Makita 6401 for $180?

[EXCALIBER]

I went to home depot today as they said my saw would be ready to be picked up, yeah not! :bang:Come to find out everyone has been dropping the ball at the store and the regional office so I opened a can of "Ass Chew'n" on the manager. Come to find out the manager has only been there for two days due to the other manager getting SH#t canned. So I tell this guy the whole sob story of how this is the forth time I have been to town to get the saw and can't get it. He assures me he will get to the bottom of whats going on. We finally found out these saws have been pulled from there computer system due to them not having any saftey equipment to go with the saws like a hard hat, hearing protection, ect. so the home office wouldn't let them even rent one without these things. So after I leave he says he will get a way to sell me the saw finally somehow. He calls about a half hour after I leave town and says he talked to corprate and they told him how to back door the system to sell me the saw so I will be going in tomorrow to pick up the saw.

Now my next dillema is they have two of the 6400 one for $180 and another for $260. I am buying the one for 180 but is the other one a good deal or not, to buy or not to buy, that is my question. What do you guys think 260 too much for a used saw?

 

[CountryBoy19]

What do you guys think 260 too much for a used saw?

When you look at the overall situation, that is still a great deal.

What you give: $260 + tax
What you get: A 64 cc pro-saw from one of the "big 3" saw manufacturers. If you so desire, for just a bit more, you can upgrade that saw to a 79cc or 84cc big-bore.


All-in-all, if you upgrade the P&C you will have a saw with a brand new P&C that will outperform a 460 Mag, but at a fraction of the cost of a 460 Mag.



Now, if you look at the whole situation on HD makita rental saws, $260 is "getting up there" in price. If you can get them to come down a bit on that one then do it, otherwise, it's up to you. Do you have a use for the saw? Do you have a close friend/relative that needs a good pro-saw? If so, get it for them. If not, maybe put out a thread in the chainsaw section to see if any other arborist-site members want you to pick it up for them.

 

[Mike PA]

If it is in good shape and not used hard, it is worth it. That is about what I paid for mine, but it had only been rented about 20 times.

 

[goof008]

$260 is a lot for a HD saw, not saying it isn't worth it...it is, for sure...it's just more than I've seen any others go for.

The difference in price between the two will almost pay for the piston/cylinder upgrade, if you choose do it.

Remember to try to get as much from them in way of chains/scrench/filter/plugs as you can with either saw you get...for all the trouble you had to go thru to get it....then get out there and cut something!!

 

[Intheswamp]

How do you go about finding these saws at HD? Do all HD's have them? I don't frequent HD very often being as I live about 60 miles from the nearest one.

Thanks,
Ed

 

[goof008]

Ed,
all the Home Depot's that have a tool rental shop should have them. I think they keep them 2-3 years as rentals then sell them off and get new ones. As you live a long ways away from a store, I'd call to find out if they have any they are selling. They are great saws at a crazy price!

Good luck

 

[EXCALIBER]

Yay! Finally got the saw bought! Well actually ended up with two saws!! Yep after all the BS involved with getting the saw from HD I talked to the manager directly this time and made him throw in two new screnches, and drop the price on the more expensive saw to $180 so after taxes each saw was $193. Now the only problem is I don't have three hands so can't run all three at once!

Now as soon as I figure out how to get the pics to show up without having to click on the link you guys can see them. Anybody know how to do this? I can get the pics loaded with a link but can't seem to get them to show up without clicking on the link, help!

 

[wendell]

Way to go!!

 

[wendell]

And for your pictures, from ODL

The way I found was to go to Setting, then General Setting and turn off Enhanced Attachments...That puts you back to the old uploader....Best I got so far...

 

[pacman]

Not to jack your thread BUT ... I bought a used log splitter from HD about 3 years ago for $700 with 9 hp Honda engine 22 ton still going strong !

 

[Intheswamp]

Well, I found one...about two hours from me.<groan> $221 plus tax. I'm really not wanting to drive that far and thought about seeing if they would sale it over the phone (if I decided to take the gamble after getting a condition report from them). I could let my sister bring it to me on her next trip down since she lives there. Or I could see if they would ship it.

My situation is that I've got two 50cc class saws...a Rancher 55 with 18" bar that has been good and reliable for several years and doesn't have many hours on it. I've also recently bought a used MS260 Pro which I'm still working some minor bugs out of but that I really like...it has ,from it's looks, more hours on it than my Husky. I'm probably going to be averaging only 2-3 cords a year and I don't really need three saws to do that, but I know I'm going to run into something where a more powerful saw would be very useful. I know I'm talking to a bunch of enablers but...should I buy that more powerful Makita???? :msp_unsure:

Ed

 

[Mike PA]

Well, I found one...about two hours from me.<groan> $221 plus tax. I'm really not wanting to drive that far and thought about seeing if they would sale it over the phone (if I decided to take the gamble after getting a condition report from them). I could let my sister bring it to me on her next trip down since she lives there. Or I could see if they would ship it.

