Does sharpening angle matter?

[Hipa Store]

If a chain ships sharpened at a 35 deg angle, but I decided to waste some time and reshape it to 30deg for some reason, will it cut just as well as a chain that was 30deg from the factory? I'm not asking if 30 is better than 35, I'm just wondering if chains have any intrinsic angle that each cutter design works best at, or if the angle is totally independent.

[Edward Weber]

To answer the question, NO, 30 degrees will not cut as well as 35 degrees, if it was designed for 35.
Chainsaw chains are extensively designed and tested to cut at a specific angle. There is always some room for error built in, because part of designing a chain is knowing how it will be used and maintained.
Intentionally changing the angle from it's original setting is fruitless.
If you don't like how it cuts, get a different chain.

[Bill Dufour]

I would suppose it does matter. Chains are generic for average trees with average cut approaches.
We all know different blades work better in hard or soft woods, rip or crosscut. What angles do ripping chains use? I would think diamond or carbide chains need more support behind the tooth and would use a more obtuse angle .
Bill D.

[Kev Williams]

No law says you can't experiment-- a 30° angle (assuming 2° would be akin to a razor blade) should cut easier and/or cleaner than a 35° angle, but the trade off is edge longevity. Likewise, a 40° angle likely won't cut as nicely, but a 40° edge should last longer than tighter angles...

I am of the opinion that everything 'reasonably generic' we buy that has "a specific purpose" (and I would consider a chainsaw as reasonably generic) is designed for what the engineer considers the 'best average' use. I've been engraving things since I was 13 years old, soft plastics, hard plastics, woods, aluminum, brass, titaninum, steel, stainless steel, hardened steels, and no one tool or edge on that tool works for all of them. Wood is very much like metals, can be dead soft balsa to near rock hard exotic Brazilian hardwoods.

IMO, sharpen your chain to whatever works best for the wood you're cutting :)

[Bill George]

For someone selling chainsaws and parts this seems like a strange question?

[John Lanciani]

I like using very obtuse angles when I'm feeling sharp.

[Edward Weber]

Click-bait.
Hipa Store is a SMC Sponsor

[Jason Roehl]

This website is my go-to on all things chainsaw-related, and has been for nearly 20 years:

https://www.madsens1.com/copy-of-sharpening-maintaining-squa


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[mike calabrese]

i don't use a chain saw but can offer this thought.
It might come down to horse power. A 35 degree blade most likely would bite less than a 30 degree blade thereby taking less HP and allowing the saw to operate at a higher RPM. The RPM is important because things like piston driven engines have an efficiency and torque band where best performance is obtained at a relatively small RPM range in the overall RPM range of the engine.
The 35 degree angle could simply be the profile that best supports the engine operating conditions.
Lastly keep in mind manufacturers like to brag about performance so they build features that will demonstrate the target performance metrics when tested in the ideal condition. But when you get it home and cut down that sapling tree it could be a whole different story.

To that end a joke.....big burly guy goes into town to get his tree saw repaired and sharpened.
The salesman asked the man how many trees can you cut a day with that saw.
Man replies 3 or 4 if I work at it.
Salesman; how about trying one of these new fangled chain style saws guaranteed to let you cut at least a dozen trees in the same anount of time.
Man well I don't see how that could be possible.
Salesman tell you what I will gurantee this saw to cut at least twice as many trees a day than you are cutting with your hand saw or I will double your money back.
Man buys the saw ....couple days later he returns to the store to get twice his money back.
Salesman asks how many trees didi you cut in a couple days????
Man says I got 4 the first day and worked really hard the second day and only got 6 down and that ain't like you said so I want my money back.
Salesman says OK but first let me test the saw it might be a defective unit.
Salesman starts up the saw and reves it up....... the man jumps 3 feet in the air and says what the heck its that noice and all that smoke about?????
calabrese55

[Bill George]

This website is my go-to on all things chainsaw-related, and has been for nearly 20 years:

https://www.madsens1.com/copy-of-sharpening-maintaining-squa


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Excellent very helpful.