Why do so many people love the 290/390?

Wesspur
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timberwolf said:
It's plain profit, the business model would not work if they sold a 290, 310 and 390 all at the same price as it costs the same to make them. There would be no point in even making a 290 or 310.
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I'm just sayin' the 390 is a poor seller compared to the 290. I think Stihl could make more money if they dropped the price on the 390 a bit to entice more customers to make the step up to the higher-profit model.

The 210-230-250 series makes more sense in the pricing to me. Each gap is, what, an extra $30 or $40? That's an easy step to make. And you step up 0.5 hp each time. So do you want a 2.0 hp 210 or is a 3.0 hp 250 worth an extra $70..? I would say that the higher-profit MS250 handily outsells the low-margin MS210... exactly what I would want to do if I were running the company. Sucker them in with the low-margin product and then upsell...
 
The world outside of AS views saws through a different lens, and in many ways a simpler and more sensible one. There is no hobby aspect or specification nitpicking about fractional differences in weight and HP.

If a guy can get all of his firewood cut up without any problems using a 290 or 455, then he has all the saw that he needs. He doesn't care if his saw will get beat in a race with one costing twice as much.

Bottom line is that those saws do the job they were intended to do, and their owners are happy. So, there is no problem, and no reason to knock either the saw or the guy running it.

I wonder how many guys who love to trash these "lesser" saws started out with 372's and 660's.
 
spike60 said:
The world outside of AS views saws through a different lens, and in many ways a simpler and more sensible one. There is no hobby aspect or specification nitpicking about fractional differences in weight and HP.

If a guy can get all of his firewood cut up without any problems using a 290 or 455, then he has all the saw that he needs. He doesn't care if his saw will get beat in a race with one costing twice as much.

Bottom line is that those saws do the job they were intended to do, and their owners are happy. So, there is no problem, and no reason to knock either the saw or the guy running it.

I wonder how many guys who love to trash these "lesser" saws started out with 372's and 660's.
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:agree2:Well said, I started with a 029.:hmm3grin2orange:
 
If they discount the 390 and someone buys into the upgrad thats just one less 290 or 310 they get to sell. And they lose the profit they could have had on the 390.

No doubt they have sales and marketing people that watch this and know exactly how to maximize profit on the product lines they offer.
 
So here's my question, Why doesn't Bailey's or some other quality aftermarket company make a "BB" kit for the 029/290. As I understand it, a 390 B/C will fit a 290, 310, and a 390. It shouldn't cost much more to produce than the 290 B/C already available. I had a MS310 and had to put a 290 top end on it because the OEM 310 cost more than the saw was worth. Grand Dog are you listening, I think the market is there. Lots of MS290/310's out there
Dave
 
AOD said:
Thats the thing. Inexperienced homeowners should stick with the 1xx series, casual users can use a 260 or 270, but if you need a saw the size of the 390 you need the performance and features of a 361. They won't spend the money for a real saw but ride around in a $35,000 SUV that gets traded in every 2 yrs.
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way to generalize and show the elitist mentality.. I used a 290 as my only saw for 3 years, cut 4-5 cords a year with it..my Girlfriends son is taken care of, no doubt..I drive a 15 year old paid for pickup, she has a 2003 grand Cherokee thats paid for, I pay half my moms mortgage and am paying for property of my own..the 290 did what was asked of it and the price was a big factor.. last year I bought a 371xp used.. much better saw, but 3 years ago it would have been far too much saw for me as a user.. the extra weight of the 290-390 series makes them more controllable.. was it ideal, no.. at the time it filled a need and did everything I asked of it.. if I hadn't found the 371xp cheap, I'd still be using the 290..my dad has an 029 thats probably 15 years old and still cutting fine.. he cuts 3-4 cords a year..
 
I can't speak for everyone else, but I'm a little sick of seeing point and counterpoint debated about these saws every week. So hows abouts a quick list of facts about the 290/310? Maybe if we can get them all in one place, we'll see the bickering about the series die down a little bit.

- The 290/310 is overwieght and underpowered.
- It's not a pro model, and should not be expected to perform like one.
- They respond well to muffler mods. If you're not happy with the saw in stock form, you'll probably be fairly impressed by it with a mod.
- Just like any saw, it's reliability is directly proportional to how well it's maintained.
- YES, THE 361 IS A BETTER SAW!
- Not everyone NEEDS a 361, not everyone can AFFORD a 361, and (I'll be getting flamed for this one) not everyone WANTS a 361.
- THE SAW FITS ITS NICHE PERFECTLY. Call me crazy, I think Stihl achieved their goal in producing this model.
- The 'bang for your buck' factor is top of its class.

If I missed anything, please add to the list. Thank you.

Sincerely,

A very happy, very poor, 310 owning homeowner.

:cheers:
 
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i guess that is why stihl is successful, they dont take your advice.

why do you care what other people buy anyways, if they want a saw and they dont want to pay $600 for it they buy something in their budget range. if that happens to be a 290-310-390 then so be it, who cares woop de do, wow. dont go bashing people because they buy homeowner saws because they are casual users.

and by the way, i imagine that not all people who buy the smaller lower end saws are also people that own multimillion dollar houses and buy 40K cars, some of them are poor and can only afford to buy a saw that price.


this also sounds like a perfect example of a troll thread.
 
My friend brung over a 290 last week its a nice saw I didnt get to use it but it seemed to cut nice. I think it mainly has to do with price most people think $600 is way to much for a saw. I told my friend I got the 361 and first thing he said was waste of money. They feel that if another saw for a lot less money will get the job done thats all they need. I will have this saw for a long time and Im sure I will get my money back just on the savings of burning wood.
Was also the first thing he said when I bought a 1911 said he would of just bought an xd for 400 since it gets the job done.
 
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I'd bet most people that say the 290 walks on water say it because the only other thing they have to compare it to is a 40cc $100 poulan with LP safety chain. When you look at it that way a 290 is nothing short of amazing.
 
A saw aint gonna cut no faster than the chain is sharp anyways. Dont matter if you got an expensive power head or an el cheapo.
 
I have an 029 and I love it!
It does everything that it's supposed to do, and does it very well. I know that there are faster, lighter, smoother, and more nimble saws out there, but you would be hard pressed to find one any more reliable.
As for people adoring them, you would probably think a Camaro is a really fast car if you've never driven a DODGE VIPER!
Or as a friend of mine says, "That's why they make chocolate and vanilla".
 
An 029 is NOT a 290.

It's just frustrating to see ignorant people cooing over a mediocre saw.

If they were really hard up for money they'd be running older stuff. An XL-12 can be had for a song and will keep you warm, and will almost keep up with a 290 in bigger stuff.

My point is, if somebody has the money for a new 390, it's stupid of them to not spend a bit more and get the 361 because they think it's "too much saw"
 

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