Heated handles, Stihl won't sell them in us, Husky 346xpg???

[black-dog]

Why does Stihl sell the MS260-W with heated handles in England, where it rarely gets below 32 degrees, but won't sell them in Wisconsin where it is -11 degrees on March 8th? The main chainsaw guy at the local Stihl dealership told me he liked his John Deere chainsaw more than his two Stihl saws. And he looked in the book, do I want to buy a 441 arctic version?, never sold one of those, its going to cost you, and its way bigger than you need. I don't think so.

Maybe you can tell I like the Stihl saw that I have but I just wanted the heated handle, the MS260-W, if I was going to shell out the big bucks for a new premium saw. May buy the MS361-W. No, not available either.

Does anyone own the Husky 346xpg or 357xpg, and what do you think of those saws? I cut firewood in the winter and I was thinking that I wanted the heated handle if I was going to buy the premium saw. This would be my biggest saw so I might want to cut down some trees too. Its hard to upgrade. I would pay the $$$ if I thought I was getting some service.

Do those heated handles work well on the 346xpg or 357xpg? I'm not buying the giant Stihl so you Stihl fans--don't reply. The way they have it set up here in the u.s. says go away.

Maybe the heated handle is just a gimmick? Do they work or not? I am thinking I only cut firewood in the winter so I thought it was worth looking in to.

Thanks a lot for any comments you can provide.

 

[SawTroll]

No problem here, they all come with heated handles - but it cost a lot more extra on the Stihls than on the Huskys - and some Stihl models aren't even available without them......

 

[black-dog]

Stihl won't sell them on the small saws

This is me again. You have to buy big saw to get the heated handles with Stihl. I am wondering if I should buy my first Husky saw, never ran one at all. Or else I can be a man and deal with cold fingers, right?

 

[bama]

If my fingers get cold, it is not from the cutting. I get cold when I am picking up the pieces and put them in the truck. The gloves get wet and soak through.

That being said, I have run a few saws with heated handles and they do work nice, but I only ran them in -10F or lower. Never needed them on if it was warmer than that.

I think heated handles would really work well if you have any trouble with good circulation in the hands. Personally, I wouldn't buy a saw just for that option, but that is just me.

 

[bwalker]

I have a 346 XPG and love it.
After going to heated handle saws a few years back i will never go back to non heated. but I live in the UP of MI where cold and snow are something I have to deal with on a daily basis.
BTW it was -20 this morning when I got up.

 

[brncreeper]

I love my 346XPG, both heated grips work great! It gets so hot it is sometimes difficult to hold.
-7 for us this morning.

 

[SawTroll]

This is me again. You have to buy big saw to get the heated handles with Stihl. I am wondering if I should buy my first Husky saw, never ran one at all. Or else I can be a man and deal with cold fingers, right?

The Stihls are availiable with heated handles from the 260 and up, as a bonus in the US they have the stronger German made engines, not the VB ones.....


LOL


Edit; look at the list below - most saws have heated handles.......

...and I don't really care how much they cost - I just pay the bill (or Witchy does).....LOL

 

[Tzed250]

The Stihls are availiable with heated handles from the 260 and up, as a bonus in the US they have the stronger Geman made engines, not the VB ones.....


LOL

I think the record is skipping...


BTW Niko, how many US dollars did that extra .2HP cost on the 361?:hmm3grin2orange:

 

[black-dog]

No, not in the u.s.a.

To SawTroll,
Thanks for your reply. No, not in the entire u.s.*.a, you cannot buy the smaller Stihl saws with the heated handles. You have to go for the 441 or larger--my dealer didn't even have even ONE of those. They have one MS361. We just want to cut some fire wood over here. I made my post because I thought if I was going to shell out the big $$$ for a new saw then I would look for all features I wanted (like heated handles).

What is the weather over there? It was -11F this morning. Last year on March 26 it got up to +83F. It is going to turn soon. I am a gardener so I am just itching to get out there.

I was out there this morning cutting some wood with my Stihl MS180. It is a little saw and I like it a lot. I have a piece of junk Poulan saw that is bigger but I hate to use it. The main reason is that I cannot get it to start. I suppose I should bring it in to a dealer, but there is no Poulan dealer near here.

Well, I suppose I am asking if the heated handles are worth paying for. The Stihl dealerships in the entire u.s. will not sell you one unless you want a giant saw. I am looking for feedback from the Husky owners.....

Thank you....

 

[bcorradi]

I doubt if it will help you, but you can get the 260 arctic up in canada which comes with heated handles. I actually just picked up a new set of canadian 260 arctic parts off a week old saw that got smashed. I plan on putting together one for myself some day here soon. I'm not sure why they stopped selling small arctic stihls in the US. I even picked up an old 024 arctic a couple weeks ago. The bad part is its missing the generator and most of the fins on the flywheel are busted off.

