Forester bars

[BWS-LLC]

From my experience with forrester I wouldnt touch one.I have several logger buddys around here and one said that the first bar they used split out.they tossed out the others.the first Forrester chain they used broke within minutes.when it broke it was launched straight towards his brother.bad news if it had hit him up in the mountains where they were working.
For emergency use I myself would only buy the best.in an emergency its already a bad situation and doesnt need to be any worse due to bad equipment.
Instead of forrester brand check out left coast supplys they sell GB brand bars that are made in Australia for a steal.

Sure, they won't hold up to a Cannon or Stihl bar, but how many guys on this forum are actually logging professionally....

A Forester bar ain't for a professional, but for the average woodcutter, I honestly don't think there is a better deal out there. I can buy three Forester bars for the price of one Stihl.

 

[SawTroll]

Agree,

Plus the longer bars are really flexible in comparison to a Stihl, Total, or comparable bar.

......

I wouldn't put the Stihl ES bars in quite the same category as Cannon or Tsumura (total) or the Sugi lights - but they still are good bars.

 

[chainsawman2011]

the forester laminated bars have been lasting longer than the some of the rollomatic e stihl bars lately. at least what I have seen the the stihl e bars are really junk lately.

 

[Toyboy]

I didn't mean to start a controversy on Forester bars against other brands. All I really wanted to know was if they are a decent bar for occasional use. I don't want to spend $60+ on a bar I may or may not use less then one week out of the year, where a $40 bar would suffice. Most reply's have been yes, they're decent, and a good value for the buck, but the chains are questionable. You've answered my question and I appreciate all the comments you've posted, good & bad. Thank You

 

[SawTroll]

That discussion turns up from time to time anyway - and there seem to be both decent and not so decent batches of Forester bars, as it often is with brands that get their bars from a variety of sourses - or sourses with lax quality control.

 

[Swamp Yankee]

I didn't mean to start a controversy on Forester bars against other brands. All I really wanted to know was if they are a decent bar for occasional use.

Yes

More than adequate for most applications. I know several loggers that run them strictly because of the economics you stated. If one rolls on the stump and takes out the bar, $30 to $35 is a lot easier to eat than $75.

Take Care

 

[svk]

Seems to be mostly good reviews on Forester for non-pro use. I've put about 100 cords through my Tilton and its starting to cut crooked on both sides. It's still usable enough to save as a spare. You can get a Forester b+c for 36 bucks shipped so even if the chain is junk I can use it for bucking yard trees and stumping. With these reviews I'll probably give it a try.

 

[weimedog]

I've had reasonably good luck with the "Red" pro level Forester bars for Husqvarna's. They are a bit heavy for me personally, but Interestingly enough, the guys I know who use them destroy them long before wearing them out. SO they like the cost. I personally used to buy Sugi's until that distribution channel got all effed up and drove the price beyond what they are worth....now I buy Total bars for my saws. Another good Japanese built bar and an excellent bang per buck... as they wear well too.

 

[VINIFIREWOOD]

I have run several Forester bars, both red label and green label replaceable tip. On every saw size from my top handles on up to my 7910 and 660.
Only problem I ever had was with a red label on my 7910. Blew up the tip, But, that bar had a hell of a lot of time on it and I was making a bore cut, 24" bar, in dead dry white oak. In the tree service the top handle saws see more action than any of the bigger saws by probably ten fold. And I get longer life out of the Forester bars that the factory bars from both Jonsered and Stihl.
The Dolmar 6100 I bought this last year , factory Oregon bar, had maybe a dozen tanks of fuel thru it and one rail wore crooked. In the middle of a job so just flipped the bar and by the end of the day that side was cutting crooked too but to the left instead of the right. Upon investigation the one side of the bar must have missed the tempering process cuz it was the same side of the bar that was wearing faster. Also seen some problems a while back on factory bars on the 5100, sprockets locking up. I believe those were also Oregon bars in Dolmar paint.
For the quality and price you simply cannot beat the Forester bars. Their chain is another story.
Forester brand is owned by Ahlborn Equipment out of Sayner WI. So its really like buying an "American" made car these days. The parent company is in one country but they are actually built in another.

