Poulan vs Stihl

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I might have to eat my words. I was just at Tractor Supply and they have the Poulan 5020 49cc? for $159.00! It looks like a well made saw. That’s cheaper than the cheapest Stihl. In fact, you could buy two of them for less than a Stihl 290.
I don’t like saws with primer bulbs but at that price....
I have 4 Stihls but I’d like to try the 5020.
 
I might have to eat my words. I was just at Tractor Supply and they have the Poulan 5020 49cc? for $159.00! It looks like a well made saw. That’s cheaper than the cheapest Stihl. In fact, you could buy two of them for less than a Stihl 290.
I don’t like saws with primer bulbs but at that price....
I have 4 Stihls but I’d like to try the 5020.


Idk what 4 stihl saws you have but try the poulan. I hear good things about it but my 028 really changed my view of chainsaw cc's. Theres a big difference in power between a pro saw and box store saw. I love stihl saws for getting the job done but I use my poulan saws a lot more to cut small stuff and have fun. If I had money to blow I'd buy a 2050. I've been cutting with a corona hand saw for fun. If its sharp it cuts. I have so much ash to cut.
 
I might have to eat my words. I was just at Tractor Supply and they have the Poulan 5020 49cc? for $159.00! It looks like a well made saw. That’s cheaper than the cheapest Stihl. In fact, you could buy two of them for less than a Stihl 290.
I don’t like saws with primer bulbs but at that price....
I have 4 Stihls but I’d like to try the 5020.
There’s a dedicated thread on the 5020...check it out!
 
I have a Poulan 3000 branded Sears that ran well. Still have it but have not used it in about 20 yrs. Have a few 2000 & 3700's that are great saws. But mostly now I run ported Husky's
 
Sorry to bash the Poulan party here, but there is simply no comparison. Stihl spanks Poulan. Old or new. I have owned and run both, and Jreds, and Huskys and Echos and Homelites and Macs.
This is an old thread but I respectfully beg to differ.

I currently own both old Stihls and old Poulans. And I use a new stihl at my job. Old Poulans and old Stihls are really about the same as far as quality and performance in my experience. At least the ones I have. And both my old Stihls and Poulans are indeed better than both new Poulans and new Stihls.
New Stihls are better saws than New Poulans, yes. Even the reps at Poulan will probably attest that a Stihl is better than what they’re making right now. They are not catering to the pro market anymore. Just occasional home owner users nowadays mass sold to hardware stores.
The older American made Beard Poulan small engine of yesteryear are every bit as well made as the West German Stihl engine.
Stihl just endured longer as a company making quality products than Poulan did. As soon as Poulan was bought out by Husqvarna Corp, they made it a point to push Poulan’s quality to the lower end of the quality spectrum, intentionally to promote their Husky professional grade saws.
 
Hey just seen this ...may be from years ago , but any-way is not your over-priced Stihl .....A pro saw?......;)
Hey just seen this ...may be from years ago , but any-way is not your over-priced Stihl .....A pro saw?......;)
Both my Stihls, Poulan, and Huskies are pro saws. I don’t think Poulan has had an actual real pro saw for a couple of decades and some change. Or has it been longer than that? My pro Poulan I currently own is a 245a. I’ve got a couple of other plastic bodied “Poulan Pros” with 38-50cc engines that were made within the decade and the very idea that they are “pros” is mildly amusing. I’d be confident in saying that the Poulan 5200, the 3000-4800 saws, the 245a, 306a, the 361, the 72, and some of the Pioneer/Partner Poulans were every bit up there with Stihl and Husky pro saws.
 
Both my Stihls, Poulan, and Huskies are pro saws. I don’t think Poulan has had an actual real pro saw for a couple of decades and some change. Or has it been longer than that? My pro Poulan I currently own is a 245a. I’ve got a couple of other plastic bodied “Poulan Pros” with 38-50cc engines that were made within the decade and the very idea that they are “pros” is mildly amusing. I’d be confident in saying that the Poulan 5200, the 3000-4800 saws, the 245a, 306a, the 361, the 72, and some of the Pioneer/Partner Poulans were every bit up there with Stihl and Husky pro saws.
I gave me poulan 42cc pro away to my dad since he had a 32cc homelite saw from harbor freight. That thing sucked. My 90s crafstman and poulan saws cut much better and can handle a beating for a non pro saw. Id love to own an older poulan but ebay makes them expensive.
 
