Chainsaw

Looking for a chainsaw.
I know there was a thread a while back but no search feature and after scrolling through dozens of pages going back to the start.
Cordless vs gas.
The cordless are pretty spendy for the batteries and most reviews say limited battery life.
I can spend $350-$400 for a gas powered one and still be $150 less than the battery ones.
Household/lake lot use. Not cutting wood for a living or anything.
Something reliable, big enough to cut the odd bigger tree down but mostly 4-6″ size branches and trunks.
I remember 16′ -18″ bar as what would work for my needs according to the thread I was reading 12″ seemed a little limiting.
Sure I am missing details that would help but any advice?

Does This LINK help?

In going to switch to battery. My age and some health issues are why. Don’t want to pull the rope to start the saw. Plus a little more stealth when clearing my shooting lanes.

If you don’t already have the batteries, IMO it is still difficult to justify the total price of the good electric saws including a battery and charger.

For occasional use saws, owners could eliminate the VAST majority of problems experienced with gas saws by:

1. Run only the premixed gas OR run ethanol-free gasoline and preium oil.

2. Do not mix any more than 1 gallon of fuel at a time.

3. This is the most important. When you are done using the saw and it is going to be stored for any period longer than a week, follow this porcess:

– Start the saw and warm it up.
– Drain all fuel from the saw’s fuel tank and return it to the fuel can or dispose of it safely.
– Restart the saw and run it until it dies.
– Drain all bar oil from the bar oil tank.
– If you have no other use for the 2 stroke fuel you mixed, put it in your car or truck to burn it up. Don’t save fuel unless buying the premixed fuel an then abide by the “use by” date on the can.

Complete the above process and your saw will be good to go the next time you need it.

I recommend a professional series saw from any of the big manufacturers – Pro saws do everything better. $400 won’t quite get you into a professional model with an 18″ bar.
If $400 is your top end, the Ranch or Farm models do pretty well, just stay away from the cheap brands … Poulan, Homelite, Craftsman. And maintain it. Look for Husqvarna, Stihl, Echo or Jonsered.
I recommend a saw with an 18 inch bar for most use. A saw with an 18″ bar usually has the power to do fine for occasionally felling trees, and a longer bar gives you a bit more reach for bucking and limbing with less bending or reaching.
To run an 18″ bar efficiently, you’ll want the powerhead to be at least 45cc’s – over 50cc even better.
Do some research on chains, most homeowners barely know how many links they need. The chain is very important to how the saw will perform. Hardwood, softwood, bucking, limbing, saw rpm’s and power, and skill of the user. Have at least one spare chain, and maybe more than one type for different tasks.
Please purchase and USE safety gear – eye/ear/head protection, gloves, and a pair of chainsaw rated chaps or pants. If you cut your Femoral Artery with a chainsaw, you typically have 45-60 seconds to get a tourniquet on it before losing the ability to stand or even yell for help. Once blood pressure drops to this point, you are seconds away from bleeding to death. Chainsaw chaps are not chainsawproof at all. On contact, the chain pulls strands of the material, which balls up in the chain and causes it to jam up and stop rotating. So even with protective gear, you can still do extreme damage. So more importantly, use common sense and stay within your skill level.

I have had the dewalt 60V chainsaw with a 16” bar for a year now. I have nothing bad to say about it. I still have a big jonsered 20” for the really big stump cuts but 98% of the time the dewalt is all I need.

Buy a Husqvarna and be done with it.

if you have the batteries already got that route. If not it is personal preference. I have a Husky with a 14″ bar that does 90% of my cutting, I prefer a lighter saw for all day use vs. my bigger ones. I even drop fairly large trees with it when I forget my big saw, it just takes more time coming from both sides. I also have a 311 Stihl with a 20″ bar for the bigger stuff and it does OK but is a heavy beast to lug around. My favorite saw was my old Sachs-Dolmar, that thing had 2X the power of my Stihl for about the same weight, that thing was awesome, just couldn’t find parts for it anymore so I sold it.

