Does Anyone Make a Chainsaw That Doesn't Suck?

In reply to bigdaddylee82:

Yes sir.. Usually when I hear people complain about poor cutting chain it's due them trying to cut dirt.

The HF grinder type sharpener is good, if crude. But, it removes a whole lot more metal than needs be removed, and it doesn't produce a really good sharp tooth.

If you're good, you can use a simple rat tail file, or a simple guide on a rat tail file to sharpen the teeth. I'm not good enough to do this, so I do use this type of old jig. It works well.

But make no mistake, if you aren't touching up your chain every time you fill up with fuel, you're running a dull chain. I really didn't understand that for a long time.

At that, without the right touch and skill, compared to many of those guys on The Arborist Site, my chains are still dull. Watch some of their videos of what a sharp chain really is.

Last week my dad and I bought a Stihl ms290 to replace the Stihl 028av that my dad bought in 1984. The 028 is a great machine that just broke for the first time, the chain brake broke as did the chain oiler. The parts are no longer available from Stihl, but I have found them elsewhere. I am going to fix the 028 as it has been a great saw. We run 5-8 gallons of fuel through it per year. Oregon chains are what I buy with the logger style teeth, they cut much faster.

The MS290 seems to be a good saw, however I have only run it about 15 minutes. It starts easily and cuts through 8" oak very well. We bought this saw as my dad likes to have new stuff that "isn't worn out".

Picked up a Stihl Farmboss 290 and case at an estate sale 10 years ago. Bestest darn saw I have ever used, starts easily every time, good enough power, easy to handle. All for only $200. Guess I got lucky on that find.

I go through half a dozen cords a year and Stihl is what you want more than likely. I bought a farm boss 20" and am still wondering how how I managed without it. And +1million on Fiskars ax. Omg. It really is all that, it makes all other axes look useless by comparison.

bigdaddylee82 wrote: In reply to Fueled by Caffeine: We used a bench mounted electric sharpener at the Park. I swore it was Stihl brand sharpener, but I can't find one on Stihl's website. Looked like a little abrasive cut off saw, looks like Oregon has one, even Harbor Freight. It was a little more aggressive than hand filing, so if you used it often, you'd go through chains pretty quick. It could sure put an edge on even the most boogered teeth though.

I bought one of those HF chain sharpeners. Once I got it set up, I sharpened 5 chains in a half hour. For $30, it paid for itself right there. 5 Stars.

Stihl chains are about $30 each.

I solved the maul problem last night and bought a Fiskars X27. It has a longer handle than the X25, same head, and boy does it split! I tried a couple of moderately knotty logs and it took care of them in short order.

Stopped byt he Finch's in Hanover yesterday as I was in the area. I wanted another look at the Stihls. The salesman was nice and tried to be helpful, but didn't seem to know too much about the differences in the saws, or even the prices/ promotions that Sthil had going on. He did say that he thought either the 250 or 271 would be fine for me.

Apparently the 290 used to be the Farm Boss, and now it's the 271. It sounds like Sthil was trying to keep the FB in the ~$400 range. I will say, the 271 looks and feels much bigger than the 250, now looking at them again, and I'm concerned while the FB may be great for felling trees, most of what I do is cutting up logs and limbs, which the 250 might be more adept at. The 250 is also an older design, with fewer bells/ whistles, which appeals to me.

I'll probably stick with the low-KB chain. I'm not all that good about keeping my chains sharp, and the low KB chains seem to be more tolerant of that. The analogy I heard was a mechanical pencil vs a carpenter's pencil.

Thinking about calling up Liberty today and having them put a 250 on hold for me for tonight.

In reply to volvoclearinghouse:

one of the guys I used to cut with had some giant Stihl pre chain brake days and a 250. He used the big guy for felling and the 250 for limbing. Great little saw.

