Local Dealers Won't Sell Powerheads....... What Gives ??

[Ductape]

Been shopping around for a new 90+ cc saw lately. Check with the Stihl dealer on an MS660, and Husky dealer on a 390XP ......... both refuse to sell me a powerhead only. Is there some rule from the powers above that forbid them from selling saws without a B&C, or is this just a sham to get more money from my pocket to theirs??

 

[procarbine2k1]

May be a sham, dont see why they wouldnt sell you PHO. Mine will, but they usually give me a sweet enough price on the package, it makes more sense for my to buy complete. Probably not always the case...

 

[Art Vandelay]

I bet we've got sponsors here that would be more than happy hooking you up with a PHO.

 

[DavesMower&Saw]

It's mainly to do with warranty, if they sell a complete saw w/ bar & chain, they know everything is new and in working order. If they sell a saw powerhead only, and it has some worn out bar and dull chain put on it, you can run into all sorts of issues. Now if that saw is taken out on a 90 degree and run hard with that dull chain and worn out bar, and you overheat the saw seizing it, and you come in screaming warranty, the dealer is just covering their back.

I'm just showing things from my side of the fence.

We almost never have anyone wanting to buy saws PHO, but once in a while we run into a logger that wants the just the powerhead, but that's extremely rare.

 

[Grande Dog]

Howdy,
The OEM's are requiring that the units leave the dealers with an approved cutting system attached to the saw and functioning. With the Stihl, the only cutting system they recognize as meeting requirements is of their own manufacture. With Husqvarna, they will recognize Oregon product as meeting the requirements also. So if you're wanting a Stihl, you would have to supply the dealer with a Stihl bar and chain. For Husqvarna, it would have to be Husqvarna, or Oregon branded.
If you're expecting the dealer to deduct the retail price of the bar and chain from the price of the powerhead, it's probably not going to happen. The most you could probably hope for is about half of the retail price for the bar and chain deducted from the price.
Then you'll have to ask yourself, do I want to pass on a half price bar and chain to get a price reduction on a powerhead?
This is just a general rule. Depending on your relationship with your local dealer, you might do better or worse.
Regards
Gregg

 

[Ductape]

It's mainly to do with warranty, if they sell a complete saw w/ bar & chain, they know everything is new and in working order. If they sell a saw powerhead only, and it has some worn out bar and dull chain put on it, you can run into all sorts of issues. Now if that saw is taken out on a 90 degree and run hard with that dull chain and worn out bar, and you overheat the saw seizing it, and you come in screaming warranty, the dealer is just covering their back.

There's nothing stopping me from swapping B&Cs with another saw I own as soon as I walk out the door though. I would think anyone: 1) buying a 90+ cc pro saw 2) Knows enough about saws to know they should be availabe as a PHO would be less of a concern for warranty shams. Would you NOT warranty a saw if it came back with a 24" bar when you sold it with a 36" ?

 

[woodyman]

Bought my NE346XP last fall at the local dealer PHO.Think they only took off $28.00 but I wanted a SUGI-HARA.

 

[banshee67]

the dealers around here want to physically start the saw before they sell it to you, the stihl dealers at least
i got a 361 powerhead shipped from a member here and got it warrantied at a local shop without them starting it..although i dont think thatll happen again. he wanted to start it before i left even though he didnt sell it to me.. but in order to start it i needed a bar and chain for it, he wanted $30 for 20"rsc and $55 for 20" laminate bar.. before tax... i reluctantly bought the chain because i didnt have another for it, and said no on the bar because my buddy had a brand new one at home said hed sell me for $30, the guy wrote "customer did not want us to start" on the warranty info.. and accepted it, i never went back for a warranty claim of any sort, so im not sure how that would have effected me. im guessing it would have. he was very reluctant to do any of this, and was suspicious of how i even got a powerhead new in the box in the first place. i had bill of sale and everything. so there wasnt much he could really say
friend tried to do the same thing at a different stihl dealership couple months later, and the first thing the guy there said was "thats not even a stihl bar" .. cause he bought a sugi for it.. lol. he wouldnt warranty it.

