Product Knowledge Guide Product Information Maintenance Trouble Shooting
Your Link To Quality At TriLink® Saw Chain we believe that quality is the key to success. Our guide bar and saw chain factory is ISO 9001:2000 cer tified. This cer tification gives our customers the confidence that they are buying from a company that is committed to providing quality products and services.
Saw Chain Building Blocks 4-7 Understanding Saw Chain 8 - 11 Maintaining Saw Chain 12 - 15 Saw Chain Maintenance Errors 16 - 17 Saw Chain Wear 18 - 19 Guide Bars Understanding Guide Bars 20 - 21 Guide Bar Building Blocks 22 Maintaining Guide Bars 23 Guide Bar Failures 24 - 27 Sprockets Understanding Sprockets 28 Sprocket Failure 29 Additional Info Kick-Back Prevention 30 - 31 Reference Guide and Notes 32 - 35 This manual is provided to help you maximize the performance, life and ef
04 The Building Blocks of a Saw Chain Safety Saw Chain incorporates ramped depth gauges to allow smooth high speed cutting while reducing kickback and vibration. Safety saw chain is low kick-back UL tested and approved.
Rivet Hubs Flange Bearing Rivet Hole(s) Centri-Lube™ Channel Rivet Tang Drive Link Rivet Hole(s) Guardlink (Safety Link) Guardlink Safety Saw Chain The Building Blocks of a Saw Chain 05
06 The Building Blocks of a Saw Chain Professional Saw Chain is designed specifically for professional cutters. Professional saw chains are engineered for fast, smooth cutting at high speeds in clean cutting conditions. Professional saw chains are not UL low kick-back tested.
Rivet Hubs Rivet Hole(s) Flange Bearing Rivet Centri-Lube™ Channel Tang Drive Link Professional Full Chisel Saw Chain The Building Blocks of a Saw Chain 07
08 Understanding Saw Chain PITCH PITCH is determined by measuring t he distance between the centers of any 3 consecutive rivets and dividing by two. ÷2 GAUGE of a chain is the thickness GAUGE f the drive link measured at the tang. o It’s essential that the drive link thickness correctly matches the width of the groove in the guide bar. KERF is the width of the cut in the KERF ood made by the saw chain cutter.
SAW CHAIN SEQUENCES: There are 3 different sequences of saw chain: Full Complement Chain: One tie strap between each cutter Semi Skip: Chain pattern alternates one tie strap and two tie straps between each cutter Full Skip: Chain has two tie straps between each cutter (half the cutting teeth of full complement chain) CUTTER STYLES: Leading Edge Semi-Chisel Cutters have a smaller radius than the Chipper Cutter’s leading edge allowing it to stay sharper longer and cut faster in dirty and gritty c
Understanding Saw Chain Better lubrication increases the life of your chain Lubrication is the key element in maintaining and extending the life of your chain and guide bar. Lack of proper lubrication develops friction between chain components and the guide bar. This results in decreased cutting performance, lower chain life, and increased stress on engine and drive components.
CUTTING MOTION Understanding how your TriLink® Saw Chain cuts is important in understanding how your chain will wear, the proper manner in which to maintain your chain, and getting the most life out of your chain. When making a cut, the Cutter will catch, rise, roll, and fall as it travels along the guide bar. WO O D SURFACE The Cutter’s leading edge CATCHES the wood surface. GU IDE B A R WO O D SURFACE GU IDE B A R The depth gauge sinks into the wood and causes the Cutter to RISE off the guide bar.
Maintaining TriLink Saw Chain WARNING: Dull chains are dangerous! The safest saw chain is a sharp chain. The sharpest chain is a new saw chain. As your saw chain ages and wears, we highly recommend either replacing the saw chain or maintaining and keeping it sharp. TriLink® Saw Chain highly recommends following the manufacturer’s recommendations. SHARPENING CHAIN Use the correct size file guide and file for your saw chain.
