Dolmar 421, Stihl 250/251, 241 or 261

[Michaelmj11]

If a 421 dolmar is to heavy you should not be running any saw.

Please see my above post (or even the original for that matter)

 

[KG441c]

Michael I do believe if u like the 661 u will like a 241c or a 261c if money isnt a factor. Just depends on how much power u want and bar u wanna run

 

[Michaelmj11]

Michael I do believe if u like the 661 u will like a 241c or a 261c if money isnt a factor. Just depends on how much power u want and bar u wanna run

Yah now if I can just locate one oh them nice "Type II MS261" Windthrown was mentioning.

 

[7sleeper]

Ok I see where u r comin from. I was just trying to pass along to the OP my personal experiences. If money is a factor the 421 no doubt but he has a 661 and obviously put out the $$$ on it. As far as the porting a 346xp and a 241c will be faster than a 420/421 no doubt. That video I posted earlier of the 241c was 1.4 sec faster in a 3 cut avg than a well known porter here 346xp. A 241 can be made to cut. Also a factor to consider more than the weight is balance. The 241 u dont feel the weight but a perfect balance but the 421 doesnt balance that well to me. Just my 2 cents

No one is denying that the 241 ported or unported will have a slight advantage over the unported / ported 421. But anyone proclaiming that a 8cc more saw is going to be slower in the right size wood is simply kidding himself. And proclaiming that the 241 out of the box is cannot cut, well I don't know what to say about that idea...
As far as balance, balance is strictly a personal feeling. And anyone can include or exclude his daily situation. Don't misunderstand me the 241 is surely a great saw and modded I am sure it is even better, but many people obviously have other impressions and choose something else that balances better with them. And that also includes pro's who make a living with there saws (f.e. like Kenjax Tree).

@Michaelmj11

I truely doubt that the new model is being sold that cheap. There is a similar situation over here that dealers are liquidating old stock 261 (type I as you say it) at reduced prices. But the "new" modell still has the regular price tag.

7

 

[birddogtg]

If money is not a concern get the stihl,but if you want to save $200 or more buy the dolmar and since you are looking at a 261 you might want to look at a dolmar 5105.By the way I was not saying that you weren't strong enough to run a 11lb saw but when they are that light or lighter it just don't make that much different.I have a 421,a ported 550,a ported 562 and for all day cutting I'll take the 562 anytime over those 2 because of the extra power but give me a 7900!!!! anytime.

 

[Michaelmj11]

If money is not a concern get the stihl,but if you want to save $200 or more buy the dolmar and since you are looking at a 261 you might want to look at a dolmar 5105.By the way I was not saying that you weren't strong enough to run a 11lb saw but when they are that light or lighter it just don't make that much different.I have a 421,a ported 550,a ported 562 and for all day cutting I'll take the 562 anytime over those 2 because of the extra power but give me a 7900!!!! anytime.

So, how much more power do you get from "porting"? Whether it be a Stihl or a Dolmar?

 

[C Dixon]

Michael I'm sorry but a can of worms can explode on this site at any moment. To my learned members Michael did not ask any questions about muffler mods or porting a used saw. The topic he asked was a honest opinion on 3 new saw models among 2 different Manufacturing company's. It is that simple. Not a Monkey it fight in a zoo like this discussion is turning out to be. And a couple of the comments made are borderline insulting. I am surprised a moderator hasn't stepped in. I gave my opinion without political vigor. Guys keep on topic and have a good evening.

 

[KG441c]

No one is denying that the 241 ported or unported will have a slight advantage over the unported / ported 421. But anyone proclaiming that a 8cc more saw is going to be slower in the right size wood is simply kidding himself. And proclaiming that the 241 out of the box is cannot cut, well I don't know what to say about that idea...
As far as balance, balance is strictly a personal feeling. And anyone can include or exclude his daily situation. Don't misunderstand me the 241 is surely a great saw and modded I am sure it is even better, but many people obviously have other impressions and choose something else that balances better with them. And that also includes pro's who make a living with there saws (f.e. like Kenjax Tree).

@Michaelmj11

I truely doubt that the new model is being sold that cheap. There is a similar situation over here that dealers are liquidating old stock 261 (type I as you say it) at reduced prices. But the "new" modell still has the regular price tag.

7

No one is denying that the 241 ported or unported will have a slight advantage over the unported / ported 421. But anyone proclaiming that a 8cc more saw is going to be slower in the right size wood is simply kidding himself. And proclaiming that the 241 out of the box is cannot cut, well I don't know what to say about that idea...
As far as balance, balance is strictly a personal feeling. And anyone can include or exclude his daily situation. Don't misunderstand me the 241 is surely a great saw and modded I am sure it is even better, but many people obviously have other impressions and choose something else that balances better with them. And that also includes pro's who make a living with there saws (f.e. like Kenjax Tree).

