346xp or 460 rancher??

Hello guys, I think I need a new medium-small sized groundsaw. I have an 026, which is sometimes a little undersized, and an 036, which sometimes gets a little heavy and is too oversized for our normal ground activity on a day to day basis, so I was looking for a little something in between..
The local saw shop was all out of the 346, so I was considering the rancher, which is also $40 cheaper, and I think is more powerful saw!!

But I think its probably the 346xp that I really want.

Good weekend guys!!

Ben ~Greenstar

346 no contest. Pro saw vs. Homeowner saw...hmmmmmill take the pro

Greenstar said:

Hello guys, I think I need a new medium-small sized groundsaw. I have an 026, which is sometimes a little undersized, and an 036, which sometimes gets a little heavy and is too oversized for our normal ground activity on a day to day basis, so I was looking for a little something in between..
The local saw shop was all out of the 346, so I was considering the rancher, which is also $40 cheaper, and I think is more powerful saw!!

But I think its probably the 346xp that I really want.

Good weekend guys!!

Ben ~Greenstar

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Get the Husky!, Rancher is code word for home-owner.
Jeff

Greenstar said:

Hello guys, I think I need a new medium-small sized groundsaw. I have an 026, which is sometimes a little undersized, and an 036, which sometimes gets a little heavy and is too oversized for our normal ground activity on a day to day basis, so I was looking for a little something in between..
The local saw shop was all out of the 346, so I was considering the rancher, which is also $40 cheaper, and I think is more powerful saw!!

But I think its probably the 346xp that I really want.

Good weekend guys!!

Ben ~Greenstar

Click to expand...

The Rancher is a home-owner grade saw that does have the same power output of the 346xp but is almost 2 lbs heavier.

The 346xp is the same size saw as your 026 with about half a horse more power.

I just bought a 346xp and LOVE it.

Scott, what size bar do u roll with on yours? I was thinkin id get it with an 18".

i dont know why people are so turned off by 'homeowner' stihls. i have used almost every stihl ever made and they are all very nice with a few exceptions. someone on here got on me about using a 250 to climb with, saying 260 was the real thing and 250 is just a homeowner toy. thing is, 250 is lighter and runs a slightly shorter bar. 250 is small enough that i can hold it horizontal from my body with one hand and use it, cant do that with the 260. 200 is nice but its tophandle i dont care for. plus, look at the price difference. i can buy 2 250s for the price of one 'pro' saw. or one 250 and a bunch of rum

346 all the way noting runs like a pro saw I have had homeowner saws but now I will never own one again everybody always seems to brag about I have a rancher 455 with a 20 inch (blade) I saw my 346 with an 18 inch bar run circles around it. The 346 is light and very zippy. I usually find my self using that one

Power:weight there is nothing like a 346 for an all around bucking/limbing medium saw.

I needed to replace mine; being that there are no reliable husky shops near by, so I went with a MS-260

asthesun, you do a pretty good job of verifying your "hackness" on some of these post you make. good job. keep it up.


hey ben. dont waste your money on the 460husqy. if you are as you say,a fulltime tree working professional you will know that you must buy the quality saw that will stand the test of time. wait for the 346xp. otherwise when you break a piece of plastic off that homeowner saw or its over heating and doesnt want to cut up any more oak in the backyard and you just want to get off the job, you'll have no one but yourself to blame.

if you think the 036 gets heavy i gotta meet you.

you go to lupita's yet?

you find someone to climb the tree's you dont want to climb yet?

oldirty said:

asthesun, you do a pretty good job of verifying your "hackness" on some of these post you make. good job. keep it up.

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mmkay... oh btw the worst stihl>the besy husky

Greenstar said:

Scott, what size bar do u roll with on yours? I was thinkin id get it with an 18".

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Have a 18" bar but usually have the 15" bar on it.

I have a 394xp that I have a 20" and a 32" bar for.

asthesun said:

i dont know why people are so turned off by 'homeowner' stihls. i have used almost every stihl ever made and they are all very nice with a few exceptions. someone on here got on me about using a 250 to climb with, saying 260 was the real thing and 250 is just a homeowner toy. thing is, 250 is lighter and runs a slightly shorter bar. 250 is small enough that i can hold it horizontal from my body with one hand and use it, cant do that with the 260. 200 is nice but its tophandle i dont care for. plus, look at the price difference. i can buy 2 250s for the price of one 'pro' saw. or one 250 and a bunch of rum

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I'm thinkin that $250 of rum has addled your brain a bit too much.....You do realize that the 260pro is exactly 1/2 lb heavier than the 250 right?

A competent user will also cut more wood with one 260 over it's lifespan than they would two 250's, in less time.

There's a reason true pro's buy PRO saws, just like there's a glaringly obvious reason that dimasthesunonadarkfoggynight is touting the virtues of homeowner saws and rum.