If you really wanna cheap out buy from here. https://www.vminnovations.com/Product_6171/HUSQVARNA-455R-Rancher-20-Inch-56cc-Gas-Powered-Chainsaw-Refurbished-.html?qid=17656938&q=chainsaw

I bought my 445 from them an got it refurbished for $90(super sale and stacked coupons). It is GRM afterall... HA! All this talk of chainsaws and burning wood is making me nostalgic and slightly sad I bought a tract home in the burbs... I guess I need to go cabin shopping.

Canoe

Huskies will do that as well but you really have to abandon maintenance to have that problem

I spent my twenties working in the bush and the rule of thumb was husky for 20 inch bar or less and stihl for anything bigger. But we didnt have the chinese thing going on either.

Jonsered used to be sort of a chainsaw tuner shop. They would sell a husky with a big K and N air filter and boost the power a bit. But they blew up early because of it.

Toyman01 wrote: One other thing. If you start looking at used Stihls, look closely at the case where the chain runs. It runs right by the oil feed tank and if run with a loose chain frequently, the chain will eat a hole in the oil tank. The only fix is to replace half the crank case because the tank is built into the crankcase. Not a cheap proposition.

I have nothing to add to this thread other than having played DOOM a lot as an impressionable teen, and when you acquired the chainsaw there was a note on-screen that said "Doesn't suck"

I have a 1976 Jonsereds that is stoopid bulletproof. But I'm upgrading because it has zero safety features and it kinda scares me.

Hands down, I'm getting a Stihl. Just like with tractors and other lawn equipment, don't buy from box stores. Those are outsourced Chinese licensed knockoffs.

Hit up a Stihl dealer, buy your saw, done. I think they have very nice saws in the $350 range.

My love/hate relationship with my Stihl Farm Boss.

In reply to curtis73:

This is entirely incorrect. the upper end huskys sold at the box store are the same as the huskys of same model sold at the dealers. A 455 rancher sold at lowes is the same as sold at the dealer. Now the service level may be slightly different but that's a different story.

The lower end still saws are all made in China. An new ms250 is not made in the us.

No one ever talks about echo but they are made in us or Japan and have a 5 year warranty.

http://blog.stihl.com/stihl-worldwide/2013/11/stihl-china-quality-made-stihl/

In reply to Gasoline:

That'll buff out.

Fueled by Caffeine wrote: In reply to curtis73: This is entirely incorrect. the upper end huskys sold at the box store are the same as the huskys of same model sold at the dealers. A 455 rancher sold at lowes is the same as sold at the dealer. Now the service level may be slightly different but that's a different story. The lower end still saws are all made in China. An new ms250 is not made in the us. No one ever talks about echo but they are made in us or Japan and have a 5 year warranty. http://blog.stihl.com/stihl-worldwide/2013/11/stihl-china-quality-made-stihl/

Actually, the Stihl MS 250 I bought is U.S. Made. Stihls are either made in the US or in Germany.

https://www.stihlusa.com/products/chain-saws/homeowner-saws/ms250/

Oh, yeah. So, to bring a bit of finality to this post, I bought the Stihl. Went to Liberty Discount near me and picked it up for $300, got a spare chain and some synthetic oil.

And then E36 M3 got hectic around here and the brand new saw sits in my shed, without so much as a drop of petrol in its brand-new tank. Don't worry, I'll fire it up in the next week or two and give a full report.

Fueled by Caffeine wrote: In reply to curtis73: This is entirely incorrect. the upper end huskys sold at the box store are the same as the huskys of same model sold at the dealers. A 455 rancher sold at lowes is the same as sold at the dealer. Now the service level may be slightly different but that's a different story. The lower end still saws are all made in China. An new ms250 is not made in the us. No one ever talks about echo but they are made in us or Japan and have a 5 year warranty. http://blog.stihl.com/stihl-worldwide/2013/11/stihl-china-quality-made-stihl/

Disagree, unless its a regional thing. I worked for HD's RLC (repair and liquidation center). It was my job to repair warranty tools purchased at HD stores. I didn't see too much Husky stuff, but our HD Echo stuff was all Chinese. Even some of the Honda and Robin engines were Chinese, particularly on pressure washers. Stamped right into the pad on the engine and molded right into the plastic parts. Repair parts were all stocked in the US warehouse, but made in China.

