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TXScout

ArboristSite Lurker
Joined
Jul 12, 2019
Messages
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Location
Texas
I guess I just wanted to take the time to make my first post and say hi. LOL

I heat my house with a wood burning stove and cut 4-6 cords a year.

My current saw battery:

Stihl 180. (3-4 years old)
Husqvarna 440. (7 years old)
Husqvarna 445. (9 years old)

I have a new addition to the family. I have been bugging my lovely wife for a bigger saw for a couple of years. After I cut down an Oak tree the beginning of this month that was 36in at the base with my trusty 445 Husqvarna, she agreed.

So now I have a Stihl 391. I wanted the 362, or even better the 462, but they were out of my price range.

I love the 391. I have had it for about 1 week and I have already put over 10 hours on it.
 
I have some experance with a chain saw. I have well over 100 hours of use just with my 445. To be honest, I didn’t know if I was going to be ready for the 391. But after using it this last week, I am glade I took the plunge.

Ok, so let’s get to the question.

I am burying a 20in bar in Oak with the 391.

As I have a 25 in bar that I purchased with the 391. The saw shop sold me a full chisel chain with the 25 in bar. Would I get better performance with a skip chain with the 391?
 
Welcome aboard! We have some really good folks here. Your 391 caught my eye because I just upgraded a non-running 290 to a 390 and saved it from the land fill. A Tree Service company handed it to me after running it to death. My only squawk is that this saw is a little heavy, but many can live with that. After rebuilding, it pulls a 20" bar and can occasionally take on a 25". Now they want to buy it back.

Again, this forum is tops.
 
I am not a “pro sawer”. The fact that I have run my little 445 as hard as I have for the last 9 years tells me my 391 will be fruitful for yeas. For most of what I do “I” don’t need the 25 in bar. But it is nice to have it when you need it.

The wood I will manly be cutting is Bois-d-arc, Oak, hackberry, and pecan. Maybe the occasional elm.

Also, any advice on a rip chain would be welcomed. A few of those rounds are over 40 in across. A bit much for my maul, LOl
 

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Curious what others say on this. Your saw should be able to pull full comp just fine IMO.

Welcome to the forum.
Ya, I was using the 25 in bar with the full chisel for ripping because that is what I had. LOL.

I bet that setup would be a lot better under normal use.

Still learning.

Thanks for the responses so far!!
 
I am not a “pro sawer”. The fact that I have run my little 445 as hard as I have for the last 9 years tells me my 391 will be fruitful for yeas. For most of what I do “I” don’t need the 25 in bar. But it is nice to have it when you need it.

The wood I will manly be cutting is Bois-d-arc, Oak, hackberry, and pecan. Maybe the occasional elm.

Also, any advice on a rip chain would be welcomed. A few of those rounds are over 40 in across. A bit much for my maul, LOl
Noodle cut those in half, cutting with the grain of the wood. About any saw chain will do this, but I prefer semi-chisel. Sometimes I have to quarter them and occasionally go to sixths. I have even made noodle cutting supports:
Noodle Cutting Supports.jpg
 
You learn to shorten the big sticks when you get old. It seems like my heater likes them a little shorter every year.

Welcome. Now that you're here, which husky are you going to port first?

Funny you should say those things.

1) I tried to order the 391 with an 18in bar. The dealer said they didn’t have one

2) you evil thing. I have been thinking about that for a while.
 
Welcome Duane, pull up a stump and stay a while. Somewhere back there you mentioned ripping chain. I do a lot of milling and use out of the box Stihl RS chain, no ripping chain. I make Oak mantel pieces and the Stihl RS will cut smooth enough that I can run them through my planer 3 times and they are ready for finish. Skip tooth chain. If my saw can't pull a full comp chain, I don't try to make up for it with less teeth, I get a bigger saw. Some folks like skip so they don't have so many teeth to sharpen. I hand sharpen with just my hands, a pair of kevlar gloves, and no guide. (Thanks for the gloves Steve). I have many scars on the back of my fingers where a file slipped and ran a knuckle across a sharp tooth.

Sorry Huskitoter, I measure every log with an 18" stick and if I have a 10" off cut at the end, it stays in the woods, or goes to the burn pit. I'm kind of OCD about nice even stacks of wood.
 
Ok fish. I sharpened the chains this morning before I started and tried again.

The 25in bar with a “sharp chain” cut like a different chain. I guess I should have sharpened it before I ever put it on.
 
Oh ya, in regards to the ripping chain...

I changed the angle I was cutting and it was on. He is one of the piles of saw dust.
 

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Oh ya, in regards to the ripping chain...

I changed the angle I was cutting and it was on. He is one of the piles of saw dust.

We all call them noodles, great fire starter. Sawdust is the smaller chips from cross cutting, not that it matters, your saw is cutting fine.
 
I was noodle cutting down a whole bunch of large oak and ash rounds one day. A horse rancher saw what I was doing, stopped his truck and offered me $5 per 30-gal bag for them. He said his horses loved them in the stables. He filled up four bags of noodles packed tight, loaded them into his truck, flipped me a $20 bill and drove off.
 
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