 

[bwalker]

I doubt if it will help you, but you can get the 260 arctic up in canada which comes with heated handles.

Yes, but the price will scare the bejesus out of you.

 

[huskydave]

I have a 260 arctic. Why won't stihl ship one to your dealer is beyond me. Stihl charges 100 dollars extra for that option in Canada.

 

[SawTroll]

To SawTroll,
Thanks for your reply. No, not in the entire u.s.*.a, you cannot buy the smaller Stihl saws with the heated handles. You have to go for the 441 or larger--my dealer didn't even have even ONE of those. They have one MS361. We just want to cut some fire wood over here. I made my post because I thought if I was going to shell out the big $$$ for a new saw then I would look for all features I wanted (like heated handles).

What is the weather over there? It was -11F this morning. Last year on March 26 it got up to +83F. It is going to turn soon. I am a gardener so I am just itching to get out there.

I was out there this morning cutting some wood with my Stihl MS180. It is a little saw and I like it a lot. I have a piece of junk Poulan saw that is bigger but I hate to use it. The main reason is that I cannot get it to start. I suppose I should bring it in to a dealer, but there is no Poulan dealer near here.

Well, I suppose I am asking if the heated handles are worth paying for. The Stihl dealerships in the entire u.s. will not sell you one unless you want a giant saw. I am looking for feedback from the Husky owners.....

Thank you....

It was about Zero here, but a chilly wind - the MS180 is about as much junk as the worst Poulans, imo.....

 

[cuttinscott]

You could buy a Dolmar PS5100 with heated handles




Scott

 

[bwalker]

Yea, if he could find a dealer....

 

[abohac]

Why does Stihl sell the MS260-W with heated handles in England, where it rarely gets below 32 degrees, but won't sell them in Wisconsin where it is -11 degrees on March 8th? The main chainsaw guy at the local Stihl dealership told me he liked his John Deere chainsaw more than his two Stihl saws. And he looked in the book, do I want to buy a 441 arctic version?, never sold one of those, its going to cost you, and its way bigger than you need. I don't think so.

Maybe you can tell I like the Stihl saw that I have but I just wanted the heated handle, the MS260-W, if I was going to shell out the big bucks for a new premium saw. May buy the MS361-W. No, not available either.

Does anyone own the Husky 346xpg or 357xpg, and what do you think of those saws? I cut firewood in the winter and I was thinking that I wanted the heated handle if I was going to buy the premium saw. This would be my biggest saw so I might want to cut down some trees too. Its hard to upgrade. I would pay the $$$ if I thought I was getting some service.

Do those heated handles work well on the 346xpg or 357xpg? I'm not buying the giant Stihl so you Stihl fans--don't reply. The way they have it set up here in the u.s. says go away.

Maybe the heated handle is just a gimmick? Do they work or not? I am thinking I only cut firewood in the winter so I thought it was worth looking in to.

Thanks a lot for any comments you can provide.

I don't know if this is any help but I have a 395XPG. The heated handles seem to work well.

 

[spacemule]

Yea, if he could find a dealer....

Plenty of dealers around, unless you're in hickville.

 

[bwalker]

Well maybe if you accept Dolmar's so called dealer finder as gospel.
One of the guys Dolmar says is a dealer in my area has a shop that consists of half a a two car garage and a Dolmar sign over the garage door. No saws, no parts.
And this is in logging country..

 

[THALL10326]

The Stihls are availiable with heated handles from the 260 and up, as a bonus in the US they have the stronger German made engines, not the VB ones.....


LOL


Edit; look at the list below - most saws have heated handles.......

...and I don't really care how much they cost - I just pay the bill (or Witchy does).....LOL

2003 – In competition with other STIHL manufacturing plants worldwide, STIHL Inc. wins the company's highest awards for quality in chain saw and power tool manufacturing, achieving such honors for more than five consecutive years.

2003 – STIHL Inc. achieved a twelfth consecutive record sales year.

The above is from Stihl's own website. Stihl Inc is Virginia Beach. Now whats that you was saying about VB.

 

[spacemule]

2003 – In competition with other STIHL manufacturing plants worldwide, STIHL Inc. wins the company's highest awards for quality in chain saw and power tool manufacturing, achieving such honors for more than five consecutive years.

2003 – STIHL Inc. achieved a twelfth consecutive record sales year.

The above is from Stihl's own website. Stihl Inc is Virginia Beach. Now whats that you was saying about VB.

You're assuming quality = more powerful. That's not necessarily the case. You're not refuting troll's point. Also, you're not saying the German factory has not also received the highest Stihl award, so even if quality = more power, your post is pretty much fluff.