth (where chain attaches together). The second pass should sharpen the arm/chisel part of the tooth itself.

JMO
B

My Grandpa taught me with a file, and that's the way I continue.

+1

I use and Oregon chainsaw grinder. Won't go back to files. This is much faster and easier.
Sharpen 3 chains and go at it. I just rotate the chains and they last me at least a year or more.

I mainly use a file, I know I have chains that are over 5 years old and in excellent condition.

Guess it's all a matter of preference.


B

If I'm out cutting, I have a file with me to touch up the chain. I like chisel chain because I think it cuts faster, but it may dull quicker if you hit sand, nail, rock, etc. If it's not too bad, I can usually touch it up well enough to keep cutting and get the job done.

I also have a bench-mounted sharpener at home which sharpens a chain like new. But, as some have said, your chain doesn't last as long. That's OK with me. I'd rather have a sharp chain.

I suck at sharpening chains. I bought a maxx electric and it works good. I got a new sthil file system to carry with me in the woods. pretty much foolproof!
https://www.stihlusa.com/products/accessories/chain-saws/2in1file/
http://www.baileysonline.com/Chainsaw-Ch...er-120-Volt.axd

I just use a file and a flat file for the rakers. Recently...10 years ago or more, I started using a vice in the logging shack, because I could 2 hand the file and tool things up more accurately, but I was always good off the tailgait. I learned to use the vice from the logger I was working for and he was right. If you hold the saw in a vice, you can touch things up with 3 passes per tooth all day long.

I do learned off the back of a 230 timberjack, for 6 winters. Bucking up on the landing. Mud, rocks made u learn quick. Now 15 years later... cutting 30 face cord a year.. I use a grinder. I cringe when that tooth turns brown/Black