When we would get shipments of Echo power equipment in the stores, the crates all said "Made in China." They were shipped from Echo USA, but the tools were made over there. Same is true for Homelite, Poulan, and Ryobi.

Gasoline wrote: My love/hate relationship with my Stihl Farm Boss.

Sir, I believe you've just reinforced my want for a pair of chainsaw chaps....

As an aside, anyone here had any experience with the stihl Tungsten chains? They seem like they'd be awesome, but sharpening would be a nightmare

So, it's been a bit of a delay, but I finally fired up the new saw last weekend. I didn't realize it, but the Stihl dealer had given me the saw with a full tank of fuel and bar oil. That was nice.

With the 18" bar, the MS250 made chips like nobody's business. The pull start was a bit harder than I'm used to- Stihl recommends high test gasoline and the engine definitely has more compression than the old Poulan I had, even when it was new. I sliced up a couple of 12"+ diameter oak logs in record time. This is how a chainsaw is supposed to work.

Mrs. VCH asked me how I liked my new saw. After hearing how much better it was, she remarked, "See? Now, remember, you're a grown-up now. Buy the good tools."

That is a nice little saw. Glad you are happy.

In reply to volvoclearinghouse:

I see they say high test gas. Do they also say alcohol free gas?

volvoclearinghouse wrote: I sliced up a couple of 12"+ diameter oak logs in record time. This is how a chainsaw is supposed to work.

That's how a sharp chain cuts. Keep it sharp and it will continue to cut like that. Sharpen it badly and all the HP of the saw itself won't help it cut.

Good wife btw.

My dad bought a Husky 142 with a 16" bar 10 or 15 years ago, and it's held up to lots of abuse. I mean, like ABUSE. You know, neutral drops and burnouts every day on the way to work kind of abuse. Obviously we don't heat our homes with firewood here in Florida, but that little saw has put up with a ton of land clearing and firewood cutting, at least by homeowner standards. That's across four properties and a few major hurricanes, and with camping and trail cutting thrown in, too.

Finally, during cleanup for Hurricane Matthew, it needed service. The muffler took a few too many whacks, and started falling off. Then the chain tensioner fell off. Then we burned up our last chain.

I took it into the shop, and they said they were backed up three weeks on the service side of things, but had a few new saws in stock. I bought a Stihl MS251 with an 18" bar for my dad, then threw the Husky back into a box and took it home.

$19 in Amazon parts later, the Husky is back together and running better than ever. Hopefully I'll get another 10 years out of it. My dad loves his Stihl, too–he's needed a little bit bigger chainsaw for a while. I like how small the 142 is–it fits in the truck better for cutting firewood.

So, uh, that's my chainsaw story. Take from it what you will.

spitfirebill wrote: In reply to volvoclearinghouse: I see they say high test gas. Do they also say alcohol free gas?

They recommend 89 octane or better, but don't specifically recommend against ethanol. The Stihl 2-cycle oil (which is very highly recommended) is a semi-synthetic oil with fuel stabilizers, which I would guess takes care of the ethanol problem.

The fuel Liberty put in the tank was red in color. I have no idea why- the Stihl 2-cycle oil is blue like all the others.

foxtrapper wrote:

volvoclearinghouse wrote: I sliced up a couple of 12"+ diameter oak logs in record time. This is how a chainsaw is supposed to work.

That's how a sharp chain cuts. Keep it sharp and it will continue to cut like that. Sharpen it badly and all the HP of the saw itself won't help it cut. Good wife btw.

Yeah, there's a reason I keep her around. It'll be 5 years married this Saturday. And kiddo #2 on the way.

The Poulan, even when new and with a new chain, never cut as good as this Stihl, but yes, I bought a second chain and endeavor to keep them out of the dirt and sharp.