50cc and 70cc Stihl and Husqvarna 026/260/346xp and 044/372xp

[barton174]

Husky 371/372/365/2166/2171/2172 saws, as runners, are usually between $300 and $400.

Mike

 

[Spring1898]

That's what I am hoping for,
I am a deal hunter so I can afford to wait and find something good.

 

[barton174]

That's what I am hoping for,
I am a deal hunter so I can afford to wait and find something good.

Straight up. I got my good shape 371XP for $325 like 3-4 years ago, and I just scored this running (but as of yet unknown shape piston, because a friend is shipping it to me) 2015 model 2166 on ebay for $200 (although I'm like $275 into it, between paying his mileage to go pick it up and the shipping). It was a pawn shop, BIN $200 on ebay, but he is busy and can't be bothered to ship stuff where you have to drain the fuel out and whatever.

 

[Big Block]

346/372 all day long. Two of the best saws husky ever made. The 026 and 044 are damn good saws too. But the huskies take the cake, IMO.

Agreed!
Obviously my vote OP

 

[Spring1898]

So far my research has come to the following conclusions about the saws I listed above:
Stihl 026/260/044/440, older designs, but good proven saws, light, nimble, reliable but nothing particularly stands out with them except they may be lighter or more nimble than husky depending on who you ask
Husky 346/372 also good, proven etc, but many tout their top end performance over the Stihl's above, for which I see no reason to disagree.
in the 50cc category the price differential is huge. I regularly found $200+ for a Stihl 026/260. I saw no 346xp's less than $350, most closer toward $450. For the $150+ I chose a Stihl for now.
Price differential in the 70cc category is not as much, (might still favor the 044/440 slightly) but there seem to be more 372's out there to find a deal.

 

[catbuster]

For me, chainsaws start at 70cc and go up from there. 14 lb plus bar and chain isn't too much weight. I'm 5'6/155 and can tote it all day long with no problem. Admittedly, I'm 30 and have worked in the field right about half my life now, (barring when I was in high school and college, but I still worked weekends, breaks and co-ops) but I think any reasonably fit man could probably handle using an 044 or 372 8 hours a day.

I'd get two used 440s. Or maybe 441s. They tend to run a little less in the same condition on the used market, probably because a lot of people like the 044/440 a lot more for reasons I don't fully understand.

 

[barton174]

GENERALLY speaking, at least in the midwest, everybody knows Stihl, and Stihl saws go for stupid money on the used market. There are nearly always good deals to be had on Husky stuff, because frankly, it doesn't say "Stihl" on it. Now, around here, you rarely get a steal on anything, but on ebay and CList, or at pawn shops and stuff, you're more likely to find a steal on a Husky than a Stihl.

Mike

 

[Spring1898]

In my case 70cc is about as big as I could ever expect to need in the reasonable future. 50cc is probably more than enough. My best friend's father kept their house heated on wood (and cook with it, one of those amish-type of stoves) using a Stihl 026 he had for about 20 years (I think he bought it used) as his sole chainsaw with windfall trees from their property.
The saw died a couple years back, but for the amount of wood it cut I am sure it was a well deserved retirement.

 

[Spring1898]

For the sake of completeness of the current quest, I picked up an 026 for $250 and an 044 for $300. Think I got a better deal on the 044, but the 026 is very clean.
So for $550 well under my max $800 budget, thank you arboristsite.