After I passed up a Stihl HT75 at a pawn shop (the motor ran but the chain didn't move), a Stihl mechanic friend of mine told me that, often, the cause of the problem was that the saw was not properly put together and could be fixed simply and inexpensively. So, now, 3 or 4 years later, here's what I've got:
Saw #1 (bright orange shroud) cost $150, saw #2 (from the same shop a couple years later) cost $125. I fixed #2 for about $25, while saw #1 cost me about $265 for parts. The moral: sometimes you get lucky, but sometimes you don't.
Having 2 running pole saws did get me out of a bind a couple days ago, however, when I got my bar pinched. Bottom line: I now own two running pole saws for the price of one new current model saw. No regrets! O