Small chain saw chain

[Donald]

I have an 8" gas pole saw. Kakei sells the chains 3 for $20 on Amazon. Does it even make sense for me to sharpen them? Or bring them to Ace to be sharpened. OK, it's not an Oregon chain, but it's a pole saw not a normal chain saw.

Anyone heard of Kakei chainsaw chains?

 

[Rand]

are they the right pitch and width for your saw?

It never hurts to touch them up with a file but if you sawed dirt or a nail.. yeah I'd toss the chain and move onto next one.

 

[Hirev]

Give them a try. I have a little Dewalt 8" pruning chainsaw for around the house and out 4 wheeling. I just buy the amazon chain cheapies for it and it does what I need it to do. Just don't think these small cheap chains are worth my time to sharpen.

 

[Cujet]

Pole saws really don't need safety chains. As long as the engine makes sufficient power, a full or semi chisel chain works fastest. And the branches up high are generally not loaded with sand or dirt, clean work so to speak. So the full chisel chains last. My point is that a cheap chain on a pole saw makes life way more difficult. No idea on the quality of the chain you mentioned.

 

[Chris142]

It literally takes 5 minutes to sharpen a chain with that round file thing and you don't have to remove the chain .

 

[IndyIan]

Google seems to think Kakei chains are decent, so they probably are "good enough".
Just watch some youtube on how to sharpen them yourself, its not rocket surgery. And you'll probably never have to buy another chain for the life of the saw, unless you really like cutting the ground.
I can't be bothered to buy a few chains, then have to take them somewhere, and then pay someone to grind 20% of the life out of them each time, and then have to pick them up again...
It saves time and money to touch them up yourself, and you can pretend you are a real lumber jack for a few minutes!

 

[wwillson]

If you have the right file or sharpener for the pitch of the chain, then sure sharpen them. It's quick and easy, just wear leather gloves in case you slip. Ask me how I know.

 

[rstsco]

If you're going to be cutting enough where one chain is going to get dull and need another, buy the 3-pack and swap out the first chain with a sharp one. Then at some point when you're not busy, sharpen the dull chains for the next time you need them. On an 8" saw, it might take more effort to swap chains than just sharpen the one already on the saw.

 

[martinq]

I have an 8" gas pole saw. Kakei sells the chains 3 for $20 on Amazon. Does it even make sense for me to sharpen them? Or bring them to Ace to be sharpened. OK, it's not an Oregon chain, but it's a pole saw not a normal chain saw.

Anyone heard of Kakei chainsaw chains?

I've got a cheap battery saw to tinker with but I quickly found out how useless it was. I was able to swap out the chain, bar and sprocket for Stihl parts and now the saw it actually useful. Not good, just useful.

I would not recommend spending money on cheap chain, get Oregon or Stihl if you can. Your local dealer should be able to make what you need if it's an odd size or not stocked. The saw is only as good as the chain and you want the most efficient cutter to make the best use of your battery power.

 

[martinq]

For easy & effective sharpening, look for a file with a guide like this:

 

[spasm3]

I would get decent chain. Oregon, carlton, stihl. I don't like pole saws to be grabby, so I use semi chisel. Unless it's electric, a pole saw does not have a lot of power until revved up.

 

[Zaedock]

I hit a piece of metal in a tree with my 32" bar on my MS660. No way I was tossing the chain. I used my Oregon bit in my Dremel and touched up with a hand file after and she's good as new.

Kakei chains a fine for a pole saw. They're not used often. I would probably touch it up out of the box with a hand file and run it.

 

[martinq]

I hit a piece of metal in a tree with my 32" bar on my MS660. No way I was tossing the chain. I used my Oregon bit in my Dremel and touched up with a hand file after and she's good as new.

Kakei chains a fine for a pole saw. They're not used often. I would probably touch it up out of the box with a hand file and run it.

FYI it's possible to replace a tooth or two on a chain if the damage was localized, otherwise a lap on a powered chain grinder will fix it right up in the right hands.

 

[scrowley]

Heck yah. learn to sharpen the chain.