I gave me poulan 42cc pro away to my dad since he had a 32cc homelite saw from harbor freight. That thing sucked. My 90s crafstman and poulan saws cut much better and can handle a beating for a non pro saw. Id love to own an older poulan but ebay makes them expensive.
That is true. Old Poulan saws have value that’s all over the map, and more than not, it winds up being high. Some are very affordably priced and in really good shape, some are so so for a high price, and I’ve seen some in kinda crabby shape sell for low and for high. As far as chainsaws are concerned, old Poulan saws from the 60s to the late 80’s have the widest and weirdest price ranges, largely because of eBay. It’s kind of a lick of the draw situation. Old Stihl saws are usually constantly moderately affordably priced as long as they are in decent working and cosmetic condition, same with old Husqvarna and Homelite saws. McCulloch chainsaws can have a bit of a wide price value range depending on the time of the year, but they are still a bunch more consistent than the prices of those old Poulans.
 
My brother runs a sawmill and 3 or 4 of us help on Saturdays.
It doesn't take long before the BS about the best chainsaw starts, it's everytime.
My brother runs nothing but pro Sthils, another guy pro Husqvarna and me coming in with nothing but Echo's. Lol
A sharp well maintained saw with a quality fuel mix will perform for many years plus I ain't paying Sthil money.
 
My brother runs a sawmill and 3 or 4 of us help on Saturdays.
It doesn't take long before the BS about the best chainsaw starts, it's everytime.
My brother runs nothing but pro Sthils, another guy pro Husqvarna and me coming in with nothing but Echo's. Lol
A sharp well maintained saw with a quality fuel mix will perform for many years plus I ain't paying Sthil money.
Most of the folks that I know who swear upon one brand, don’t really have much actual experience with what has been produced as far as other brands. Most people that I know that just love Stihl saws, had a bad experience with a homemaker Poulan or box store Husqvarna. They don’t even think for one second about Husky’s pro line saws, or some of Poulan’s old muscle saws. Their only experience with McCulloch saws were the hardware store models during their dying days for example.

I love Stihl chainsaws, and nowadays they are known for quality vs plastic Walmart/Home Depot saws. However, there are Huskys, Poulans, McCullochs, Echos and many others out there, including some store brands of yesteryear that have been every bit as good and durable as the benchmark Stihl saw.

I can’t really comment too much on what’s being produced today other than all brands are making some really good stuff, and some outright junk. Some just more than others.
 
Do I like Poulans, yeah, especially like this one, Super 68, 82CC's 31" bar with half inch chain. We used Poulan 25's back in the late 70's and 80's as our climbing saws. I went through a pile of Wild Things. They didn't seem to like commercial work. Maybe I was pushing the parameters of their use. Back in the day I could take a Homelite or Mac with a 16" bar and cut 16" wood all day with out a second thought. I can take my homeowner grade Farm Boss and cut wood as long as the bar all day, no problem. The Wild Things I had just wouldn't hold up to that use. I think one thing, it I remember correctly, they had the muffler on the front. I never wore gloves and I had to wear one on my left hand because it would get so hot cutting small logs it would burn my hand. Maybe cutting small logs the size of the bar was too much for it. I think that front muffler might have cooked them. This big Super 68 has a front muffler, but the way it's built it doesn't ride right on the log. I've done the same thing with my little $159 MS170 with no problems. I think they are good saws for home owners, maybe landscapers and lawn guys. I'll never buy another new one. I'll buy every old one I can get my hands on.
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Say......just wondering, how is your hearing these days. LOL
 
Say......just wondering, how is your hearing these days. LOL
Well, it's an old thread, but since you asked, since I got my hearing aids almost 6 years ago, I've had a 90 decibel loss of low tones in my left, good, ear. I have two pair of ear muffs just in case I leave one set laying around. Going in next Week for more comprehensive tests. I'm past the point where Costco hearing aids work, have to go to the next level.
 
