Stihl has brought the MS250 back for the annual fall sale. Beware, apparently it is quickly developing a reputation as a piece of junk. I saw the ad and went down to check it out and my local dealer, a friend of mine who sold me on Echo last last year seems to be doing the same thing. Apparently the new 250 has several problems that didn't exist on the old iteration. He steered me towards the Echo CS 400 which apparently is far more reliable than the new small Stihls with the same weight and similar power to the 250. That's funny, he did the same thing to me last year when I needed a new firewood saw(I am retired now and my old 038 needed retiring as well). He sold me a CS 590 which came in a chest for $400 and I love it. The limiters were removed and the saw tuned before they were replaced by his tech who told me that the saw is more reliable and will last longer with an enrichened mixture(duh). I muffler modded it and retuned it after break in and used it all winter(my new favorite saw) and it has plenty of power. I recently gave away my old 028 so wanted to get a new small saw that I can use for the small stuff and for limbing as well. Now I have a CS-400 and have modded the muffler on that(limiters removed, adjusted and limiters replaced again) and I am extremely pleased. I feel as though I am getting more for my money than with Stihl and I don't miss them at all now that I have found saws that are easier to start and use. Time will tell if they are as reliable as this dealer claims and he should know, he has been selling power equipment since 1979. I have a major construction project planned for next spring and hope to spend the winter felling large pines on my lot and turning them into lumber. These saws(and me) are going to get a real workout. I am planning to use the CS-590 with a mill and we'll see how that goes. It might be a little slow but then again, so am I these days and I have nothing if not time and patience and a real appreciation for being out in the forest with my dogs.