mainer_in_ak
Pinnacle OPE Member
- Local time
- 3:10 PM
- User ID
- 22880
- Joined
- Mar 13, 2022
- Messages
- 344
- Reaction score
- 1,342
- Location
- Interior Alaska
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Figured I'd share my filing technique on used-up EXL. My reasoning: extremely tight budget in my tree service company. I can't even use fancy light bars. All I seem to use is powercut & versacut bars. Only rarely will I get a specialty bar. I run EXL .050 on almost everything.
I own a large swath of Alaska birch and sell birch firewood, do milling jobs in remote locations, clear cutting, thinning, and road cuts mostly.
Also can't justify Stihl stuff, I run almost all echo stuff. I have done jobs all over interior Alaska. Just finished up a beetle-kill spruce thinning down on the Kenai peninsula as well.
Anyhow, getting the most out of yer chains obviously puts more profit in yer pocket, eh? With the trendy stuff with the youtube copy-cat-drama-queens like "baby c" making its rounds, figured I'd post up something more practical.
EXL slows down a bit towards the end of chain life. With the cutter so far gone, a normal file for 3/8 is obviously too large. So I switch out to a file for 3/8 low profile. To start with, out of habit, the junk in the gullet is always filed out.
Few more things: Later tonight, I'll post up cut times of this chain against new EXL. My appologies that there are slight file marks on the tie straps, but I honestly really don't give a fk. There is no "name" for this file job. Explaining this out in detail, is kinda crazy, because it all happens in less than 5 minutes of files strokes on an 84 dl chain!:
1: hit the cutter with a 3/8 lp file. Use light strokes, these smaller files are frail:
2. Reprofile the raker resting the front of the raker-file downward, guiding against the opposite drivelink. This leaves the top "tip" of the raker slightly exposed, but gives a nice gentle "ramp" on the raker, without changing raker depth.
3. Bevel both sides of the newly-profiled raker. This is a big one! Less friction, less heat. I've actually gained 100-200 rpms in the cut, just by turning that raker into a dull "knife edge". It also allows the sides of worn cutters to bite a little better.:
4. Finally, adjust the raker depth to your saw, in your wood. My CS 620pw in Alaska birch/white or black spruce, and smooth bore cutting, my rakers are slightly below a typical raker guage:
Comparison to new EXL:
I own a large swath of Alaska birch and sell birch firewood, do milling jobs in remote locations, clear cutting, thinning, and road cuts mostly.
Also can't justify Stihl stuff, I run almost all echo stuff. I have done jobs all over interior Alaska. Just finished up a beetle-kill spruce thinning down on the Kenai peninsula as well.
Anyhow, getting the most out of yer chains obviously puts more profit in yer pocket, eh? With the trendy stuff with the youtube copy-cat-drama-queens like "baby c" making its rounds, figured I'd post up something more practical.
EXL slows down a bit towards the end of chain life. With the cutter so far gone, a normal file for 3/8 is obviously too large. So I switch out to a file for 3/8 low profile. To start with, out of habit, the junk in the gullet is always filed out.
Few more things: Later tonight, I'll post up cut times of this chain against new EXL. My appologies that there are slight file marks on the tie straps, but I honestly really don't give a fk. There is no "name" for this file job. Explaining this out in detail, is kinda crazy, because it all happens in less than 5 minutes of files strokes on an 84 dl chain!:
1: hit the cutter with a 3/8 lp file. Use light strokes, these smaller files are frail:
![20240721-133441.jpg](/proxy.php?image=https%3A%2F%2Fi.postimg.cc%2FmgC9SMm5%2F20240721-133441.jpg&hash=3d058fdab5028f629a862c81c2c53b67)
![20240721-133900.jpg](/proxy.php?image=https%3A%2F%2Fi.postimg.cc%2FqqHqqZTB%2F20240721-133900.jpg&hash=bec008d103d38e0b1f51ba451e452157)
2. Reprofile the raker resting the front of the raker-file downward, guiding against the opposite drivelink. This leaves the top "tip" of the raker slightly exposed, but gives a nice gentle "ramp" on the raker, without changing raker depth.
![20240721-133943.jpg](/proxy.php?image=https%3A%2F%2Fi.postimg.cc%2FGhYNvg1w%2F20240721-133943.jpg&hash=4235617331db952f1d6b084a9c8f0e76)
3. Bevel both sides of the newly-profiled raker. This is a big one! Less friction, less heat. I've actually gained 100-200 rpms in the cut, just by turning that raker into a dull "knife edge". It also allows the sides of worn cutters to bite a little better.:
![20240721-134107.jpg](/proxy.php?image=https%3A%2F%2Fi.postimg.cc%2FvHCd7xKk%2F20240721-134107.jpg&hash=3880f2cf61224534ed1aadfc43474c08)
![20240721-134409.jpg](/proxy.php?image=https%3A%2F%2Fi.postimg.cc%2FDf9TLbHD%2F20240721-134409.jpg&hash=1da91368160fdfa2d708b11486eb6861)
![20240721-134440.jpg](/proxy.php?image=https%3A%2F%2Fi.postimg.cc%2FKcr6ks7K%2F20240721-134440.jpg&hash=9bb557891d08a423cd72f84ad9972300)
4. Finally, adjust the raker depth to your saw, in your wood. My CS 620pw in Alaska birch/white or black spruce, and smooth bore cutting, my rakers are slightly below a typical raker guage:
![20240721-134543.jpg](/proxy.php?image=https%3A%2F%2Fi.postimg.cc%2F6Q4qLGtm%2F20240721-134543.jpg&hash=71565929871c14b95a1d22f57596db6c)
Comparison to new EXL:
![20240721-134808.jpg](/proxy.php?image=https%3A%2F%2Fi.postimg.cc%2FsXw0K1Vt%2F20240721-134808.jpg&hash=d9320d7cb53d488dd16bc91076cb76f4)
![20240721-134847.jpg](/proxy.php?image=https%3A%2F%2Fi.postimg.cc%2FryDvgCrj%2F20240721-134847.jpg&hash=b3a00231b206762a1b54ced0389a685f)