Alittle Stihl vacation

Arborist Forum

Help Support Arborist Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Most of the dealers around here sell Stihl and Husky,but there are a few here and there that sell only one...The ones that sell Stihl swear that Husky is behind the times and is playing catch-up..The ones that sell Husky say the same of Stihl....I'm not sure who to believe,but it seems that every time Husky puts out a new model it's junk for the first few years,then about the time they get the bugs worked out,they change it again.The exception being the 390 which is merely a clone of the 385..I remember when Stihl came out with the 046.I bought the first one my dealer got in his showroom and was very impressed,same with the 650,and no doubt the 650 I had will outrun my 385's...What I thought was ironic was that the 046 is 10cc's smaller than the 385 and it will not outcut the 385...But the 385 won't outcut the 046 either..I think it's funny that people claim Stihl is behind the times.They perform,to me that's all that matters.
 
food for thought

Henry Ford thought the same thing when the Model T was getting long in the tooth, and we all know what happened there.

If you're standing still, you're in the process of being passed, whether you know it or not.

Henry made the company Ford is today. I don't care a whole lot for 'em. His family knocks out millions each day though...

A. Stihl did the same and has continued to be #1;)
 
Same here, some just can't admit that Stihl makes a tried and true saw that all others are judged by....

But if Stihl is the one others are judged by, why isn't Husky copying Stihl's rubber anti-vibe mounts? And why isn't Husky doing away with their pre-filtration system? If those are the standards, I mean?

Looks to me like Stihl is copying Husky's features...
 
But if Stihl is the one others are judged by, why isn't Husky copying Stihl's rubber anti-vibe mounts? And why isn't Husky doing away with their pre-filtration system? If those are the standards, I mean?

Looks to me like Stihl is copying Husky's features...

To me those are about the only things Husky has over Stihl..I will say that as long as husky keeps making the 395 and the 346 I will always own them..I hear people complain every now and then about the rubber mounts on a Stihl,but I have worn Stihl's completely out and still not worn out the mounts..The factory guidebars on Stihls last over three times longer than husky's do,and the pull handle is no doubt easier on your hand.Every Stihl I have ever torn apart has two piston rings,all the husky's I've dealt with have only one.The only clutches I've ever worn out on a saw were on Husky's.I've yet to trash one on a Stihl,except for 360,but that was my own fault.I have had bugs out of both brands and have taken husky's side many times,but the discontinuing of the 440 made me really think back for some reason..I've always chosen the 044/440 over everything else in the 70cc range because they are the lightest,and they seem to outlast everything else in the long haul.
 
To me those are about the only things Husky has over Stihl..I will say that as long as husky keeps making the 395 and the 346 I will always own them..I hear people complain every now and then about the rubber mounts on a Stihl,but I have worn Stihl's completely out and still not worn out the mounts.

The issue with the rubber mounts isn't longevity, rather how well they work in the first place to isolate vibration from the user.

And based on the feedback folks on this forum have about the 361 and the 441, I'd say the steel springs do a far better job. You rarely hear anyone discuss the 441 or 361 in detail that they don't say something like "You can't believe how smooth they are!" Most Jred/Husky owners kinda chuckle over that..."Yup...they're Husky smooth now!"

No question whatsoever about Stihl longevity. They're well-built and hold-up year after year after year.

And make no mistake, I'm not bashing Stihl. That's a losing proposition. I am agreeing with SawTroll, however...I think Stihl has rested on their laurels when it came to their saws, and they are now putting more $ into R & D.

Oh, I am bashing Tom T. Hall though...the dayumm heathen. :)


.
 
Last edited:
And based on the feedback folks on this forum have about the 361 and the 441, I'd say the steel springs do a far better job. You rarely hear anyone discuss the 441 or 361 in detail that they don't say something like "You can't believe how smooth they are!" Most Jred/Husky owners kinda chuckle over that..."Yup...they're Husky smooth now!"

No question whatsoever about Stihl longevity. They're well-built and hold-up year after year after year.

.

I think you have a point there. I had (still have) a Stihl hedge trimmer HS75 and a Husky 325H70 with the spring AV, and it's much more fun to work with the Husky : less AV and compact while the Stihl is robust and has a better engine. I got myself a new machine that unites the best features of the two, a Stihl HS81R.

Stihl made an excellent move integrating the spring AV type into its equipment, whether it came from Husky or someone else. 361 and 441 are the best examples. I said it before, nothing wrong with benchmarking and improving your product line, you gotta move (innovate) to stay on top !:blob2:
 
Henry made the company Ford is today. I don't care a whole lot for 'em. His family knocks out millions each day though...

A. Stihl did the same and has continued to be #1;)

Now you should also Know that Ford is in trouble at this present time.
 
I think you have a point there. I had (still have) a Stihl hedge trimmer HS75 and a Husky 325H70 with the spring AV, and it's much more fun to work with the Husky : less AV and compact while the Stihl is robust and has a better engine. I got myself a new machine that unites the best features of the two, a Stihl HS81R.

