I have a 026 Stihl with a "16 bar that I have been running Oregon chains on mostly because of the savings compared to the Stihl brand. Any one here think the Stihl chains are worth the extra money?

Grassy azz.. BP...

i buy the yellow stihl chains. they cost more but the cut is unreal on them. the oregons are ok too but don't seem to cut as well. but then again i only cut maybe 3-4 cords a year plus some trimming.

I run Stihl chains I guess because they are handy. Saw shop keeps them in stock.

I am on an arborist site and some of those guys run only Stihl and some run whatever they can find cheap.

Never used Stihl chain, but use Oregon, older Carlton and Windsor chain without any issues on bars ranging from 12"-42".

YES!

Chinsaw?

I think you may be the first to actually put those letters together.

When a razor just won't cut it


Mike

I run Carlton's

Oregon chains are the best saw chain made! Haven't seen a logger in the northwest running anything else for years! The highest quality saw chain made in the world!

Stihl OEM...only chains that go on my 250, 291, 362C.

+1

I use Oregon and Carlton. Have never seen an advantage of the Stihl chain on my Stihls and run more Huskys than Stihls for saws now. Not cutting softwood though.

Followup:

I love my Stihl chains, but I've heard that Oregon makes just about all the chains for the industry.

Heard that more than once at my local Stihl dealer.

If you really want to hear it from a pro-in-the-know, ask Scott F.....Scott Fairing worked in the industry for some time.
He's the real deal as far as chainsaw chains go.

Only one word as far as chain goes QREGON!!!all the rest are just want-a-be's

I just bought the 30rc chain from Baileys. Bought a 24" bar and chain combo for about $50.

Cuts great.

Yes,

Stihl chains are harder than any other brand, I used to sharpen them and it took about half again as long to sharpen a Stihl chain than it did any other brand.

I would put Oregon chain as second best as far as strength and quality go.

If you want a chain that really lasts pick yourself up a Stihl carbide chain, you'll wonder why you never change chains.

Also remember to get the correct chain for the job.....Full chisel chain for clean wood and semi chisel wood for dirty wood.

Dirty wood would be the wood that is lying on the ground or wood on the outside of the forest or wood on the edges of dirt fields, clean wood would be the wood on the inside of the forest.

Stihl makes their own chain, If your dealer is telling you that Oregon makes Stihl chain he's lying to you.

Stihl Chain.

Norelco's ain't bad. I hear Braun's are pretty good too. LOL

Stihl chain is Swiss made.

Nothing wrong with Oregon.........

But you see the difference the minute you file it.

If you are bucking for hours and hours.......stihl.

Learn something new every day! Figured there was a reason their chains were so good. Thanks for pointing that out.

A Chinsaw is a really dull Gillette.

Any information I have would be old and may no longer be true. I worked for Carlton Chain and was involved in some of the comparison testing. At that time Stihl had problems with adhesion in their hard chrome plating. They came a poor third in all trials with Carlton and Oregon. I still like Carlton but in reality Oregon and Carlton are neck in neck. Sadly Oregon bought Carlton several years ago. Ray Carlton and his son Mike are probably doing RPMs in their graves.

Yup, Stihl chains is several points harder than other brands.

The question is what type of wood are you cutting and what causes your chain to dull. If you're running your chain through dirty wood, or just can't keep the chain out of the dirt, then there is no advantage to the harder Stihl chain. If you're quickly dulling your chain due to running it in the dirt, just go with the cheapest chain you can find and change it out regularly.

If you're running in clean wood and want to run all day without swapping out loops, I'd suggest using Stihl chain.

The biggest key no matter what type of chain you run is run sharp chain, swap loops as soon as the chain dulls, and properly sharpen the chain. Properly sharpened chain has every tooth filed to the same angle, and the depth gauge set to keep the depth of cut the same as the chain is sharpened. A couple licks with a file is not properly sharpening a chain, it's a quick field touch up for a chain that is starting to dull, but no more.

Is Carlton a "western" thing? I'd never heard of this before joining here. All I ever see are Stihl and Oregon here whether at a true shop or big box type store.

Not as far as I know. Last couple of loops I bought were Carltons that I got at a saw shop in Statesville.

Stihl is what I use, they last a lot longer.

I worry more about tooth shape and lack of safety features than brand. If it has that dam folded over raker, it ain't worth spit. Round filed chisel chain only here, never tried the flat chisel.

The Stihl chains seem to stay sharp a bit longer for me than the Oregon's do.

No, it can be found in some Pro shops. It is not on the shelf as Carlton but they did make all McCulloch chain when I worked there. In those days Oregon was the biggest, Carlton second Stihl third, and Winsor a poor forth.

Back in the day when I was logging and also had a Dolmar chain saw dealership, I used and sold Windsor saw chain. It was an ok chain and I could get it right from the distributor that I dealt with on the Dolmars.
I suspect that is the way it is now as well with most brand of saws. You buy what you can for resale.

I've used all brands of saw chain and they all worked well if you didn't saw into the ground!

People tended to be way to brand oriented. But it was good for business and I still get people asking me about Windsor chain(I think it was discontinued or bought up) and Dolmar saws. Dolmar still continues to make a darn fine chain saw.

Thankfully I'm retired now, but as Arch and Edith sang,"Those Were The Days"

When I was young and first married, we lived next to an older guy, Ray, who lost his hand in a sawmill accident when he was really young. He taught me how to touch up a chain, as you say. That would last for awhile, but eventually I would bring it to a shop where they's hog off half the meat on each tooth. Are there any tutorials out there on how to do it, and what's needed besides a file? I'd like to learn the right method. I only cut a few cords of fire wood per year. Thanks

Gotten away from using a file.

I use one of these. Works excellent. Easy.

https://www.amazon.com/Oregon-30846...p;sr=8-3&keywords=chainsaw+sharpener

Stihl Brand Chainsaws are the only ones we run at the Ranch.
The only other brand I would even consider would be the Husqvarna.

Like the old saying goes "you get what you pay for" is especially true when it comes to chainsaws.

Had a "friend of a friend" take me on an unofficial plant tour of the Stihl facility in Guelph Ontario several years back. Stihl makes the majority of their own chain and bars for North American service parts in Guelph, Ontario. As well as bars and chains for several other manufacturers. Including the name brand that starts with "O"... Not saying they make ALL of the bars and chains for the other brands. However, they make a goodly number. Same steel. Same machinery. Same processes. Witnessed it first hand.

As I've stated before, my power equipment dealer sells Stihl and services what he sells. I buy Stihl saws and chains.

I picked up one of these used on flea bay for about $100 shipped



The key with a grinder is to take extremely light cuts. The grinding wheel should just through off a few sparks from each tooth, and then advance it slightly and repeat. The temptation is to take a big honking cut thinking you need to take a bunch off to get a sharp chain, but all that does is over heat and ruin the teeth and wear the chain out prematurely.

I carry plenty of spare loops with my when I cut, swap out when they are the least bit dull and then sharpen them at my leisure on the grinder.

Thats the way we do it too. Just barely enough to see that you have new metal up at the top and its sharp. No more, no less.

Keep a handful of chains, sharpen when you get home.