Tough decision to make on choosing a saw

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I’m keeping the 562. It was a gift from the wifey and she spent a lot of effort into picking it out for me. I’d be an ass to return it. I’ve done lots of reading about it now and like what I’ve read. It’ll compliment the 260 very nicely. I think I need a small top handle now, too. Lol. I have a tool addiction big time! It’s always been in metal working or mechanic tools but I think it’s about to spill over into chainsaws.


Pretty smart wifey you have there, and it's a real nice testament to how she cares for you by saying in effect, yes my husband is worth the pricier and more powerful saw.
 
Well to update this thread with the latest and most definitely greatest...

I may have mentioned to our oldest son how bad I wished I had gotten the ms261cm. Well, the wifey secretly slipped into the shop and retrieved the unused Husky and returned it. She surprised me with a new Stihl MS261 with 18” bar. At first, I thought I had two new saws until she told me the entire story. :)

So I got the saw I’ve been wanting for a long time and I absolutely LOVE IT!!! I performed a muff mod on it the very first day and spent about 3 hours felling and bucking up a few large trees. This saw is everything I hoped it would be and then some. I have zero use for any larger saw as this one has more than enough power for my needs. I’ll eventually get a small top handle for limbing but that’ll be it.
It’s amazing just how easy this saw starts and it runs so smooth. The MM made it a little louder but nothing terrible.

I need to pick up a second chain and undecided on a full or semi chisel chain. I’ve read that a semi chisel stays sharper longer so you actually get more wood cut in a given amount of time. Thoughts?

Im considering getting the double dawgs and roller catch from the stihl 361.

My dad is buying me an electric Oregon chain sharpener so I’m covered there.
 
Well to update this thread with the latest and most definitely greatest...

I may have mentioned to our oldest son how bad I wished I had gotten the ms261cm. Well, the wifey secretly slipped into the shop and retrieved the unused Husky and returned it. She surprised me with a new Stihl MS261 with 18” bar. At first, I thought I had two new saws until she told me the entire story. :)

So I got the saw I’ve been wanting for a long time and I absolutely LOVE IT!!! I performed a muff mod on it the very first day and spent about 3 hours felling and bucking up a few large trees. This saw is everything I hoped it would be and then some. I have zero use for any larger saw as this one has more than enough power for my needs. I’ll eventually get a small top handle for limbing but that’ll be it.
It’s amazing just how easy this saw starts and it runs so smooth. The MM made it a little louder but nothing terrible.

I need to pick up a second chain and undecided on a full or semi chisel chain. I’ve read that a semi chisel stays sharper longer so you actually get more wood cut in a given amount of time. Thoughts?

Im considering getting the double dawgs and roller catch from the stihl 361.

My dad is buying me an electric Oregon chain sharpener so I’m covered there.

Good luck with that saw, to the chain everything I’ve ever ran from falling timber to bucking on a landing is chisel and most of the time it’s square chisel. With the size of that saw do you really need two dawgs? What are you doing with the saw again falling timber?


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Good luck with that saw, to the chain everything I’ve ever ran from falling timber to bucking on a landing is chisel and most of the time it’s square chisel. With the size of that saw do you really need two dawgs? What are you doing with the saw again falling timber?

Well I have no doubts that a full chisel makes for an excellent cutting. My concern is will it save me time or cause extra time to cut the sane amount of wood. I’ve read that you have to stop a lot more to sharpen so it actually slows you down over the long haul. I’ve got a lot of wood to cut. These woods have never been cleaned so it’s just dead stuff everywhere.
 
Well I have no doubts that a full chisel makes for an excellent cutting. My concern is will it save me time or cause extra time to cut the sane amount of wood. I’ve read that you have to stop a lot more to sharpen so it actually slows you down over the long haul. I’ve got a lot of wood to cut. These woods have never been cleaned so it’s just dead stuff everywhere.
It's been my experience that full chisel works best for clean green wood. Semi chisel for dead dry or dirty wood.

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I’ve always used full chisel for every kind of wood, just cut 4 full cords of delivered oak that had all kinds of dirt in the bark. You can’t believe everything that you read, and no I don’t let my chains get dull, I believe in letting the saw do the cutting! Just sayin.
 
Well I have no doubts that a full chisel makes for an excellent cutting. My concern is will it save me time or cause extra time to cut the sane amount of wood. I’ve read that you have to stop a lot more to sharpen so it actually slows you down over the long haul. I’ve got a lot of wood to cut. These woods have never been cleaned so it’s just dead stuff everywhere.