Stihl made an excellent move integrating the spring AV type into its equipment, whether it came from Husky or someone else. 361 and 441 are the best examples. I said it before, nothing wrong with benchmarking and improving your product line, you gotta move (innovate) to stay on top !:blob2:

I would say stihl is doing ever thing they can do to stay on top.
Without going in dept doing so.
Tooling and revamping a assembly line cost big bucks.
I have been working on a 026 for someone, I am impressed with it.
I did not get a chance to run the saw in it's "Stock" model but will gat a chance to run it modded.
Yes the saw could use springs for anti vibe.
I can say Husky makes it easy to mod there saws not having cooling fins on the top of the jug. (NO need to get into that.)
Like I said I am impressed with the design.
 
But if Stihl is the one others are judged by, why isn't Husky copying Stihl's rubber anti-vibe mounts? And why isn't Husky doing away with their pre-filtration system? If those are the standards, I mean?

Looks to me like Stihl is copying Husky's features...

If you talk to the people at Stihl that make the decisions about mounts etc.. they tell a different story. They still wouldn't have moved to springy mounts if the UK (and EU following ) hadn't passed rules about vibration levels (and the laywers got involved..). They tested them in the 90's and their pro uses said "give me back my solid feel"... Even the 361 (which has a combinbation of rubber and spring mounts" feels floppy in comparision to a 360. There are three different hardness mounts available for most of the pro saws, but almost nobody ever changes them. The big advantage of springs over rubber is that they don't materially change their performace from summer to winter (USA/Canada midwest type winters) . The 441 also has three different spring "hardness" sets available. A few pros have complained about the "feel" of the 441 but when I offer to sell them harder springs they just grumble and move on...

Still has used spring mount on their backpack blowers since 1992... maybe Husky saw them on the blower and.... :popcorn:
 
If you talk to the people at Stihl that make the decisions about mounts etc.. they tell a different story. They still wouldn't have moved to springy mounts if the UK (and EU following ) hadn't passed rules about vibration levels (and the laywers got involved..). They tested them in the 90's and their pro uses said "give me back my solid feel"... Even the 361 (which has a combinbation of rubber and spring mounts" feels floppy in comparision to a 360. There are three different hardness mounts available for most of the pro saws, but almost nobody ever changes them. The big advantage of springs over rubber is that they don't materially change their performace from summer to winter (USA/Canada midwest type winters) . The 441 also has three different spring "hardness" sets available. A few pros have complained about the "feel" of the 441 but when I offer to sell them harder springs they just grumble and move on...

Still has used spring mount on their backpack blowers since 1992... maybe Husky saw them on the blower and.... :popcorn:

Good perspective there. I recall Boss Hall saying some of the same things...what we like as "smooth" the pros see as "floppy."

I guess that proves one thing: What the he11 do those idiots know... :hmm3grin2orange:

Running like he11...you'll never catch me now...NEVER you hear me!...(but if you do, I was only kidding :) )
 
Good perspective there. I recall Boss Hall saying some of the same things...what we like as "smooth" the pros see as "floppy."

I guess that proves one thing: What the he11 do those idiots know... :hmm3grin2orange:

Running like he11...you'll never catch me now...NEVER you hear me!...(but if you do, I was only kidding :) )

Quick run into the Lake.
With those over weight Stihls, there sure to sink.:hmm3grin2orange:
 
Gotta love it!

Took it to the dealer, he fiddled with the carb. Handed me the limiter when he did...it came from the factory way too lean.

It now runs marginally better, although still not what I would consider good. In order to get the blower to accelerate, he had to set the idle up so dang high it's halfway to full throttle anyway. (And to answer your next question, TOM, yes he used a long handled screwdriver, and yes, he had to stuggle to get it to work...had to come in from the side at one point. Kinda cursed at it under his breath when he was doing it, too...I don't think he thinks it's a good design either. :D )

As to the vibration..."They're all like that." Nice. Now, to be fair to Stihl, I looked at some of the vibration numbers from other similar models from other mfgrs. Although Stihl doesn't tell you what theirs are, the numbers from the other mfgrs were not impressive either. Efco has one out that has anti-vibe on it, and a little more power than the Stihl, too. Shredding blade too. BUT, its carb isn't adjustable, and good luck finding a dealer anyway.

Film at eleven.

LOL, I can adjust the idle on that thing in 5 seconds but then again I'm not your average Joe,LOLOL Hell I can tear the whole unit completely apart in 10 minutes easily.

Yes Woodie they do come from the factory lean, all OPE nowdays does thanks to EPA. As for vibration if yours is like the ones I sell the levels aren't that high, maybe ya just got ole dish pan hands,hehe

Now listen up. If you really don't like that blower, its just not your cup of tea ask your dealer if you can bring it back. Just state you hate it and chances are he will make a call to Stihl and they will take it back. Stihl doesn't want unhappy customers outthere so if you really don't like it take it back and ask if you can return it. If you were my customer and felt the way you do about that blower I would hand you your money back and not think twice about it.
 
Yes but can you do it in a sand storm or under water ?:popcorn:

I can do it in 10 minutes while standing on one foot in a hurricane, its that easy or I'm just that dayummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm good,lolololol
 

Latest posts

Back
Top