I see this thread has been resurrected. Nice!
I have used both of my carbon bars a little bit by now, and they do just fine. I’ve had a few inquiries if I can make them for other people too, so I’m looking for someone with a mill, who can help me out with cutting them.
In all honesty, the stiffness of the bar depends a little on what bar you start out with.
The 32” GB bar I got from
@Jon1212 was quite a bit stiffer, and nicer quality, than the cheap Laser bar I used for the 36” project. I never got around to doing the stiffness tests, but it’s clear that the Laser bar is more whippy than the GB.
Going forward, if I can make more, I’ll probably start with Oregon PowerMatch bars. They are consistent quality, tried and true, and available anywhere.
I’m sure there are many ways to make them better than what I’ve done, but they’re working very well for a hack like me. I haven’t used either of the 32”-36” for felling yet, so it’s all been bucking cuts and play, and the flex doesn’t bother me. My RW Oregon 34” bar isn’t any less whippy, for that matter.
Jon’s idea was to make a true homemade reduced weight bar, which he did a great job with. I took it one step further, and incorporated a few tools that most people don’t have in their homes, although my buddy does. Lol
It would be cool to see someone take this further, and really engineer it, even though at that point we’re getting further and further away from homemade.
I see the last posts address the concern about temperature, and the epoxy’s ability to handle it. In my experience there hasn’t been any issues with the epoxy. At all. I’ve done some long cuts with them, and many in a row. No sign of any stress or softening anywhere. The saw porters use the same epoxy I used, inside the jugs, to get the numbers where they want them. I have the feeling a jug gets at least as warm as a bar under operation. Lol
This is probably the longest post I’ve ever written. Good Lawd!!!