Great replies guys and I appreciate the constructive criticism. I want to spend the money wisely and try to get the best saw that I can for what we need to do.
One of the main reasons I was thinking of an m-tronic or auto-tune saw is that when there is tree clearing work to do, typically the volunteer who does the sawing brings their own fuel along. Sometimes we have pre-mix in the equipment trailer, but it was whatever the previous volunteer brought along from 1, 2 or 3 months ago. I like the ideer that the solenoid controlled carburetors can compensate for a variety of variables like fuel, air filter status, etc.
The other thing I'm not 100% certain about is if all of our volunteers (well, at least the volunteers who agree to run a saw), know how to tune a saw. I had a guy a few years ago running the Craftsman screaming (way too lean). He was convinced it was the fastest way to cut. I had to back the H screw out a full turn to get it to four stroke and I think the saw was on its way towards seizing. He brought his own fuel as well...
So, I'm hoping to get some protection against events like this from the electronics. I agree that a MS290 is an almost bullet-proof option, but I think that only applies to folks like us who know how to tune a saw, clean an air filter, mix a proper fuel
il ratio, etc. When relying on volunteers, that all goes out the window.
Oh yeah, if I tried to get volunteers to show up only to hand them a bow saw, I'd be SOL the next time I sent out a request for trail clearing!