I found cheap chain saw chains a bargain especially if you are not all that good at sharpening them. If you pay someone to sharpen a chainsaw chain, you can by a new aftermarket chain for the same price or less especially purchasing in bundles of two or three. I had a chain sharpened at the local hardware store. They got it sharpened taking so much metal off it was not going to be able to be resharpened when it got dull again. Afterwards I purchased a set of 3 chains costing less than the sharpening per chain. The aftermarket chains cut very well. Since then, I have sharpened many myself with a file and guide as well as with a motorized chain saw chain sharpener from Harbor Freight. It works well. Not sure how the longevity will be on that sharpener, but it does do a good uniform job on all the chains I have done. The motorized sharpeners are more uniform in cutting all the teeth the same. I think it's best to have extra chains and when they get dull sharpen them in a controlled environment with a motorized sharpener. At least that is the way I do it now. I can take files and a guide with me, but I prefer taking extra chains that are already sharpened and just changing them out when they get dull.
I ONLY use these cheap chains. No complaints here. Stihl chains are too expensive for my blood. To your point of using chains for roots and dirt; I like to use my chains until they are so worn that I can get one last sharpen out of them. At that point, I'll put them off to the side and save them for "high risk of tooth damage" jobs.
Friend i think you should learn how to properly sharpen a chainsaw. You are filling the gullet (side plate) too far under your top plate, your file should always have 1/5 of its diameter above the top plate (per the Oregon safety and maintenance manual) fileing into the tie strap is recipe for disaster a broken saw chain spinning at an engine speed of almost 13000 rpm is no joke, another thing if you are cutting the depth gauges beyond the. 025-.030 of the depth gauge tools it means that your top plate edge is hooked over and dull. A properly sharpened chain will cut extremely quickly with the depth gauges set at .025-.030 and the depth gauge tool ensures that your saw will cut straight and not pull left or right in the cut. I came here expecting a scientific comparison of cheaper chainsaw chains and instead received a lecture of misinformation. Be safe and learn all you can but only share your knowledge if your absolutely certain that it is correct and will add value to someone's life experience don't take this as criticism but rather as advice on how to improve your life experience best wishes and continue moving forward.
Firewood prices have gone out of sight, I can not afford to buy it anymore so have to cut it myself or do without. Putting in a natural gas Furness is less expensive than buying firewood at todays prices.
@@OldSoulMillennial You are right ,I am retired and it gives me something to do all summer, but if I could not do this I would freeze to death in the winter becaise there is no way I could afford to pay the prices they are asking for firewood these days. I am 76 years old now, have my saws and electric splitter and enjoy being out doors, but what I have to worry about is how much longer will I be able to do it ? I live alone and other than a couple expensive electric heaters that I try not to use, my wood stove is what heats the whole house all winter. I still can not believe how fast and how much the firewood prices went up
@@OldSoulMillennialHonestly for your chain that you have on your Stihl chainsaw you need the correct size chainsaw fial so you're not hitting the chain links sorry but true!! Did they know that China works with Russia right they are actually hacking everybody!! Together!! Also Iran is on it too working with Russia and China!! Look it up and check it out for yourself really!! Okay!!? 👌👍👍👍😅😂😂😂
A bad thing would be soft teeth easy to file. Try a nice, motorized sharpener. Even a Habor Freight sharpener will put an edge on that Oregon Chain. I like Oregon Chains they last well after being sharpened. No problem resharpening them uniformly with my Harbor Freight Chainsaw Chain Sharpener. But hey, if you don't like them, you don't have to buy them. But honestly trashing them because you think a tooth is too hard to sharpen doesn't really make a lot of sense.
Watched your video and not being smart but you may want to re think the way you file your chains. Just to give you a idea, I'm no youngster at 68 and have been filing chains since 17 and have used electric grinders, but prefer a file. Yes there were times in my younger years that I have filed into the lower link but again because I was not careful. I use nothing but Stihl full cisel and suare fround chains. Love Stihl, have used Oregon and by and large I will take Stihl chains over any other hands down. Take yur time and rethink your practice, if you don't believe me that's ok. but I'm speaking from years of expierence and logging.