I myself prefer the Husky line, they typically have a lower max rpm and more low end torque. I can bury the bar on my Husky and when the rpm’s start to drop it can muscle it’s way through….the Stihl runs higher rpm’s but once it starts to load up it can stop the blade fairly quick. Another ok saw are the Echo brand, they make one of the better engines but are a bit heavier as well. For what you are doing I would say skip the weight and go with a 14-16″ bar/saw.

Also make sure and keep the chain sharp, I sharpen at the start of each day and again about half way through. I also sharpen if I touch any dirt. A sharp blade makes a big difference.

Last fall bought a Echo CS3510 16 INCH BAR . 8.2 lbs 2hp . Beats my Jonsered 2065 Turbo weight wise 13.2 lbs for the power head only. Look at a Stihl 180 also these smaller gas saws can do alot with in reason .

Piggybacking on this thread – I’m looking for something newer, lighter, and smaller as well. I’ve currently got an old Stihl that you could hear from miles away with a 24″ bar on it. It runs fine and there’s nothing wrong with it, but I could use something lighter and newer for bucking trees or just clearing brush close to the house.

What specific models of the newer Stihls or Husquvarna’s do you guys recommend? A 16-18″ bar seems it’d be ideal.

I was surprised how heavy the good electrics actually weighed, seemed pretty close to my Husky.

I purchased a Stihl Farmboss with an 18” bar last year and upgraded to a pro chain. Would highly, highly recommend.

Echo is the best bang for your buck saw out there.

onestout wrote:

if you have the batteries already got that route. If not it is personal preference. I have a Husky with a 14″ bar that does 90% of my cutting, I prefer a lighter saw for all day use vs. my bigger ones. I even drop fairly large trees with it when I forget my big saw, it just takes more time coming from both sides. I also have a 311 Stihl with a 20″ bar for the bigger stuff and it does OK but is a heavy beast to lug around. My favorite saw was my old Sachs-Dolmar, that thing had 2X the power of my Stihl for about the same weight, that thing was awesome, just couldn’t find parts for it anymore so I sold it.

I myself prefer the Husky line, they typically have a lower max rpm and more low end torque. I can bury the bar on my Husky and when the rpm’s start to drop it can muscle it’s way through….the Stihl runs higher rpm’s but once it starts to load up it can stop the blade fairly quick. Another ok saw are the Echo brand, they make one of the better engines but are a bit heavier as well. For what you are doing I would say skip the weight and go with a 14-16″ bar/saw.

Also make sure and keep the chain sharp, I sharpen at the start of each day and again about half way through. I also sharpen if I touch any dirt. A sharp blade makes a big difference.
[/quote
Unless something has changed I think you got it the other way, Husky has high RPM, Stihl low end torque.

Stihl!

Ok, you can close this thread now.

3rdtryguy wrote:

I was surprised how heavy the good electrics actually weighed, seemed pretty close to my Husky.

Yeah, I have a 40V DeWalt. I really like it, but it isn’t lightweight.

I have a Echo cs-400, it’s been a fantastic saw, absolutely no problems whatsoever, easy to start, I use Amsoil synthetic at 80 to 1, non-oxy gas, keep the chain sharp and it’ll do whatever you need and more.

I’ve liked Stihl for lots of dealers for service and parts. But if I need chain oil or basics on a Sunday, when we usually get time to do something. Farm and Fleet and other stores carry them.

My Stihl 360 with a 20 inch bar not the lightest but going on 16 years and never seen the shop. I like the longer bar as the saw comes standard with an 18 inch, the 20 lets me stand up straighter when limbing.

Eelpoutguy wrote:

Stihl!

Ok, you can close this thread now.

