Help deciding between Stihl 241 m-tronic, 261, and 261 m-tronic

[Hustihler]

Hey all,

I've been away for awhile(been feeding my other addictions: guns and pocketknives, lol!), but I'm starting to get the saw bug again. Here's my situation, I'm blessed to own 3 great 50cc saws Stihl regular 261, Husqvarna 346xp, and a Husqvarna 550xp, I also own a bigger saw for the larger firewood chores. I'm a huge fan of AT/M-tronic, and my local dealer finally has 241m-tronics and 261 m-tronics in stock. I'm strongly considering selling my regular 261, and using the money to buy a 241 m-tron or 261 m-tron. I like my regular 261, its a well-built saw and hasn't given me one bit of trouble, but I've never been impressed with it-especially once I got the 550xp, and to be perfectly honest between the 261 and the 346xp it was a toss-up(not bashing Stihl, I just prefer the ergos of the Huskys). Me and my father cut about 10-15 cords a year for firewood for us, family, and sell a tiny bit to friends. I've never run a Stihl m-tronic saw, but I've read/heard great things about them, and I truly love Auto-tune and I know they're similar technologies, so that shouldn't be a problem. What I'm interested in is any advice on how the stock 241 m-tronic compares to the 261 m-tronic, and the standard 261-performance wise. I'm pretty set on selling my standard 261(I live in Stihl country and it'll sell quick and for good coin), and I'll take that money and put towards either my 1st choice 241 m-tronic or my 2nd choice 261 m-tronic. I went to my dealer yesterday and handled both and did a little negotiating and I was happy with the prices(241 m-tronic 16" bar and chain $559 sticker-but $485 cash price; 261 m-tronic 18" bar and chain $619 sticker-but $550 cash price); at these prices if I sell my 261 I'll come out with cash in my pocket if I buy the 241, but I'll have to add a little cash to buy the 261 m-tron. Any advice is welcome, and thanks in advance.

 

[Redoakranch]

That 241 is intriguing but I have never found a need for sub 50cc saws unless I'm in a tree. If you do all your work on the ground I'd be looking for a bigger saw, not smaller. I ran 50cc saws for a long time but didn't know what I was missing until I got an MS660. I still use my 346 the most but the big saws are really nice when bucking a decent trunk. I'd only consider the 241 if you are cutting shrubs or climbing.

 

[HuskStihl]

I'd say you would be happier with a 362 c-m than the two you have listed

 

[Franny K]

"Any advice is welcome, and thanks in advance."

Logic A
The 241 is dis similar to what you have and it seems you can re sell Stihl stuff for good coin so just get that one and enjoy the experience.

Logic B It seems to me the 241 didn't go as advanced as they could so just upgrade your 261. The crank on the 241 from the pictures on here isn't filled or stuffed, some of the parts look the same as on the 251 and I did the following computation.

I seem to be having issues with this part of the post instead of 2.2 kw the 241 would have 2.37kw at the power per displacement ratio of the 261

 

[Hustihler]

Thanks for the replies so far, but let me clarify a little more of why I'm leaning towards the 241 m-tron and 261 m-tron and not bigger saws, I have a 562XP as my big saw. Before I catch any flack for saying the 562xp is a big saw, it fits the bill plus some for what I do, I owned a Stihl 440 before I bought the 562xp, and sold it because I always reached for the 562 and the 440 just sat, I will be picking up a 70cc AT/MT saw at some point, for those just in case trees-just waiting to see if Sthil ever makes a 461 m-tronic or Husqvarna comes out with a 572xp. I've run a Stihl 660 extensively when I worked for my buddy's sawmill business, and while it is a great saw it is way overkill for what I do-my best analogy is why bother shooting a .300 Winchester mag for Eastern whitetail hunting when a .243, .30-.30, or .30-06 will more than do the job and be a lot easier on your shoulder(please don't take this as knocking anyone for wanting to use a big saw such as a 660, 395, 3120, or even a 880 for cutting firewood-different strokes for different folks). I'm looking at these saws mostly for my main firewood cutting partner-my Father who is in his late sixties-a really light-weight saw with decent power for the smaller stuff.

 

[Hustihler]

I'd say you would be happier with a 362 c-m than the two you have listed

If I didn't already own the Husqvarna equivalent(562xp), then that would be a great option.

 

[jpj6780]

By all means, I would get the ms241c -- I've been really impressed with what I've seen with them (especially the ported ones). I don't think there are too many better two-saw plans than a ms241/562xp combo. I think there's just enough weight and power separating the two that they would each be used when appropriate. I like your future plans as well -- you'd have an excellent 40/60/80cc 3-saw plan with the ms241c-m / 562xp / ms461c-m.

There's a certain Aussie on here that just raves about his 241 -- says his 261 doesn't see much action anymore.

Get it and don't look back.

 

[Hustihler]

By all means, I would get the ms241c -- I've been really impressed with what I've seen with them (especially the ported ones). I don't think there are too many better two-saw plans than a ms241/562xp combo. I think there's just enough weight and power separating the two that they would each be used when appropriate. I like your future plans as well -- you'd have an excellent 40/60/80cc 3-saw plan with the ms241c-m / 562xp / ms461c-m.

There's a certain Aussie on here that just raves about his 241 -- says his 261 doesn't see much action anymore.

Get it and don't look back.

Thanks for the advice, I did read that Aussie thread and that's what peaked my interest, just haven't seen too many posts directly comparing all stock 261's vs 261 m-tronics vs 241 m-tronics. I did notice some threads comparing all 3 modded at different phases whether it was MM or porting. My dream saw plan is to keep the 550xp, 346xp, and 562xp; then add the 241 or 261 m-tronic, plus a 70cc auto-tune/m-tronic saw. The biggest wood I see in my area is about 32"-36" oaks and they are few and far between, and although my 562xp w/ 20" bar and chain has done surprisingly well on these rare occasions, it would be nice to have that extra grunt of a 70cc.

