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Thread: Where to get rip chains?

  1. #16
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    Ripping chains are really meant for milling logs with the so called Alaska mills and similar, that is across the log and then going down the log to make planks and beams from logs.
    For sawing your pieces of log into bowl blanks, you don't need a ripping chain, I would classify a ripping chain on a handheld saw a not so safe setup, and there's just no need to use a chain like that.
    Most every turner that saws his own blanks does use a regular chain, and lays the log on edge and saws with the grain while holding the saw at a slight angle so the shavings don't get toooo long and plug-up the saw.
    Also a ripping saw doesn't work well for cutting across the log to cut your log into shorts, and you than would need a regular chain and change it every time, not something I want to do ;-))
    Have fun and take care

  2. #17
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    Dec 2008
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    Cary, NC
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    Rip chains

    Mike, I took the cheapo way to get a rip chain. I ground the tips off an old chain that I had. I tried to duplicate the way the teeth are on a ripping blade for the tablesaw. As I have used and sharpened this chain, I have gradually ground the leading edge of the tooth almost completely across. Oh, yeah, I gring the cuttung edge at 90 degrees to the bar.

  3. #18
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    Jan 2010
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    West Virginia
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    I use Baileys as well, very satisfied! I have used ripping chain to cross cut with no problems. As stated earlier in the thread, it isnt really a special chain but the teeth are filed in a way that can promote kick back so care needs to be taken nonetheless.

    I wouldnt spend the extra $$ however, a regular chain works well, just keep it sharp and block your log up so it doesnt move around.


  4. #19
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    Jul 2008
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    Ken I found with half the amount of teeth and the square grind that the chain didn't cut as well as a regular chain, just IMO, and yes it is also more likely to kick back, as I referred to in the "not so safe setup" .

    Thanks for adding the mill picture that should make it more clear as for what this chain is really made for
    Have fun and take care

  5. #20
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    Dec 2005
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    Richmond, VA
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    Skip tooth isn't a ripping chain, it simply has fewer cutters and is typically used on longer bars to avoid bogging when in a large cut (much like you want fewer teeth in the wood on a bandsaw when resawing).

    A rip chain has the cutters ground at about a 10 degree angle (almost square across the top) to better slice endgrain. Ripping in general causes the saw to be a bit grabby and want to bounce as you are starting the cut, especially if you cut down through the end of the log, as opposed to the length of the log. Kickback, regardless of cut/chain, etc is from the upper half of the tip of the bar contacting the wood, thereby pushing the bar up and back (quickly). Avoid that, and you avoid kickback almost completely.

    As has been noted, Baileys online is probably the best source for saw supplies and they have rip chains in most any size. But as has been said, unless you have a saw that is dedicated to ripping, you probably don't need it. A regular chain (full chisel, semi chisel, safety, whatever) will do the job on short logs for turning blanks. Just take your time and keep the long stringy shavings from clogging the saw.

  6. #21
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    Dec 2007
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    Ivy, VA
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    Jake is right on the money. Ripping has nothing to do with the number of cutters. There are skip tooth rip chains, and skip tooth crosscut chains, and full comp (full complement of cutters) chains of both rip and crosscut. Rip chains have generally a 10 or 15deg. top angle, sometimes 5deg. "Regular" chains, i.e. those made for typical use, and not fixed position cutting-(milling), are generally 30 or 35degrees.


    You do not need rip chain for a farm boss. It is not meant to do that kind of cutting. You can cut a single, 16-18" log in half along the grain (as described--NOT down the length of the end grain), very easily with a standard chain. Don't complicate things! Trust me; you don't want the number of chains and saws, and different angles, bars, etc.
    Last edited by Nathan Hawkes; 09-01-2010 at 4:24 PM.

  7. #22
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    Jun 2009
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    Western Maryland
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    Thanks, guys. It looks like I may have been down the wrong path. While I wouldn't mind a dedicated chain for when I'm cutting blanks, this seems WAY too complicated to be worth the effort. I'll just stick with my regular chains. At least now I know, if I ever DO need a rip chain, I know where to find them.
    I drink, therefore I am.