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Got the old stihl out today for less than 2 hours of cutting. I love running that old saw. Bury the bar in ash and the saw doesn't change tune. I did have hearing protection but my back is killing me but the work is done.
 
Amid all of the arguments about brands, whether it’s vintage sewing machines guns chainsaws or any other product, what people miss is that products were really well-built they also cost a month salary. There was no option of the Walmart plastic version. Nowadays for a days salary you can buy an option. So it’s not fair to compare something that cost a day salary to something that cost a week or a month salary. With NC machining injection molding and other modern technology,, Products are built a lot better now if the companies choose to. They can also design them right to the ragged edge to sell for the absolute minimal cost if they choose to, and then you get $149 Walmart saws. And companies do that because honestly the consumer knows nothing about the product and compares price tag only.. Think about how you shop on Amazon. Almost everyone filters sort by price
 
Amid all of the arguments about brands, whether it’s vintage sewing machines guns chainsaws or any other product, what people miss is that products were really well-built they also cost a month salary. There was no option of the Walmart plastic version. Nowadays for a days salary you can buy an option. So it’s not fair to compare something that cost a day salary to something that cost a week or a month salary. With NC machining injection molding and other modern technology,, Products are built a lot better now if the companies choose to. They can also design them right to the ragged edge to sell for the absolute minimal cost if they choose to, and then you get $149 Walmart saws. And companies do that because honestly the consumer knows nothing about the product and compares price tag only.. Think about how you shop on Amazon. Almost everyone filters sort by price
Heck yeah! That’s about as good of an analogy as it’s gonna get.
I know a whole bunch of people who just swear by Stihl. They have good reason to when Husqvarna and Echo don’t sell any of their products, especially their industrial forestry lineup, within a 300 mile radius. But there’s a Stihl dealership in a neighboring town, and the only other saws for sale around are the Poulan and Troy Built at the local hardware store. Yeah, I’m going to go with the Stihl Dealership every time in this particular instance too.

But if Husky and Echo decided to set up a professional grade saw dealership here, it would make quite a bit of folks speak differently about one brand only. They’d open their minds a good deal.
I like all kinds of brands of saws and gas tools. They all have their strongpoints and weak points.
But most of the Stihl aficionados where I live have based their opinions off of comparing a pro saw to a Suzy homemaker saw of a different brand. And it’s just not really fair. They need to be willing to try to compare a pro model Stihl with a homeowner grade stihl too If they want to be fair, because as good as Stihls are especially now, they too sell a line of right next to junk, just like Poulan does at the hardware store. 😂
And there’s no way I’m going to buy a brand new 60cc plastic pro line stihl for 600 or 700 dollars when I can get an all metal 041 super for 200-250 dollars, and be happier with its performance and durability.
 
Heck yeah! That’s about as good of an analogy as it’s gonna get.
I know a whole bunch of people who just swear by Stihl. They have good reason to when Husqvarna and Echo don’t sell any of their products, especially their industrial forestry lineup, within a 300 mile radius. But there’s a Stihl dealership in a neighboring town, and the only other saws for sale around are the Poulan and Troy Built at the local hardware store. Yeah, I’m going to go with the Stihl Dealership every time in this particular instance too.

But if Husky and Echo decided to set up a professional grade saw dealership here, it would make quite a bit of folks speak differently about one brand only. They’d open their minds a good deal.
I like all kinds of brands of saws and gas tools. They all have their strongpoints and weak points.
But most of the Stihl aficionados where I live have based their opinions off of comparing a pro saw to a Suzy homemaker saw of a different brand. And it’s just not really fair. They need to be willing to try to compare a pro model Stihl with a homeowner grade stihl too If they want to be fair, because as good as Stihls are especially now, they too sell a line of right next to junk, just like Poulan does at the hardware store. 😂
And there’s no way I’m going to buy a brand new 60cc plastic pro line stihl for 600 or 700 dollars when I can get an all metal 041 super for 200-250 dollars, and be happier with its performance and durability.


And that was why i posted a pic of a pile of wood cut in less than 2 hours with my 051. I paid 350 for it on ebay and it will cut anything i need it to. What 90cc plastic pro saw can i get for 350. My 028 will out cut my ms 290 with a 390 top end. I like the old stuff it does its job.
 
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