Quote From Another Site

[wkpoor]

This was posted over on **********. I found it a little off the mark. Guy says he is a pro. What do you guys think?

The difference is a non or EPA stove isn’t gonna kill someone.
You’re hyping high performance, high horse power saws on a mostly newbie saw using/wood burning crowd as a resonably priced alternative. I doubt in the end it is factoring in emergency room bills.
The difference in weight between a 346 and 372 is 2.5 lbs. Big whoop! I don’t need more HP and less weight with a saw that kicks like a Columbian pack mule cranked up on his own freight!
If you wanna party in your back yard droppin a hopped up saw on logs makin cookies so be it. Don’t make it sound like the end all to a bunch of newbies with little saw handling experience in real world , wood under pressure, wood cutting circumstances.
I’ve been felling for 28 years and never felt the need to port a saw.

 

[jus2fat]

I don't see the problem..???.. Actually agree with him..!!

At least 95+% of saws are not ported..!!

A general homeowner needs a ported saw like he needs another hole in the head..!!

Port work ain't cheap...who would spend $200 on a $300 saw for maybe 20% power gain..??

J2F

 

[wkpoor]

I don't see the problem..???.. Actually agree with him..!!

At least 95+% of saws are not ported..!!

A general homeowner needs a ported saw like he needs another hole in the head..!!

Port work ain't cheap...who would spend $200 on a $300 saw for maybe 20% power gain..??

J2F

Not many but there are saws out there with good port work that have 25-40% gains.

 

[Rockland Farm]

I would't have put it the same way but I kinda agree with the guy . Someone new to saws and cutting should think about getting PPE and learning proper cutting techniques before they worry about hotrodding their saw . I get the impression he was chastising someone for trying to talk a person new to saws into modding their saw as a priority . Learn how to properly maintain your equipment and get some cutting time under your belt first . Then join the rest of the enthusiasts on the chainsaw forum here and learn and talk about mods to your hearts content . I personally don't own any modified saws because I can't afford it . One of these days but for now it is challenge enough just to keep them all running .

 

[CTYank]

Not many but there are saws out there with good port work that have 25-40% gains.

What's that worth? If the saw can cut faster than your brain can process a safe cutting plan, that's not good.

Then, long term, some of us would be concerned about engine longevity and unused fuel (passed right out the exhaust.) But, that involves thought.

Great thing about America: we can welcome a wide range of opinion without silencing any.

 

[mikefunaro]

This was posted over on **********. I found it a little off the mark. Guy says he is a pro. What do you guys think?

I think the guy is more or less right.

While there are differences in handling in the saws that are larger than the pounds would suggest, it's all about what's good and what works for the saw operator.

People come on here and get talked into husky 346xps who would be perfectly content with a husqvarna 450, and then get talked into porting their 346.

Porting and high performance models are certainly an option and make for impressive saws, but they are not a necessity by any stretch.

If you crunch the numbers, get the math, etc, you'll find that for most guys filling up a pickup with wood and then heading home, unless the say is way undersized (16" bar MS 230 and 24" oak or some situation like that), the majority of the time is lugging the wood, moving to and from cuts, and the relative savings of time in the cut is very small.

 

[mikefunaro]

To add a little more

The hearth guys have a different attitude and I definitely respect it.

I'm actually friends with a guy who is pretty big on there who does like 4-5 cords a year. For years his go-to and big saw was a stihl 029 and he was perfectly happy with it.

Once we started working together a bit he was impressed with my 372, but didn't have the OMG I need it reaction.

Then sooner or later a stihl 036 came for sale by me for $90 in good working shape. Sold it to him for $120 (to cover my gas). He had done me some other favors too.

He kept the 036 and sold his 029. He appreciates the power of the pro saw, but it's not like he couldn't live without it. Not by a long shot.

 

[jus2fat]

To add a little more

The hearth guys have a different attitude and I definitely respect it.

Then sooner or later a stihl 036 came for sale by me for $90 in good working shape. Sold it to him for $120 (to cover my gas). He had done me some other favors too.

He kept the 036 and sold his 029. He appreciates the power of the pro saw, but it's not like he couldn't live without it. Not by a long shot.

Good on you..BRO..!!

The 036 is just an awesome powerful yet quite light weight saw...!!!

He won't likely be buying anything new to replace it with..!!
(I wouldn't trade mine for a new 361 or 362..!!)

J2F

 

[mdavlee]

You can cut firewood with less than a 70cc ported saw? Man I got tricked big time:help:

 

[Tim Carroll]

I think the guy is more or less right.

While there are differences in handling in the saws that are larger than the pounds would suggest, it's all about what's good and what works for the saw operator.

People come on here and get talked into husky 346xps who would be perfectly content with a husqvarna 450, and then get talked into porting their 346.

Porting and high performance models are certainly an option and make for impressive saws, but they are not a necessity by any stretch.

