Shindaiwa 377/360 Hybrid - A Pleasant Surprise

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A few months back, Four Paws, one of our resident Shindaiwa aficionados, had a nifty little saw up for sale: a 377/360 hybrid he had put together. A 377 crank in a 360 case, for added stroke in a more compact/lighter crankcase. Curiously, no bites.

http://www.arboristsite.com/community/threads/shindaiwa-377.264441/#post-4983733

It seemed intriguing, especially since most of my cutting is in small invasive buckthorn and such, and I have become a real fan of this displacement class. My usual kit for this work is the 242-family Husqvarna, and I’m working on accumulating both more runners and parts saws of that family, and also other saws in that size class (543xpg?). Anyway, this little Shindaiwa fit the bill, so I bought it and ordered up a suitable bar (A041 mount, so nothing else I own works on it). And this past weekend I finally had a chance to put four tanks through it.



What a great little package! The spec sheets don't really capture it - the weight, handling, powerband, and such - the way that real-world use does. Great behavior for my purposes and, I should think, for many other peoples’ purposes, too! The powerhead occupies a bit less physical space than the Husqvarnas, and less in fact than saws of the Stihl 171/181 family, which many of y’all are likely familiar with.







Now honestly, before SawTroll jumps in and points it out, A/V is a bit primitive, probably due to harder-than-average buffers when compared to my usual rubber-isolated Husqvarnas. And Brad will be correct about its performance potential: I'm sure that other saws in this class can wake up more with porting. But you know, this saw was a real pleasure to run and handled well. I was pleasantly surprised. And, when those four tanks were done, I looked back at what those four tanks got me and I was pleased: it is a really productive little machine. In that time I put down probably fifty buckthorn trees from 1" to 15" diameter, cut them up into conveniently sized pieces that can be dragged by hand and made into brush piles, and this saw got the job done great!







I doubt my review would have been so glowing with a 16" or 18" bar hanging off the saw, especially if the saw were being asked to use all 16-18" of said bar. But the 13" .325" setup with Oregon 20lp chain hits the sweet spot for this powerhead (size, power, balance, etc.) and makes for a really versatile machine.

I know that the spec sheet folks on this site will point out what this saw lacks, and the folks who think the true measure of a saw is its time through a knot-free poplar cant will correctly point out that many saws will outrun this one against a stopwatch, even saws in the same displacement class. But darn it, this was unusually satisfying to run, rather productive in its appointed task, and the build quality is superb.
 
Pretty neat stuff. Thanks for taking the time to share this. Nice to see something out of the norm.
 
I like the color of those buckthorn stumps. Seems similar to Osage orange or locust. Looks pretty dense also. Bet it makes a decent firewood as well. Do you burn it?
 
I like the color of those buckthorn stumps. Seems similar to Osage orange or locust. Looks pretty dense also. Bet it makes a decent firewood as well. Do you burn it?

You know, I haven't really burned any of it. I do have a small 6" round of it here on my desk at my office; I use it, alternatively, as a coaster for my drink or to prop my window up a few inches. It is as dense and solid as anything else we find in the woods around here. Very little shrinkage over the three years it has been here, and no cracking/splitting, as you'd get with a piece of maple or ash.

The cutting I'm doing is in our city parks and when I'm working away from parking areas or paved trails, most of what I cut ends up back in habitat/brush piles for rabbits, fox, etc., or stacked around the native trees we are replanting, to serve as a deer barrier until those trees get big enough to fend for themselves. However, one of our regular volunteers does haul it out from time to time when we are working closer to pavement. He will take home as much as we can get inside his minivan, and he reports that it burns well.

Nice review, and very nice little saw. They're VERY well built.

Thanks, Brad. I really am impressed with the fit and finish of this saw. It doesn't squeak, creak, rattle, or have parts that don't quite line up right. I will definitely be on the lookout for more of these to stash away for the future, along with my inventory of 242-class and 154-class carcasses.

I know that we have our own issues here at this site (CAD, port-o-mania, etc.), but honestly, one of these little guys along with a 60-70cc saw, that's all you'd honestly ever need for firewood scrounging, or tending the fence lines, or cleaning up storm damage around the cabin, or ... .
 
I also recently acquired a minty 360 Shindaiwa from Josh. Remarkable little saw!

IMG_20150125_154252-L.jpg
 
Update, a year later:

I had a chance to run this saw again this past weekend, putting a few tanks through while cleaning up some buckthorn from one of our parks. I also put a tank through a 346xp while I was out. Both saws run 13" .325 NK bars with Oregon 20LP chain.

The differences were significant - the 346xp gave a lot more power with noticeably more weight and bulk, but this little saw was just...handy. That's really the best way to describe it. Run alongside with another fellow's Stihl 171, however, there was no real comparison - this little Shindaiwa is a lot more saw and a lot better built, without being any bigger or heavier; it might actually be smaller, honestly.

I have also run it around the house a bit over the past few months to cut up a few limbs, some 2x4s, and to rip a few oddly sized firewood pieces that wouldn't stand up to be split.

For the guy who needs a little saw to ride along on the tractor, or for tidying up a bike trail, or for camp firewood, or as a first saw for a young person, this platform is a great choice. Is it a saw I would take out for dropping 15"+ hardwood on a regular basis? No, of course not. But for what it is, it does its job well.

Now I hear that Brad is in the process of building up one of these 360/377 hybrids. It will be very interesting to see what he can get out of it. It performs well, but it would definitely be a more compelling choice with another half-horsepower, or maybe more, added on!
 
Those look like really nice little saws. I bet it would be much happier with 3/8 lo pro, or even better Oregon 90S 0.043". I'm sure 0.325" narrow kerf would be good too but I have not messed wit that yet. 20LPX has a significantly wider kerf than lo pro.

I would not hesitate to fell or buck 15" hardwood with any of my 40cc class saws - they all run 16" or 18" bars. It's pretty much what I cut with.
 
Recently picked up a pretty nice 300s that i want to see if a few more beans can be found to liven it up some more, not in the same league as the 360/377, but still a nice light and very small packaged saw...........:)IMAG0180.JPG IMAG0181.JPG
 
Timely bump, I just picked up a 360 on the weekend, needs fuel lines and air filter and intake boot.

Definitely feels like a solid little saw. Will it unseat the Ryobi as my most used saw?
 
Years ago our only saw was a 488 shinny. Cutting wood one hot summer day was all it took to melt her down. We needed a saw so dad went out and bought an 046 to go with my 028. The shinny made the trek to college with me, and I donated it to the program. Fast forward a few years I now have 30 saws, and the one that got Away is the 488. It went to the school which is good, its being used as a teaching aid, but now I wish I had it back. I was very impressed with the weight to power in my fledgling chainsaw operating days, itbwas certainly a more ergonomic alternative to the venerable 3400 that we ran for 20 plus years, some day I'll get a shinny again.
 
Recently picked up a pretty nice 300s that i want to see if a few more beans can be found to liven it up some more, not in the same league as the 360/377, but still a nice light and very small packaged saw...........:)View attachment 478148 View attachment 478149

Check the IPL - I think that 300 shares a case with the 360. If so, a 377 crank will fit.
 
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