***Saw question of the day***

[Mr.Wrong]

Good day guys, I have read this site and have got registered because it looks like the guys on here really know chain saws. A bit of history......Im looking at buying my first chain saw (I know what you are thinking ha ha another new guy) but my father inlaw has a lake lot and I will have to help him out with alot of tree removal and he is a bit touchy about his saw so I have decided to get my own. I will proby be buying a Huski because its the saw the seem to love out there and its easier to stay good with the family to follow suit (if you know what I mean).

Im looking at the Huski rancher 455 or Huski 440e. There are on sale here so I thought they might be good. I have a few reviews on these saws and its a 50% greatest saw ever 50% crappy saw.

Im looking for a very reliable saw over performance but performance would be good. The guy at a local store here recomended that I go for the Rancher 455 because the saw has good power and would suit my needs. I have read on here that the 346XP is amazing. But if Im a weekend worrior cutting wood is it worth it for me to spen $300 more than the 455 to get that?

So question:
#1 What do you guys think of the Huski 440e? $399.99
#2 What do you think of the Huski Rancher 455? $449.99
#3 Should I spend the big money and get a 346XP and are they that much more reliable? $784.99 18" bar

Please any and all info helps thanks boys!!

 

[Damon]

Good day guys, I have read this site and have got registered because it looks like the guys on here really know chain saws. A bit of history......Im looking at buying my first chain saw (I know what you are thinking ha ha another new guy) but my father inlaw has a lake lot and I will have to help him out with alot of tree removal and he is a bit touchy about his saw so I have decided to get my own. I will proby be buying a Huski because its the saw the seem to love out there and its easier to stay good with the family to follow suit (if you know what I mean).

Im looking at the Huski rancher 455 or Huski 440e. There are on sale here so I thought they might be good. I have a few reviews on these saws and its a 50% greatest saw ever 50% crappy saw.

Im looking for a very reliable saw over performance but performance would be good. The guy at a local store here recomended that I go for the Rancher 455 because the saw has good power and would suit my needs. I have read on here that the 346XP is amazing. But if Im a weekend worrior cutting wood is it worth it for me to spen $300 more than the 455 to get that?

So question:
#1 What do you guys think of the Huski 440e? $399.99
#2 What do you think of the Huski Rancher 455? $449.99
#3 Should I spend the big money and get a 346XP and are they that much more reliable? $784.99 18" bar

Please any and all info helps thanks boys!!

It all depends on your personal experience using saws if you are real familiar i would buy the 455 its a great saw very reliable, the 346XP is a pro saw and since you already stated your a weekend warrior i think its a little to nice for what you need, thee 440e is not a very good saw if i was looking at an e model i would buy the 450e(oh wait thats exactly what i did in this same situation) the 450e has all the fancy antivibe features and runs well on new gas it is inexpensive 50cc can handle up to a 20 inch bar comes stock with an 18 inch bar, what you should know about the 455 and the 450e both of these saws benefit from a carb tuning once they are broken in, they also benefit greatly from running thin kerf bars i have only had my 450 for about 9 months but it gets used every day in some fashion or another and its a really good saw. the one thing you need to watch for is to make sure the oiler ports arnt fouled everytime you sharpen the saw my saw does not use anywhere near enough oil even with the adjuster all the way out you really need to keep on top of it.

All that being said if it was me i would buy a 290 stihl farmboss for the money i think its a better saw for a regular use homeowner or landowner and they make bars up to 41 inches that will fit it(i #### you not) where the 455, 450 and 440e are limited to 20 inches because of a slightly different bar configuration (someone correct me if im wrong here but the biggest ive seen that are a guaranteed fit are 20s)im not gonna tell you that the saw can drive a 41 inch bar but the option exists if you so choose sometime when i get a chance ill throw the 41 on my 024 and put a picture up here just to show everyone how ridiculous it looks : P

whatever you choose i recommend buying from a servicing dealer not a big box store

Tom

 

[Mr.Wrong]

Thanks for the reply

It would be great to have as many opinions as I can get becuase it sounds like saws are like the Fors & Chev thing.

So are you recomending a guy buy the 450e insted of the rancher 455?

Small part of me wants to go crazy and buy the 346XP.

What would be the most reliable and long lasting model of the Husky saws?

Thanks for the help.

 

[Job Corps Tree]

Saw question of the day

Rancher would be pick, to have to keep for a lond time , i still run a 298XP made in 1984 still runs great never the fastest, did not have the most power but it still will cut anything i need from 6 inchs to 44+ inchs. Husky

 

[bobt]

It would be great to have as many opinions as I can get becuase it sounds like saws are like the Fors & Chev thing.

So are you recomending a guy buy the 450e insted of the rancher 455?

Small part of me wants to go crazy and buy the 346XP.

What would be the most reliable and long lasting model of the Husky saws?

Thanks for the help.

