Thread: Sharpening Makita electric chainsaw

Are you sure you haven't accidentally triggered the chain brake?
OTOH you would not have been able to run the saw with it on

Yes Bob I thought of that and tried multiple combinations. My other thought was that I am not as strong as I used to be and just need a stronger bloke to drag the chain around.

Take the chain off and sharpen it.

Originally Posted by bruceward51

Yes Bob I thought of that and tried multiple combinations. My other thought was that I am not as strong as I used to be and just need a stronger bloke to drag the chain around.

Other than using your hands,
Put the bar in a vice and try putting a metal rod or bolt across the back of a cutter and wearing gloves hold both sides of the body (one side in each hand a pull the rod towards the nose.

Just buy one of these, cheap, quick and spot on. Ozito 85W Chainsaw Chain Sharpener - Bunnings Australia

It should always be possible to touch up with the chain on the saw so that the chain can be sharpened quickly in the field.
Only two or 3 swipes should be required with a file or file guide. If you need more that this you have probably let the chain go too far.
Even for the 42 and 60" bars on my sawmill I just use a hand file.

I think the problem is the reduction gearing. To move the chain, it has to spin the electric motor via the gearing, many, many times.
Rgds,
Crocy.

Originally Posted by BobL

Other than using your hands,
Put the bar in a vice and try putting a metal rod or bolt across the back of a cutter and wearing gloves hold both sides of the body (one side in each hand a pull the rod towards the nose.

Good suggestion Bob I will give that a go. I often hold the bar in the vice anyway. But I think Crocky might right about the gearing, so taking the chain off might be the safest way. What a pain and a big flaw in the design I think.

I had one last go at advancing the chain by hand, but it would not budge, so I removed the chain and held it in a small engineer's vice by the drive links. I could sharpen two teeth at a time and I found it easier to file than normal, because the cutters were more firmly held. This is not ideal for mid-job touch-up, but perfectly fine for the final sharpen before putting the was away, because I store it in a box with the cutter bar off.
And I don't use it a lot, just convert the occasional log into bowl blanks for the lathe at my Men's Shed (my new workshop is far too small for a lathe, so doing all my turning at the Shed these days).
I still think it is a significant design flaw not to have a safe way of advancing the chain when sharpening the saw.
Thanks for the suggestions everyone.

Originally Posted by bruceward51

I had one last go at advancing the chain by hand, but it would not budge, so I removed the chain and held it in a small engineer's vice by the drive links. I could sharpen two teeth at a time and I found it easier to file than normal, because the cutters were more firmly held. This is not ideal for mid-job touch-up, but perfectly fine for the final sharpen before putting the was away, because I store it in a box with the cutter bar off.
And I don't use it a lot, just convert the occasional log into bowl blanks for the lathe at my Men's Shed (my new workshop is far too small for a lathe, so doing all my turning at the Shed these days).
I still think it is a significant design flaw not to have a safe way of advancing the chain when sharpening the saw.
Thanks for the suggestions everyone.

You can always hold just the bar in the vice, mount the chain on the bar and then slide it all you like.
Check this out.

Averages out to 3.4s per cutter to touch up.
Note how I move the cutter to the same location - that way I get more reproducible filing angle

Not a bad idea Bob, but I think a bit more complicated than it looks. The video does not show the whole setup, but he seems to have some way of keeping good tension on the chain. I tried just using the cutter bar on its own (some time ago), but the chain is not held firmly enough to file effectively. Sometimes the teeth roll sideways, changing the slope angle, sometimes the chain link rotates lengthways, and sometimes the chain moves along the cutter bar.
I think if I used the saw a lot, it would be worth making a jig to hold the chain in tension, but for the amount I need it, holding the drive links directly in the vice is bearable.

Originally Posted by bruceward51

Not a bad idea Bob, but I think a bit more complicated than it looks. The video does not show the whole setup, but he seems to have some way of keeping good tension on the chain.

That's me in the Video and I have nothing but the weight of the chain generating the tension. Admittedly its a chain for a 42" bar so it has more weight that usual. h\However, You could make a hook up out of some wire and hang that and some weight off that under the vice.

I tried just using the cutter bar on its own (some time ago), but the chain is not held firmly enough to file effectively. Sometimes the teeth roll sideways, changing the slope angle, sometimes the chain link rotates lengthways, and sometimes the chain moves along the cutter bar.

This suggests the bar and or chain are worn so the bar bar gap needs to be closed up.
Trying to close the bar gap using blunt force like a hammer will just end up cracking the rails so there is a tool for that and it looks like this home made job

Finished1.jpg

Starting near the bar bolts end of the bar the bar rails are sandwiched between the two bearings and the blunt short knife rides inside the bar gap. The whole thing is then pushed or pulled back and forth along the bar towards the bar nose. The bearings space is then adjusted a bit narrower and the same action repeated until the chain sshits upright.

Originally Posted by bruceward51

I must be missing something here, but this has me stumped.
I have a Makita UC4041A electric chainsaw but I can't work out how to advance the chain when sharpening. I have read through the manual several times, ...

I did have the very same problem and it took me quite a while to figure out what causes this. Actually your chainsaw has a brake. When you switch the saw on, you need to press the safety button on the left side, then you can trigger the switch. When you release that switch, the chain stops immediately.
If you don't press the safety button on the left, the machine won't start but you'll notice that you can pull the switch partway through. This is the part that releases the brake. As long as you hold it you can easily pull the chain around the guide bar.
And nope - it's not in the manual. They really should add that info.

Andy

Is this the button?
Screen Shot 2022-03-21 at 3.01.19 pm.png