Chainsaws?

[sparkeyjames]

I have just had the misfortune of having my cheapo Remington electric chainsaw spew smoke (out of warrenty I might add). I was cutting out some stumps when this happened. With a budget of about $250 I am in the market for a new chainsaw. I have narrowed my search to a few gas Stihl and Husqvarna models. I would like invite comments from all of you on what if any info experience/comments do you have about small (14" to 18") Stihl and Husqvarna chainsaws. Comments both positive and negative on other brands are also welcome.



sparkeyjames

[eezlock]

chainsaws

Stil and Husky are two best out there...no question about it. I have two
Stil saws and they work great, would not trade them for any other.

[Tom Slick]

you won't go wrong with stihl, husky, or echo. I have a stihl ms250 and it's a great saw for a homeowner that needs to cut a little bigger stuff on occasion.
check out their arborist style saws, they are very lightweight and compact.
if you want to stay with electric then both stihl and husky make high quality electric chain saws.

[Hoover]

Either brand should do you nicely. It is hard to pick one over the other.. I used to have a Stihl, others I know have owned Husqvarna, no complaints. Flip a coin.

[ryan.s]

I did a quite a bit of research last year when buying a chainsaw. Spent many hours on the arborist site and gathered a lot of good info. Seemed like everyone was in agreement that Stihls are the best but the huskys and echo's are also respectable. To me I couldn't justify spending the money on a Stihl since the saw would only see occasional use. I ended up with an echo cs-346 with a 16" bar off of ebay new for under $200. I've had it a year and love that it's light and easy to use but still has good power. I've cut up 3 trees worth of logs and am very pleased with the decision in buying the echo. It's done everything I've asked it to do so far.

Here's a link to the chainsaw section

http://www.arboristsite.com/forumdisplay.php?f=9

[Tequila]

If you're looking for a small chainsaw just for lopping, you might want to take a look at the Black & Decker Alligator electric lopper. I got one for around $60 from amazon a couple months ago, and I find it to be much more comfortable than a full chainsaw for taking down tree limbs.

It's not a full replacement for a regular chainsaw, but it's done a great job for me on branches around 4" diameter, and it feels much safer to use than a regular chainsaw.

As for standard saws, I've got a Poulan that works well enough, but I wouldn't buy another one.

[HarmsWay]

I'd consider buying a better quality used saw. I've gotten hundreds of trouble-free hours over a 15 year period on a used Husky I bought for half the price of a new one.

Bob

[JimD]

I used a little and big Stihl that a member of our former church used for several years to cut enough wood to heat his house (before he got married). They were both nice saws and he used them enough to know the difference.

I own a McCullouh (sp?) that is close to 10 years old. It only gets used once or twice a year but works every time I need it to. It has a 14 inch bar. If it ever stops working I will probably buy a Stihl.

I also had an electric first, a Wen. It burnt after getting used at the end of a couple long extension cords. The gas saws I have used have all had a huge power advantage over the electric. There may be an application where an electric saw is worthwhile but I don't think I'll ever own one again - too limited.

As important as anything is a sharp chain. When you are making dust instead of shavings, it is time to sharpen or change the chain. You do not need a bunch of fancy equipment to sharpen, a round file of the right diamter and a simple guide to get the angle and depth about right are all I typically use. They go in the box with the saw. If the chain is sharp, you should have to lift up on the saw to keep it from bogging down - it should pull itself into the wood faster than it can cut. No pushing down or rocking. Stop and sharpen the chain instead.

Jim

[Hellrazor]

I have a Stihl 029, I think 290 is the new model #. No complaints from me. You can put up to a 20" bar on it. I decided on an 18".