Shindaiwa 377/360 Hybrid - A Pleasant Surprise

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I had Shindiawa several years back. I believe it was a 450. It had the smoothest idle of any saw I have every owned and I liked it but I usually keep them for a while and when I get a different one in I sell the old one. Tom
 
A few months back, Four Paws, one of our resident Shindaiwa aficionados, had a nifty little saw up for sale: a 377/360 hybrid he had put together. A 377 crank in a 360 case, for added stroke in a more compact/lighter crankcase. Curiously, no bites.

http://www.arboristsite.com/community/threads/shindaiwa-377.264441/#post-4983733

It seemed intriguing, especially since most of my cutting is in small invasive buckthorn and such, and I have become a real fan of this displacement class. My usual kit for this work is the 242-family Husqvarna, and I’m working on accumulating both more runners and parts saws of that family, and also other saws in that size class (543xpg?). Anyway, this little Shindaiwa fit the bill, so I bought it and ordered up a suitable bar (A041 mount, so nothing else I own works on it). And this past weekend I finally had a chance to put four tanks through it.



What a great little package! The spec sheets don't really capture it - the weight, handling, powerband, and such - the way that real-world use does. Great behavior for my purposes and, I should think, for many other peoples’ purposes, too! The powerhead occupies a bit less physical space than the Husqvarnas, and less in fact than saws of the Stihl 171/181 family, which many of y’all are likely familiar with.







Now honestly, before SawTroll jumps in and points it out, A/V is a bit primitive, probably due to harder-than-average buffers when compared to my usual rubber-isolated Husqvarnas. And Brad will be correct about its performance potential: I'm sure that other saws in this class can wake up more with porting. But you know, this saw was a real pleasure to run and handled well. I was pleasantly surprised. And, when those four tanks were done, I looked back at what those four tanks got me and I was pleased: it is a really productive little machine. In that time I put down probably fifty buckthorn trees from 1" to 15" diameter, cut them up into conveniently sized pieces that can be dragged by hand and made into brush piles, and this saw got the job done great!







I doubt my review would have been so glowing with a 16" or 18" bar hanging off the saw, especially if the saw were being asked to use all 16-18" of said bar. But the 13" .325" setup with Oregon 20lp chain hits the sweet spot for this powerhead (size, power, balance, etc.) and makes for a really versatile machine.

I know that the spec sheet folks on this site will point out what this saw lacks, and the folks who think the true measure of a saw is its time through a knot-free poplar cant will correctly point out that many saws will outrun this one against a stopwatch, even saws in the same displacement class. But darn it, this was unusually satisfying to run, rather productive in its appointed task, and the build quality is superb.

Thanks for the review.

It's a pleasure to read a review of a chainsaw being used for it's intended use.
 
I just snagged a clean looking 360 off the net. Maybe it will look as good in person as it did in pics. I'm pretty anxious to get it here and have a look at it.

My Dolmar 401 is really likable, and have been wanting a 360 or 377 for quite some time. Maybe someday it will get hybridized.

Good thread, BTW.
 
That is an insanely good deal. I can't believe you are even debating.

My resistance isn't is carved in stone ;). The good news, and the bad news, is Shidaiwa is a pretty much unknown brand around here. Not a lot people are going think, "Wow! A Shindaiwa!! I gotta jump on that deal."
 
Yep, I would be on that deal ASAP!.........I got real lucky and snagged a 360 for 20 smackers a couple weeks ago!, not the prettiest picture but it sure still runs damn good!!..........;)
 
Good interesting write up of a well worthy saw. If Shindaiwa/echo built saws like that with competitive size/wieght/power ratios today I would own them and have a few in the stable. That saw really competes well against the competition. I want one!! Sad bit or good thing is saws like that can be had really cheap if you keep your eyes peeled.
 
Good interesting write up of a well worthy saw. If Shindaiwa/echo built saws like that with competitive size/wieght/power ratios today I would own them and have a few in the stable. That saw really competes well against the competition. I want one!! Sad bit or good thing is saws like that can be had really cheap if you keep your eyes peeled.
If you haven't already, you should try out a cs400 or 370, after my first 400 I picked three weeks ago, I liked it so much I bought another this last weekend!, matter of fact, I may pick up a like new cs370 this afternoon......;)
 
Not at all Shindaiwa related...

When the Echo CS-370 first came out it got many positive reviews. I don't know what happened, possibly overproduction by Echo, but at one time eBay had m-a-n-y listings for NIB 370s. I kept my eyes on them. Many of the listings that ended at an odd time, say 2:00AM, brought small money.
 
Not at all Shindaiwa related...

When the Echo CS-370 first came out it got many positive reviews. I don't know what happened, possibly overproduction by Echo, but at one time eBay had m-a-n-y listings for NIB 370s. I kept my eyes on them. Many of the listings that ended at an odd time, say 2:00AM, brought small money.
Yeah, I know they're not related, but have a very similar build and run very much alike, after modds of coarse.......
 
Good interesting write up of a well worthy saw. If Shindaiwa/echo built saws like that with competitive size/wieght/power ratios today I would own them and have a few in the stable. That saw really competes well against the competition. I want one!! Sad bit or good thing is saws like that can be had really cheap if you keep your eyes peeled.

Do y'all folks down under still see new (not new old stock) chainsaws sold under the Shindaiwa name? IIRC--????--here in the states Shinny is going use the Echo name.
 
My favorite 360 came from my local scrapper with the flag broken/melted off the chain brake. paid $2.30 for it. I ground off the clutch cover and tuned the carb. Soo... Still to this day I have $2.30 in it. :)
 
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