Are you wondering, why does my chainsaw blade get full so fast?
Your chainsaw blade gets dull so fast because your chain is hitting the ground, the tree is filled with dirt, and/or the bar is bent. These all contribute to the chain getting dull quickly. If you’re cutting through dirty wood, the chain will dull quicker than cutting clean wood.
For a more detailed answer, keep reading…
Dull chainsaw
A dull chainsaw blade will lead to wear of different components of the saw, including the clutch and engine since they would have to work harder because of the blade’s dullness. There are several reasons why your chainsaw gets dull quickly. These include;
Hitting the ground
Even if it’s just for a second that your chainsaw made contact with the floor, it can still cause the blade to get dull.
This is because it comes in contact with dirt, and while you might think dirt is soft, it is actually abrasive. In your hands, it might feel soft, but dirt is made up of tiny rocks.
Dirty tree
Whether you are bucking or felling, the tree you are working on could have bark soiled with dirt, which could lead to the dulling of your blade.
As time passes, the tree picks up different materials that are blown its way, like rocks, dirt, debris, and so on. Cutting into this type of tree could cause the teeth of your chainsaw to become blunt.
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Bent bar
During cutting, your chainsaw can get dull very quickly if the bar is bent as it would be stressed on the wrong angles.
How to resolve this issue
You can avoid dulling your chainsaw unnecessarily by taking the following steps;
- When cutting close to the ground, ensure you roll the log when needed to avoid tilting the tip of the bar into the soil. The perfect tool for this job is a hookaroon.
- If you are bucking or felling a tree, try to remove the bark before processing it. Take out the bark on the spot where you are going to make a cut.
- There are cases where there might be foreign hard objects in the tree you’re working on. So, just reposition and try again.
Your chainsaw blade should stay sharp for about 3 hours, depending on the kind of work you are using it for. Use the Stihl chain sharpener for the best results.
The factors that determine how long your chainsaw blade stays sharp include the kind of wood you are cutting, whether you are crosscutting or felling.
If you are cutting firewood that has been left on the ground, you would need to sharpen your chainsaw more often as the accumulated dirt would dull your blade faster.
If your blade gets dull while you’re using it, it is easy to re-sharpen it and continue your task. You can choose to sharpen it with the use of a file, bench-top sharpener, or a portable power sharpener.
The reason why dirt dulls your chainsaw is based on several factors, as the dirt can contain various amounts of soft organic materials and hard minerals.
There’s a lot of sand present in the dirt; these include silicates, silica, and quartz. When sand is placed under a microscope, you’ll discover that the particles have edges that are sharp.
This is why sand is used in abrasives like sandpaper and grinding compounds. When you cut into the dirt, it only takes moments for it to get into the sprocket and bar. It stretches the chain, wears out the chain links, and dulls the cutters.