Well used Stihl 880 vs New Stihl 660

[petersenj20]

Title says it all. Can buy either at the same price. What would ya'll recomend?

 

[blsnelling]

What are you going to use it for?

 

[user 64030]

For what use? Milling, felling, bucking...

No way I would hump a 880 around all day if I didn't need to run more than a 36" bar. 5 extra piunds plus that extra 30cc will use a lot more fuel in a day. If you NEED the power and grunt of the 880, or need to run a 60" bar by all means... If the Atlanta you are from is in Georgia, I doubt you will find many trees there the 660 cannot make short work of... New 660 + 6 pack Ultra oil = 2 year manf warranty or used 880 w/ no warranty, extra weight, and fuel use. Hmmmmm



MS 660
STIHL Magnum® 91.6 cc (5.6 cu. in.)
5.2 kW (7.0 bhp)
7.5 kg (16.5 lbs)
40 to 90 cm (16" to 36")


MS 880
STIHL Magnum® 121.6 cc (7.42 cu. in.)
6.4 kW (8.6 bhp)
10.1 kg (22.3 lbs)
43 to 150 cm (17" to 59")


dw

 

[saxman]

My opinion is MS660 all the way. The 660 is a much more versitile saw that can use a 20", 25", 28" or even a 36" and do a good job. The 880 while needed in some rare instances, at least in the midwest, would not be as much so. Also, the fact the 880 is used, who knows what evil lurks and is ready to pounce on you. Parts are harder to find in the used market for the 880 but are plentiful for the 660 if you should need anything. I bought a 660 new and have been well pleased with it, it will do anything I need done.

My MS660

 

[Saw Dr.]

Title says it all. Can buy either at the same price. What would ya'll recomend?

I say get the 660. (and tell me where the 880 is)

 

[Alex D]

The 660 can do the jobs of the 880 in the odd time you run across one such job. Eg a tree that exceeds oh i dunno 4, 5 even 6 foot diameter for that rare occasion the 660 will do. The 880 on the other hand will be much harder to use to do the 95% of jobs that a 660 would handle. Eg felling small to medium diameter trees, limbing and so on. 088s/880s are fun to have for that once in a while monster tree if you can get them for CHEAP!! But a well used 880 for the price of a new 660 is not cheap.

Perhaps a safety aspect should be added to using the 088/880 with small bars eg 20" or so will make the saw extremely difficult to control and it will be kick back frequently and powerfully. The 660 is much easier to control with 20" or so bars.

 

[lone wolf]

Title says it all. Can buy either at the same price. What would ya'll recomend?

Young girl vs used old woman hmm what to do!

 

[Bounty Hunter]

Hey petersenj20,

The 660...it's a mighty powerful saw right-out-of-the-box, and a simple muffler mod makes a great saw an AWESOME saw. For cutting big wood, it's really hard to beat...it's got the grunt, but also has fast chain speed. For an all-around big-wood saw it has a lot of power without the wieght of the 880. It's a big saw, and you should have a fair amount of experience in cutting to be confident with it. But when that big saw is deep in a cut, throwing chips to the ###### moon, it's feeling you will learn to LOOOOOOOVE!

OK, the 880 has torque...there's 121cc packing in there...but with a limited coil it will generally not cut faster than a 660 in moderate to big wood (18" - 36"). If you need to cut huge timber regularly (48" and up) then the 880 starts to make sense. But then an 880 with a long bar can exceed 50 pounds, and that's hard to muscle all day. We have a modified, ported, "Snellerized" 880 in our fleet, and it is monsterously powerful...not for the faint of heart or weak of arm. This big gun will only come out when the timber exceeds 36" and there is a bunch of it to cut. Or, sometimes, we just want to shake the windows in houses a mile away...yeah, it's just plain fun-to-run, with a distinctive roar at wide-open-throttle and a unique lumpy idle.

Which one would i get?

The 660 all the way, baby. Get one, run it...you will know what i mean...:msp_thumbsup:

 

[lone wolf]

Unless you are cutting giant trees everyday get the 660.

 

[saw dog]

No need to say more, every one has given you good advise. The only thing I might add is to pay the extra $50 to $60 dollars more and get the 660R instead of the straight 660, it would be money well spent.

 

[petersenj20]

Thanks for the help guys. The only use I will have for the saw is milling, no felling.
I'm sure I'll never mill a log big enough to warrant the bigger saw. Probably why the fella is trying to get rid of it. He did tell me the weight deters him from using it more than he does.

 

[mdavlee]

If you plan on milling a lot then I think the 880 may be more what you need. For general bucking and such 660 would be nicer to use all day.

 

[PEKS]

Brand New, Warranty, No Abuse, Lots of Power, Versatile..
MS 660..

 

[Alex D]

Thanks for the help guys. The only use I will have for the saw is milling, no felling.
I'm sure I'll never mill a log big enough to warrant the bigger saw. Probably why the fella is trying to get rid of it. He did tell me the weight deters him from using it more than he does.

Milling is very very different from felling, bucking and so forth. Plus you ain't really doing any limbing or such, kickback is non existent with a mill and weight aint a real issue. Now i dont have any milling experience but a 2 or 3 foot log may actually have you wanting the 088/880. My advice is dont buy a $1000 or so dollar used 880 wait for a cheap one to show up they almost always do when someone inherits it usually and realizes its way to much saw.

 

[chipherder]

I had to make a similar decision, freshly dealer rebuilt 088 or new 660. Went with the 660 and never regretted it, it does anything I ask without killing my back in five minutes, which I'm sure the 088 would have done.
More than enough grunt and makes me smile every time I use it. Just my .02

 

[user 64030]

I agree w/ Alex D. If milling is th e#1 objective a 880 may be a better choice. The mill may carry the weight (depending on the mill) and ripping is a lot more laod than felling/bucking. Just something to consider.

dw