Another great video, kid! Nothing I didn't already know, but chock full of great information! I'll add a couple things. 1.) A lot of people are absolutely obsessive about getting exactly the same number of strokes on each tooth, when filing a chain. That is both unnecessary, and self-defeating. No one strokes that file exactly the same on both axis of the chain. Everyone files the teeth unevenly from left to right, regardless of who you are. Both because of differing strength from side to side, and because of different natural angles of approach. The trick is to recognize this, and watch the teeth themselves. The goal is to end up with the teeth as even from one tooth to the other, and from left to right to left, as possible. Consistency. Same angle. Same size. Same depth. Do what it takes. Less stroke one way than the other. Change your stance. Whatever... 2.) That thing in front of the cutter is called a depth gauge. (The tooth is called a depth gauge. Not the tool.) I know you own an angle grinder. Take that tool, stick it in your vise, and grind some off the top of it, to lower that surface. The tool is good, for what it is intended. Consistency. Your complaint is that it doesn't take the depth gauge low enough. I actually agree with you. So, lower that surface on the tool, until you reach the height you want, for the depth gauge. Then use the tool, for consistency. By the way, I know you have seen "anti-kickback", or "safety" chains. Those have a taller depth gauge tooth. The chain takes less of a bite. Safer for an inexperienced user, but frustrating and time consuming for an experienced operator. Most new saws in the big box stores have anti-kickback chains on them, whether they say so, or not. It's the mfgr's way to cut down on lawsuits. I think maybe they make the tool above just a bit less deep than it should be, for the same reason. Anti-litigation. Just find the sweet spot on your own, then alter the tool to give you the results you want. And use the tool for consistency.
I found cheap chain saw chains a bargain especially if you are not all that good at sharpening them. If you pay someone to sharpen a chainsaw chain, you can by a new aftermarket chain for the same price or less especially purchasing in bundles of two or three. I had a chain sharpened at the local hardware store. They got it sharpened taking so much metal off it was not going to be able to be resharpened when it got dull again. Afterwards I purchased a set of 3 chains costing less than the sharpening per chain. The aftermarket chains cut very well. Since then, I have sharpened many myself with a file and guide as well as with a motorized chain saw chain sharpener from Harbor Freight. It works well. Not sure how the longevity will be on that sharpener, but it does do a good uniform job on all the chains I have done. The motorized sharpeners are more uniform in cutting all the teeth the same. I think it's best to have extra chains and when they get dull sharpen them in a controlled environment with a motorized sharpener. At least that is the way I do it now. I can take files and a guide with me, but I prefer taking extra chains that are already sharpened and just changing them out when they get dull.
I bought a $20 20" bar and chain, the bar wasn't crash hot but the chain just kept cutting (seasoned eucalypts for fire wood).
I’ve used them to cut dirt roots and trash them afterwards 😊
I ONLY use these cheap chains. No complaints here. Stihl chains are too expensive for my blood.
To your point of using chains for roots and dirt; I like to use my chains until they are so worn that I can get one last sharpen out of them. At that point, I'll put them off to the side and save them for "high risk of tooth damage" jobs.
You'll benefit from Pferd's 2 in 1 sharpener on Stihl's chain
i use this chain 'cheap' on my pruner saw. It keeps a good edge and is slow to stretch
Friend i think you should learn how to properly sharpen a chainsaw. You are filling the gullet (side plate) too far under your top plate, your file should always have 1/5 of its diameter above the top plate (per the Oregon safety and maintenance manual) fileing into the tie strap is recipe for disaster a broken saw chain spinning at an engine speed of almost 13000 rpm is no joke, another thing if you are cutting the depth gauges beyond the. 025-.030 of the depth gauge tools it means that your top plate edge is hooked over and dull. A properly sharpened chain will cut extremely quickly with the depth gauges set at .025-.030 and the depth gauge tool ensures that your saw will cut straight and not pull left or right in the cut. I came here expecting a scientific comparison of cheaper chainsaw chains and instead received a lecture of misinformation. Be safe and learn all you can but only share your knowledge if your absolutely certain that it is correct and will add value to someone's life experience don't take this as criticism but rather as advice on how to improve your life experience best wishes and continue moving forward.