  8. #23
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    Washington's Coast
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    I have the Farm Boss and use a skip tooth. 33 RSC3 84 Stihl chain. I get great results ripping with it. Just finished making bowl blanks out of well seasoned walnut chunks with no problem.

  9. #24
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    Apr 2010
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    Adelaide Hills, Australia
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jake Helmboldt View Post
    Skip tooth isn't a ripping chain, it simply has fewer cutters and is typically used on longer bars to avoid bogging when in a large cut (much like you want fewer teeth in the wood on a bandsaw when resawing).

    A rip chain has the cutters ground at about a 10 degree angle (almost square across the top) to better slice endgrain.
    Exactly.

    I use a 'square chisel rip/skip tooth chain' on my 72cc chain saw with a 28" bar. For me it's worth changing bars and chain when I need to rip a batch of larger blanks up to that size. Skip chain is needed to avoid clogging on cuts of that length. I don't bother with a bar/chain changeover if it's a batch of 12" blanks.

    Carlton make a chisel/rip chain.

    .....
    Neil

    About the same distance from most of you heading East or West.

    It's easy to see the Dunning-Kruger Effect in others, but a bit of a conundrum when it comes to yourself...



  10. #25
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    Jun 2009
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    Western Maryland
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    Okay, I just found out a little info. Thought I ought to post this because I ripped (no pun intended) my local Stihl dealer for not knowing what I meant by a Rip Chain.

    When Tony came over to cut up a bunch of wood with/for me, he had a chain that was under the impression was a rip chain. It did such a good job, that I must have just assumed it was one. Tony PM'ed me the numbers associated with the chain that he uses. I went to my local dealer again, armed with what I want, and here is the explantaion:

    The chain Tony was using (which, BTW, did a fantastic job...) is what Stihl refers to as a more aggressive chain. The pitch and number of the teeth are the same as the regular anti kickback chain. There is a difference though... When looking at the tooth (head on with the sharp edge pointing at you) the normal chain is rounded over on the side. The aggressive chain, from the same view, is however not rounded over and at a 90 degree point. In other words, what it looks like they did (figuratively speaking) was they took the aggressive chain and used a roundover router bit to soften the sife edge of the tooth...from the front view. This makes the the aggressive tooth a faster cutter, BUT much less forgiving when it comes to hitting things that can dull your chain...like rocks and dirt.

    So, I am now the owner of a total of 3 normal chains (for cutting firewood) and 1 of the aggressive chains for when I want to cut up chunks for blanks.

    Hope that created a little perspective for anyone that was as confused as I was...
    I drink, therefore I am.

  11. #26
    Join Date
    May 2006
    Location
    Iquitos, Peru
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    796

    Ripping chain

    For ripping hardwood cants to manageble size peices I simply file down the guide between the teeth to allow more depth per cut. Works great. I have at least 20 teams in the jungle and they cut about 1000 bf per team per day and no damage to the jungle with a large tractor. The young kids in the families carry out the cants up to 6 or 7 kilometers and dont even break a sweat.
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  12. #27
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    Jun 2009
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    Western Maryland
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    Ummmm, what kinda wood is that? For those boys to be carrying those be pieces, they must not be that dense? Right?
    I drink, therefore I am.

  13. #28
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Manistique, Michigan
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    I have never used a rip chain, so I cant comment on the advantage.

    Cutting the rakers down like Jim suggests does make the saw cut faster, but especially in hardwood, it can make the saw kick much easier - just a warning - not knocking the advise. I keep the rakers cut on my saw to optimize the chip size and speed.

    Remember, a kick back normally happens when the top 90 degrees of the tip is cutting. I try to avoid this situation.

