Opinions on chain brands

[AmateurSawer]

I can buy Stihl and Oregon brands locally. If I throw Bailey's into the mix, I can get Woodland Pro which, I think, is made by Carlton.
My understanding is that Carlton is between Oregon and Stihl in hardness, or was. I know Oregon and Carlton are owned by the same people.
Most of my cutting is dead and down wood for firewood. Some does get skidded to an area closer to the truck before being cut up and split so I am leaning more and more toward semi chisel chain.
Is the Stihl a longer lasting chain due to its hardness and requiring fewer filings? Around here, I can get almost three Oregon chains for the price of two Stihls. I realize extra stops and time of sharpening adds up if you are in production. But, for the person like myself who uses his saw to only cut his own firewood and other jobs on the farm, the time isn't a big factor. My son only uses Stihl and he cuts less wood by far than I do. His cutting time is limited and ha has a much higher income than I do so the extra money isn't an issue for him
I'm just trying to think of what's best in efficiency and value for dollar spent.

Any thoughts?

 

[sundance]

I can't say I've done lots of comparing but I mostly use Woodland Pro chains. Good price and they work for my firewood duties. Use some Oregon and have had some Stihl, I don't see enough difference not to go with the Woodland. I will admit I've not making a living off the chains so others may have a different outlook.

 

[AmateurSawer]

I can't say I've done lots of comparing but I mostly use Woodland Pro chains. Good price and they work for my firewood duties. Use some Oregon and have had some Stihl, I don't see enough difference not to go with the Woodland. I will admit I've not making a living off the chains so others may have a different outlook.

I see from your signature you have two saws like mine. I run an MS 362 for my bigger cutting but almost everything under the 14-16 inch category gets the MS250 because of its light weight. I really like both of those saws.
I see you also have some Echos. If they are anything like the Echo trimmer I own, they have to be good. And, like the MS 250, cut much better than their size would suggest.

 

[Franny K]

What size of chain.
There are suprising choices at walmart.com. I tried to order some upstart .325 they sent 3/8 so they put the money back. I like the fancy drive Link treatments that Woodland pro lacks in what I have of it.

 

[Philbert]

It's really up to you. Some guys find the 'harder' chains 'harder' to file in the field (not an issue if you use a grinder).
Do you mind stopping to file? I prefer to take 3 chains per saw, so I only have to do light touch up, and can grind back at home.
Some cheaper chains are reported to 'stretch' more; has that been a problem for you?
I am usually happy to run STIHL, Oregon, or Carlton chains (note that some Woodland Pro chain has been Tri-Link - ask when your order).
Like you, I am not a production cutter. Maybe like you (?) I am 'frugal' (sounds better than some of the other descriptions). I learned to recondition chains that others wanted to discard, and often get chains for free (or close). You can check out eBay for 'once used, never sharpened' chains that are often sold by saw rental places, which are often a good deal, especially if they fit your saw, or if you have a way to re-size loops (spinner and breaker, or something similar).
If you are flexible on which brand or style you cut with, and are primarily looking for a good value, there are good deals out there, as well as occasional sales where you can stock up.

Philbert

 

[Ol' Brian]

I've been using Husqvarna chain (very good!) and now lately the Woodland Pro chain (30SC semi chisel and 30RC full chisel). I like the WP (Carlton) chain a lot. Husqvarna makes some very good chain, probably equal to Stihl from what I've heard. I've never personally ran Stihl chain though.

The only bad chain I've ever had was Oregon-- 4 loops--Stretched like crazy. But all the other Oregon chain I've had other than those 4 bad loops has been very good too.

 

[Timber MacFallen]

I can buy Stihl and Oregon brands locally. If I throw Bailey's into the mix, I can get Woodland Pro which, I think, is made by Carlton.
My understanding is that Carlton is between Oregon and Stihl in hardness, or was. I know Oregon and Carlton are owned by the same people.
Most of my cutting is dead and down wood for firewood. Some does get skidded to an area closer to the truck before being cut up and split so I am leaning more and more toward semi chisel chain.
Is the Stihl a longer lasting chain due to its hardness and requiring fewer filings? Around here, I can get almost three Oregon chains for the price of two Stihls. I realize extra stops and time of sharpening adds up if you are in production. But, for the person like myself who uses his saw to only cut his own firewood and other jobs on the farm, the time isn't a big factor. My son only uses Stihl and he cuts less wood by far than I do. His cutting time is limited and ha has a much higher income than I do so the extra money isn't an issue for him
I'm just trying to think of what's best in efficiency and value for dollar spent.

Any thoughts?

You might find this saw chain test interesting:

 

[foeke]

Nice vid! For the bigher bars, I prefer stihl if it comes in the right size (I don't have big Stihl saws). Biggest difference is how much it stretches the first run.
Oregon and Husqvarna worked together a lot.
But you never know wich one is the exact same and when the same sizes come from different continents. Both are also quality products.
And you can get crazy deals in both.
Never saw crazy deals on Stihl chains.
Both stretch a bit. Not a problem on a 15/ 38cm because it's not enough for a chain to be thrown.
But on a 36/ 90cm you need to tighten it up after two minutes, if you don't want to do some PPE testing.

