filing depth gauge without a tool?

[Philbert]

.65mm = .025"

It’s easy to put the decimal point in the wrong place, I’ve done it many times

Yeah, I was on a break, and had to reply quickly. Thanks for the correction.

Philbert

 

[Duane(Pa)]

Wish the banker wood move the decimal point every once in a while

 

[PA Plumber]

Wish the banker wood move the decimal point every once in a while

I had that happen once.
Got home to double check a deposit and it was off by an extra zero in my favor.
I did not have time to call before they figured it out. I think it was corrected by the end of the day.

 

[Squareground3691]

Have electric deposit at work somehow the account dept messed up I got the owner check deposited in my account, that was a wake up for sure lol . Nice to know what he was knocking down a week .

 

[Maintenance Chief]

I like to use my old Oregon adjustable depth gauge tool now. I used to "eyeball" it about every 3rd sharpening but I messed up 2 chains by lowering the rakers too much and it was just miserable to cut with.
I realize now how small of an amount 25 and 35 thousandths is and there's really no way I could get any accuracy that way. Some 404 chain was already pretty aggressive from the factory and seemed like forever to make some adjustments to the depth.
For the fastest best cutting it paramount that your close to a good setting, for either "soft or hard" wood ,you don't have to be exact on the species just its hardness.

 

[Int1968]

Depth depends on what your doing with the saw. Cutting firewood, who cares go hungry if you want. Felling or climbing and the saw can become unusable.

 

[islandarb]

Honestly I handfile everything and lower my depth gauges by freehand. In all my 15 years of climbing and cutting both at height and on the ground I have never used a depth gauge for more that a few months in early days and never a file guide. I own a few that I lend to those wishing to learn, and have gifted a few. But it is all in the hand.....knowing your strokes. Counting strokes and pressure. My results are outstanding in both soft and hard tropical woods.

 

[pbillyi69]

there is a lot of goos info here. if you dont want to but a guage with a sharp file take two full strokes off each one and then cut with it and see how it cuts. if you have filed the cutters more than twice take three strokes and try it. you might need a fourth stroke. be careful not to run the file into the cutter. i usually hold onto the cutter with my fingers and run the file along my glove it wears my gloves out faster but im ok with that

 

[huskihl]

Worthy of noting, this shape cutter —(— requires a different depth gauge setting than this shape—C—. It all depends on how you file and what your cutters look like. Filing lower into the tooth makes your cutting angle sharper and more aggressive. To get a saw to feed on its own (without pushing down or using the dogs) with a C shape may only require .020” gauges. The higher the file is held, the more blunt and durable (or dull) it will be, but can easily require .035” gauges to feed on its own.

Most who mention .050” gauges are doing so because the chain is dull and can’t sharpen for shít

 

[Philbert]

Hard to remember what has been said in these similar threads, but it also depends on the power of the saw.

An aggressive chain that pulls on a high powered saw may bog down, or rattle your bones, on a lower power saw, even in the same wood.

Figure out what works for you.

Philbert