My situation is that I've got two 50cc class saws...a Rancher 55 with 18" bar that has been good and reliable for several years and doesn't have many hours on it. I've also recently bought a used MS260 Pro which I'm still working some minor bugs out of but that I really like...it has ,from it's looks, more hours on it than my Husky. I'm probably going to be averaging only 2-3 cords a year and I don't really need three saws to do that, but I know I'm going to run into something where a more powerful saw would be very useful. I know I'm talking to a bunch of enablers but...should I buy that more powerful Makita???? :msp_unsure:

Ed

yes

 

[Intheswamp]

yes

Ok, well I called the HD where the saw is and asked the lady on the phone whether the saw looked pretty good or if it looked like it had been slammed against a tree. She said it looked good, came with a scrench, scabbord, and a new chain. They were actually closing down according to her (at 6:00pm?) and she was in a hurry to get things squared away and get out of there. I thought about it a while and called my sister that lives there...she's going by tomorrow to pick up the saw for me. It'll be several weeks before she comes down here but I've got plenty of projects to do before then anyhow. Hopefully it will be a good one...I've lost $250 on worst things (not that I liked it then either, but....).

We'll see...
Ed

 

[Mike PA]

Good luck with it. They keep records of how often it was rented. While a saw can get trashed in one rental, it can be a good gage on the condition of the saw. Mine was rented 20 times and was in good condition, but you could tell that it threw the chain a few times. The catcher was beat and the sprocket, while usable, was not in good condition. When I added the big bore kit, I looked at the original p&c and it was in excellent condition, with just a little carbon buildup on it. I've had my saw for a year now and am very pleased with it. I used it as a 6401 for about nine months and liked it. In comparison to my 038 mag, it has more speed but less torque. I was pleased with it, but wanted more power for the weight. Since adding the big bore, it is an even better saw. THe only problem with the big bore is the increased fuel consumption, but that just means more frequent breaks to fuel. I think you'll find yourself grabbing the 6401 for most of your work and the 55 will sit a lot.

 

[EXCALIBER]

Ok here are the pics and still can't figure out why I can't get them loaded right. I can now get them inserted into the reply but they are huge when I do. Yet someone else took different pics I have from the same camera and made it work so IDk.

 

[Mike PA]

Very nice. Look to be in great shape.

 

[EXCALIBER]

Very nice. Look to be in great shape.

Checked the clutch bearings and both saws had obvious signs of grease worm infestation. So have to order new bearings for both and ended up cleaning the bearing surface with fine wet dry sand paper to remove uneven wearing the wore out bearings caused. Just took them up to the shop and the bars need checked for straightness and and need the rails dressed with my bar file. I only ordered one new bar from baileys as I had only intended to buy just one saw, Dam CAD!! Needed the dirt/oil cleaned off in solvent tank, and blow the rest of the dirt and saw dust off. Looks like one has had a chain jump off as the chain catch was a little beat up. Updates will continue! Oh yeah, both had almost brand new semi chisel carlton chain.

 

[Intheswamp]

Good luck with it. They keep records of how often it was rented. While a saw can get trashed in one rental, it can be a good gage on the condition of the saw. Mine was rented 20 times and was in good condition, but you could tell that it threw the chain a few times. The catcher was beat and the sprocket, while usable, was not in good condition. When I added the big bore kit, I looked at the original p&c and it was in excellent condition, with just a little carbon buildup on it. I've had my saw for a year now and am very pleased with it. I used it as a 6401 for about nine months and liked it. In comparison to my 038 mag, it has more speed but less torque. I was pleased with it, but wanted more power for the weight. Since adding the big bore, it is an even better saw. THe only problem with the big bore is the increased fuel consumption, but that just means more frequent breaks to fuel. I think you'll find yourself grabbing the 6401 for most of your work and the 55 will sit a lot.

Well, I haven't heard back from my sister but I figure if she hasn't called she's got the saw sitting in the shed at her house. It'll be a few weeks before she comes down but it'll save me a 200+ mile trip. I'll try it out stock and see how it goes. If I decide to add the big bore I'll definitely be inquiring here about doing it. Once I get it I've got to decide on what to do with the other two saws (gonna keep one). The Husky is the newer, less-hours saw...but I sure do like that higher-mileage 260 pro. Ah well, we'll see...

Ed

 

[Intheswamp]

Ok, well I called the HD where the saw is and asked the lady on the phone whether the saw looked pretty good or if it looked like it had been slammed against a tree. She said it looked good, came with a scrench, scabbord, and a new chain. They were actually closing down according to her (at 6:00pm?) and she was in a hurry to get things squared away and get out of there. I thought about it a while and called my sister that lives there...she's going by tomorrow to pick up the saw for me. It'll be several weeks before she comes down here but I've got plenty of projects to do before then anyhow. Hopefully it will be a good one...I've lost $250 on worst things (not that I liked it then either, but....).

We'll see...
Ed

Well, looks like my $250 bet didn't turn out so well. My sister made in down with the saw yesterday evening. It looks much more used than what the lady on the phone described...scrapes and scuff marks, etc.,. But, the worst thing I initially eyeballed was that one of the bar nuts is apparently cross-threaded on the stud..to the point of metal filings trapped in the threads. The stud also appears to be shorter than the other one and have a "broken" looking end to it. I'm not sure what the bar nuts are supposed to look like (flanged or not flanged) but these appear *lots* smaller than the ones on my MS260 Pro and smaller even than the nuts on my Rancher 55. Not happy at the moment but hopefully I will be if I find I can replace the studs fairly easily...otherwise, does HD take these saw back if found unsatisfactory???

Ed

 

[9050lx]

Mine was rented 8 times and I got it for 220 bucks.Looked new when I got it.Very strong, will last me forever.vigorous cut with a full chisel chain.