If you’re worried about sharpening get a few chains to bring with you, production timber cutting you see everything from dead to dirty wind fall/blow down this is exactly what I do carry up to 6 a day.
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Some of the stuff I’ve done over the years all of this was done with square chisel, round chisel would of been ok but it’s not as smooth or as fast cutting, semi chisel might of gotten me killed in those situations.


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Thanks for the feedback guys. I can’t seem to find full chisel anywhere, not local or online. With my 18” bar, I think i need 63rs-74. Anyone have a link to a reputable vendor?
 
Thanks for the feedback guys. I can’t seem to find full chisel anywhere, not local or online. With my 18” bar, I think i need 63rs-74. Anyone have a link to a reputable vendor?
Bailey's has any kind of chain you want but shipping is kinda high. I have found some decent buys on Stihl and Oregon chain on eBay.

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I am a man; I can file a chain, if I have to, I guess.

Learn to sharpen with files is what I am trying to say..

:chainsaw::chainsaw::chainsaw:



Weird. It's full chisel everywhere here..I didn't know that was a regional thing.
 
Thanks for the feedback guys. I can’t seem to find full chisel anywhere, not local or online. With my 18” bar, I think i need 63rs-74. Anyone have a link to a reputable vendor?

You might try Madsen’s out in Washington been a while since I’ve bought any saw chain but they use to do a buy one get one on loops.

http://www.madsens1.com/PDF/19catwsaleweb.pdf


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Thanks for the feedback guys. I can’t seem to find full chisel anywhere, not local or online. With my 18” bar, I think i need 63rs-74. Anyone have a link to a reputable vendor?

You need 26RS74; it can be found on Amazon, Ebay, Baileys, Madsens, etc.
 
You need 26RS74; it can be found on Amazon, Ebay, Baileys, Madsens, etc.

Im an idiot! I had the stihl guide right in front of me and have no idea how I got the 63 instead of 26. Must of been having a brain fart moment. No wonder I couldn’t find it online last night. I just came up with several places once I used the correct number. Found a good buy on ebay for it, shows it in a stihl box with stihl part number for $22 and free S&H. Hopefully it’s the real deal and not a switcharoo.

and I’m not afraid to sharpen a chain. I’ve got a shop full of tools, many of which are metal working tools. Getting ready to forge my own Hookaroon using the forge I built and the 2x72 belt grinder I built myself.
My concern wasn’t the sharpening process, it was whether there was actually anything to be gained by a full chisel (time wise) once sharpening time was factored in.

thanks guys for taking the time to help this old redneck. I can’t stay away from this website. I find myself constantly reading post after post here. I have a serious tool addiction and Im getting a chainsaw addiction. I’ve already got plans for others I want. I really want a small top handle saw, and i would REALLY like to find a dead Husky 346xp to rebuild. Heck i plan to start watching craigslist for old school pro saws that need brought back to life.

was driving by this small engine shop the other day and seen this old saw in the window, was the oddest thing I’ve ever seen. The bar on it almost looked like a squished O. I wanted to run in and buy it.
 
Howdy guys! So I’m needing a new saw and need some assistance. I’ve litterally spent hours and hours reading this site and others trying to learn as much as I can to pick the right saw.

My saw uses: mainly just cutting wood on my land to heat my work shop. Generally that’s one fire in the evening and several on the weekend days. I may try to do a little extra cutting this year and sell some. At any rate, I don’t cut much wood at all.

I’ll start by saying that I prefer to buy quality tools that last. With that said, I have my heart set on a 261cm. That’s the saw I want but I’m worried that I’ll regret owning a 50cc saw since I’ll only have one saw. So that has me considering the Echo Cs590. I absolutely know for a fact that I won’t buy anything with a plastic clambshell design.

I’ll never be cutting large trees, maybe 20” at the most, mainly popular, locust, sassafras.

I’ve pretty much narrowed it down to these two saws, also considered the dolmar 5105. I will only buy new so used is off the table.
What do ya guys think, can they 261cm handle my needs.


I cut firewood for a living, the best saw I've ever used was a Stihl 038 magnum. Idk man that saw was an extension of my body, and it was a mean som-B. Currently I'm running a stihl woodboss 028 av and a husqvarna 346xp and they're a wonderful combo. The huskys 14,500 rpm, the stihls higher torque. Idk they're a dream team. I hope my input helped.
 
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