 

[tlandrum]

i never buy a saw with bar and chain,i can usually get the bar and chain cheaper than they will sell them to me anyway.i have never heard of a dealer requiring you to buy the bar and chain with the saw. you can take a saw with new bar and chain out and dull it in 2 sec and toast a motor so theres no logic in having to buy it with bar and chain.

 

[Ductape]

Thanks Gregg...... I guess that clears it up. My thoughts were that I'd rather spend the $$ on the brand / type B&C I specifically wanted, as opposed to OEM.

 

[DavesMower&Saw]

Thanks Gregg...... I guess that clears it up. My thoughts were that I'd rather spend the $$ on the brand / type B&C I specifically wanted, as opposed to OEM.

Gregg put it clearer but that's what I was trying to get at.

 

[o8f150]

Howdy,
The OEM's are requiring that the units leave the dealers with an approved cutting system attached to the saw and functioning. With the Stihl, the only cutting system they recognize as meeting requirements is of their own manufacture. With Husqvarna, they will recognize Oregon product as meeting the requirements also. So if you're wanting a Stihl, you would have to supply the dealer with a Stihl bar and chain. For Husqvarna, it would have to be Husqvarna, or Oregon branded.
If you're expecting the dealer to deduct the retail price of the bar and chain from the price of the powerhead, it's probably not going to happen. The most you could probably hope for is about half of the retail price for the bar and chain deducted from the price.
Then you'll have to ask yourself, do I want to pass on a half price bar and chain to get a price reduction on a powerhead?
This is just a general rule. Depending on your relationship with your local dealer, you might do better or worse.
Regards
Gregg

basically what tehy told metoday about firing it up,,i didn't want them to fire it up that i want it kept dry and they said they can't do that,,that every saw must be gassed and fired before it leaves the store

 

[sjp]

thanks gregg...... I guess that clears it up. My thoughts were that i'd rather spend the $$ on the brand / type b&c i specifically wanted, as opposed to oem.

get a 20" es stihl bar with it and chain ill buy it and pick up THE BAR AND CHAIN THAT IS
I WOULD LOVE A MS660

 

[mdavlee]

There's some dealers that will sell them that way but most local to me don't have a price for that in the book so they don't know how to do it. Most aren't saw shops but they are dealerships that sell saws. The place I got the 2171 from wouldn't sell it pho and they didn't start it or anything like that. The stihl dealer when I bought the last 440 they had back a couple months ago sold it to me dry with a b/c.

 

[REJ2]

Went round and round with a dealer when I bought my 346, I wanted PHO, didnt happen. Couldnt pass on the deal on my 372 with 24" bar and chain but could of had PHO if desired. 365 special was PHO. Bigger saws seemed to be somewhat negotiable at that time. Go figure! REJ2

 

[Trigger-Time]

Around here, you can buy a saw with out BC, but it's a better deal to buy it with BC
Christmas time they sell saws that have never been run.
Who would want a Christmas present setting under the tree stinking of gas.



TT

 

[bcsizemo]

Christmas time they sell saws that have never been run.
Who would want a Christmas present setting under the tree stinking of gas.

TT

I thought everyone on here LOVED the smell of 2 cycle mix...

 

[Ductape]

I thought everyone on here LOVED the smell of 2 cycle mix...

I know it makes me a little randy !!

 

[DavesMower&Saw]

The only time we sell equipment dry is when it's going to be a gift, but I tell them to have the person receiving the gift, to come in and we'll fuel it up & start, and run them through the operation and starting procedures.

Some ladies like the smell of two stroke mix but they are few and far between.

 

[cpr]

I ran into this with my 372. I told them do what you have to, give me the 20" bar so I got out the door as cheap as possible. Went home, threw the 20" on ebay and ordered a 24" GBTi from Bailey's.