actually I tried to generalize things over there so that everybody could benefit from the information
you can answer my question for both hard and soft wood
OK,
For firewood may could do with the following, again dependent upon their needs:
1 saw plan 60-70cc saw:
455, 460, 555, 562xpAT, 570, 365, 372xp or 576xpAT. I'd lean towards the 562xp, 555 or 365 if you really want some bang for your buck.
2 saw plan: 50cc - 70cc
350, 345, 353, 543, 450, 346xpNOS, 550xp.
55, 455, 460, 570, 365, 372xp, 576xpAT, 385xp
My old 55 Husky was a fine little firewood saw and routinely pulled a 20" bar with .325 chain. With a 16" bar it flat ripped.
3 saw plan would be the aforementioned saws plus a 90cc +/- saw added in for bigger work:
390xp, 394xp, 395xp, 2100xp, 3120.
Used 2100s can be found and while they run more slowly than newer saws, they pull like a freight train.
There are two caveats to this.
1. The newer strato saws pull very well and usually outpull their predecessors. Kind of like the 600cc bikes now compared to 1000cc bikes 6 years ago.
My 562 is a nasty saw for it's size and would likely pull a 24" bar if I needed it. I've seen videos from builders with them pulling 28" bars and longer just to prove a point after being modded, but that would not be a good idea in the long term.
2. There is no
good, reliable, long-term replacement for displacement.
By that I mean that a small block V-8 will pull a trailer. A big block pulls them easier while consuming a similar amount of fuel and lasts much longer before breaking down. The following is a break down, based off of my own experience of what size bars I would run on various power heads depending on which wood I'm cutting.
If your cutting hard wood I'd say the following:
50cc - 14-16" bar (On the 50cc saws and some 60s the matter of .325-vs-3/8 or .375 pitch comes into play. The less the bite, the longer the bar you can run to a point.)
60cc - 16-20" bar
70cc - 20-24" bar
80cc - 20-28" bar
90cc - 24-36" bar
100cc+ - 28-42" bar
For soft wood:
50cc - 14-20" bar
60cc - 18-24" bar
70cc - 20-28" bar
80cc - 20-32" bar
90cc - 24-42" bar
100cc+ - 24" and up.
I run 3/8" or .375" chain (fraction and decimal way of saying the same thing) on everything I own. That way I have only file size to buy and choosing chains for saws is simply a function of length as they're all the same gauge. Modularity can be a very good thing. It limits the 261 a bit, but not much.