I agree!! Dont fight it. Just go get a MS170 for 180.00. I have 3 170’s a 180 Stihl that all have a pile of hours on them doing carvings. Its hard to beat them. The 170-180 class saw will cut all the 4-8 inch trees you need to cut. They are light as well. For the price you can get a MS170 and if it ever breaks down on you buy another and you have spare parts. No need for a pro saw. They are awesome but it is not needed unless you use it for a living. These saws run a thinner bar (.43) that compensates for the loss of power. Keep the chain sharp and have an extra chain on hand. You can get the saw and an extra chain for 200.00. They come with a 16 inch bar. Would say anything under 10 inch diameter will not be an issue. Anything over 12 inch diameter then I would look at going up to the 250 and running an 18 inch bar.

Check what the landscapers have hanging on their truck racks… ECHO

Look what the professional tree trimmers have on their truck.
stihl

Last fall I asked a co-worker who knows a lot about saws what he would recommend for my needs and not break the bank (mostly for cutting campfire wood, clearing trails, cutting shooting lanes, etc).

He recommended a Stihl MS250 with an 18″ bar. It’s an affordable high performance saw.

I LOVE IT. It’s light (10 pounds) AND powerful (3HP), and comes in under the $400 mark.

You could use it all day without getting worn out and it’s nothing to carry through the woods, yet it has plenty of snort and bar length to tear up a pile of bigger logs.

It also only weighs a pound and a half more than the MS180 which is only a 2hp saw. That extra pony of the MS250 makes a huge difference to save time/prevent fatigue. A 50% increase of power for a little extra weight is well worth it.

My old saw (now back up) is a Husqvarna 240. It weighs the same as the MS250, but like the MS170 is only a 2hp compared to the MS250 3hp.

The difference is incredible. The MS250 is a small saw with a big bite when you need it, but even when you don’t it still feels “little.”

Eelpoutguy wrote:

Look what the professional tree trimmers have on their truck.
stihl

And if it werent for an Echo we wouldnt of been able to go ice fishing!!

Stihl isnt the saw it use to be.
My first Echo 702EVL was new in 77 and lasted until 2011 and it failed due to a stupid mistake on my part.
Replaced it with a CS8000 and a pro 540.

buschman wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Eelpoutguy wrote:</div>
Stihl!

Ok, you can close this thread now.

I agree!! Dont fight it. Just go get a MS170 for 180.00. I have 3 170’s a 180 Stihl that all have a pile of hours on them doing carvings. Its hard to beat them. The 170-180 class saw will cut all the 4-8 inch trees you need to cut. They are light as well. For the price you can get a MS170 and if it ever breaks down on you buy another and you have spare parts. No need for a pro saw. They are awesome but it is not needed unless you use it for a living. These saws run a thinner bar (.43) that compensates for the loss of power. Keep the chain sharp and have an extra chain on hand. You can get the saw and an extra chain for 200.00. They come with a 16 inch bar. Would say anything under 10 inch diameter will not be an issue. Anything over 12 inch diameter then I would look at going up to the 250 and running an 18 inch bar.

Watched a neighbor cut down a 16/18 inch basswood with a Stihl MS 180 . Great lightweight saw and cuts like a demon.

Eelpoutguy wrote:

Stihl!

Ok, you can close this thread now.

No doubt. 100% wisdom in these words.

I carved this bear using a pair of MS170’s. I used my big saw with a 25 inch bar to cut the base straight and line up the ears when blocking out. Everything else was done with those 170’s. Hard to beat for the price but if you have a few more bucks to spend I agree with stepping up to the 250.

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Whatever you buy, get a Stihl 2 in 1 file sharpening device, I just picked one up and it does a very nice job. Chain is like new, sharpens tooth and takes down raker at the same time. Slick

My old saw puked on the neighbors tree that destroyed my fence. Got a big boy saw! Like butta. Love this saw!

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love my stihls. only run non ethanol gas. never a problem. have an old 017 with a 14″ an ms170 with a 16″ and an ms361 with a 20″. the 361 is a work horse. I love that saw. Using a sharp chain, it rips through tough elms and oaks. Ash is like butter. the 170 is the perfect saw for limbing and brush and smaller trees.