Those are two old Homelites. The Super 1050 my Dad bought new back in the early 70's and still runs. The other one is an XL 924 with a 30 in bar and it still runs also. Last year I retired them, not because they weren't holding up their end. I was just ready to try a new saw and had the money. I bought a new Stihl 660 and it works just fine. It's lighter, has a decomp, so it's easier to start than the 1050, and much, much quieter. I guess the biggest thing about the new saw is it's so much smoother, I can really feel the difference in my hands and fingers. The 1050 would kick back and rip your fingers off when starting it. The 924 has a decomp so it's easy to start. I use regular chain because my saws do double duty as working and firewood saws. Make sure the chain is sharp and don't dog it and the old saws will serve you well. The one thing I noticed about the 1050 with 404 chain, is when I hit a nail once, it jumped but you could hardly tell any difference in it cutting. At 5 or 6000 rpm, it only dulled 2 or 3 teeth. When I got a 3 1/2 inch deck screw mixed in with the 3 inch screws I hold my ladder down with, and the 660 hit the one longer screw, it stopped cutting instantly. At 10 or 12000 rpm, it hit every tooth on the chain, Joe.