@Michaelmj11

I truely doubt that the new model is being sold that cheap. There is a similar situation over here that dealers are liquidating old stock 261 (type I as you say it) at reduced prices. But the "new" modell still has the regular price tag.

7

I can see u r confused. U must be referring to factory saws? 8cc is nothing to make up in porting which I do port and know all too well in the right size wood I have seen saws 20cc less be faster

 

[KG441c]

Michael I'm sorry but a can of worms can explode on this site at any moment. To my learned members Michael did not ask any questions about muffler mods or porting a used saw. The topic he asked was a honest opinion on 3 new saw models among 2 different Manufacturing company's. It is that simple. Not a Monkey it fight in a zoo like this discussion is turning out to be. And a couple of the comments made are borderline insulting. I am surprised a moderator hasn't stepped in. I gave my opinion without political vigor. Guys keep on topic and have a good evening.

Well the OP has inquired about porting, tuning, etc. If he wasnt interested would he be asking though?

 

[KG441c]

Michael I'm sorry but a can of worms can explode on this site at any moment. To my learned members Michael did not ask any questions about muffler mods or porting a used saw. The topic he asked was a honest opinion on 3 new saw models among 2 different Manufacturing company's. It is that simple. Not a Monkey it fight in a zoo like this discussion is turning out to be. And a couple of the comments made are borderline insulting. I am surprised a moderator hasn't stepped in. I gave my opinion without political vigor. Guys keep on topic and have a good evening.

Look at the post before yours? He is asking about porting

 

[CoreyB]

Storm clean up I still think the dolmar is the best choice. Tough as nails and less likely to "walk away" . Stihls have a resale value some think are worth stealing for.

 

[C Dixon]

I was congerating my post and composing it at the time he posted.

 

[KG441c]

Anyhow Michael the porting if maximum gains are achieved usually gain 30% to 40% in cut speeds. Here is an example on a dyno of a stock vs ported hp gain on a Stihl 461

 

[MountainHigh]

I've been kicking tires on a 241c for some time now but with Cdn dollar in toilet I will wait until Oil comes back up and drags the Cdn dollar with it before buying something. Great deals in Canada *if* you are buying with US dollars. 30% gain!!!

Anyone know of any dealers in BC that sell Dolmar? Would like to grab a 421, but so far I can't find anyone that sells them.

Question: I know how to tell the version II of the 261c, but how about the 241c version II?

 

[mountainlake]

If a 421 dolmar is to heavy you should not be running any saw.

Is there something wrong about publishing the actual cutting weight of a saw, if weight didn't matter we'd all be running 100+ cc saws. Steve

 

[Michaelmj11]

Anyhow Michael the porting if maximum gains are achieved usually gain 30% to 40% in cut speeds. Here is an example on a dyno of a stock vs ported hp gain on a Stihl 461View attachment 479160

Ok, now this may be even more of a troublesome question (and I am betting the answer is a three letter acronym). BUT, why are the manufacturers not selling "ported" saws, or saws with the specs you can get out of them from porting? If the answer is not three letters, I'm guessing it is $

 

[KG441c]

Ok, now this may be even more of a troublesome question (and I am betting the answer is a three letter acronym). BUT, why are the manufacturers not selling "ported" saws, or saws with the specs you can get out of them from porting? If the answer is not three letters, I'm guessing it is $

EPA

 

[Michaelmj11]

EPA

That is what I thought.

 

[birddogtg]

So, how much more power do you get from "porting"? Whether it be a Stihl or a Dolmar?

20 to 40 per cent

Is there something wrong about publishing the actual cutting weight of a saw, if weight didn't matter we'd all be running 100+ cc saws. Steve

I didn't say there was anything wrong with it but when it's 1 lb or less it just don't matter to me but I have worked physically hard all my life.like I said I rather run a 7900 then the baby saws.

 

[Michaelmj11]

20 to 40 per cent

I didn't say there was anything wrong with it but when it's 1 lb or less it just don't matter to me but I have worked physically hard all my life.like I said I rather run a 7900 then the baby saws.

I'm not a stranger to hard work, shoot it took me around 1.5-2 weeks of using nothing but the 661 from felling to limbing to start picking up both my 661 and the MS250 the ministry had on hand. When you have to cut all the branches up into lengths between 20 inches and 4 foot so that they can all be hauled by hand around someone's house (or the remnants there of) or a cemetery where half the headstones were from 1850, and had been blown over by the wind. Heavy equipment wasn't exactly an option. Using that big saw for all those tiny cuts gets a bit old rather quickly. Especially when you need to start at the top of the pile to release the pressure/stress on the lower branches for safety.

Holding the 661 above chest height for any extended period just .... quickly becomes unpleasant and something you look for a work around.

I would call those work arounds Smaller Saws =)