Stihl 461 vs 044 (and older gen saws)

[Maxi5566]

I have been offered a used Stihl 461 for 500$ and I would like to know how they compare to older gen (044), in term of reliability, power, torque, quality of components,...

is it a good 1 saw plan for firewood/cutting dead trees on my property?

 

[Adam08ski]

I have been offered a used Stihl 461 for 500$ and I would like to know how they compare to older gen (044), in term of reliability, power, torque, quality of components,...

is it a good 1 saw plan for firewood/cutting dead trees on my property?

A heavy one saw plan.... I had a 365 X torque as a one saw plan. It was a big saw to spin tiny limbs. I now use a 42 special and before than a ps420c more than anything.

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[Ryan'smilling]

They're very well liked for the most part. Quite a bit smoother in your hands than the older saws. Some people complain that the rev limiter at 13,500 is too slow for limbing, which might not be an issue if it wasn't your only saw. Personally a 1 saw plan just sounds crazy to me. A big saw like that is definitely an important part of a plan, but so is a small, say 50cc, saw. The small saw won't wear you out near as much in small wood, and it'll keep hours off your bigger, more expensive larger saw.

 

[earlthegoat2]

I personally say the 461 is noticeably more powerful and can run a 32" bar if desired but I commonly see them with 28"s whereas the older 044 can run a 28" but I almost exclusively see them with 25"s. Im sure this varies by geographic location but it has been said folks generally use bigger saws with smaller bars in the southeast despite most of what we cut is softwood and softer hardwoods. They are very heavy and wet though.

The 044 would be a better one saw plan for me. The lighter weight and ability to do 90% of what the 461 can do would be good enough for me. The 461 is 2 generations newer and as such will have better anti-vibe and a few small technological improvements that may garner a few thousandths of an HP.

I work on the 2 saw plan. An 024 Super with a 16" and an MS660 with 25 and 32. Go very small and very big. The 024 gets used nearly exclusively if I am not milling.

 

[catbuster]

The MS 461 wearing a 28 or 32” bar is what I do a lot of my work in the woods with. I run it as a one saw plan, doing varying things including blowdown cleanup, snag cutting, a little production falling and fire cutting. I think they’re about as good as it gets for a one saw plan. If you’re only going to run a 20” bar on it you’re just going to haul too much saw around, IMO. That saw is too heavy to bend over with a short bar all day long. A 28 or 32 lets you stand up and limb/buck but that’s a topic for another discussion.

In comparison to an 044, they’re appreciably torquier and more powerful while mildly heavier & bigger. They feel remarkably similar, if the 044 & MS 440 seem a little more compact. They turn about the same amount of RPM. 13,500 is about as fast as an 044 needs to run, IMO. The 044 and MS 461 are both pretty smooth for rubber mounts, unlike the 046/066 which just honestly hurt after a while, but they’re not as smooth as certain spring mounted saws, the MS 441 and 576XP come to mind.

An awful lot of 044 parts are the same or very similar to the ones on the MS 461, and they’re still good quality parts.

 

[Hand Splitter]

A 461 for $500 is a great deal as long as it’s in decent condition! I by buy that as fast as a could! Them get a 50cc saw and your set

 

[Patrick62]

rofl, CAD is strong in this forum...
I had reason to think about this awhile ago, what would be my "one saw plan" be? It probably has to do with what my actual production would be. If I was cutting for only myself... then my 260 18" would be just fine. Second choice would be the 440 and a 20". The weight of a saw for limbing wears ya down more than it speeds up the blocking.

I am with Hand Splitter, a nice two saw plan would be a 50cc, and a 70+ cc (260 and 461 perfect)
3 saw plan? add a little top handle... 4 saw plan, add a monster like a 660

the 5 or 6 saw plan is to have duplicates of the above in case of breakdowns...