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Well, my point is (and this isn't meant to take away anything from this great forum) that I read a thread started by a new guy wondering if he should get a 291 or a 261 for firewood cutting. Budget was a consideration, but he didn't want to buy the 291 if the value wasn't there. 9 out of 10 responses were to buy the 261, even though it was considerably more expensive.

This is why I am interested in what KenJax is alluding to. I think I have a pretty good idea, but I don't want to make assumptions.
 
ColdStihl said:
Well, my point is (and this isn't meant to take away anything from this great forum) that I read a thread started by a new guy wondering if he should get a 291 or a 261 for firewood cutting. Budget was a consideration, but he didn't want to buy the 291 if the value wasn't there. 9 out of 10 responses were to buy the 261, even though it was considerably more expensive.

This is why I am interested in what KenJax is alluding to. I think I have a pretty good idea, but I don't want to make assumptions.
Click to expand...
The real answer in that case is of course to buy the 550xp, as even the MS261 is bulky and awkvard for a 50cc saw - or buy the 545 if the money is an issue.
 
I I agree with what you're saying, at the end of the day I think it's quality that matters and that's not always differentiated by grade.


ColdStihl said:
Well, my point is (and this isn't meant to take away anything from this great forum) that I read a thread started by a new guy wondering if he should get a 291 or a 261 for firewood cutting. Budget was a consideration, but he didn't want to buy the 291 if the value wasn't there. 9 out of 10 responses were to buy the 261, even though it was considerably more expensive.

This is why I am interested in what KenJax is alluding to. I think I have a pretty good idea, but I don't want to make assumptions.[/QUO
Click to expand...
 
nmurph said:
I ran a Redmax GZ4000 this weekend at the GTG and was super impressed. It cuts far stronger than it's 2.4hp suggest, and it is a flyweight. I would LOVE to have one ported. I think one went home with Randy. When I see how it turned out, I might pony up and buy one. They are on Ebay for $210.
Click to expand...

When I got a GZ4000 going on 2 years back, a bud who was doing Sandy cleanup with me, seemed to like watching it cut. He still has a stihl 250 he'll sell cheap; that stihl is rated .5 hp more than the RedMax. :confused:

After he tried the RedMax, he lost all interest in the 250. Wonder why. That RedMax is a favorite of mine for lightness, smoothness, maneuverability and fuel endurance. So good bone stock, I wouldn't even think of mucking about with its innards. :heart:
 
CTYank said:
So good bone stock, I wouldn't even think of mucking about with its innards.
Click to expand...
Indeed they are - but they're pretty impressive after you muck around with their innards too!
 
Sorry guys. I said I would do some timed cuts of the out-of-the-box Stihl and Oregon 3/8" LP chains, and post the results. First off, let me say that my Stihl PS was NEEDLE SHARP, right out of the box. To my untrained thumb, it was the sharpest chain I had ever felt.

Well, I had some 14" Ash logs ready to go. Very first cut I encountered some strange vibration about a third of the way in and the rest of the cut seemed to go slower than expected. When the round fell, I saw what it was. Someone had used the tree for target practice and I went clean through 5 copper-jacketed bullets. Inspected the chain and all the needle sharp points were blunted. :(

Now, before you guys ask for pics, I'm embarrassed to say that my wife split the rounds as this is what she was doing at the wood pile that day. If anyone calls BS, I will dive into the split pile tonight for proof!
 
That is the "new chain" phaenomenom! It has to due with new chains ability to find unfriendly matter, nails, rocks, bullets, in wood with absolute certainty! You can have hundreds of foot of wood and the new chain will find that one little piece....

Resharpen and it will never happen again...

7
 
Unfortunately, I don't think I will be able to get the chain as sharp as it was. I will surely try, but then the results will be skewed for an out-of-the-box comparison. :cry:

7sleeper said:
That is the "new chain" phaenomenom! It has to due with new chains ability to find unfriendly matter, nails, rocks, bullets, in wood with absolute certainty! You can have hundreds of foot of wood and the new chain will find that one little piece....

Resharpen and it will never happen again...

7
Click to expand...
 
Oh, that reminds me. Two weekends ago, my neighbor asked if I could block-up some dead wood left over from the electric company who had removed a tree close to power lines. They left the trunk (actually, they left the whole tree but my neighbor didn't think that his little saw had what it took to get through the trunk, and I was happy to do it for him). I'm buzzing through this thing no problem when my saw started bucking (pun) hard! Pulled the bar out, flipped the log over, and it had a trimmed section of cattle panel fused into it! WTF.

So, I wrongly figured that hitting something foreign would have been behind me for a little longer than a week! Took the 20" RS chain to the dealer to re-sharpen. He must have taken the cutters back a third. The chain had two hand sharpening's on it. So the morale of the story is, don't buy Stihl chain unless you want to ruin it. :laugh:

7sleeper said:
That is the "new chain" phaenomenom! It has to due with new chains ability to find unfriendly matter, nails, rocks, bullets, in wood with absolute certainty! You can have hundreds of foot of wood and the new chain will find that one little piece....

Resharpen and it will never happen again...

7
Click to expand...
 
ColdStihl said:
Sorry guys. I said I would do some timed cuts of the out-of-the-box Stihl and Oregon 3/8" LP chains, and post the results. First off, let me say that my Stihl PS was NEEDLE SHARP, right out of the box. To my untrained thumb, it was the sharpest chain I had ever felt.

....
Click to expand...

How sharp "out of the box" chain is will vary, among other factors with how it has been treated during transport etc - random loops don't really prove anything.

Regardless, all chain needs to be filed when new, to perform their best, and the raker settings need to be checked.
 
My results would have been from a sample of one; anecdotal and somewhat subjective. Still though, these two "random" loops are what I ended up with, so it surely would prove something to me. If I was going to do a Six Sigma-type analysis on these chains, my sample size would have to be much larger and the variables watched very carefully to avoid skewed data. What I had in mind, if my sample wasn't ruined during the first cut, was to provide some feedback based on my experience with the two "out of the box" products. Being that the testing was purely anecdotal, I could make a timed cut with the Oregon and declare that one the winner since the PS hit an obstruction which certainly destroyed the cut time.

I do respect your experience, and I know that you prefer Oregon. Keep in mind that doing what I highlighted in bold below is an action that negates any "out of the box" comparison. At that point, the performance of the chain is on the merits of the one who sharpens the chain and the inherent quality of the chain itself. Hardly what I had in mind, but not at all dismissible. If both chains were quantifiably sharp, then a proper test could be made for first-cut speed and edge retention (longevity). But, who would believe that I sharpened both chains the same? I wouldn't.

The PS cuts very well. I haven't tried the Oregon yet. Last couple weekends have been devoted to splitting and stacking. Sadly, not much saw time lately....

SawTroll said:
How sharp "out of the box" chain is will vary, among other factors with how it has been treated during transport etc - random loops don't really prove anything.

Regardless, all chain needs to be filed when new, to perform their best, and the raker settings need to be checked.
Click to expand...
 

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