Why would my chain pull or cut to one side?

Several things can make a chain cut crooked or pull to one side. The following are the causes and the remedies:

Uneven top plates can cause a chain to cut crooked. It’s important to keep all top plates equal length.

Dull cutters damaged by rocks can cause a chain to cut crooked. It’s important to remove all damage from cutters prior to cutting. Cutting with a dull chain can accelerate wear to the bar and chain.

Different depth gauge settings from left to right. Keep all depth gauge settings equal from left to right.

Different top-plate angles from left to right. If you sharpen your chain at a 25º setting on your left hand, your right-hand cutters should match.

# A worn guide bar. A badly worn bar cannot be repaired. If your system is cutting crooked and you have narrowed it down to the bar, more than likely the rails or the inside of the bar are damaged beyond repair.