its that time again

i thought we had missed most of the snow then down it came couldn't do anything outside so i lit the fire up in the potting shed and set to sharpening my hedge-cutting kit i started off on the grinding wheel that was in the workshop it was bl...dy cold no heating then back to the potting shed to a lovely wood fire finished the billhook slashers with a carborundum stone  it doesn't seem that long since i was hedge-cutting last year and now ITS THAT TIME AGAIN!!

then i set about the chain saw a friend of myne has got a chain saw set and sharpener going to take it to him to set and sharpen after that i will sharpen it myself with a saw file for those of you who sharpen there own chain saw whats the best way you find to sharpen your saw as iv been told you need to get the same angle with the file when sharpening for a good cut

i use my chain saw for hedge-cutting and some wood cutting

The elderly fellow I take my chains to uses an electric grinding wheel, and we do as well. He gets the angle better (from years of experience) so for $5 I let him do it. Doubt anyone else would do it so  cheap as he's retired and bored. Hope you're aware that you can sharpen the chains only about 3 times before they'd done for.

We sharpen our own, Jimbo uses an electric grinder but when I did my chainsaw licence I was taught the proper way with a file (after all when you are out in the woods there is no electric available  ). We have just spent the day chopping down willows.

I'll move this to the Equipment Shed. The Equipment Barn is intended more for smallholders and the like.

I believe the correct angle is 30 degrees. Fixing some sort of jig to that angle is the best way. The electric grinder will sharpen most of the blade followed by a few flicks of the hand file to take off any burrs.

thanks all for your help and advise i did purchase a new chain and got my friend to sharpen my old chain on his machine he said there was still some life left in it
so ime going to use it for cutting fire logs etc and the new one for hedgcutting 

you would believe it i fixed the new chain on the saw started hedgcutting was cutting a piece of thick elder out the hedge when sparks started coming from the chain i stopped immediately and checked the chain it seemed OK so i sharpened it and did another cut lower
when i examined the old cut  it had a piece of wire bedded in the middle of the wood it must have been there some years thankfully the chains cutting alright still you don't want know what i said when this happened