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Narrow Kerf Chain

Started by Rob5073, December 11, 2013, 08:19:52 AM

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DelawhereJoe

You can get a 3/8 picco sprocket for your 660 and also a 3/8 picco bar in the 3003 mount, but the longest you can get in it is a 16" bar unless you run a hard nose bar.
WD-40, DUCT TAPE, 024, 026, 362c-m, 041, homelite xl, JD 2510

Al_Smith

If it wasn't for little tiny chain there wouldn't be little tiny saws .The early stuff was 1/4" which went to 3/8" lo pro,pico whatever you want to call it .Fact I have some little saws that still have 1/4" which Oregon once made in chisel until Ralph Nader put his two cents in and got it outlawed .
Now on a little saw with high RPMs of course the small chain would cut faster but to put a micro chain on something like an 066 Stihl would not prove much IMO other than show it could be done .

Can you only imagine filing a 36" loop of micro chain ? My word it would take forever and take at least 3 beverages before the job was complete .Then unless to had the bladder of an elephant it would take trip behind a tree .Whatever floats your boat I guess ,doesn't float mine .

HolmenTree

Oh the memories re reading this 5 year old thread. :D
SawTroll and webgal probably some of the 2 most knowledgeable saw people out there.

Pro Husqvarna SawTroll dropped off the face of the earth after the MS462 and MS500i were introduced.

webgal is an interesting case. She worked for Bailey's up to about the end of this 2013 thread.
Then Bailey's was no longer our sponsor.
She has a great signature:
"Gotta know when to tell them, know when to walk away, know when to run......"
Caprice Becker. Laytonville, California.

That she did.... :)
Making a living with a saw since age 16.

massmanute

It sounds as if I am stuck with the standard chain unless I change the sprocket and bar, and even then I can't use a long bar. Is that correct?

I was hoping to get a little narrower kerf in my milling, but I can live with what I have now if I have to, particularly since my main purpose at this point is to "learn the ropes".

HolmenTree

File your standard chain's cutters back as small as possible and with the depth gauges filed down at about .035 - .040 clearance.
As long as your bar rails are not spread you will be amazed how well that chain will cut ....and it's now a narrow kerf chain with a strong chassis and nothing else needs to be changed.;)
Making a living with a saw since age 16.

HolmenTree

The depth gauge spec of .035-.040 I suggested above with the cutters filed back to near the witness marks is for cross cutting.
For milling I suggest .045 - .050.
Making a living with a saw since age 16.

massmanute

Quote from: HolmenTree on November 14, 2018, 05:54:18 PM
The depth gauge spec of .035-.040 I suggested above with the cutters filed back to near the witness marks is for cross cutting.
For milling I suggest .045 - .050.
Thanks. I would have never thought of those ideas on my own.

HolmenTree

You're welcome.
I'm not saying to take a new chain and file all the cutters back to the witness marks.
If you have any old half used up 3/8" chains like 33RS, file or grind them back ahead of the top plate witness to allow some sharpening life. Let's say with the working corner of the cutter is in line with the middle of the rear rivet to the back of it on the sideplate. About 1/4 to a 1/3 left of the cutter's length.
Making a living with a saw since age 16.

moodnacreek

Quote from: ladylake on December 12, 2013, 05:34:47 AM
I really like the 91 vx semi chiesel, stays sharp a long time and cuts great.. You want to use a 6 tooth on 45cc and less as a 7 tooth 3/8 lp cuts about the same as a .325 7 tooth, tried that and the 3/8 lp 6 tooth cuts the fastest by quite a bit.   Steve
That 91 vx  I have run with a 24" bar on a 61cc husky 262xp. Not good in pine but cuts fast in hard -hardwood and dry spruce knots. Problem is filing such small teeth by eye.

Inaotherlife

Very informative thread.

I'm just starting to grasp the ins and outs of how a 7-pin .325 can possibly equal or better a 6-spur 3/8 low profile on some saws.

Not sure if the benefit outweighs the cost of switching though. Unless your saw needs replacements to begin with.

Thanks HT, and ST, and all the other contributors, for sharing your knowledge.

Still, I'm hesitant to alter bars for applications that they weren't originally designed for. More to learn.


Philbert

Not sure if you guys have seen it yet, but Oregon introduced a low profile, .325 chain at a recent industry event; 'SpeedCut Nano' (80TXL).  I don't think that it is available yet, but it could be another option to consider.

Link: Oregon Products

Have to see where it fits in, in the: 3/8 low profile/narrow kerf (Type 90); 3/8 low profile (Type 91, 'PICCO'); .325 narrow kerf (Type 95, Husqvarna 30); .325 pitch sequence.

Might fit in certain niches.  Might be something else to navigate. Looks like it requires specific sprockets, bars, etc.

Philbert

HolmenTree

Looks like Oregon's best attempt to make a .043 chain as close to Stihl's little 1/4 71PM. 
This .043 .325 is designed for battery saws in general. That huge safety ramp sure wouldn't help performance.  Looks like those old Pioneer chain design from the 70's.
Making a living with a saw since age 16.

John Mc

They're marketing it to arborists and other professionals. It will be interesting to see how it compares. The depth gauges on the 80TXL look a little like what is on the Oregon LPX chain, though the ramp on this seems a bit more pronounced and may sit higher in relation to the raker than on the LPX
If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.   - Abraham Maslow

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