Chain help!

[atimmons101]

I have a question for everyone out there! I have seen forums, YouTube videos and asked experts about 3/8 chain in hardwood. Loggers in PNW will use aggressive rakers for full skip and then you see guys in the eastern hardwoods use full comp. I typically run STIHL RS chain and recently it seems out of the box the rakers are always so aggressive that I can’t get a consistent cut and keep RPM up and it’s causing the clutch to slip. I’ve seen guys like Amit h Zenobi run .325 but I feel like in hardwood it’s asking a lot for that chain. Then you also see Buckin use full comp but he tunes the takers to .20 or .22 but I can’t find anything that forgiving. I run a ported 500i with either a 28” or 32” bar. Just feels like I’m missing something other than square ground chain. Just sick of the binding and the saw not even being able to get going in the cut.

 

[EFSM]

Could you post pictures of the bar and chain you’re using? Does the chain give you trouble before it’s sharpened for the first time?
What kind of wood are you cutting?

 

[Squareground3691]

Do you use a raker/depth gage to adjust them accordingly ? Stock chain out of the box usually runs in the mid .02's for raker height which should be good . Is your bar in good working order to , I always touch up new chain as it's not razor sharp, C83 pretty good outta the box chain ,

 

[atimmons101]

Chain always runs like crap out of the box. Always seems to be set to .35 and it’s way too much for full comp. Bars are all in good shape or brand new. I’ve used Superbar, duralite, es and es light and it seems to happen to them all. Maples, ash and walnut is mostly what I’m cutting.

 

[atimmons101]

It’s not letting me post photos?

 

[lehman live edge slab]

I have a question for everyone out there! I have seen forums, YouTube videos and asked experts about 3/8 chain in hardwood. Loggers in PNW will use aggressive rakers for full skip and then you see guys in the eastern hardwoods use full comp. I typically run STIHL RS chain and recently it seems out of the box the rakers are always so aggressive that I can’t get a consistent cut and keep RPM up and it’s causing the clutch to slip. I’ve seen guys like Amit h Zenobi run .325 but I feel like in hardwood it’s asking a lot for that chain. Then you also see Buckin use full comp but he tunes the takers to .20 or .22 but I can’t find anything that forgiving. I run a ported 500i with either a 28” or 32” bar. Just feels like I’m missing something other than square ground chain. Just sick of the binding and the saw not even being able to get going in the cut.

I find it hard to believe factory rs is stalling a ported 500i on a 32” bar unless your going crazy loading it up with the spikes. The stock 500i I had never had and issue with a 25” or 28” in larger oak with a new full comp Stihl chain. Local tree guy has a bunch of 500’s and even though I sharpen chains to self feed at a fairly decent speed he has no issues with stalling saws hard or soft wood. Who ported the 500i?, also zero reason to be running .325 on an almost 80cc saw.

 

[atimmons101]

I know the second I say who ported it it’s going to be really controversial. Ripsaw lol. Just bought a cylinder kit and put it on. Runs fine with no load but the second it touches big wood it binds. I was doing a back cut with a fresh chain and even with the kerf clean I couldn’t get it going. Tension was good. It was really cold out but nothing that prevent it cutting

 

[SawAddictedFarmer]

Ripsaw lol. Just bought a cylinder kit and put it on.

 

[SawAddictedFarmer]

I know the second I say who ported it it’s going to be really controversial. Ripsaw lol. Just bought a cylinder kit and put it on. Runs fine with no load but the second it touches big wood it binds. I was doing a back cut with a fresh chain and even with the kerf clean I couldn’t get it going. Tension was good. It was really cold out but nothing that prevent it cutting

A 500 should yank you in towards the log before it slips. But if you have the dogs right on the wood my ported 462 will catch and slip occasionally so I just hold it off a inch or so until I get low enough to use the middle spike.

 

[lehman live edge slab]

I know the second I say who ported it it’s going to be really controversial. Ripsaw lol. Just bought a cylinder kit and put it on. Runs fine with no load but the second it touches big wood it binds. I was doing a back cut with a fresh chain and even with the kerf clean I couldn’t get it going. Tension was good. It was really cold out but nothing that prevent it cutting

Did you run the saw stock before putting a cylinder on it? Something isn’t right with it if it just stalls out that easily, also is saw bogging out or do you have a clutch issue since you said the clutch slips? They don’t slip easily if the clutch is good, so the engine will load up and slow way down before the clutch slips. If the chain stops but doesn’t load the engine down then you have a clutch problem if the engine loads up without any pressure you have an engine issue. High exhaust port will rev to the moon but fall flat when you go to load it up in a cut. Could be a vast number of things and odds are it’s not the chain at all or at least more than just chain issues. Also what is your chain tension? Do you hold up on tip and tighten it just till it touches or tighter? Just so it touches is about all the tighter you want I get saws in for work with bar edges burred and saw chain banjo string tight. How about the oiler is it pumping could be the bearing in bar nose is starving and dragging.

 

[davidwyby]

Post Video

 

[atimmons101]

I ran it stock and it still seemed to bind even then. Maybe I’m just bad at this? lol. I don’t know. I enjoy it though and don’t get to cut as often as I like but when I do I just don’t get to cut as much as I want. I’m getting a 462 ported by CFB right now so if I get it back and it outperforms the 500i then I know I have a problem

 

[Seachaser]

Sounds like the saw. I run a 28” on mine with Stihl or Xcut chain. It never skips a beat.
ETA: not ported or modded in any way.

 

[davidwyby]

“Bind”? You mean clutch stall?

 

[SawAddictedFarmer]

Sounds like the saw. I run a 28” on mine with Stihl or Xcut chain. It never skips a beat.

Agreed. To make mine slip I have to use the very bottom spike or really push on it.

 

[davidwyby]

Chain: make sure it is sharp (working corner grabs fingernail) and proper angles. Husky roller guide. Then set the rakers with the guide, or take one swipe off all the rakers and test until it feeds but doesn’t stall.

 

[atimmons101]

Mine always seems to slip. Like I said, doing a back cut I literally couldn’t get the clutch to engage and had to pull the whole thing out. No obstructions to the bar or chain, brake was off and the chain wasn’t against the hinge wood.

 

[atimmons101]

It doesn’t feel like I’m really dogging in but maybe my form is just cheeks lol.

 

[Duane(Pa)]

Something wrong. Lawyers make sure outta the box chain isn’t aggressive.

 

[hacskaroly]

Just bought a cylinder kit and put it on.

If you just swapped cylinders, I wonder if you need to adjust the timing to the new Ripsaw cylinder. Also, if the cylinder is modded for more power, you might need to do a muffler mod to let more exhaust out. I wonder if that is part of the issue, the saw is effectively trying to exhaust through a straw (almost like having a clogged spark arrestor on a regular saw).

Edit: I don't port or mod cylinders, but have seen enough posts of those that do that usually there are timing and exhaust mods that go along with it - hopefully some modders will speak up if I am incorrect.