Firewood prices have gone out of sight, I can not afford to buy it anymore so have to cut it myself or do without. Putting in a natural gas Furness is less expensive than buying firewood at todays prices.
All depends on what your time is worth and if you enjoy processing firewood.
@@OldSoulMillennial You are right ,I am retired and it gives me something to do all summer, but if I could not do this I would freeze to death in the winter becaise there is no way I could afford to pay the prices they are asking for firewood these days. I am 76 years old now, have my saws and electric splitter and enjoy being out doors, but what I have to worry about is how much longer will I be able to do it ? I live alone and other than a couple expensive electric heaters that I try not to use, my wood stove is what heats the whole house all winter. I still can not believe how fast and how much the firewood prices went up
@@OldSoulMillennialHonestly for your chain that you have on your Stihl chainsaw you need the correct size chainsaw fial so you're not hitting the chain links sorry but true!! Did they know that China works with Russia right they are actually hacking everybody!! Together!! Also Iran is on it too working with Russia and China!! Look it up and check it out for yourself really!! Okay!!? 👌👍👍👍😅😂😂😂
Make video on How to make your own chains from reel/spool 👍😀
I thought about it. Just more convenient to buy pre made.
I don't buy Oregon chains anymore, the last one i bought had at least 10 teeth so hard you couldn't file them.
A bad thing would be soft teeth easy to file. Try a nice, motorized sharpener. Even a Habor Freight sharpener will put an edge on that Oregon Chain. I like Oregon Chains they last well after being sharpened. No problem resharpening them uniformly with my Harbor Freight Chainsaw Chain Sharpener. But hey, if you don't like them, you don't have to buy them. But honestly trashing them because you think a tooth is too hard to sharpen doesn't really make a lot of sense.
Watched your video and not being smart but you may want to re think the way you file your chains. Just to give you a idea, I'm no youngster at 68 and have been filing chains since 17 and have used electric grinders, but prefer a file. Yes there were times in my younger years that I have filed into the lower link but again because I was not careful. I use nothing but Stihl full cisel and suare fround chains. Love Stihl, have used Oregon and by and large I will take Stihl chains over any other hands down. Take yur time and rethink your practice, if you don't believe me that's ok. but I'm speaking from years of expierence and logging.
Another great video, kid! Nothing I didn't already know, but chock full of great information! I'll add a couple things.
1.) A lot of people are absolutely obsessive about getting exactly the same number of strokes on each tooth, when filing a chain. That is both unnecessary, and self-defeating. No one strokes that file exactly the same on both axis of the chain. Everyone files the teeth unevenly from left to right, regardless of who you are. Both because of differing strength from side to side, and because of different natural angles of approach.
The trick is to recognize this, and watch the teeth themselves. The goal is to end up with the teeth as even from one tooth to the other, and from left to right to left, as possible. Consistency. Same angle. Same size. Same depth. Do what it takes. Less stroke one way than the other. Change your stance. Whatever...
2.) That thing in front of the cutter is called a depth gauge. (The tooth is called a depth gauge. Not the tool.) I know you own an angle grinder. Take that tool, stick it in your vise, and grind some off the top of it, to lower that surface. The tool is good, for what it is intended. Consistency. Your complaint is that it doesn't take the depth gauge low enough. I actually agree with you. So, lower that surface on the tool, until you reach the height you want, for the depth gauge. Then use the tool, for consistency.
By the way, I know you have seen "anti-kickback", or "safety" chains. Those have a taller depth gauge tooth. The chain takes less of a bite. Safer for an inexperienced user, but frustrating and time consuming for an experienced operator. Most new saws in the big box stores have anti-kickback chains on them, whether they say so, or not. It's the mfgr's way to cut down on lawsuits. I think maybe they make the tool above just a bit less deep than it should be, for the same reason. Anti-litigation.
Just find the sweet spot on your own, then alter the tool to give you the results you want. And use the tool for consistency.