Barnacle Parp's Chain Saw Guide is a must have book for the shop or coffee table. It's the penultimate chainsaw collector's handbook, complete with technical drawings and explanations on everything from adjusting your carburetor to building a cabin in the woods... with yer chainsawr. This vintage guide answers your chainsaw questions in real english and Barnacle Parp's distinctive style. Long out of print, we've been lucky enough to develop a used stock of these hardcover 1977 gems. See other books we have here.

A Chain Saw Troubleshooting Guide

Occasionally, in one of your periodic examinations of your chain, you might spot a problem with some part, such as a cutter. When you do, use the picture guide here to identify the problem and thus discover its probable cause and remedy.

Not all cutting problems are immediately apparent to the eye, especially if chain saws are new to you. It's impossible here to cover completely all the potential saw chain problems, but if you experience a performance problem, try to identify it from the following chain saw troubleshooting paragraphs.

Chain cuts crooked; cuts at an angle; engine drags: If your bar and sprocket are in good shape, these problems are caused by filing the cutters at different angles or by inconsistent filing pressure from tooth to tooth. A chain that is sharper or longer on one side will pull to that side. Refile to restore uniform cutters, and reset the depth gauges. Check bar rails and tang clearance.

Chain dulls quickly: The most common cause of this problem is thin or feathered cutting edges caused by holding the file handle too low or by pressing down too hard on the file. A misaligned, worn, or wrong-pitch sprocket will also cause the chain to wear or dull quickly. Check the sprocket for wear and to be sure it's the correct size. Refile cutters using lighter strokes with the file held level or at a slighter angle, no more than 5 degrees from horizontal. Also check and lower the depth gauges, and check the chain tension often.

Chain has been filed but won't cut; powders wood instead of chipping it: Blunt cutting edges are produced by holding the file too high on the face of the tooth or by holding the handle too high. Refile with a clamp-on file guide.

It's a 200+ page, old-school resource for easy to follow guidance for chainsaw buying, repairs, upkeep, and chain sharpening. Got vintage saws? A Homelite Super XL-925 or a big Pioneer? This book has the specs.

Ever wonder what a 'stickler' log splitter is? Find out with Barnacle Parp's Chain Saw Guide.