Who still makes long bars besides Canon?

[Lakeside53]

Lakeside.......Maybe you should buy an old welder and fix up......Hahahahahaha!

I missed that reply!

It's so close to the truth that it's not funny...

 

[B_Turner]

I occasionally bore with my 42 inch bars, and probably would occasionally bore with a longer bar (although even at 42 inches accurate boring is not trivial, so longer may not be practical.)
QUOTE]

I would highly recommend not even thinking about bore cutting with a 60" bar. Long bars like lots of support when you are cutting, if you turn the saw sideways you can kiss the chain goodbye. Any sideways cuts must be started with a shorter bar, then switch to the long bar after you have support.
They are also very "whippy", you don't hold it over a log tach it to max rpm and drop it on the log. I always set the saw on the log, slowly start the cut and after the bar is in the cut, then open it up and let her eat.
There is one hell of a difference going to a 60" bar from a 42". It's a learning curve that doesn't have much room for error before chains start flying off.
I will also recommend a roller chain catcher instead of the aluminum thingie, they are much easier on the chain when it does come off.

Ed

Never ran a 60 inch bar,but what you say about boring with one doesn't surprise me. Plus most of my plunging is into end grain, which is in most ways more challenging than standard sidegrain boring for felling. And for plunging out blocks, 28-32 is all I usually need anyway, as the log section is generally crosscut at that point.

I am leaning toward starting with a 50 inch bar (Cannon, for the stiffness) which will usually do me, and then go from there. Your avatar looks like a Stihl? Where do you weigh in on the .404 vs 3/8 on a 50 inch bar?

It's new ground for me, so I appreciate all advice I can get. And I can't quite decide on which saw. One guy told me he has both (late models) and prefers running the 3120 in terms of performance, but word on the street is the 880 is a better saw (and I have a local Stihl expert - Andy). And somehow the fixed jet thing in the Husky bothers me, although probably it works just fine.

What I wish is that I could run one of each side by side, I would know in 5 minutes what I liked. Its a fairly big commitment by the time you include a bar or two and chains, so I am trying to do glean from folks's experiences.

Edit: I just looked at your avatar again. That is one crazy long bar. Makes my back hurt a little just thinking about it.

 

[Ed*L]

I'm a fan of the .404 pitch chain on big saws. I run fill skip on the 60", the 24" & 36" get full comp. chain.
With a 24" bar on the 084, it's a crosscutting monster! The .404 pitch gives more room for chips in between the teeth. Comparing it to my 066/24" (full comp chain) combo it's twice as fast on the crosscut. All you do is get the saw angle right so the noodles exit the saw cleanly and hang on!

I've never ran 3/8 pitch chain on the 084, there are guys here that do and are happy with the performance. For me, it all comes down to laziness, the less cutters I have to file the happier I am.

Ed