Can the bar of a chainsaw be flipped upside down?

[mldollins]

I read somewhere that you are supposed to do that periodically.


thanks

[Old_Town]

It's a good practice. Allows for more even wear.

[rambler]

Yup.

--->Paul

[tinknal]

You should do it every time you sharpen your saw.

[Rick]

Also.....the groove in the bar is precise and any trauma to the bar can make the groove too tight which is not good.

For the benefit of the OP, am myself...

Does anyone grease the sprocket at the tip of your chainsaw bar?

[pheasantplucker]

I always do

[tinknal]

Bars can also go "out of true" through wear. Anyone who sharpens chains professionally can true them up for you.

[salmonslayer]

You know I have used a chainsaw for years (literally decades but much more in the last few years) and have never done this or even thought about it but it makes sense. Goes to show even an old dog can be taught new tricks.

[Oldcountryboy]

I flip mine over, but only about half way through it's life. When it starts getting worn looking on one side then I'll flip it over and cut for another year or two before I buy a new one.

[Cabin Fever]

Yes, I flip my bar and grease the sproket once per day.

[Allen W]

I flip the bar every time I swap chains. I threw my sprocket nose bar in the trash.

[Spotted Owl]

Originally Posted by Rick

Does anyone grease the sprocket at the tip of your chainsaw bar?

If you start greasing your sprocket nose don't ever stop. We used to grease in big wood but found that it didn't have any noticeable gains. So we stopped. I don't for sure know what happens when you stop grease but I do know that it can mess things up. The grease may get hard, collect dust and pack in I don't know but I have not met a person who stopped greasing and had things go well. A chain breaker should have a nose punch to pop the rivets so you can change you nose out when needed. Greasing really isn't needed. Open your oiler to max and you will have enough bar oil flowing that you should not need to grease the nose. Even when it's cold add a splash of gas to the oil jug and that will keep it loose enough to flow good and get where it needs to be.

If you don't flip your bar now and then, you can feel an edge that build on one side of the rail or the other. Flipping will keep this from happening and keep the wear even. If your not paying attention and it gets far enough that edge will and does cut like a knife. It will also keep you chain life up as well. That edge will cause wear on the bottom of your straps and will wear out your chain before the cutting life is used up. A smooth file and draging it with the rails, with the bar in a vise, will bust that edge down in short order. Just be sure that you use even pressure on either end of the file.



Owl

[haypoint]

Originally Posted by Spotted Owl

If you start greasing your sprocket nose don't ever stop. We used to grease in big wood but found that it didn't have any noticeable gains. So we stopped. I don't for sure know what happens when you stop grease but I do know that it can mess things up. The grease may get hard, collect dust and pack in I don't know but I have not met a person who stopped greasing and had things go well. A chain breaker should have a nose punch to pop the rivets so you can change you nose out when needed. Greasing really isn't needed. Open your oiler to max and you will have enough bar oil flowing that you should not need to grease the nose. Even when it's cold add a splash of gas to the oil jug and that will keep it loose enough to flow good and get where it needs to be.

If you don't flip your bar now and then, you can feel an edge that build on one side of the rail or the other. Flipping will keep this from happening and keep the wear even. If your not paying attention and it gets far enough that edge will and does cut like a knife. It will also keep you chain life up as well. That edge will cause wear on the bottom of your straps and will wear out your chain before the cutting life is used up. A smooth file and draging it with the rails, with the bar in a vise, will bust that edge down in short order. Just be sure that you use even pressure on either end of the file.



Owl

Good advice. But even flipping the bar, the chain will wear the edges of the rail. When I put a new chain on, I grind the bar in the area where the chain rides to the original flat shape. You can do this until you have ground off so much that the chain's groove following tail bottoms out. Then, you'll need a new bar.
Sometimes the bar groove can become worn, allowing the chain to slop around, side to side. Not much fix to that.

[countryboy84]

I flip mine every time I put on a new chain. Makes the bar wear even and last longer. if you run your bar one way it will start to either pull to one side making a slant cut due to wear or it will rub to high on the chain and wear it some. I have notcied the cheaper the bar the more important it is. My little cheap saw that I use for grub work and topping needs flipping more. But that bar only runs me about 20 bucks. My timber saw is good at every new chain which is about 4 days of sawing, then again this bar runs me almost 90 bucks so quaility of the bar really counts.

[Cascade Failure]

I flip the bar when it starts cutting to one side or the other. At that point I also check for burrs or wear and file as needed.

[overthrow]

I'll flip the bar about once a week when I'm working in the woods. Also if you are getting much of a bur that needs to be filed off too often, you probably need to keep the chain a little tighter. A loose chain will ride on one side or the other and wear out the bar much sooner.