Dueling Homelites, part 2

[Pioneer]

Well, I finally got a chance to match these two saws up against each other, they are identical except for color and chain/bars. The blue one runs a full width kerf Stihl .325 RS and the red one runs a .375 RS. They both have 16 inch bars. The .325 started with an 8 tooth sprocket and the .375 used a 7 tooth. The contact diameters are pretty much identical, so the chain speed would be the same.

I tried them out in 10 inch thick reasonably dry poplar. The .375 cut through in 6-7 seconds, the .325 needed a second or two more. I changed out the 8 tooth for a 7, and the .325 setup then ran identical cutting times. You could tell it was a bit too much load in that thickness of wood, although it would just fly through thinner stuff with the 8 tooth.

If I used a narrow chain like some of the available .325's, the edge would probably go to this setup.

 

[Lawn Masters]

Very cool. those saws look like they were just pulled out of the box from the factory.

 

[Cut4fun]

Just want to know something on the cut and timing. New to this stuff ok. So you know where I am coming from. Do you time this as a single cut pass with saw running and in you hands? or do you do it with saw at idle and on the ground with you standing up? My brother, my dad and I are wanting to try timing our cuts. Is 10 inch wood the norm to use? I got poplar, locust, maple, sycamore, willow, pine, etc to choose from. The wood need to be green or dry? Any help would be thankful.
Also very good looking saws you have there. Must be neat to restore them to that shape.

 

[bigair]

Those are the cleanest looking homelites I seen in a while.

 

[canguy21]

I still see red and blue XL-1's come into the shop but none look that good.

 

[Pioneer]

The timing of the cuts were started as the chain hit the wood and stopped when it left it. I have found that the difference between dry and green poplar is not that great when it comes to cutting times, it's the previously cut rain soaked wet stuff that makes a big difference. You can add 50-100 percent more time to cut through this, even with a freshly sharpened chain.

I just use what is handy for wood and make the comparison using this. If you do it all at the same time you will have a valid result. Of course the more variety of wood types and sizes you use the better the results will be.

I don't know the "official" size and type of wood people use in contests, I have seen different diameters and square as well as round logs. Perhaps somebody could help us out on this one.