STEP ONE: Choose correct file size. Be sure file is tightly fit into the guide groove. Then, press the file guide so it rides on both cutter top plater and depth gauge, with guide marks in line with the length of the chain. Top View File N Guide Fit Up Guide Marks STEP TWO: File all cutters on one side. Move to other side of chain and file all cutters opposite to complete sharpening. File all cutters identically.
Maintaining TriLink Saw Chain CHECKING AND ADJUSTING After sharpening a chain’s cutters 3 or 4 times with a round file, it is necessary to check the height of the depth gauge. To do this: 1. Place depth guide tool over chain, near mid point of guide bar, so that the chain’s depth gauge extends through slot. 2. If the cutter’s depth gauge extends above the slot in the depth gauge, file the cutter’s depth gauge down with flat file until it is level with the depth gauge tool.
Depth Gauge Setting New Cutter Depth Gauge Setting Depth Gauge Setting Cutter Filed Down Depth Gauge Untouched Cutter Filed Down Depth Gauge Filed Down Once cutter has been filed, the leading edge, when viewed from the side, should hook slightly forward (A). The cutting edge at the outermost tip of the top plate should be slanted at 60°. The chain will cut best when all cutters are filed to the same length (B).
Saw Chain Maintenance Errors Improper maintenance of saw chain will cause failures in your timber cutting and your saw chain. Most saw chains are not properly maintained and therefore are not used to their full cutting efficiency. SHARPENING ERRORS There are several common errors when sharpening your saw chain that will cause failure in your saw chain and shor ten your saw chain’s life. One of the most common errors occurs when the leading edge is essentially filed away.
The opposite of a backslope cutter is a HOOKED cutter. A hooked cutter is caused by filing too far down from the leading edge, or filing with a file size that is too small. Hooked cutters will catch the surface and your saw chain will cut, however, your chain will dull much quicker. When the chain becomes dull the user’s natural response is, again, to apply more pressure which will lead to increased wear and possible breakage.
Saw Chain Wear Errors in sharpening your saw chain will increase the wear on your chain, shor ten your chain’s life efficiency, and increase the possibility of chain breakage. SIGNS OF SAW CHAIN WEAR The natural response when a saw chain is not properly cutting is to apply more pressure to your chain saw. The additional applied pressure translates into additional tension, friction, pressure, and heat on saw chain and guide bars.
Low depth gauges will cause wear on the guide bar rail, however, it will also show wear on the cutters. The wear patterns seen on a cutter from a low depth gauge will begin to show on the heel of the cutter (as shown in gray below) and in time these wear patterns will match the low depth gauge setting. WEAR MATCHES DEPTH GAUGE SETTING TriLink® Saw Chain is industrially chrome plated on the top and side plates of all cutters. The industrial chrome plating helps the leading edge hold it’s sharpness.
Understanding Guide Bars TriLink® Guide Bars are designed to provide a guide and suppor t rail for the moving saw chain. Our guide bar types include: Mini Laminate Sprocket Nose, Laminate Sprocket Nose, Replacement Sprocket Nose and Hard Nose. TRILINK® GUIDE BARS TriLink® MINI LAMINATE SPROCKET NOSE BARS have a single bearing inside a rotating sprocket located at the tip of the bar.
TriLink® REPLACEMENT SPROCKET NOSE BARS have a solid steel body with a replaceable sprocket nose tip. This tip can be changed as it wears out without having to replace the entire bar. These bars are manufactured for high speed, heavy duty saws and are preferred by the professional and semi-professional cutter ; available in 16” - 42” configurations.
