Talk Me In/Out of the Stihl MS261

[kozal01]

Tell me you were a tool maker without telling me you were a tool maker

lol work smarter not harder

 

[dodge man]

Will I really get into heaven because I hand file? I hand file because I think it’s the easiest and fastest. I have no idea how good I am but at least adequate.

 

[kozal01]

Will I really get into heaven because I hand file? I hand file because I think it’s the easiest and fastest. I have no idea how good I am but at least adequate.

Nothing against anyone that hand files, I did it for years and still do at times. My comment was more directed at the guys who talk down on any other method to getting a sharp chain like it makes them more of a man or something.

 

[Torvy]

Am I wrong because I have better things to do than sharpen chains?

I just keep new ones on hand. I keep the old ones in case I ever have ' sharpen chains' rise to the top of my to-do list.

Nothing against those who do, y'all are much better at this than me. I just don't see the time value. Maybe if I loved it more. Fortunately, most of my cutting is medium sized pines or small hardwoods.

As for talking in or out? Stihl is like the country club of saws, imho. Exclusive dealers and high prices. Nothing wrong with that if it fits your life. I'm more of a muni-course duffer, so the saw that has the fewest points of failure gets my vote.

 

[Skeans1]

Am I wrong because I have better things to do than sharpen chains?

I’d put it this way depends on what you call good cutting, to me a fresh loop off the reel cuts like garbage even though it’s square ground chain. A few minutes of time on the grinders and I have a chain that will run circles around a factory chain which means less fatigue on me the faller as well as a much more predictable cutting chain. Is this for everyone? No, but it’s something to keep in mind vs swapping in a brand new off the roll chain. All that said in the brush I swap out chains when cutting and sharpen at the end of the day.

 

[WinterDeere]

Am I wrong because I have better things to do than sharpen chains?

I just keep new ones on hand. I keep the old ones in case I ever have ' sharpen chains' rise to the top of my to-do list.

This isn't meant to be an insult, but anyone who doesn't sharpen their own chain is probably not running saws frequently enough to really be giving advice on them from any perspective other than that of an occasional user. If I didn't sharpen saw chain, I can't imagine how many hundreds (thousands?) of boxes of barely-used chain I'd have stacked up by now. That gets expensive!

Stihl is like the country club of saws, imho. Exclusive dealers and high prices. Nothing wrong with that if it fits your life. I'm more of a muni-course duffer, so the saw that has the fewest points of failure gets my vote.

For an occasional user, yes... any pro saw is probably a waste of money. But I can assure you there are good reasons nearly all pros in this country are only running two brands: Stihl and Husqvarna. It's not because they like needlessly spending more money for the same power, weight, durability, and ergonomics.

 

[WinterDeere]

I’d put it this way depends on what you call good cutting...

Easy. Chips are good. Dust is bad! There's no clearer indicator of a dull chain for any beginner, than sawdust.

If you hit dirt or a rock, the transformation can be instantaneous. If you behave yourself and keep it out of the dirt, you can go thru maybe two or three tanks of fuel, before you see it starting to transition.

Can you keep cutting on the same chain, past three tanks of fuel? Sure, many do. But your progress will be slower, you will work harder and become more fatigued, and you're putting unnecessary extra wear and tear on your nice expensive saw motor and bar.

Most who hand sharpen tend to touch up their chain every second tank of fuel, just to stay ahead of it, and keep it a quick/light job. Those of us who swap chains usually cut half the day (~3 tanks?) on one chain, then swap to the next. If running multiple saws, I have to make a judgement call on which ones get swapped at lunch, and which can make it through the full day.

 

[Hay Dude]

I sharpen on lunch breaks, unless I hit something.

 

[WinterDeere]

I sharpen on lunch breaks, unless I hit something.

Probably a good system. When I cut alongside someone who likes to file after every tank fill or two, it really screws up the workflow, waiting for them to do their tedious handiwork just because they happened to run out of gas in the middle of something. I understand liking things sharp, we all do, but damn... save it for the lunch break!

 

[Skeans1]

Easy. Chips are good. Dust is bad! There's no clearer indicator of a dull chain for any beginner, than sawdust.

If you hit dirt or a rock, the transformation can be instantaneous. If you behave yourself and keep it out of the dirt, you can go thru maybe two or three tanks of fuel, before you see it starting to transition.

Can you keep cutting on the same chain, past three tanks of fuel? Sure, many do. But your progress will be slower, you will work harder and become more fatigued, and you're putting unnecessary extra wear and tear on your nice expensive saw motor and bar.

Most who hand sharpen tend to touch up their chain every second tank of fuel, just to stay ahead of it, and keep it a quick/light job. Those of us who swap chains usually cut half the day (~3 tanks?) on one chain, then swap to the next. If running multiple saws, I have to make a judgement call on which ones get swapped at lunch, and which can make it through the full day.

Normally hand cutting noon is about a gallon of gas in one saw, if I’m cutting, bucking, and limbing in the brush it’s not hard to go to noon or later on a chain depending on terrain and what’s around the timber or in it.

As far indication of a sharp chain there’s an easier test let go of the handle bar does the chain self feed with ease? Chips are fine but even then I have chips but that chain isn’t self feeding.

These are brand new chains after having been ground and had the rakers dropped, from the factory they’re too high.