The 50cc 346xp is (IMO) the best saw in its class by a fair margin. It's the bee's knees, finer than frog's hair. It's a ripper. I love mine, and don't think I could live without it.

asthesun said:

i dont know why people are so turned off by 'homeowner' stihls. i have used almost every stihl ever made and they are all very nice with a few exceptions. someone on here got on me about using a 250 to climb with, saying 260 was the real thing and 250 is just a homeowner toy. thing is, 250 is lighter and runs a slightly shorter bar. 250 is small enough that i can hold it horizontal from my body with one hand and use it, cant do that with the 260. 200 is nice but its tophandle i dont care for. plus, look at the price difference. i can buy 2 250s for the price of one 'pro' saw. or one 250 and a bunch of rum

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I have been climbing with a 250 equipped with an 18" bar for 3 years and still runs as good as the day I bought it. People give me a hard time about running a residential saw, but there is no tellin how many times that little saw has paid for itself. Granted some products are just junk from the get go, but if you take care of your equipment and respect its limitations then you will get years of service.

olpace said:

I have been climbing with a 250 equipped with an 18" bar for 3 years and still runs as good as the day I bought it. People give me a hard time about running a residential saw, but there is no tellin how many times that little saw has paid for itself. Granted some products are just junk from the get go, but if you take care of your equipment and respect its limitations then you will get years of service.

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Respect its limitations. Yeah, I did not bid that in.
Jeff

oldirty said:

...

if you think the 036 gets heavy i gotta meet you. (what do u mean by that oldirty?)

you go to lupita's yet? (I don't know what that is..)

you find someone to climb the tree's you dont want to climb yet? (I gotta call you man.. did u give me your number yet? what town u in? I was up in Billy today!!)

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ddhlakebound said:

... ...

The 50cc 346xp is (IMO) the best saw in its class by a fair margin. (ddhlakebound, may I ask u how many cc's my old 026 Pro is, and what u think the weight difference between the two saws (026 Pro vs. 346xp)is as well, because I'm thinkin about putting a fresh set of rings in this old 026...does this freshen things up some on an old saw! Thanks.) It's the bee's knees, finer than frog's hair. It's a ripper. I love mine, and don't think I could live without it.

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Thanks guys for the info.

Guys, has anyone of you ever put new rings in an older saw that had years and lots of hours on it, just to freshen things up, maybe improve compression some!!?

Rings are cheap, and these saws are so easy to pull apart (I pulled my first apart yesterday!).. I mean I figure why not, because I do think this older saw with hundreds of hours on it has lost some power over the years. Yesterday I did pull the exhaust manifold off and the rings looked a little worn, but engine did still look good, and smooth. We did a compression test on it just to check, and it had 150 (after three pulls). Is this good, what shud Stihl's have? But again, it has lost some power over the years. (I used to cut down 4'-5' diameter cottonwoods with this thing for years back in colorado w/ a 20" bar on it when I was 20, before I even knew what a larger saw was like!! I used to sit there for days and cut this wood. We used to do it all the time. And never had a problem with this saw.)

I might make a post about this elsewhere too, but I thought I'd ask you guys here too. Thanks

ddhlakebound, may I ask u how many cc's my old 026 Pro is, and what u think the weight difference between the two saws (026 Pro vs. 346xp)is as well, because I'm thinkin about putting a fresh set of rings in this old 026...does this freshen things up some on an old saw! Thanks.

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these figures are from stihl and husky's sites....

stihl ms 260 pro

50.2 cc
3.2 hp
10.6 lbs.

husky ne 346xp

50.1cc
3.7 hp
11.0 lbs

http://www.stihlusa.com/chainsaws/MS260Pro.html

http://www.husqvarna.com/us/forest/products/xp-saws/compare-xp-saws/

As far as the ring job, it'll probably make some difference, hard to say exactly how much. The guys in the chainsaw forum generally have far better chainsaw mechanic advice than I could ever offer.

ddhlakebound said:

these figures are from stihl and husky's sites....

stihl ms 260 pro

50.2 cc
3.2 hp
10.6 lbs.

husky ne 346xp

50.1cc
3.7 hp
11.0 lbs

http://www.stihlusa.com/chainsaws/MS260Pro.html

http://www.husqvarna.com/us/forest/products/xp-saws/compare-xp-saws/

As far as the ring job, it'll probably make some difference, hard to say exactly how much. The guys in the chainsaw forum generally have far better chainsaw mechanic advice than I could ever offer.

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would be nice to know hp@rpms. stihl is probably rated at lower rpms.

asthesun said:

would be nice to know hp@rpms. stihl is probably rated at lower rpms.

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Max power at 9,600 rpms on the 346xp.

asthesun said:

would be nice to know hp@rpms. stihl is probably rated at lower rpms.

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Yeah, probably is, because the stihl's max rpm is lower than the husky. You could always lean it out to match the husky's rpm's, but it wouldn't last long, or cut much.

stihl does not even list max rpm, the husky tops out at 14.7k rpm.