Change the chain on the chainsaw

Why a chainsaw gets dull

Everyone knows the annoying condition when a knife does not want to cut through the meat - it is blunt. The wear and tear of the sharpness of a tool is a natural phenomenon that humans will probably never do away with entirely. Even with relatively soft media, such as meat, every cutting edge has to be sharpened again and again by whetting or grinding in order to maintain its usability.

• Wood is a material that is certainly not considered to be particularly hard, but nevertheless offers a certain resistance to a cutting edge. If you look at the high cutting performance of a saw chain, it becomes clear that the sharpness has to wear out relatively quickly.
• With a dull chain, the performance of the chainsaw can drop so much that manual labor becomes competitive again. At the same time, fuel consumption increases disproportionately.

This is how the chain is changed

If you notice that the cutting speed has decreased significantly and the saw must be pressed into the cut with gentle force, it is high time to change the chain.

1. Park the saw and slacken the chain as instructed in the instruction manual. Then you can unscrew the cover from the drive and remove the blunt chain. Beware of the hot parts on the internal combustion engine, especially the muffler.


Using the chainsaw correctly - this is how it works

In almost every craft activity that is related to wood, ...

2. The sword is turned every time the chain is changed so that both sides wear out evenly. Now place the sharp chain on the sword so that the tips of the teeth on the underside, i.e. the cut side, point towards the motor. A chain placed the wrong way round will run, but will not cut at all! Now put the sword with the chain back onto the guide. Make sure that the chain does not slip out of the groove.
3. Put the cover on and screw it on loosely. Now the chain has to be tensioned to the correct size. A slotted screw on the drive side is usually used for this purpose. The correct tension is achieved when the chain can be lifted about 4 mm on the middle of the bar.
4. Try turning the chain by hand to check the movement. Caution - risk of injury! If necessary, it must be retightened again. Now the cover screws can be tightened and working with the chainsaw is fun again.