The Cross-Brand Experiment: Putting an Oregon Chain on a Stihl Bar – The Results are In!

Finding the right type of chain to fit your Stihl chainsaw bar is an arduous challenge to be fulfilled. It is a trial and error process whereby you must try out multiple chains on the Stihl bar before any would fit perfectly. 

Oregon manufactures manufacture chains for various reasons and purposes. Every chain option you pick from Oregon is composed for a specific reason and will only deliver the purpose that is meant to serve and none other. 

Commonly Oregon chains are made to be utilized on different chainsaws. But will an Oregon chain fit a Stihl bar? This is a difficult task that has to be taken care of, and you cannot proceed with serving an inaccurate chain on your Stihl bar as it would deteriorate the equipment to a great extent. 

Will a Oregon Chain Fit a Stihl Bar? 

To address your concern, will an Oregon chain fit a Stihl bar, certain factors would have to be considered.

Typically the company, Stihl, prefers that users replace their initial chains on the Stihl bars with Stihl chains and refrain from resorting to any other brand.

However, the situation has transformed drastically with other companies emerging and producing chainsaw chains.

Users now have a wide range of readily available options to pick and choose from, meaning that Oregon chains are also now an alternative for them to be used on Stihl bars. 

We will discuss four necessary prerequisites in the following section and, if aligned with your Stihl bar, will make the Oregon chain possible to fit on the chainsaw.

Four Prerequisites 

Length of Bar 

Typically, the length of a bar is used only to describe the type of model that the brand is selling. However, if you want to measure the length of your bar, then begin measuring it from where the spot on the bar is and proceed until the tip of the bar. 

The chainsaw bar usually measures 16 to 20 inches, but to a broader extent, the measures can go up to ten to 42 inches. Bar measurement is equally necessary to buy a chain because you would not want to invest spending on a chain shorter or longer than your chainsaw’s bar. 

Fortunately, something to your ease is that the measurements of the bars are always in even numerics and never in odds, so it would be convenient for you to know the measures. However, do take into account the other three factors too.

Drive Lugs Number 

These drive lugs, otherwise known as links, are placed underneath a chain. Seeing them takes work and demands vigilant observation to spot them. Drive lugs permit the chain to easily rotate within the bar while the chainsaw is at work. 

So you need to know the number of drive lugs screwed under the chain because it will give you more knowledge about the sort of chain you need for your replacement. 

Also, be cautious while counting the drive lugs and only do so when the chainsaw is not inserted in the plug because there is a likely chance for the saw to start running while you are at work for counting. 

Pitch of Chain 

Pitch of a chain is roughly the distance that stands between the three installed rivets and holds the chain’s drive links altogether. To understand this more efficiently, you can say that pitch of the chain is the size of each drive link found beneath the chain. 

An accurate number of the drive lugs and the chain’s pitch will only provide you with and lead you to purchase an almost perfect chain, as the length will be exact. Measure the pitch of the chain from the centers. 

Gauge of Chain

A chain gauge is the precise thickness of the drive link. If the link is highly thick, it results in binding as the chain freely moves around the bar. However, if it is thin, then there is a chance for the chain oil to spill and for the chain not to be in motion continuously. 

For this reason, the thickness of the drive link should not be at all compromised. And if you do, then with that, you must also anticipate a full of inconveniences of the chainsaw whereby the chain will constantly be dislocating itself from the desired position. 

The chain gauge is measured in millimeters so you can have the proper and best measure. So instead of a measuring tape, utilize dial calipers for measurement.

Conclusion

An easy answer to your concern is that it does not matter whether the chain is an Oregon or from another brand. You are good to go if you have accurate measurements of the four stated parts.

Therefore, whether a Oregon chain fits a Stihl bar is highly dependent on whether Oregon has manufactured a chain per your measurements of the chainsaw.