 

[nnero]

I have had good luck with forester bars myself. Heavy but held up well. I am not a fan of the stock 6100 bar either. I have a total bar on the 7900 which i like and seems to be a great value. I just ordered 2 gb bars and have another on order from left coast supplies. Hopefully they are decent because the price was great. And he was able to get a pioneer mount for the p61.

 

[svk]

Just looked at GB and they have good prices too. Nothing on eBay that fits what I need though.

For some reason I prefer a grey painted bar versus silver and cutting softwood around here it takes forever to wear paint off. Always thought the bare metal Tilton looked out of place. It wore like iron though considering I've had it on multiple saws since about 1998. Once it started to go crooked, it went pretty quick though.

 

[Wood Doctor]

Everyone told me to stay away from Forester bars. So, I bought one just to see what they were talking about. I've used that bar for two years and still cannot figure out what they were talking about. It works.

 

[BWS-LLC]

I didn't mean to start a controversy on Forester bars against other brands. All I really wanted to know was if they are a decent bar for occasional use. I don't want to spend $60+ on a bar I may or may not use less then one week out of the year, where a $40 bar would suffice. Most reply's have been yes, they're decent, and a good value for the buck, but the chains are questionable. You've answered my question and I appreciate all the comments you've posted, good & bad. Thank You

The Forester chain is junk FYI

Very soft.

I'm a fan of Forester bars, just not the chain

 

[CR888]

When you look at the price of cannon, sugi, tsumara, stihl es, & powermatch the forester bars are just like the birdy says.,..cheeaap! cheeaap! However while the above quality brands are more 'consistant in quality' the forester bars l have got (red & green) have held up pretty darn well. l think for the price forrester are VERY hard to beat. l would recommend them to someone who is on a budget and wants to purchase new bars. l don't believe my sister's boyfriends uncle's nieghbours opinion with regards to forrester quality. Sure they are not near the best but are very far from the worst.

 

[fearofpavement]

I'm part of the way through a 100' roll of .325 Forester chain. I've been happy enough with it that I would buy another roll. Never ran Forester bars so won't comment on those.

 

[BWS-LLC]

I'm part of the way through a 100' roll of .325 Forester chain. I've been happy enough with it that I would buy another roll. Never ran Forester bars so won't comment on those.

I've never ran Forester chain, but I've ordered it for customers at their request, I always hear the same complaint. It doesn't stay sharp long.

I can get Carlton chain for $.50-1 more per loop so it's a no brainier.

I have switched these customers to Carlton and they all tell me they will never go back.




I guess I aught to buy a few loops of Forester chain so I have actual first hand experience.

 

[Wood Doctor]

I'm part of the way through a 100' roll of .325 Forester chain. I've been happy enough with it that I would buy another roll. Never ran Forester bars so won't comment on those.

I was also told never to buy Forester chain. So, I decided to try a small, 25' reel just to see if it worked on elm and cottonwood, which accounts for about half of my cutting. I have no complaints. In fact, the semi-chisel .325 noodle cuts very well and my Stihl 028 Super gets along with it just fine. I'll take the $30 that I saved on the reel and the other $30 that I saved on the bar. Did I pinch pennies? Yes. Did I buy a few Bud Lights with those pennies? Yes.

 

[fearofpavement]

The main reason I bought the Forester chain was less because of price but that I liked the simple profile of it. I have used a lot of types of chain and never used one I thought was terrible (well, ok, I don't have much use for the sharkfin stuff) and I think Stihl holds the best edge but is expensive. I've used a lot of the Laser (which is probably someone else's chain but works good). Anyway, on the Forester, I didn't find it to be significantly better or worse than average. For the price it's a great value in my opinion for my purposes.

 

[Klayton]

i did not read all the posts but i bought a woodland pro from baileys with a chain and it was super cheap.... quality?
..... we shall see