difference between chain saws

[fred bergman]

what do you see between different chain saws? I have a stihl 180 and want a saw that can cut more firewood is there much diff between a 180 and 250 ? is it rpms ?

 

[svk]

You are going from 30 to 45 cc's and also about 50 percent horsepower increase. Probably not much difference in engine rpm but a lot more grunt ie harder to slow the saw down.

 

[Fubar]

horsepower is the difference , if you going to throw the cash down for a 250 , why not just buy the 290 farm boss .

 

[fred bergman]

I just need to go to chain saw school 101

 

[svk]

What type/size of wood do you normally cut?

 

[zogger]

Whoooowhee are you gonna get a lot of opinions now!

What you have now is a small homeowner class saw. Going to say just around a 50 cc pro saw would be a huge difference.

Analogy, easier to understand. pickups, what's the difference?

Something like my 81 ratsun as a small truck, technically a pickup, capable of doing *some* real truck work.

Now go to a 1/2 ton detroit truck, what it can do, now a 3/4, now a one ton, now a one ton diesel that's been chipped and lifted, now a bobbed deuce.

Saws are the same, small and cheap, few features, to real big, plenty of ponies and more advanced design and ruggedness.

Of course this means more loot as you go up the scale, more loot, gradually increasing size and weight. Ability to cut larger and larger wood, plus faster.

 

[1 stihl nut]

Or you could go on the chainsaw forum and ask this. You can get lots of useful friendly advice there.


I'm kidding. Don't do that.

You'll walk out of there convinced that you should buy a Husky 395 off the trading post, or buy a Makita 6400 and put a 79cc big bore kit on and have it ported.

This biggest factors are 1) what's the range and average diameter of the wood you cut, and 2) how much do you cut?

More power means being able to pull more wood out of the cut in the same period of time. Which also equates to being able to run a longer bar, which is nice and/or necessary on larger trees. But a more powerful saw is also heavier, and a longer bar is more to manage as well.

You have to get a feel for what you are comfortable with, and what meets your needs.

 

[svk]

Or you could go on the chainsaw forum and ask this. You can get lots of useful friendly advice there.


I'm kidding. Don't do that.

You'll walk out of there convinced that you should buy a Husky 395 off the trading post, or buy a Makita 6400 and put a 79cc big bore kit on and have it ported.

This biggest factors are 1) what's the range and average diameter of the wood you cut, and 2) how much do you cut?

More power means being able to pull more wood out of the cut in the same period of time. Which also equates to being able to run a longer bar, which is nice and/or necessary on larger trees. But a more powerful saw is also heavier, and a longer bar is more to manage as well.

You have to get a feel for what you are comfortable with, and what meets your needs.

 

[cityboy172]

You'll walk out of there convinced that you should buy a Husky 395 off the trading post, or buy a Makita 6400 and put a 79cc big bore kit on and have it ported.

I'm not seeing the problem here.

Biggest thing that needs to be established is what you're realistically going to cut (not "i turned down a 43" oak one time, so I need a saw to cut that") and how deep your pockets are.

 

[fred bergman]

just a wood stove in the garage now ,and a fireplace in the house. want to add a wood stove in the house this year for the main heat, ive been getting wood where ever we can. and splitting it, but notice it may help to have a bigger saw , been trying to get 2' or small diameter wood. with a sharp chain it goes good. but its only a stihl 180

 

[1 stihl nut]

You have to get a feel for what you are comfortable with, and what meets your needs.

I'm not saying we won't be glad to help you, it's just that we need more information. I don't think you can go wrong goin up to a 50cc class saw. That's the smallest I've ever used.

 

[1 stihl nut]

just a wood stove in the garage now ,and a fireplace in the house. want to add a wood stove in the house this year for the main heat, ive been getting wood where ever we can. and splitting it, but notice it may help to have a bigger saw , been trying to get 2' or small diameter wood. with a sharp chain it goes good. but its only a stihl 180

Given that, I would definitely go up to a 291. And either an 18" bar, or possibly a 16" and a 20".

I thought maybe you were just trimming a few trees around the yard.

Also consider a 261cm in a pro saw, depending on what your budget is, but a 291 will serve you well for years to come.

 

[Oldman47]

One big difference you will notice if you go bigger is weight. If your present saw is doing everything you need, do not go bigger. Bigger means more fuel consumed per hour and means you will be lugging around more weight. I own a Stihl 026 with a 20 inch bar which was considered a pro saw back in the day when I bought it. At the time I was in the mode of getting the most performance I could at my dealer and I had an income that allowed it. It has retained and maybe even gained in value but it is not so much better than other similar sized saws to really be worth the difference to me as an occasional user. For a heavy user it might well be worth the premium that I paid for it. Today that Stihl is being sold as a model 260 if you want a comparison in today's market. It is also a 50 cc model but not at all the same as a homeowner version of a 50 cc saw even by the same company. The question you need to answer for yourself is whether the upgrade to a pro or semi-pro in features is worth it to you. If nothing on the pro saw screams your name, maybe you don't need that saw and you could save the difference in purchase price. In general the homeowner versions of most product lines are not as durable as the "rancher" or "semi-pro" versions but they are fine for what they are. The delta between the ranchers and the pros is often added features that you can easily evaluate. Is an auto tune carburetor worth anything to you or can you live with a once every year or two tune by the local dealer OK with you? Only you can look at your use and determine what a particular saw is worth to you.

 

[svk]

Then you should be fine with a 290/291 on the high side. Have you decided on sticking with a Stihl? Otherwise the Echo 590 is a real nice saw for the price.

 

[zogger]

I'd hold out and look for a deal on the tradin post, a 50-60 cc class saw. I see a husky 357 and echo 6700 old school on the first page right now.

The two best deals out there now for the loot, are, IMO, poulan pro pp5020av for two benjamins, or the echo 590 timberwolf for four, brandie new.

 

[Joesell]

Or you could go on the chainsaw forum and ask this. You can get lots of useful friendly advice there. I'm kidding. Don't do that. You'll walk out of there convinced that you should buy a Husky 395 off the trading post, or buy a Makita 6400 and put a 79cc big bore kit on and have it ported. This biggest factors are 1) what's the range and average diameter of the wood you cut, and 2) how much do you cut? More power means being able to pull more wood out of the cut in the same period of time. Which also equates to being able to run a longer bar, which is nice and/or necessary on larger trees. But a more powerful saw is also heavier, and a longer bar is more to manage as well. You have to get a feel for what you are comfortable with, and what meets your needs.

Just get a 261, a 441 and a 661 and you'll be set for whatever you need!

 

[1 stihl nut]

Now now......let's not be putting words in me mouth.

 

[unclemoustache]

But you should always have a backup saw, and a backup for your backup. 3 saws minimum. Maybe four. But don't go for an expensive saw right away - you need to build up to it. Are you married? That's probably the big difficulty in all this - convincing the wife that you need yet another saw.

 

[Oldman47]

Hey unclemoustache, not everyone has the disease. I only have one but am considering two. I do have a nice felling wedge in case something gets stuck and I could get another chain and bar in case I needed to free a saw that I could not get with my wedge. Even a smaller or larger bar with a new chain would be far cheaper than another saw. Just sayin.

 

[1 stihl nut]

But you should always have a backup saw, and a backup for your backup. 3 saws minimum. Maybe four. But don't go for an expensive saw right away - you need to build up to it. Are you married? That's probably the big difficulty in all this - convincing the wife that you need yet another saw.

What he means to say is if you are going to get a backup saw for your backup saw, it might also be prudent to line up a backup wife. And perhaps a backup for her, as they can be kind of easy to go through once you start following our advice.