Stihl ms 361 vs Husky 562

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old-cat

old-cat

Fir Man
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If you get an MS361 for the right price then get it ported and TOTALLY mod the muffler, dollar for dollar, I think the STIHL would win:cool2:
Yesterday, I ran my "wicked work saw" 361 against my slightly modded MS440 24" skip chain on both, in a 27" dia. fir log and the MS440 only slightly beat.
 
dancan

dancan

Spruce , The preferred wood of the Purgatory !
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10 minutes in the hand is not enough time to evaluate a saw , get a saw , cut cords and cords of wood with it , cut tractor trailer loads and clear building lots with it for a year , throw it in the trunk of the car or back of the truck for a year or two , then you'll know if it's a good saw , a lot more to a good saw than the first 10 minutes .
What I like in a saw will be different than you , and what you like will be different than me I guarantee it , your's may be faster than mine but I might get more done with mine or I may just be plain slow LOL
I don't have any of them new wiz bang saws , anyone want to send me one for a test , any brand .... for a year or two so I'll know if the're better than the 361 that some don't like LOL
 
SawTroll

SawTroll

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Not side by side, I'm not saying a bad word about the 361 just praising the 562 and if people are still trying to say the 262 is in the same league as 562 their saws must not be anything like mine...

All 262xps were not the same when new, and surely isn't today (as they usually have seen a lot of use), so it is a bit hard to make a fair comparison.

Also, all 361s are not the same - the US version was "down-tuned" for EPA reasons.
 
Last edited:
Brushwacker

Brushwacker

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10 minutes in the hand is not enough time to evaluate a saw , get a saw , cut cords and cords of wood with it , cut tractor trailer loads and clear building lots with it for a year , throw it in the trunk of the car or back of the truck for a year or two , then you'll know if it's a good saw , a lot more to a good saw than the first 10 minutes .
What I like in a saw will be different than you , and what you like will be different than me I guarantee it , your's may be faster than mine but I might get more done with mine or I may just be plain slow LOL
I don't have any of them new wiz bang saws , anyone want to send me one for a test , any brand .... for a year or two so I'll know if the're better than the 361 that some don't like LOL

I couldn't agree less :clap:.
I don't think I know any body that can run any of the stock 60cc saws all they can go for 1/2 an hour in normal work situations and if they try it would get rather risky accident wise.
Its nice to have a nice saw, 2,3, or 4 to match different tasks and save wear and tear on the body. If you only have 1 saw (for work) it needs to be dependable #1, the way my body feels when I'm done is next, how fast I can go comfortably is above how fast the saw can get through a cut. Profit margin is a big factor to me. Do I want to put 8 or $900 in a modded 60cc saw that might end up dead under a tree to make maybe $1000 worth of firewood a year with all the other expenses and labor involved ? Thinking about it that way a new pro saw sounds like a risky investment if you intend to make money with it. If your making 10's of thousands with it things change but it may be a better business decision to have less money in some of your saws depending on the nature of your business.
 
WACutter

WACutter

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OK the real question.....361 vs 562. I owned a ported 562 and my brother now has it. I have owned a ms360 which I liked but was down on power a little to the 562 even stock. So how does the 361 really stack up?

I have a 562 and 361, both with mm. I also have a 555, with a mm as well. I think the 555 feels about the same power-wise as the 361, and the 562 has more top end than either of the others.

The 555 is the smallest and lightest of the bunch, and gets used the most.
 
Jet47

Jet47

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Owned two 361's, MM'ed both. Fine saws, used five days a week with very few problems.

Have been running a stock 562 for the last 6 weeks. Very smooth, like the balance better and the power is about the same as the muffler modded 361.

Plan on muffler modding the 562 when the warranty runs out (3 months from purchase).
 
M&Rtree

M&Rtree

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I've ran my 562 beside my personal 036, 262 and Dolmar 6400 all muffler modded. I've also ran it with and beside a Friends 361 with a muffler mod. Only saw that was close is my 6400 the win going to what size wood your ccutting the Dolmar has more torque.
 

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