Chainsaw mishaps: I've pinched many bars, but never a chain. Is it salvageable?

[Sjalabais]

So today I was set back a few hours when a willow fell and got stuck in a gorge. Ended up having to remove the bar and chain at one point. The chain ended up being slightly bent. It -barely- fits in the bar at this piece.

Question is, can I lovingly whack it back straight? Or wouldn't you do that on a thing that is basically a few dozen very speedy knives in front of your face?

[sonofsven]

Sure, do what you need to in the field to finish the job, but if it doesn't cut right, replace it.
Try arching it against itself one way, then the other way, see if it loosens.

[Gone Fishing]

Steel is subject to stress fatigue and is more likely to break if it has been bent and straightened.  Not to say I haven't made some dubious repairs over the years, but a new chain is around $15-25.  Do yourself a favor and replace it.  A chainsaw is probably the most dangerous machine a homeowner will use, other than a car, no reason to chance it.

[Fishindude]

a new chain is around $15-25.  Do yourself a favor and replace it. 
A chainsaw is probably the most dangerous machine a homeowner will use, other than a car, no reason to chance it.

This is the best advice you are going to get.   Would be wise to follow it.

[BudgetSlasher]

I am going to second third replacing it.

Depending on the chainsaw size you can get a chain for pretty cheap (heck you can get a 14 inch bar and chain for less that $30).

As a homegamer, I wouldn't chance a bunch of damaged knives flying around at 55-to-60 miles per hour.

[svosavvy]

a new chain is around $15-25.  Do yourself a favor and replace it. 
A chainsaw is probably the most dangerous machine a homeowner will use, other than a car, no reason to chance it.

This is the best advice you are going to get.   Would be wise to follow it.

+1 to all this.  The other thing to consider is metal that doesn't ride perfectly in the bar will generate a lot of friction fast.  You risk damaging the bar and making your motor work harder.

[Sjalabais]

Well, I agree with you guys (even though I'm in Norway and a bar and a chain of this kind are 1200 NOK/140 USD). Put the bent chain in a box and will likely never use it again.

[Car Jack]

I would tend to straighten it.  Not in the field, however.  I always go out with 2 saws, so I would tend to just use the other one while working.  Later, the chain goes into a vice and I'll pull it straight.  I've done the same for a bent bar.  I probably have a dozen chains of various amounts of wear, so may or may not use the fixed, straightened one right away.  I have had a couple chains break while cutting wood.  Never any drama.  Chain just stops and it's obviously broken.  Pro cutters would take a broken chain and work in pieces from other old chains and repair it.  I have not gotten that hard core.  There is a relatively recent youtube video talking about it being way cheaper to buy a drum of chain and make your own to fit your saw/bar.

[Fishindude]

Regarding chainsaws ... If you do much cutting, you really need two saws as one will eventually get pinched and you need the other to saw it out.   Also handy if one happens to quit running or run poorly for whatever reason.   You also need multiple chains for each saw and should change to a sharp chain, the minute a chain becomes dull and starts cutting slowly.   

Get the tools and learn how to sharpen your own chains.   They will last a lot longer and you will never use a dull chain again which is safer and speeds up your work.

[Sjalabais]

I sharpen my chains every 3h and can't understand how people can work with tired chains that produce sawdust instead of big flakes. Taking 2 saws is also out of the question, I walk from home and the forest here is on a steep mountainside, often breaching the 30° threshhold for avalanches and landslides. So it's a slippery, difficult place to work in and I can't carry two. But I tend to do as described aboved: Take off the bar and hand-saw or jiggle around the tree it is stuck in.

@Car Jack, my bars mostly get pinched at the wheel at the tip. Have you managed to repair damage like that? I have tried and failed a couple of times