Newbie Milling Chainsaw selection (Stihl)

[fwfa]

I want to get started milling the trees that I have to cut down on my property from time to time. I am tired of them going to waste. Mostly 12 - 18 Pine/ sweet gum/ sycamore/ some white oaks.

I do not have a huge amount of cash so I was going to pick up a MS362 however I could stretch it for a MS441. Would this be a good upgrade or are both saws just not a good choice for milling?

Thanks

 

[BobL]

I want to get started milling the trees that I have to cut down on my property from time to time. I am tired of them going to waste. Mostly 12 - 18 Pine/ sweet gum/ sycamore/ some white oaks.

I do not have a huge amount of cash so I was going to pick up a MS362 however I could stretch it for a MS441. Would this be a good upgrade or are both saws just not a good choice for milling?

Thanks

Do you mean new saws?
If so for the same money or less you could get a used 440 or maybe a 660?

It sounds like you have quite a few trees so I'd get the biggest saw up to 100 cc you can afford.

 

[fwfa]

New Saw

Thanks for the reply..yes new saw. I am concerned that I am not well rounded enough to pick out a used one...

 

[BobL]

Thanks for the reply..yes new saw. I am concerned that I am not well rounded enough to pick out a used one...

I have a 441 I use on small stuff (18" or less) and I run it with 3/8 lopro chain - it's a great little saw. Not fast but then it's much smoother and also uses very little fuel compared to my bigger saws.

 

[gemniii]

I want to get started milling the trees that I have to cut down on my property from time to time. I am tired of them going to waste. Mostly 12 - 18 Pine/ sweet gum/ sycamore/ some white oaks.

I do not have a huge amount of cash so I was going to pick up a MS362 however I could stretch it for a MS441. Would this be a good upgrade or are both saws just not a good choice for milling?

Thanks

Well based on other threads you posted/started you've probably already got it by now, but for future posters:

If you are going to be milling trees over 14" and medium to hard wood 60CC is the absolute minimum to consider.

Unless you are getting tax writeoffs and using it for work where time is money buying used is the way to go. (note - it seems there are darn few people making $$ with CSM)

There are several good dealers on ebay, there are a lot of bad dealers on ebay. A 360 on Ebay is going for about $400, a new 362 is about $650. The average price for a running 660 (90cc saw) in fair condition is about $720
I just picked up an excellent muf modded, snellerized, 660 here on AS for $700. If you can stretch it for a new 441 you can easily get a good used 660 from the chainsawguy when he has one available.

Prices for used large saws will probably drop down significantly January thru April, it's been a seasonal thing.

/edit - and right now there is a used 064 for sale in the forum for $500 http://www.arboristsite.com/pp-classifieds/showproduct.php?product=5319&cat=6 and that's a decent sized milling saw. Also it has a DP muffler, which is worth $60 by itself.