 

[jellyroll]

I prefer oregon and i have tried others in the past and found it is the most economical for me and cuts the same as the others.

 

[Bret4207]

I'm a kind of large scale firewood cutter, cutting mostly dead eastern hardwoods like Red Oak, Elm, Soft Maple, Ironwood. A "harder" chain isn't necessarily a "better" chain. You can have a chain so hard it's difficult to file sharpen. Or you can have one so soft that it's won't stand up to the wood you cut. Personally, I like Stihl RS chain. Some Oregon chain is good, some sucks, depends on the specific chain. Carlton was great chain 35-40 years ago, no clue now. We ground skid too. Semi-chisel does cut a little slower than chisel given equal sharpness. If time/efficiency is your thing, it's going to be a toss up between the faster cutting speed and need to sharpen a little more often. Semi-chisel gets dull just about as fast as chisel in dirty wood IME. The old chipper (round edged) chain was supposed to be even better in dirty wood, but I never saw much difference there either.

 

[sundance]

I see from your signature you have two saws like mine. I run an MS 362 for my bigger cutting but almost everything under the 14-16 inch category gets the MS250 because of its light weight. I really like both of those saws.
I see you also have some Echos. If they are anything like the Echo trimmer I own, they have to be good. And, like the MS 250, cut much better than their size would suggest.

The 036's are a joy when the wood size justifies them.
Sadly, my MS250 is extremely hard to start (at least for me). I haven't spent a lot of time trying to resolve the issue as yet. It will likely be sold soon. A shame as I like it when it can be started and run.
All the Echos have been a pleasure. Tend to start limbing and just keep running them as the wood gets bigger as they are in hand and cut well.

 

[computeruser]

I've primarily run Oregon for quite some time. I find it files up easier in the field than Stihl, GB, WP, at least for me. I've learned that if it is easier for me to file the chain, I will do it sooner and more often.

Once I made the move to Oregon chains, I sold my grinder. Don't miss it.

 

[cookies]

The oregon chains i have run all stretched terribly and the chisels would never hold a edge after the second sharpening, stihl chains file up pretty easily, stretch little and hold a edge well but are costly. Lately i have been using a brand named tallox that stretch very little and sharpen up great, hold a edge very well but only come with a so so ground edge out of the box, ..think i paid 30 bucks for a 3 pack of 16" and 45 bucks for a 3 pack of 20"?. i found they are made in china using german steel.

I have read decent reviews for the upstart brand from folks who run them in dirty working conditions cutting firewood suggesting to file them before the first use and they cut well but stay away from their bars apparently they arrive bent and have tip problems. The chains are in the 3 for 30 dollar range, made in china

The guy down the road refuses to get husq chains for his husq saw claiming they stretch to the point they hang off the bar after one tank of gas and do not hold a edge after getting them re sharpened(could be the sharpening guys fault) disclaimer: he is the guy all power equipment is scared of being owned by, I am constantly rebuilding carbs making his stuff run again and disposing of his water saturated gas.

 

[Lionsfan]

I've always been sort of biased towards Oregon chain. However, I've been swapping back and forth between Husqvarna x-cut and Oregon EXL (both are 3/8 full chisel). Dollar for dollar, when those are all worn out I'm probably going all in with the Husqvarna brand. They seem to hold an edge longer and they're definitely sharp out of the box. Stretch has been minimal for both and both are reasonably easy to hand file.

 

[ericm979]

Not long ago I was cutting up a bunch of nasty old downed trees with my MS362. They have been down for years and in an area that gets wet. I started out with Woodland (Carlton) full chisel but it was totally dull after only a 1/4 tank. Woodland semi chisel didn't last much longer. I fueled up, dug out a loop of Stihl RS chain and it lasted a full tank.

For normal felling and firewood cutting of wood that's not so dirty the Woodland stuff works ok and stays sharp for a couple tanks. It does not stay sharp for quite as long as Stihl chain but it costs half as much. Based on that video linked above I may try some Oregon chain again.

 

[AmateurSawer]

The 250s are a little harder to pull when starting. Maybe high compression ?
Mine is harder to pull than the 362 but, so far, I don't mind. That may change as I get older.

 

[JimmyT]

I'm just trying to think of what's best in efficiency and value for dollar spent.

If you are running a Pro 50 CC saw then try the Oregon Speedcut 20" Narrow Kerf bar and 95TXL078G Chain .325 pitch it might surprise you on performance, efficiency and value.

 

[sundance]

The 250s are a little harder to pull when starting. Maybe high compression ?
Mine is harder to pull than the 362 but, so far, I don't mind. That may change as I get older.

I fit the bill as "older". Mine's enough of a beast that it will find a solution in the spring or be sold to a strong youngster.

 

[KASH]

Semi chisel is the clear winner in dirty wood.When you hit dirt with full chisel you break a large chunk off the corner of the cutter you have to sharpen off a lot more tooth than with semi. It may be a tad slower but you will cut 5x the wood one semi chain due to less sharpening.
Kash