Chainsaw Bar Refinishing

[S Tebo]

I never throw it in the back of the truck or on the ground but only use it, spray with simple green , brush it, spary it off with water, crank and let it dry for a few minutes , then blow off with compressed air

Glad to know that I am not the only one that can cut 30 cords a year (for the last 5-7 years) for my backyard firewood business and every one of my saws can still pass as "Minty" or "Shelf Queens".

I put them in the back but what I meant was i dont chunk it in there to roll around. I have put it behind my seat in my 4 door pickup. I use my saws but take care them . I run them hard but dont abuse them by throwing around. I just dont see the sense in that

Yes, they are machines, but machines have feelings too!

Keith, I went out and bought two containers of the Gun Blue today. I am currently refinishing 6 Stihl bars so this thread could not be any more timely. Most are laminated bars and i had a local guy Soda Blast them a few days ago. He did 6 bars, 4 muffler cans & covers, 6 handlebars, 3 clutch covers and my son's project guitar stand all for $60 cash. Needless to say I was very happy with his work not to mention the price (12 hour turn-around time too). My plan was to: 1, clear finish them (but the Stihl rivets look cheesy), 2, spray them black, 3, powder coat them. All of which would fail at some point due to the chain friction heat and or paint flake/scratch due to scuff and pinch. But now... Blue!!!
I will take some pics along the way since this thread is here. I plan to wire wheel them next, then felt wheel polish them with buffing compound/ruge. Fingers crossed...

 

[S Tebo]

Never refinished one. When it was all wore out i bought a new one.

Does new paint make it faster?

Absolutely, are you kidding?...

 

[mdavlee]

I may strip the paint off a few more bars. I'll let the bar oil protect them. Gb bars paint don't last no time.

 

[Definitive Dave]

redbull's in depth thread says naked bars run fastest and coolest and make the engine run cooler too, a long and worthwhile read.

I like these bars a buddy made for me

3003 mount


3002 Mount for my 084



I would love to have this old girl restored



Custom engraved 3002 mount 30" for my Brutus project 075

 

[S Tebo]

redbull's in depth thread says naked bars run fastest and coolest and make the engine run cooler too, a long and worthwhile read.

I like these bars a buddy made for me

3003 mount
View attachment 18366

3002 Mount for my 084
View attachment 18367


I would love to have this old girl restored
View attachment 18368


Custom engraved 3002 mount 30" for my Brutus project 075
View attachment 18369

Beautiful!

 

[Jughead]

buncha psp bar modifying Fappers.

 

[Definitive Dave]

fap, fap, fap....I'm exhausted

 

[Definitive Dave]

Mike did an awesome engraved bar for a Stihl, I gotta find a picture of that.
PSP UNITE!!!!....and bring soft towels

 

[Brewz]

Beautiful stuff dave

 

[Definitive Dave]

I just remembered I have a roller bar he made me for my 346XP that has factory blueing on the entire bar, I will try to snap a decent pic tomorrow.

 

[Brewz]

Any ideas in Stihl stencils?

 

[Definitive Dave]

There are a few guys who do stencils, but they are pretty private about it, for brands that are defunct there are a lot more options as there isn't likely to be anyone coming after you for using a logo of a closed company.
Find a small local guy who will do it for you based on scans you provide him of logos you like. That is safest.

For bars I put on saws I am selling I use a ball or sponge wheel and remove all the paint and then spray paint them with white appliance paint and put a new chain on them, I don't use a logo at all unless it is for a restoration/shelf queen project.

 

[Brewz]

what is involved with gun blueing?
I like the look and there is a guy who has been trying to sell a tank locally for awhile on armslist.
toxic chems n stuff or just rit dye in a washtub?

Toxic corrosive chemicals at about double boiling point temperatures

Hot blue is however far more durable

 

[67L36Driver]

I think I am going to try gun bluing on my 14"

The 10" on my Remy Mighty Mite has an actual polished hot blue finish. Only one I've ever seen.

 

[Definitive Dave]

Toxic corrosive chemicals at about double boiling point temperatures

Hot blue is however far more durable

heck I am dangerous at room temperature, that sounds like it is best left to the pros

 

[Brewz]

My project
30" Oregon bar, I removed the tip this morning and have a new GB tip in 404 to put on.

First up is paint stripper to see how the bar looks underneath

 

[Brewz]

Painted the bar with paint stripper and scraped it off.
First go I used a paint scraper and then I did it again and used a green kitchen scourer pad.





Sanded it back and this how it ended up.
I wasn't going to spend the time polishing it

 

[Brewz]

I then blued it.
I used Birchwood Casey Perma Blue.
To get this stuff to work well, the metal should be warm and slightly damp. The moisture helps with the bluing process as we are essentially oxidizing the metal (rusting it) and getting a bit of a dark layer over hte metal each time.
We clean it off, and do it again, building up the protective layer each time.

Here I have painted some perma blue over the bar, I think they was the 2nd layer.


I go over it with the brush and keep it wet for 5 to 10 minutes as it dries.



You can see below after 10 minutes or so, we have a nice rusty layer on the bar.



Into the laundry tub, warm water and some VERY fine steel wool.
I wet the bar and use the steel wool to gently remove the blue solution and the rusty layer that has formed, taking care not to remove the nice dark blue layer beneath.



You can see the layer of blue building up on the steel.
This was the 3rd coat.
Once I had done this, I rinsed the bar with hot water to heat up the bar and wiped the bar over with some damp paper toweling to remove 99% of the water.
Then hit it with the perma blue again.
Keep repeating until you get the finish you are after.
I did 4 coats and was happy with it.

 

[Brewz]

After the last layer was cleaned up under water, I blew the bar dry with compressed air and hit it with oil to stop the corrosion process.
If you dont you will be able to watch the rust form.
Sprayed on oil, gave it all a bit of a rub and polish with some fresh steel wool and then wiped it clean with dry clean paper toweling.


Fitted the new 404 tip and had fun taking out some inner frustration peening out the rivet.
Bolted it onto the 066 Red light, and am very happy with the result.

 

[Al Smith]

Navel jelly does a pretty good job of removing rust .A belt sander afterwards finishes them off well .On clean metal Rustolium hangs fairly well if you are inclined to paint them .
"Triple etch" or some other prep used for bare metal prior to paint helps the paint to cling.Body shops use this material .

I myself have only paint maybe half a dozen on the real old saws .Others I don't worry too much about .