Anyone ever use one of these Oregon PowerSharp systems. Apparently, the kit includes the bar, chain and sharpener. I saw it on "Ask This Old House" and was amazed. Besides the price (~$70.00) there must be a drawback.
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I guess the initial investment would be for just the sharpening attachment, a new bar & chain may raise that price a bit. It looks like an innovation that could be ideal for many folks.
I will follow up on this........hopefully they have a ripping chain such as I use in my Alaska type chainsaw mill. The frequent sharpening of the chain is a huge drawback to production. This would indeed cut downtime drastically.
Being a cheap SOB, I guess the minutes I spend sharpening is a good deal. About 5 minutes start to stop works for me. At $70. I can sharpen a lot of chain.
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it may work it may not work but either way WHY fix what isn't broken
file holders and guides are cheap and last maybe not forever but thousands and thousands of sharpenings most peoples forever
files do not last forever but a 4 pack of files is maybe 5 bucks thats less than a dollar a year on saw sharpening for most users
so you keep your manufacturers bar and chain so you can find them easy even if you may be away form the dealer that carries this contraption
you save your self a bunch of money and you still get very sharp saw chain in a few minutes , and you need a break after 40 minutes of cutting (thats how long my saw runs on a tank of gas)
education on how to properly sharpen a chain with a file and a vice to hole your bar will have you cutting and saving money and getting much more wood out of a chain than you ever thought possable
i am 2 years on one chain 5-6 cord a year as long as i don't hit any nails i think 2 more years is possable to expected would be longer but i did at one point hit a rock and it took a lot off the cutters
also i don't see how this system adjusts the gauge part of the cutting link , this is important and done with a file that is smooth on the small edges , how you get those nice big chips again
24 dollars for a very nice stihl sharpening kit in a case with the files the holder the gauge the flat file for gauge adjustment and your all set , maybe add a vise to your truck , tractor or trailer or a stup vise if you cut deeper in the woods
never had a chain last long enough to need sharping. I got a piece of crap huskvarna that even with a brand new bar and chain the tensioner is over half way done and it doesent take much sawing before its has no more adjustment.
never had a chain last long enough to need sharping. I got a piece of crap huskvarna that even with a brand new bar and chain the tensioner is over half way done and it doesent take much sawing before its has no more adjustment.
Oh wow!
A chain should be sharpened after 4 to 8 hours of work. If you are seriously wearing out saws before you sharpen the chain you are killing your saws by not sharpening. My Stihl has gone through at least 5 chains. It is 30 years old and is still going strong. You REALLY need to learn how to sharpen a chain.l
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Flaming Xtian
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Mahatma Gandhi
My son is a faller for a local timber company. When he's working, he sometimes goes through 3 chains a day, depends on the species. He just uses a file, sharpens his chains every evening, but he appears to have a whole bunch of them, so it isn't the same chains every day. He looked at the sharpener above and said "it's a gimmick". So there you have it from a someone who swings a chainsaw 8 hrs or more a day.
never had a chain last long enough to need sharping. I got a piece of crap huskvarna that even with a brand new bar and chain the tensioner is over half way done and it doesent take much sawing before its has no more adjustment.
Could you get a link or two taken out of your chains? "My" Stihl guy sells chain anyway you want it... short or long.
The sharpener looks interesting... will try and save up some bandwidth to watch the youtube video.
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Sears had BARRACUDA POWER-SHARP chains on their saws in 1970's.
I had a small McCULLOCH with a BARRACUDA chain that cut fine, UNTIL
I tried the POWER-SHARP, then it wouldn't cut without the cut curving/dishing to the right. I ended up buying a standard chain.
I use one on my Poulan. Never had a problem following instructions, it always works for me everytime. I trim trees, I whack back my lilacs, fence lines - no time loss is important for me.
tinknal I'll try to not take offense. I cut at least 7 or 8 cords a year as well as normal farm work with it so its not like it only cuts for a day. considering its out of adjustment before it ever gets dull should say something about my sawing skills. texican I have had that same idea but haven't found a way to do it with the husky chain, we do it at work but that chain is bulk and made for that. I think its poor design that it starts out with only half the adjustment with a factory chain.
Don't buy it this is a money maker for them plain and simple. I drove saws for a few years and still do as often as possible a file or a conventional grinder is the way to go. I ran full comp and skip(big wood only), average bar was 32", smallest 24" biggest I ran was an 18 footer with twin 084s one on each end. With a bit of patients and practice you should be able to file a 32 loop 5min. Keep a couple loops around for spares to keep you working through the day and file at night. Just be sure you don't get to deep into the tie straps.
There is no schedule to sharpen a chain. When it's dull change it out or sharpen it. The best modification you can do to a saw is be sure you have a sharp chain. One of the worst things you can do is horse a dull chain.
rancher1913: Find someone with a chain breaker. Take out a link or two and respin it. At the but of the bar by the mounting holes should be a drawing of a chain and a number. That number is the number of drive links that should be in your chain.
if i am cutting in deep snow i can get 80 minutes maybe 120 out of a chain before i feel like it really needs sharpening but usualy if i don't sharpen at 2 gass ups i am regreting it by the 3rd but usualy 40 minutes i gas , oil , sharpen a 20 inch bar with 72 link chain takes a few minutes to sharpen with a file about the same amount of time as to swap chains , but i don't have to stop to re tention if i sharpen on the saw
i even own the grinder type that is mounted to the bench , same as they use when you bring your chain in to the dealer , i find even that takes much more than nessacary to bring the edge back out on a chain.
you wouldn't see a butcher take a good knife to a power wet stone every time it was not at it's optimal sharp a butchers steel would be used to dress the edge back to cutting optimal they go thru knives fast enough throwing them away at the grinder is just a waste.
2-3 strokes on a cutter is enough to bring the edge back out
give it a try i think you will find you cut more wood even with the time spent not cutting
Sears had BARRACUDA POWER-SHARP chains on their saws in 1970's.
I had a small McCULLOCH with a BARRACUDA chain that cut fine, UNTIL
I tried the POWER-SHARP, then it wouldn't cut without the cut curving/dishing to the right. I ended up buying a standard chain.
first saw i ever had (1973) had one of those from sears!! cut lots of trees with it but abandoned the power sharp option after 2 chains!! wore the chain out much faster than hand sharpening and did not sharpen the chain worth a hoot!~!
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I think it is made to sell not to use . When we were logging full time we got our files by the dozen mixed the saw gas five gallon at a time . Went threw lots of chains and bars . Loggers don't refer to sharpening a saw blade they refer to sharpening a chain Chainsaws have a bar and chain not a blade an ax has a blade .
When we were logging full time we got our files by the dozen mixed the saw gas five gallon at a time . Went threw lots of chains and bars . Loggers don't refer to sharpening a saw blade they refer to sharpening a chain 
Chainsaws have a bar and chain not a blade an ax has a blade .
