OT; Whats the best chainsaw?

[jzjames]

I know some of you are experienced wood cutters, and Im about to lay out my cash for my own chainsaw. All the one's Ive ever had have been hand-me-downs. I do alot of clearing back the fields. Trees up to a foot I'd say.
I get the feeling the name brands like Stihl, Husqevarna are not the same equip. that they used to be,
What can you recommend in the $300 to $400 range?

[fordman]

many years ago i bought a 021 sthil. i have never done anything to it except blades cluthc sprocket (my fault). and a air filter. i have cleaned the spark plug once last year. it is due for a bar now but i havent had the almost 50.00 to spend on one. ok course the japanese models are very good. shindawa is what my uncle sells. they have four motor mounts to the frame where stihl only has three. poulan is walmart brand now. dont bother with it.

[Ranchero50]

Pre 2000 Stihl... Something that comes with an 18" bar but will run a 20" 038 Mags are awesome. 021 is a good 16" bar brush cutter that won't wear you out.

Husky, about the same but they run faster, burn out quicker (in my experience). Need ran with more oil.

All the new saws are so EPA limited that they may run when new, but won't run right down the road.

Jamie

[fordman]

what kind of chain saw did they use in the chain saw massacre? that might be a good saw to use.

[cdeal28078]

I have an older 45 Husky and a 50 Husky. Both have been great saws. Sit all year with gas in the tank and still crank on the 2nd or 3rd pull. Getting better about running the gas out of them
clint

[cep62]

Check out these guys.
http://www.acresinternet.com/cscc.nsf?OpenDatabase

They have people from all over the world involved.

fwiw ,I have some "old" McCullochs that i'm happy with.
A CP55 ,210 and a 710A.

[two-bit]

I am a Sachs Dolmar guy. I have used them for years. Basic maintenance stuff. Is the most i've run into.
I have two model 111's and a model 143. They are older saws, run strong, and super dependable.

I tend to agree about the newer saws "burning out" faster. I think the 50:1 mix w/ ethanol blend gas run the saws hotter causing premature piston/ring/cylinder failure. I mix my saws at 32:1 and have never lost a plug due to fouling. A little smokey on start up, but they run a little cooler compared to 50:1.
Plenty of power, and no need to worry about extra heat in the summer.

Two-bit

[jzjames]

Thanks for the responses. I wouldnt buy a used one, thats why I am asking about new.
I figured older chainsaws are totally different from what you can get now, thats why I asked.
cep62, I'll check out that website, right now Im favoring Husqevarna, I think Stihl might be resting on its laurels. I dont know why I say that. I got to get one soon.

[70_F100]

I bought a new Husqvarna 345 w/ 18" bar about 2 years ago at Tractor Supply.

I've cut some mighty big wood with it, and it's done it without complaining.

Years ago, I bought a Homelite SuperXL AO that was also a heck of a saw. That was a contractor grade saw, and we had a bunch of them at the grading contractor where I worked. We had guys mix gas wrong, run them with the chain too tight, and all sorts of other abuse, and they were nearly indestructible. Of course, I wouldn't hit a hog in the @$$ with any of the newer Homelite products...

[Farmall]

I bought a Stihl and figured it is going to last me 20 years or so.
I cut a lot of firewood at times. Keep them sharp and clean.
The best thing you can do for a two cycle is if it's not going to be run for a season, run it out of gas before you store it.
I myself have never used Stabil but I hear it works well.

I like the Stihl and would buy another in a heartbeat. I cut about four or five chords up this spring.
I run an 18" bar and keep a spare chain. It helps to have an electric chain sharpener too.

I used to have property in WV that was loaded with white pine, big white pine. They cleared the area and built houses leaving the trees exposed too much, I did not know this when I bought the place, 30 trees and I lost 8 in 5 years.

[averagef250]

I would recommend buying a used one. I prefer the older Stihls, but the new ones, and most everything currently produced and sold in the US is low quality crap. Anyone I know that has purchased a saw within the last 5 years has had it fall apart. They're all full of plastic (which does break) and the engine power and condition seams to deteriorate quickly after a few years. AS in the saw works excellent for a few years of light use then it just starts falling apart in every way.

For a small saw The Sachs-Dolmars are awesome. They're not for the faint of heart though, they have the highest power to weight of any saw out of the box. I have a little Sachs-Dolmar that was given to me because the owner thought it was junk since they'd never heard of it. I fixed it up and it suprized the heck out of me the first time I used it. I don't recall the model of mine, but it's a smaller saw with a 20" bar running light chain and it has over 5 HP, Pretty close to what my 056 mag had stock and it ran a 42" bar 3/8 chain with power to spare.

[crazyhorse]

i would stick with a stihl or husqvarna.
if you could get a husqvarna 346 xp or 357 xp would be good.
they would buzz through logs & they are pretty light.

[jzjames]

Ok thanks for the feedback, the Stihl vs. Husqvarna thing.. screw it. I think Id go with the less expensive which would be the Husky. I wouldnt buy a used saw unless I knew the useage it had etc. Seems there's no definitive diff. between the two major brands. I'll go buy one, maybe an Echo!
Thanks, I hate using the chainsaw, but somebody's got to do it. Safety first. Via con Dios.

[averagef250]

Ok thanks for the feedback, the Stihl vs. Husqvarna thing.. screw it. I think Id go with the less expensive which would be the Husky. I wouldnt buy a used saw unless I knew the useage it had etc. Seems there's no definitive diff. between the two major brands. I'll go buy one, maybe an Echo!
Thanks, I hate using the chainsaw, but somebody's got to do it. Safety first. Via con Dios.

Today, Echo is a way better saw than either Stihl or Husky. Echo is a major manufacturer, they make engines that many others put thier names on. The Echo pro line of saws and trimmers are very high quality stuff.

[72stepside]

Well, I apparently made an unpopular choice in 2002 when I bought my Poulan Pro 295. The first on I had was stolen, so I got another one. Two hurricanes (Ivan and Dennis) and several season of firewood cutting, it is still running fine. I guess I must be living right. All I do is scrape out the dust from under the case from time to time. This one starts on usually the 2nd pull (which I probably just jinxed). I will say that I only use it occasionally... I'm definitely not a lumberjack, but this model works good for me.

That said, my father has a large, bright green Poulan that he bought in the mid-1980's. That is one tough saw, but it is definitely hard to start... always has been. It came as a bow saw, which he wore out and replaced with a bar.