What chain ??

[Satchmo1960]

I am new to all this so sorry for the lame questions.....BUT..I have this MS261 and wanting a 18' bar and wondering what chain for this bar...
TsuMura 18" Guide Bar .325-063-74DL
Again sorry for lame questions

 

[svk]

Well you need a .325 pitch, .063 gauge chain with 74 drive lengths. Then you need to determine if you want Stihl, Oregon, or other brand chain and which cutter type you want.

What kind of wood do you primarily cut? Are you cutting clean trees or logs that may have been skidded?

 

[Satchmo1960]

Well you need a .325 pitch, .063 gauge chain with 74 drive lengths. Then you need to determine if you want Stihl, Oregon, or other brand chain and which cutter type you want.

What kind of wood do you primarily cut? Are you cutting clean trees or logs that may have been skidded?

Pretty much clean wood...Firewood for home use...Oak,ash,maple and cherry mainly.

 

[svk]

I would probably go with full chisel chain then versus semi chisel then but you cant go wrong with either. For reference: full chisel cuts faster, semi chisel cuts a bit slower but will stay sharp longer, especially in dirty/gritty wood.

I believe Stihl only makes .325 in semi chisel so you would want 26RM3-74
For Oregon you could use 22LPX-74 full chisel or 22BPX-74 semi chisel

You could also use a host of other chain manufacturers if you match the specs outlined in post #2

 

[ray benson]

Stihl makes 26RS chisel chain and 26RM semi-chisel chain for .325 pitch

 

[longbowch]

I would probably go with full chisel chain then versus semi chisel then but you cant go wrong with either. For reference: full chisel cuts faster, semi chisel cuts a bit slower but will stay sharp longer, especially in dirty/gritty wood.

I believe Stihl only makes .325 in semi chisel so you would want 26RM3-74
For Oregon you could use 22LPX-74 full chisel or 22BPX-74 semi chisel

You could also use a host of other chain manufacturers if you match the specs outlined in post #2

Don’t get RM3, RM or RS

 

[svk]

Don’t get RM3, RM or RS

Why not?

 

[Mad Professor]

Why not?

It has the safety bumps that make it a PITA to keep rakers right, "green chain". Newbies that have not ran a saw it's perfect to keep the bar from their face.

 

[farmer steve]

It has the safety bumps that make it a PITA to keep rakers right, "green chain". Newbies that have not ran a saw it's perfect to keep the bar from their face.

RM isn't safety chain. It's what I run on my 026.

 

[Mad Professor]

I'm fine with RM or RS, PM or PS on small saws, PMX on my mill.

Safety chain makes my saw act like my GF with PMS.

 

[svk]

It has the safety bumps that make it a PITA to keep rakers right, "green chain". Newbies that have not ran a saw it's perfect to keep the bar from their face.

RS isn't safety chain either.

RM isn't safety chain. It's what I run on my 026.
View attachment 761729

 

[sb47]

I have a 261 and had to switch to a .050 chain because the chips were clogging up the bar rail groove and stopping the chain when cutting with the grain. It wasn't an issue with cross grain cutting but when I went to cut a round into quarters it would clog up almost immediately. Works great with the .050 gauge chain. I suspect you could run ether and be ok.

 

[farmer steve]

RS isn't safety chain either.

I'm thinking if it has a 3 after the letters that means safety chain. Like RM3. At least in Stihl.

 

[longbowch]

I'm thinking if it has a 3 after the letters that means safety chain. Like RM3. At least in Stihl.

That is correct

 

[longbowch]

Why not?

The “3” means it’s safety chain. Makes it hard to bore cut and maybe a touch slower.

 

[sb47]

https://www.stihlusa.com/WebContent.../STIHL-Saw-Chain-Selection-Identification.pdf