I Got A Duromatic For My MS 261 C-M Today

[user 188535]

I got this Duromatic for my MS 261 C-M today and I thought I would share and ask some questions.

It is HEAVY as heck and it shot sparks off of the tip when I ran it for the first time.

It is substantially thicker than its Light 04 counterpart which could have something to do with it being .063 when the Light 04 is .050.



It looks like this on the saw, and it looks bada$$.




I bought this because I will be cutting some dirty wood soon and will be doing a lot of noodling when I start cutting wood again in the spring with wet wood that would clog my Rollomatic bars.

Should I run the chain a little loose like I do on my hard-nosed carving bars or tighten it up like normal, and should I increase the oil flow?

 

[Franny K]

Did you buy that at a walk in Stihl dealership? I ask because over the years both Husqvarna and Stihl dealers have refused to sell me what I wanted. That is a yellow bar and a yellow chain. For dirty wood to me that is like cutting off a root ball which is done by finding the least dirty spot plunging in and cutting with the chips from the bark never going inwards.

I suggest on a new bar and chain to assemble it real loose, pick up and move to the side the chain and dribble bar oil into the groove before starting.

Is an ms261 really a good candidate for a hard nose bar? Probably something with less chain speed? You will see about the heat created. You also may notice the nose properties are different from say a 12 tooth .325 bar that essentially locks the drive links in at the nose.

 

[user 188535]

Did you buy that at a walk in Stihl dealership? I ask because over the years both Husqvarna and Stihl dealers have refused to sell me what I wanted. That is a yellow bar and a yellow chain. For dirty wood to me that is like cutting off a root ball which is done by finding the least dirty spot plunging in and cutting with the chips from the bark never going inwards.

I suggest on a new bar and chain to assemble it real loose, pick up and move to the side the chain and dribble bar oil into the groove before starting.

Is an ms261 really a good candidate for a hard nose bar? Probably something with less chain speed? You will see about the heat created. You also may notice the nose properties are different from say a 12 tooth .325 bar that essentially locks the drive links in at the nose.

Nope, I got it on eBay for a STIHL price of 30 bucks.

 

[lone wolf]

I got this Duromatic for my MS 261 C-M today and I thought I would share and ask some questions.

It is HEAVY as heck and it shot sparks off of the tip when I ran it for the first time.

It is substantially thicker than its Light 04 counterpart which could have something to do with it being .063 when the Light 04 is .050.

View attachment 1142136

It looks like this on the saw, and it looks bada$$.

View attachment 1142135
View attachment 1142134

I bought this because I will be cutting some dirty wood soon and will be doing a lot of noodling when I start cutting wood again in the spring with wet wood that would clog my Rollomatic bars.

Should I run the chain a little loose like I do on my hard-nosed carving bars or tighten it up like normal, and should I increase the oil flow?

So did you match the chain gauge up to the .063 bar ?

 

[user 188535]

So did you match the chain gauge up to the .063 bar ?

Yes

 

[LarJea]

I got this Duromatic for my MS 261 C-M today and I thought I would share and ask some questions.

It is HEAVY as heck and it shot sparks off of the tip when I ran it for the first time.

It is substantially thicker than its Light 04 counterpart which could have something to do with it being .063 when the Light 04 is .050.

View attachment 1142136

It looks like this on the saw, and it looks bada$$.

View attachment 1142135
View attachment 1142134

I bought this because I will be cutting some dirty wood soon and will be doing a lot of noodling when I start cutting wood again in the spring with wet wood that would clog my Rollomatic bars.

Should I run the chain a little loose like I do on my hard-nosed carving bars or tighten it up like normal, and should I increase the oil flow?

The only MS261 Light 04 bars our dealer stocks are .063 gauge. Must be a regional thing.

 

[jblnut]

I have a Duromatic bar I use on the 041 when I do it dirty. Heavy but the right thing to use when cutting off stumps and working in the dirt. I run a Forester Carbide semi chisel chain on it and it’s remarkable how long it stays sharp.

 

[billyboy]

I’ve run a duromatic 18” on a 028 Stihl for about 20 years or so. Years ago my Stihl guy said I might get a 10% jump in speed with a front sprocket. I did have a front sprocket bar for a while till it fell out of a tree and went back to the Duromatic. I only cut about six chords and some storm damage, tip overs, etc. I have had a couple front sprockets jam up pretty hard that were not easily cleared.

 

[sean donato]

Need to make sure you run the chain on the loose side with a solid nose.