Old saws Vs New saws, specifically for milling

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Quietfly

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How do you guys about old vs new saws, Specifically from a chainsaw milling stand point
I find as I look for saws for milling i've found alot of older saws are available. it even seems like due to EPA regs that the old saws might be even more desirable.
I figured i ask the guys who do it what they thought.
So, what are your thoughts?

Thanks for Sharing!
-Chris
 
The old saws can be great as long as you can still get parts fir them.
 
It depends why you are milling.

If it's for fun the olds saws are indeed fun, but if you need to get a job done and the go home then I'd go with a new saw.

For a while I ran an early 1990s 076 but after getting the 880 in 2009 I have used the 076 once since then and that was just for long enough to remind me why I prefer the 880.
 
Milling will be mostly for fun. profit would be nice, but realistically would be for fun.
 
Milled with 044 046 066 660 661(wouldnt recommend it) 084 088 880 090 husky 390, most fun and best for me is 090. Get the biggest saw and bar you can afford, once the addiction sets in you'll be looking for bigger logs.
 
Milled with 044 046 066 660 661(wouldnt recommend it) 084 088 880 090 husky 390, most fun and best for me is 090. Get the biggest saw and bar you can afford, once the addiction sets in you'll be looking for bigger logs.

How did the Husky 390 do in your opinion. I am looking to start some milling and was wondering about a 390 for this purpose.
 
Many of the old saws have a lot of torque, which is great for milling. Finding parts and working on the saw can quickly get time consuming and expensive. As BobL said, if you're just doing it for fun and don't mind calling it quits if your saw dies, old saws can be an inexpensive alternative. When I go out, I am usually in a situation where I need to get the wood milled, moved, and get out of there. I recently bought a Stihl 661CM and it has been great so far. Pulls a 50" bar through 40" pine, fir and cedar surprisingly well, but I won't be breaking any speed records. Would love an 880 someday.
 
The oiler on the 390 works great, would only need a aux oiler if running a long bar. No parts available here for 084, had to ditch mine when the coil failed.
 
On most of the older stuff, you are stuck with looking at forums like this one or the Bay. Two ignition coils for the 084 in ebay auctions at the moment, out of Canada. Like Donner Party says it sometimes takes serious scrounging, because you can't just run down to the dealer and get the saw running in an hour on most of the older saws like the 084. His 661 is the newest version of the 066/660 line.
For older saws that are very plentiful, the 066/660 is in my opinion one of the better options for milling on a budget. There may be a Husky alternative too, I just do not know their saws at all. If you are careful, there are a lot of decent 500 to 600 dollar 066/660 saws out there and patience can net some real deals. Parts are everywhere and there are a million aftermarket parts like chain covers handles etc that keep replacement parts cheap and readily available. The difference from let's say a 044 to a 066 for milling is big, almost like going 066 to an 088.
 
I used a Homelite 1050, 100 CC's for several years. Switched to a new 660 and won't go back. The 1050 did not have a compression release. If it popped back when cranking it would rip your fingers off. Was almost impossible to start while in the cut. The 660 has a comp release and starts in one or two pulls while in the cut. The 1050 has no anti vibe and you can't watch TV for three hours after your done milling, because your eyeballs are still vibrating too bad to focus, 660 is smooth as silk. I still have old saws and play with them. I might put one of the 1050's with a 24" bar on a mini mill for cutting beams out of 12' pine logs, but no more big milling with them, Joe.
 
what else do you have for smaller saws to share some bars possibly with
024-660 takes stihl 12mm 3003/d025
394/5 used the d009 for 562xp up
old big all mag stihls probably take 14mm 3002

I use the 660 and have a 026/261 as well
 
I love my 084 for milling. I bought a second one for parts but the saw ended up being in such good shape that I now have 2. I started on an 075 and wouldn't necessarily recommend against it, but I upgraded pretty quickly. The 084 is harder to find parts for, though, I think.

Good luck and make sure and send us some pictures!
 
Old dolmars are excellent choice for milling with the interchangeability of parts from 123,133,143 and 343 concrete saws are excellent bottom end replacements sources. They are also way simple to rebuild.

I would ad solo to this list (as I love the 690 & 603), but the plastic oil pump is a real pta to get a replacement for.
 
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