General consensus - Stihl MS361 with 24" bar

[MartDalb]

Hey Everyone

Been a while since I posted last - and this one time it is not about a saw not working or repair issue
Anyhow - I mostly do repairs, but I do run my MS260/61 and M361 for firewood each year.

We work in metrics here, so it is around 15/18 cubic meter each year.

I am considering swopping over from my Stihl ES 18" bar to an Oregon 24" Power Cut bar.
And hear me out.
I work mostly, in small inch wood, rarely "big" wood, and when I do, it's never bigger than 25-30/35 inch wood.
In fact, it's small wood, for by far the most part, this makes me want to stand more up strait and do my firewood.

I expect it won't do well in hard wood fully put into it - but what about small wood, longer bar for better ergonomics?


any comments are welcomed, and as always, thanks in advance!

 

[NSEric]

Locally we make a landing or spot where we buck up fire wood with some soft wood on the ground to hold the fire wood up off the ground.
This does a couple things, it keeps you out of the dirt and lets you stand up straighter with a short bar on the saw.
I never see anyone with a bar over 20 inch locally but online everyone and their dog has a 28 or 32.

I asked a couple of youtubers how they gather up the wood after they buck the tree up where it lands but never get answers, they're just doing it to make videos lol. The whole stand up and buck thing is bs, just get the wood up off the ground.

 

[MartDalb]

Locally we make a landing or spot where we buck up fire wood with some soft wood on the ground to hold the fire wood up off the ground.
This does a couple things, it keeps you out of the dirt and lets you stand up straighter with a short bar on the saw.
I never see anyone with a bar over 20 inch locally but online everyone and their dog has a 28 or 32.

I asked a couple of youtubers how they gather up the wood after they buck the tree up where it lands but never get answers, they're just doing it to make videos lol. The whole stand up and buck thing is bs, just get the wood up off the ground.

Yeah, for sure, I like this side of the story.
I have, for several years, been using a "home made" stand, which I load up the small wood into, stacking it, and then saw them up from top, making same length pieces from it, it works perfectly fine, and it is fast enough.

My 18" bar works fine for this, but I do have to move all the small wood into the stand etc.
Actually, my 260 with an 18" bar and semi chisel chain works better for this than my 361 with 18" full chisel, the less aggressive chain does not "pull" the wood as much, making the cut easier since the wood stays in place in the "stand".

I am not going to "stand up and buck" with a 24" bar i'd say, I am near 2 meters tall so that's out of the question .

 

[irhunter]

I am considering swopping over from my Stihl ES 18" bar to an Oregon 24" Power Cut bar.


I expect it won't do well in hard wood fully put into it - but what about small wood, longer bar for better ergonomics?

I say: Sure, try it and report back.

I think the biggest "risk" is the bar won't oil well enough. Monitor that...if you're not oiling the bar sprocket...stop running the long bar until you've figured that out.

The oilers on some saws can be modified or swapped out...I don't know about the 361.

Worse case, you decide the bar is too long and sell it.

Of course this assumes you don't over-stress the saw by dogging in and leaning on it...but it seems you know not to do that.

Got any pics of firewood in Denmark?

Roy

 

[MartDalb]

I say: Sure, try it and report back.

I think the biggest "risk" is the bar won't oil well enough. Monitor that...if you're not oiling the bar sprocket...stop running the long bar until you've figured that out.

The oilers on some saws can be modified or swapped out...I don't know about the 361.

Worse case, you decide the bar is too long and sell it.

Of course this assumes you don't over-stress the saw by dogging in and leaning on it...but it seems you know not to do that.

Got any pics of firewood in Denmark?

Roy

Thanks!
Yeah, i'd keep my chain sharp, as I always do.
Doing more repairs on saws than using them, has some perks, like seeing wear issues like dull chains, knowing what caused it and how to avoid it.

Sure, I can take some pictures of my firewood from here, I take what I can get though.
I don't own land or forest, so I do "free work" for wood and help out locals with trees each year etc. That's how I get my firewood, no other way around it for me.

 

[irhunter]

I, too, work wood with it a little off the ground.

 

[ElevatorGuy]

A stock 361, No. Ported absolutely.

 

[hwrdpromac7900]

If a Mcculloch Eager Beaver 3.4 can pull a 24" bar, I am sure anMS361 could also do it.

 

[buzz sawyer]

I ran a 25 on my 361 for a short time, it ran fine. I had to split a 24" x 8' Elm log lengthwise to winch it up out of the woods. (I had it sawn into lumber) Saw was a little nose heavy, but no problem with power or oiling. I've since sold the 25 and stick with the 20" now. I have a Makita 8400 w/24 or 28 for bigger stuff now.

 

[frogbite]

A 24" is a hassle if you dont need it.
I tried an 18" on my previous Husky 445, not really practical at all.
20" on my 72cc at the sawbuck, yeas indeed.
18" on my Dolmar 5105 as a felling saw yeas indeed.
Put an 18" on a 60cc thats plenty power, put a 24 on it and you wish you had a 70cc.
You claim you need a long bar to reach those tiny brances on the ground without bending your back, well then you carry a too heavy chainsaw to cut those brances I'd say.
A good exersise with your saw is to cut as close to the dogs as possible, you do not want to recommend your grand son to cut with the tip of the bar.

 

[toppers]

It depends on the saw. Echo 620P pulls a 27" like nothing, different bore and stroke. I'm not sure a 361 has the torque to make it practical.