Pro model saws like 346XP are built to be used all day, every day. They have the best reliability and longetivity. That, along with good ergonomics is what you pay for when you spend the extra cash. In the hands of the homeowner/firewood cutter, they will last several life times with normal care. They are also made to be rebuilt easily if the need arises. They also demand a high price when sold if that is in the future.

Bob

 

[twoden]

I opted for the 455 Rancher as my first saw. (it was a family thing - all of my brothers have one) I run it a lot less because I have the bigger saws now but I will still use it around the house for cutting almost anything. I would go with the 455 break it in properly and take it back to the SERVICING DEALER that you buy it from for carb adjustments after break in period. Its small but it will do a lot of hard work and long days. They make professional saws to be ran hard and last, so the pro saw will be the longest living of the ones you mentioned. but no saw will last unless you take good care of it.

 

[Mr.Wrong]

rancher 455 or 455e

Which one of these would be your top choice it looks like. They both have duffrent options?

 

[cnice_37]

Mr. Wrong,

I have recently run a 455 and a 450 on the same job.

I also just bought a 346xp (non-cat). I only paid $450 or so, its not an $800 saw. Brand new, from an AS member here (in US.)

455 is nice, but heavy for the power it produces. 450 didn't feel nearly as nice as 455, less power, more vibration, but ran fine.

346 - even not broken in yet, is hands down the winner. Faster, lighter, built better.

After that its 455 then 450.

Get a better price on the 346xp and go cut some wood (should be able to find them much cheaper than your listed price.)

 

[Lookin4lunkers]

Go for the pro saw now, you will only wish you would have later

 

[banshee67]

i agree,i would buy the 346, for the few hundred youll save, youll look back in a few months saying "why did i spend over $400 on this saw when i could have spent a few hundred more and got a pro model.." .. then you got a used landowner model that you wana sell, and its not worth anything since its used, and then you wana sell it and buy the 346. and then when you finally do get the 346, youll have spent more money and time than you needed to if you had just bought it in the beginning, i have learned this the hard way

 

[treemandan]

Dam! Alls I can say and alls I am saying is if you can get a decent running saw for that cheap then go for it.

 

[treemandan]

And that's Canada too?

 

[Mr.Wrong]

Rancher 455 is da winner.

I asked around and the price on the 346xp is looking to be alomost double the price of the 455. So Im a weekend worior with the chain saw for now and I found it hard to spend the extra on the 346 (even though I thought that would be a kick but saw) so I call my local dealer hear and got them to set one up and get it ready to go for me tomorow morning.
It didnt look that there would be any movement on price on the 346 (I tried to get a deal but no luck) so the saw for me is the rancher 455.
I did take some of your advice and im buying from a dealer that dose warranty work on husky right there and they seem to know there saws and stand behind them. They are going to set the saw up for me and set me up with all the fixens and oils I will need to go get some cutting done.

I would like to thank all of you for your help on this matter.

BUT>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> I do have another question. I want to RIP a tree in half to make a bench out of 2 halves and put it on 2 stumps for legs.

Any tips on ripping a tree in half its about 16" accross? or is this just a bad idea?

Thanks again guys.

 

[cnice_37]

BUT>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> I do have another question. I want to RIP a tree in half to make a bench out of 2 halves and put it on 2 stumps for legs.

Any tips on ripping a tree in half its about 16" accross? or is this just a bad idea?

Thanks again guys.

bummer on the no price break... wonder why such a drastic difference as compared to here.

I'd go to the Milling section here regarding ripping in half.

 

[twoden]

Milling

get yourself a ripping chain for your saw the only hard part is cutting it straight. Baileys sells some for .19 a drive link
Follow the link: http://www.baileysonline.com/itemdetail.asp?item=WP375 30RP

 

[Addie]

Different day, different time, there will be different people with different answers.

 

[RVALUE]

It would be great to have as many opinions as I can get becuase it sounds like saws are like the Fors & Chev thing.

So are you recomending a guy buy the 450e insted of the rancher 455?

Small part of me wants to go crazy and buy the 346XP.

What would be the most reliable and long lasting model of the Husky saws?

Thanks for the help.

I believe you will be disappointed in that most people on AS don't have an opinion. :monkey:

 

[BC WetCoast]

BUT>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> I do have another question. I want to RIP a tree in half to make a bench out of 2 halves and put it on 2 stumps for legs.

Any tips on ripping a tree in half its about 16" accross? or is this just a bad idea?

Thanks again guys.

I would have looked a the Dolmar as well, but you've made your decision.

Because you aren't doing this full time, what I would do is mark your line on the top of the log and the end of the log and eye ball it. Cut with your saw as much with the fibres as possible (as opposed to straight across the grain) so you get long noodles rather than sawdust. Similar to the same thing you do to rip an ugly piece of firewood you can't split.

You may have to finish from the other side if you don't go right through.

If you are only doing this a couple of times, you can use your regular chain.

Practice on some scrap.

 

[woodsmower]

i agree with bobt - the pro models are your best bet for longevity