If you crunch the numbers, get the math, etc, you'll find that for most guys filling up a pickup with wood and then heading home, unless the say is way undersized (16" bar MS 230 and 24" oak or some situation like that), the majority of the time is lugging the wood, moving to and from cuts, and the relative savings of time in the cut is very small.

I agree with you on that, for I firewood hack like me, switching from a #8 maul to a fiskars splitting axe probably has a bigger impact on my production than when I got bigger saws.

 

[Dan_IN_MN]

IMO.....the biggest mod the average person needs is a SHARP CHAIN! Added HP is a plus too! But throwing chips as opposed to throwing dust..... is the best production improvement! More HP isn't going to help a dull chain!

 

[jus2fat]

IMO.....the biggest mod the average person needs is a SHARP CHAIN! Added HP is a plus too! But throwing chips as opposed to throwing dust..... is the best production improvement! More HP isn't going to help a dull chain!

Well said..!!

IMHO...a simple muffler mod is all 99.9% of general chainsaw users NEED...!!

J2F

 

[rmihalek]

We're missing a bit of information as to what question led up to that answer, but in general there seems to be an escalation in the recommendations as to how much saw is needed for the "average Joe" (or Jane) to cut some logs for firewood. Certainly most newbies don't need a 372 to cut wood for their fireplaces or stoves, but some might. It all depends on the size of the raw material they're working with. Even a newbie will need a bigger saw if all they have are 24" diameter logs.

Porting a saw is a whole new issue. If someone isn't used to handling a saw, then you give them a light weight high-horsepower saw, they may be in for a heap of trouble. I say to my friends and neighbors: keep your chain sharp and tight, clean the air filter, learn how to adjust the carb and learn how to use wedges, and you're ahead of 95% of the wood cutting population.

 

[wilson225]

first off, for about 70% of us here it ain't about "need" pal. I cut 10 cord of firewood a year and for about 15 years did it with an 024. Now I have CAD. Now I have eight saw and have more fun, pleasure and enjoyment...and it never did have nuttin to do with "need".
Secondly, the whole deal about starting off with a mild saw to learn on imo is crapp. If you know what you have and take time to learn and respect the ported big saw it won't hurt you, it's about respecting the machine. For those of you familiar with motorcycles my very first bike was a GSX-R 1000, the fastest meanest racer replica on the market at the time. Why am I still alive after 20 years? Because I knew what the bike was, I knew it could hurt me if I was stupid and I respected it. It ain't the machine....it's the guy running it!!!!

 

[nmurph]

Good on you..BRO..!!

The 036 is just an awesome powerful yet quite light weight saw...!!!

He won't likely be buying anything new to replace it with..!!
(I wouldn't trade mine for a new 361 or 362..!!)

J2F

What he did pretty much amounts to porting.

 

[Guido Salvage]

first off, for about 70% of us here it ain't about "need" pal. I cut 10 cord of firewood a year and for about 15 years did it with an 024. Now I have CAD. Now I have eight saw and have more fun, pleasure and enjoyment...and it never did have nuttin to do with "need".
Secondly, the whole deal about starting off with a mild saw to learn on imo is crapp. If you know what you have and take time to learn and respect the ported big saw it won't hurt you, it's about respecting the machine. For those of you familiar with motorcycles my very first bike was a GSX-R 1000, the fastest meanest racer replica on the market at the time. Why am I still alive after 20 years? Because I knew what the bike was, I knew it could hurt me if I was stupid and I respected it. It ain't the machine....it's the guy running it!!!!

That is like a smoker saying that cigarettes are harmless because he doesn't have cancer. There is a reason that you start learning to ride a 2 wheel bicycle with training wheels on it. While you may have dodged a bullet with your bike, would you turn your 16 year old son loose with a 600 HP Corvette? Like anything, people need to learn the basics first before they move on to more advanced procedures and higher performance machinery.

 

[jus2fat]

I totally agree with you.....BUT.....

Put an average (or alpha-male) man in a Porsche 911 Twin-Turbo Carrera ....AND...

Let's just not go there...if you know what I mean..!!!!

J2F

 

[discounthunter]

pro saws have there place. better built, better durability,better hp to wt ratios. but homeowner level saws work just as good for the needs they fill.

the people i find funny are the ones that go out buy as their first saw, a hi dollar pro saw then think down at every one with less.

 

[DanManofStihl]

Some people spend there money to buy pro grade things in different categories. I have all pro grade saws, welding equipment, power tools etc . But my every day truck is a beat up s10 which cost less then my husky 395. Granted i have a nice Diesel truck but I don't want to wear it out bidding work or going to and from small jobs. People spend money in different ways not everyone has to have the most powerful chainsaw to get the job done. Im sure not everyone here has a huge backpack leaf blower or string trimmer.

 

[Rockland Farm]

I don't remember who but someone once said just because you have the money to buy a F-16 it don't make you a fighter pilot .