 

[Skyhitero]

I’ve burned wood my entire life from SoCal to Tacoma and I have the bad back to show for it. Bought my ms361 in 2010 and put a 25” bar on it for bucking and falling. Turned the oiler all the way max. I’ve only experienced lack of oiling on some hard stuff i.e. medrona and the like, where I smoked the chain before I knew it. But I stihl run my 25” using a full skip chain. Stay the hell out of the way Incase kickback as I’m usually hip deep in a pile of fir, elm or hickory. Sometimes I wish I had more motor but all in all it’s served me well. Hope that helps.

 

[Seachaser]

My rule of thumb. Everything 65cc+ gets a 24”+ bar. I like a long bar. But I just deal with about any size I come across. Everyone has to do what works for them.

 

[Swanman]

Mine has had a 24” bar on it since 2009. Turn the oiler all the way up. No problem. I have cut and bucked many a Doug fir that was just thicker than the bar length. Fully buried, no problem. Keep your chain sharp and let the saw do the work.

 

[James Sawyer]

As some stated on the west coast, longer bars are very common. Here the 361’s were sold with 25" bars .050 gauge with full comp chisel chain as a standard.. I have the oil turned up and no issues oiling a 25" bar. The Stihl light weight bars for me are a game changer they balance out the saw much better... they are expensive. The wear/life on a lightweight bar is same as a steel bar in my opinion. The thing with the lightweight bar when you're falling you just can't let the saw hang way out of the cut on the tip like with a steel bar, the bar could bend. My MS361 probably my favourite saw and primary my go to saw I use. I have larger saws but with the weight of this saw it's the one I use the most. Presently I'm installing 3/4 wrap handlebar kit, WC dogs and 28" .063-gauge light weight bar on my 361. The 361 can pull a longer bar no problem... if you are worried about it...run a semi skip or full skip chain. The extra bar length saves on the back and worth the extra weight../ it just a different perspective to get use to …like all new things. My opinion once you start running a longer bar, you'll see why we run longer bars here. If you're cutting big hardwood just keep a sharp chain, let it idle a bit to cool down don't just shut it off after big cuts. Oh… a steel 25” bar on 361 would be nose heavy compared to 20” but you’ll only notice that when you’re finishing your cut. I think when you pull the bar out at then of your cuts and you are standing straighter it worth the extra weight.

 

[Sierra_rider]

It'll pull a 24", especially if you're not frequently burying the bar. As already said, the 24/25" bar is pretty much the standard for a 60cc saw out here. The more upright you can cut, the better...I'm not wasting time by lifting firewood logs up onto a sawbuck. Larger stuff gets bucked up at the cut site, as the logs are too heavy to lift into the back of pickup truck. If I'm just firewooding, my go-to bar size is a 28", but that's on a slightly larger and ported saw.

If you do go 24", do yourself a favor and get a lightweight bar. The 24/25" lightweight will handle like a 20" standard bar.

 

[MartDalb]

Damn - overwhelming amount of replies!

Thanks everyone for this awesome feedback.

Let me read them all and recover from a day where it all could have ended.

Not to derail my own thread here, but helped out a neighbor with a few smaller tress, had to pull the last one over with a tractor (close to buildings). No worries since It was not that big, and he seemed to understand my instructions etc.

He then decided to suddenly pull the f'ing tree down, with me not even having made a single cut, only standing next to it, starting the saw. I was not happy. But alive atleast.
The tree split half way down and was not close to me, but still.
Don't ever, ever trust, that someone, says he knows what he is doing, if you are the one standing near the damn tree doing the important work.

Anyhow, I really really appriciate all the feedback and tips etc.

 

[MartDalb]

It'll pull a 24", especially if you're not frequently burying the bar. As already said, the 24/25" bar is pretty much the standard for a 60cc saw out here. The more upright you can cut, the better...I'm not wasting time by lifting firewood logs up onto a sawbuck. Larger stuff gets bucked up at the cut site, as the logs are too heavy to lift into the back of pickup truck. If I'm just firewooding, my go-to bar size is a 28", but that's on a slightly larger and ported saw.

If you do go 24", do yourself a favor and get a lightweight bar. The 24/25" lightweight will handle like a 20" standard bar.

This - IF I go for a 24/25 inch bar, I will make sure to get an ES light version.
I am using an " Oregon Versacut" on my 260 often, the weight on that makes me grab it more often than most other things I have.
It seems most here thinks that 24/25" works, but might not be optimal for the saw cc wise.
Perhaps it is time to run my own test and see if oiler can keep up etc.

Can't say it enough, thanks to everyone for every bit of advice and feedback!

 

[HansFranz]

I've used either a 24" or 28" bar on my 361 (I forget right now) but used a skip chain on it. Worked fine the few times I used it. (I normally use a 20" bar on the 361 which feels about perfect to me.)

My 361 has never oiled worth a crap (even after 2 oil pumps replaced under warranty) so YMMV.

 

[ballisticdoughnut]

Hey Everyone

Been a while since I posted last - and this one time it is not about a saw not working or repair issue
Anyhow - I mostly do repairs, but I do run my MS260/61 and M361 for firewood each year.

We work in metrics here, so it is around 15/18 cubic meter each year.

I am considering swopping over from my Stihl ES 18" bar to an Oregon 24" Power Cut bar.
And hear me out.
I work mostly, in small inch wood, rarely "big" wood, and when I do, it's never bigger than 25-30/35 inch wood.
In fact, it's small wood, for by far the most part, this makes me want to stand more up strait and do my firewood.

I expect it won't do well in hard wood fully put into it - but what about small wood, longer bar for better ergonomics?


any comments are welcomed, and as always, thanks in advance!

I run a 25” ES light bar on my 036 pro, handles it no problem. Also run 24’s on my 60ish cc husky’s. Again, no problem. You should definitely give the 24 a shot. Getting the wood up off the ground is nice but not everyone is gonna do that. We all have our own ways of doing things, and you should find out what works best for YOU.