Survival chain saw

Now, you can apologize. Number one the post wasnt directed at you. And, number two had you actually read the post you might have understood that we were talking about sharpening a 5ft crosscut saw with those tools and a set ofhammer vises.

 

I'm pretty sure they were talking about a misery whip and sharpening it with with the straight files and setting the kerf with a ball peen hammer.

 

Battery ones are a PITA , we have 2 . They die when you need them or get stuck .
SO not to toss them away , I hacked a battery cell apart & made a cable out with internal cells removed . I use cells from Toyota /Leaf / Tesla cars that I have reconfigured to my voltages . . I don't use these up (up as in the tree) or serious work , they are extensions of the wood chipper , when i get a wild ceder branch , quick buck and in you go into the Vermeer .
Sloth

 

Battery powered tools piss me off.
I don' have any.
But I do have a 2,000 volt amp samlex pure sine inverter on my 60ah LiFePO4 battery pack. It can run my power factor corrected Lincoln 120v mig welder using 0.025 wire and CO2. Have not tried to run an electric chain saw but it should work if it will run the welder and the smaller electric pole saw.

 

Finally found a still dealer that didn't want $320+ for a rapid duro 3/8x0.05 carbide chain.
I got a 91 link (I only need 81 links for my echo) for $205.
This will greatly shift the ballance of my nearly 1:1 cut versus time spent sharpening time ratio.
I have a lot of dried ready to burn elm on the property that needs to get cleaned up.
It's just not really possible to cut all this up with normal chain saw chains.

 

A lot of the wood here is effectively kiln dried from years of being dead and exposed to 15% humidity hot days.
Then the wood cracks, bark falls off, then the dirt that blows around infiltrates into all the little cracks.
That's why with the dried dead wood around here an Oregon chain typically lasts less than 20 minutes and a steel alloy stihl brand chain lasts maybe 30 minutes if I'm lucky.
Chains last a lot longer on green wood here, an hour max which is not nearly as long compared to when I lived on the east coast, where you could cut green wood all day and only have to stop to sharpen 2 or 3 times max.
On the up side the sun dried wood is ready to be burned as soon as it's cut small enough to fit in the stove or fire place.

 

The main difference in Stihl chain and all others is a patented oil groove in Stihl chain.....hence their name "Oil-o-matic". It picks up bar lube oil and forces it into the chain pivot points. The chains run cooler, stretch less and thus don't require re-tightening as much as Oregon or others.

 

I tried a stihl yellow 3/8 chain on my 60cc echo after I'm pretty sure I ruined my Oregon chain on some barbed wire grown into a log, it was already sharpened way down.
The stihl yellow chain is pretty vicious.
I accidentally bumped a log with the tip as it was revving down, it jumped enough to get my attention but didn't pop the chain brake.
Very unforgiving.
It turns my echo into wood chipper.

 

As you get older and more infirm and your kids have moved far away you start looking for lighter weight tools. I've tried a variety of electric ones and with one exception they all were a waste of money. The corded ones were too weak or the chain kept falling off. the battery ones wouldn't hold a charge. I've been very happy with my 20 inch Greenworks. I had to buy direct from the company. None of the stores within an hour of me that claim to sell their products carried the 20 inch. Historically I've had terrible success with batteries but this one works well. I'm not sure how long it lasts because it lasts longer than me and unlike most batteries its designed to not have a linear drop off in power until just before it shuts down. My best guess (based on not recharging after each use) is about 3hrs worth of cutting charge. It's very quiet. My blender is louder. It's about as loud as my Kitchenaid stand mixer set on power 1. It doesn't vibrate much and I can handle it with 2 partially gimpy arms

The only additional safety tip I'd add to the already mentioned things is have everyone wearing bright orange, or something to make them stand out. Don't wear camo. If you do get injured you need to be easy to find

 

That hurricane is probably going to knock down a few trees.
I hope people's saw are working and their chains are as sharp as they are numerous.

 

I use a saw "set" not a hammer for resetting the teeth.
On especially old cross cut saws your best leaving it alone and sharpening best you can. because the temper on old saws can be too brittle .

 

I never went over electric saws.
I have an electric that doesn't suck.
Took a 120v craftsman "4hp" 18 electric. It came with an 18 inch safety chain, that safety chain that I put a pic up on page 1.
You don't actually think I would buy that do you?
I modded it. Took the 6 tooth sprocket turned it down with a grinder until a stihl 7 tooth spur gear fit on there and it lined up, mig welded it into place. Now it turns about 17% faster. Bigger drive gear, now needs a longer chain.
Took the safety chain and had the Oregon dealer added a link to it.
Then had the Oregon dealer cut a few VXL chains for it. So the electric saw spins 17% faster and has bigger cutters every other link instead of small cutters hidden every 3 links.
My friends who use 50 to 80cc saws say it's kind of scary.
Because a normal saw you have to revving it up and ease into the wood. The electric just set it on the log where you want it and pull the trigger and it rips into the log at full speed from a dead stop.

 

Two last additions here .
1. Fatigue is your enemy, Know when it begins and stop making it worse, or it will get worse.
2, I don't trust oilers and use the manual pump aggressively.

 

I haven't seen a manual oiler on any made in the last 20 or 30 years.

 

Last manual oiler I had was a late 60's model Homelite XL12 I got rid of in the mid 70's when I bought my first Stihl. Easy to check an auto oiler.....just rev the engine holding the bar tip over something light colored and you can see it sling a line of oil on the target.

 

First (only) chain saw I ever had is a Poulan 306A (as used in "the Texas chain saw massacre") Bought it new from guy I graduated H.S. with (dealer). He changed 16" bar to 20",chain to more aggressive style. Used it to clear piss elm from my lot when I bought in town. When employer closed plant and I went to work on the left bank, left it with my bro. He had a small engine business. out in rural area, heated shop with wood. Don't know how many hours on it, or how many chains, but this is at least the third bar. It still runs well. Has auto oiler but has push button also. Always fill oil tank when I empty the fuel tank. And the Idea of blowing gas cap off before filling is the only way to go. Bro still has and uses his micro 25.

 

Didn't steal your work it's not that green here. If I had that many NM trees it would take a hundred feet of regular chain to cut all that.

 

If you dare venture into walmart their chain saw shit is on clearance.
It's 1/2 to 1/3 the original price, which is still more than its probably worth.
Serious woodcutters disregard.

 

If anyone wishes to try out or test you're chainsaw skills, Then I'm you're man.
Just send me a pm for location !