SawShark angle consistency – or am I just bad at this?

I noticed the same thing at first. Took me a bit to realize I was pushing harder on one side of the file than the other. Once I evened out my pressure and let the guide do its job, the cuts came out much closer to uniform. It’s not magic, but it’s definitely more consistent than freehanding it.

It does take a bit to get the hang of. I think the guide just makes sure the file stays straight, but your hand still controls how much pressure goes on each side. I noticed my cuts looked better once I slowed down and stopped rushing through the teeth.

I kind of went through the same thing when I first got mine. I kept checking the teeth after every couple of passes and convincing myself one side was getting more work than the other. Turns out I was holding the whole thing slightly tilted without realizing it. Not the file stroke itself, but just how I had the tool seated on the bar. Once I started paying attention to that before even starting, the results evened out a lot.

That said, I do think there’s a ceiling to how consistent it can be. It’s not like a machine that does everything for you. You still have to build a bit of a rhythm with it. I will say my chains definitely cut smoother now than when I was trying to freehand it, so even on my worst day it’s still better than what I was doing before.

I also found that I was being too picky with how perfect the angle looked on each tooth. Sometimes under good light they look slightly off to me, but the chain cuts fine and stays sharp for a decent amount of time. So I stopped obsessing over it and just went with how it performed rather than how it looked.

Curious though, are you comparing the teeth visually or just judging by how it cuts?

I get more even results when I slow down and do fewer passes per tooth.

I think a little variation is pretty normal, honestly. I have a cheap older chain that I use for practicing and the teeth still come out looking slightly different no matter what I do with the guide. On my newer chain it’s much less noticeable, so I guess part of it is just the condition of the chain itself.

I’m still on my first SawShark and honestly I noticed the same thing early on. Then I realized I was rushing through it and pressing way harder on one side without noticing. Once I slowed down and started paying attention to my own grip instead of just trusting the guide, the teeth looked a lot more uniform. Still not perfect, but close enough that the saw cuts straight.

I think some of it comes down to how the file sits in the groove on each tooth. I noticed mine looks worse when I let the tool drift toward the end of the stroke, so now I just focus on keeping the same pressure the whole way through. It isn’t perfect but it’s close enough that I stopped squinting at it.

The guide helps keep the file at a consistent angle, but it doesn’t control how level you hold it against the tooth. I found that if I let the tool tip slightly while filing, the angle changes even though the guide is still in place. It takes a bit of a steady hand no matter what.