    When I was a young and working in the woods for my family's logging business, I had a 16" bar. Large aspen was interesting to cut with a short bar and was where I had issues with kick backs. The 16" bar might not fit all the way through the pieces I now cut for turning. The shorter bar might make it more difficult to keep the tip out of the wood, depending on the size of wood you are cutting.

    The saw I now have for firewood and now turning, has a 20" bar. I have yet to cut a piece that the tip of the bar did not stick through. I also have not had a kick back yet due to clogging. My saw has the dogs where the bar mounts to the saw, so I use these to apply pressure to the bar while cutting.

    My saw is a 365 Huskvarna and is around 5 HP. I dont really have a power issue.

    IMHO, the most important safety feature on the saw is the chain brake. These new saws are so much different than the saws we used back in 70's. On my new saw, the chain brake is activated if the saw kicks back toward you (up) or if it kicks down. It took a while to get used to this when I got my new saw 5 years ago, but I really like it.
    Last edited by Rich Aldrich; 09-25-2010 at 10:12 PM. Reason: Spelling Errors
    Thank you,

    Rich Aldrich

    65 miles SE of Steve Schlumpf.

    "To a pessimist, the glass is half empty; to an optimist, the glass is half full; to an engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be." Unknown author



  14. #29
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    Western Maryland
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    Thanks, Rich. Yeah, I too, have a 20" bar...on a Stihl Farm Boss, though. Likely that your saw is much more of a saw. My Stihl is just fine for me and what I do (4 cords of firewood a year, and now getting into turning). A friend of mine has the saw (I believe) that you have. Yeah, it cuts faster. But it's a beast. It is in a different class.

    I, unlike you, have buried my my tip many times. I fell a couple of oaks about 3 years ago that were 32" and 36" at the base. Ended up taking them to the local mill and selling him the 10-12 foot logs.

    The reason for my posting this thread was that I originally thought I kinda needed a rip chain for cutting up blanks. It seems that there are plenty of folks that don't use them or even any kind of modified chains and get by just fine. I thought that like regular wood working, unless you have a combo blade, you need dedicated blades for ripping and crosscuting. I didn't really realize that unless you are doing this for extended periods or a living, a normal chain will work just fine.

    When Tony was over, the chain he had on his Stihl Farm Boss (with a 20" bar) was the "aggressive" tooth cut chain that local Stihl dealers carry. It cut great, not clogging much if any. It went through Oak burl, Walnut, Cherry, Dogwood, and some others quite sufficiently quickly for my taste. Sure, there are probably other chains that will be more efficient, but I don't sharpen my own chains. I used to, but at $4 a pop for the dealer to do it, it really isn't worth my time. I have 4 chains for my saw. When three are dull, I take 'em in to town. So modifying them would mean me taking care of them. I think I'll be set for now. I do have a little research to do based on an email I just got, but think I'm gonna be set.

    Thanks, everyone for your replies, comments and advice. I love this place. The knowledge base is so deep. Experience from the casual to the expert. And since I fall somewhere in there, hearing all of it was perfect.
    I drink, therefore I am.

  15. #30
    Join Date
    Mar 2009
    Location
    Orleans, Cape Cod, Ma.
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    758
    Saw chains are mfg'd in numerous configurations for assorted special and general operations. The shape of the cutting link, coupled with the various sharpening angles and the number of cutting links per foot in association with the style of raker link or links all go into making a useful chain saw chain. By design, some styles are very safe, but there are others that by design are very dangerous. 3 of the same style chain, all sharpened/tuned differently, might perform in a different manner from one to the other. It is not rocket science, but there is much to know about chain saw chain. And even the people who make a living every day with one, or more, of these roaring death threats don't often agree on what's better or best. Most retailers and marketers may not know enough to send you in the right direction, but there is enough info as near as a computer keyboard to answer nearly any questions. Below are some pics, showing cutting link configuration. The links that join the cutters have many configurations and uses, as well. Sorry about the small size os some, but enlarging causewd pixelation.
    Attached Images Attached Images

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