The Building Blocks of a Guide Bar Sprocket Roller Bearings Saw Chain Lead-In Edge Adjustment Hole Mounting Slot Sprocket Rivet(s) Bar Groove Bar Rails Oil Hole Bar Rails Mount Body Sprocket Tip
GUIDE BAR MAINTENANCE There are three major points to remember when maintaining your TriLink® guide bars. First, inspect the guide rails and oil holes to make sure they are clear of saw dust and dir t. Keeping both the rails and oil holes clean ensures the optimal lubrication. File Burrs Away From Rail Clean and Check Bar Groove Second, check your guide rail for any imperfections; this can mean burrs, cracking, twisting, or uneven rails.
Guide Bar Failures DAMAGED RAILS Over time, guide rails may become worn and uneven. These damaged rails will cause your saw chain to cut unevenly through the timber. As the saw chain travels through the guide rails the cutters will pull the saw chain in the direction of its cut. When a cutter is angled to the left it will pull the chain to the left and when angled to the right a cutter will pull the saw chain to the right.
In addition to poor saw chain maintenance, the added pressure and friction of forcing a cut will lead to damage and wear on your guide bar. Heat will continue to build up from the added pressure softening the guide bar rails. The additional pressure from the saw chain on the chain lead-ins will bend the guide bar rails outwards. BENT RAILS PINCHED RAILS The risk of pinching the guide rails is also high when applying added pressure to your cut.
Guide Bar Failures DAMAGED NOSE Improper depth gauge settings will cause damage to your guide rails at any location of the guide bar. The nose of a sprocket nose guide bar, though, is susceptible to additional damage and wear. When cutting with a saw chain that has too loose of tension additional material wear will occur.
The nose of a guide bar that has been twisted or pinched will create additional friction in and around the sprocket. This additional friction will cause discoloration to the nose area of the guide bar. This excessive damage will result in a replacement guide bar being needed.
Understanding Sprockets SPROCKETS Drive Sprockets are as impor tant to your chain saw as the engine and the saw chain. The Sprocket is the stepping block between the power from the engine and the saw chain using centrifugal force to drive the chain. There are two types of sprockets. SPUR SPROCKETS are a machine produced, one-piece solid construction. Spur sprockets incorporate both the clutch drum and the drive sprocket into a single piece.
As your saw chain wears, naturally, so will your sprocket. When a new chain is placed on a worn out sprocket your new chain will wear quicker, matching the wear of the sprockets and creating a ‘stretch’ effect in your saw chain. The reality is that this ‘stretch’ is actually the saw chain trying to fit into the wear on both your sprockets, essentially creating an improper pitch on the sprocket.
Preventing Kick-Back Essentially, TriLink® Saw Chain carries two types of chain: LOW KICK-BACK (SAFETY) and PROFESSIONAL chain. PREVENTING KICK-BACK Low Kick-Back chains are specifically made to reduce the kickback energy, however they do not completely eliminate kick-back. There are two types of kick-back: LINEAR KICK-BACK and ROTATIONAL KICK-BACK. A clear understanding of both of these will help in reducing kick-back.
CAUTION: Kick-Back can lead to dangerous loss of control of the chain saw and result in serious or fatal injury to the operator and anyone standing close by. GUARD AGAINST KICK-BACK ALWAYS use two hands to operate the chain saw. KEEP the saw below shoulder height as this gives you, the operator, better control over kickback reactions. MAINTAIN a balanced stance with the left elbow braced as straight as possible and the handles held firmly between the thumb and fingers.
ANSI Standards REFERENCE GUIDE CHAIN SAW MAKE TRILINK CHAIN PART NO. TRILINK GUIDE BAR PART NO. NOTES: CHAIN SAW MODEL TRILINK FILE AND GUIDE SIZE TRILINK SPROCKET NO.
NOTES: Reference Guide and Notes 33
Notes NOTES:
NOTES: Notes 35
www.trilinksawchain.com TriLink Saw Chain, LLC 4400 Commerce Circle Atlanta, GA 30336 404.419.2900 1.877.492.9829 TriLink Saw Chain Sales P.O. Box 661 Ponte Vedra Beach, FL 32004 sawchainsales@trilinkglobal.com 904.285.