 

[groundup]

I don't think the 241 backs up a 562 well. The 241 in my opinion is a bit more specialized for limbing or in tree use. If your 562 goes down and all you have is a 241 to finish the job, you'll be wishing you had a 261 no doubt.

I have never founbd myself walking around with any 50cc pro saw wishing I had a smaller one.

 

[dl5205]

Considering that you already HAVE a 346 AND a 550, and you are not looking to get a Bigger saw, the Ms241 looks like a no-brainer. I think you have already made your mind up to go with the 241, and are just looking for confirmation. Here's your confirmation: Were I in your shoes, and was going to spend the money, and Only considering the options you gave, I'd pick the 241- no doubt.

 

[LowVolt]

Plain and simple, sell the 562, buy the 241 and get the 261 ported. I have a regular ported 261 and it is an absolute beast!

 

[MustangMike]

I'd say you would be happier with a 362 c-m than the two you have listed

Based on the saws you already have, I agree totally with this statement. You will like M-Tronic, just give it time to break in.

 

[KenJax Tree]

Just get a 562xp and be done


Sent from my Autotune Carb

 

[jpj6780]

Just get a 562xp and be done

See posts #5 and #8. The OP already has a 562xp as well as a 346xp and a 550xp -- I really like his plan of getting the 241 and following up with a 70-80cc AT/MT saw down the road. I think he'll have his bases covered.

 

[ktoom]

All you guys that are saying " dont go with the ms241c", have you run one yet?????

Hustihler, check out the build thread that brad Snelling did on the ms241c. I bought the stock saw from the video's and he did a muffler mod for me on the saw. I shared my experience in his build thread and posted videos comparing it to my 550XP. In the video's, the 241 is clearly faster in all different sizes of red oak that i was cutting. She is definitley a screamer and you can feel that its lighter than the 550XP. I instantley fell in love with the 241 and was very impressed with the m-tronic feel. The saw has more power than you think.

I went as far as running 2 different bar and chain combo's on the 550XP. I ran 18" .325 and 16" 3/8. The 241 still was faster.

Then everyone said a muffler modded 550XP would feel alot better. Guess what? Still not impressed. The saw sounds much louder. I widened the stock port and gave it some fish gills in the front. Ive ran it with the 3/8's setup and still have to try the .325 setup.

My vote goes to the ms241c. You only live once. Plus, after you run it, you will prob want to sell all your 50cc saws and buy another m-tronic!!! Like a ms362c lolololol.

Muahahahahahahahahahaha.

 

[MountainHigh]

I'm thinking this could very well be the shiznit: ms241/562xp combo

but then I haven't ran either saw yet

 

[CR888]

l'm not sure exactly what you 'need' as far as displacement goes but sounds like you have cad pretty bad so here we go....lol. l got a ms241 and it exceeded any expectation in every way. By the sound of things you like to pick saw models with some 'wow' factor and the 241 has it in spades. Since getting mine the 261 takes back seat and l find l don't use it as much anymore not because there's anything wrong with it but these little 241's are just that good. Light , nimble and well balanced with good torque for 40 odd cc. M/T plays a big role in this l'm sure. My only concern for you is your 550 is similar in size (with more power) but there is something about the 241 that everyone who uses it likes. There an awesome saw, bit pricey for what they are but build quality is tops. Go get one u cad infested mortal!

 

[dl5205]

All you guys that are saying " dont go with the ms241c", have you run one yet?????

Hustihler, check out the build thread that brad Snelling did on the ms241c. I bought the stock saw from the video's and he did a muffler mod for me on the saw. I shared my experience in his build thread and posted videos comparing it to my 550XP. In the video's, the 241 is clearly faster in all different sizes of red oak that i was cutting. She is definitley a screamer and you can feel that its lighter than the 550XP. I instantley fell in love with the 241 and was very impressed with the m-tronic feel. The saw has more power than you think.

I went as far as running 2 different bar and chain combo's on the 550XP. I ran 18" .325 and 16" 3/8. The 241 still was faster.

Then everyone said a muffler modded 550XP would feel alot better. Guess what? Still not impressed. The saw sounds much louder. I widened the stock port and gave it some fish gills in the front. Ive ran it with the 3/8's setup and still have to try the .325 setup.

My vote goes to the ms241c. You only live once. Plus, after you run it, you will prob want to sell all your 50cc saws and buy another m-tronic!!! Like a ms362c lolololol.

Muahahahahahahahahahaha.

The vid that I saw looked to me like the 550 was hindered by a DULL chain. Just my POV.

And I'm not trying to take anything away from the 241. I just know that the 550 shouldn't have looked That Bad.

 

[Hustihler]

See posts #5 and #8. The OP already has a 562xp as well as a 346xp and a 550xp -- I really like his plan of getting the 241 and following up with a 70-80cc AT/MT saw down the road. I think he'll have his bases covered.

Thanks for actually reading my post, and for a vote of confidence on the 241, I guess we all need a little re-affirmation on potential saw purchases, lol!

 

[ktoom]

Started out the test with sharp chains!!!! When I got the saw from Brad, he had mad cuts with the stock chain already, so It wasn't 100% sharp when I started my comparison lol. Both chains were dull by time I was done, thanks to some dirt on the back side of a log.

I think everyone is just in dis-belief that the ms241c is that good. Dull chains or not, you need to run one to make an honest opinion.