Stihl 026, everything you wanted to know.

[tony marks]

mike ill give 101. thisis the price is rite aint it.. while i really like the 028 for bucking . i think the 026 when modified is a fine saw with the stihl dependability.. as far as this new stuff. im never sure anymore..

 

[Kneejerk Bombas]

What does a new ms260 go for?

 

[Lobo]

Well I wrote 346 because I didn't think anybody in there right mind would compare a 2 hp saw to a 3.5 hp saw.

Hummm ! Something wrong here !

 

[Kneejerk Bombas]

The 336 cuts circles around the 026. It's better in every way. You can't go by specs on a website, you really can't.
If you take the two saws, ignore everything else, and cut through a 20 inch log on a stand, then yes the 026 would win slightly. Go limb a tree or cut some small trees down, the 336 will kick a$$ in every aspect of sawing I can think of.
If you make these two saws available to your crew, I promise the 026 will sit and rot and the 336 will get used and used and used!

 

[Lobo]

Well Mike, I guess you can try and convince people of that but bottom line is folks are not dupes, any 3.5 hp saw would have to be running awfully bad
to have a 2 hp cut circles around it as you?put it.

As I have said in past posts, '' I'm from Missouri, show me ! ''

 

[DirtTroll]

1st:
Lets clear the air here. We all know that Mike Maas is paid by Husky to sponser their saws and trash Stihl on the forum. So, take his advice for what it is worth: NOTHING.


2nd:
I haven't tried a 336 Husky so I can't speak there. But I know for a fact that the 346XP is a POS from personal experience. A saw that Maas couldn't extoll the virtues enough. Now that everone knows that the chain bar tensioner and oilers are worthless for the 346XP, all he can do is talk trash about the 260.

3rd:
Maas is just mad that his beloved company (electrolux, the refrigerator company) has gone wallmart and we all know what that means. If you don't just look at MAC, Pioneer, and homelite.

4th:
This is the same person that who raves about 335xp. Another wonderfull turd by electrolux.

 

[stihltech]

260

Repeat customers are what keeps a company going. I have manyrepeat 026 customers, and many looking for the 026 trade ins.
Must be doing something right.

If you have problems with a saw, get it fixed.

There may be some truth to the power band thing. The newer 260s I have sold work better with 3/8 chain, I cannot say that about the 026s of past.
And this with that tiny little hole in the exhaust.
Makes you wonder if exhaust outlet size is the only factor to consider.

 

[Kneejerk Bombas]

Haha, I'm not a big husky fan. Most of the saws I run are Stihls MS200t, MS460, MS660 and Husky 336. I've run a lot of other saws over the years too.
The 336 and the 026 fill the same slot in tree work, for me. Just cutting small stuff that doesn't make it worthwhile to use an 75cc saw.
Let's say there's a small tree that needs to get cut down and limbed into branches that can be carried through a gate. Let's say it's a blackthorn or crabapple tree.
The 336 will do the job better, safer, faster, and mostly just easier, than the 026. In my mind that's just a fact. Every person I have worked with since I started using the 336 agrees with me that it is an awesome saw that kicks the 026's butt.
The 026 is dubbed "the carpel tunnel machine", or "the boat anchor". If I ask my ground man to bring either one, I get the 026.
If I get into work where cutting speed is an issue, I'll grab the 460. It's easier to run than "the boat anchor" and still gets the job done.
Keep in mind, I'm not going to ever cut up a log with an 026 or even a 336, unless it's very small, I'll grab the right saw for the job.

As for the 335, I ran one for about a month on a daily basis. The spark plug cover fell off instantly and the oiler stopped working after about a week. I took it in for repair, and it work again for about a another week. took it in again, same thing. Then the saw got lost or stolen and it was replaced with something other than a husky. It did have good power and was similar to the MS200t.
The 336 is plagued with the same spark plug cover, I replaced with 6 strips of electrical tape. The oiler on the 336 has not failed me yet, with about one year on the saw, but if the bar grove gets clogged up it will use less oil. I know this is true with all saws, but it seems to be worse with this saw for some reason. I think it uses a different oil delivery system than most saws.
The 335 isn't made anymore but the 336 is using the same power unit as the 334. It is so smooth and the throttle response is instant. It cuts with an MS200t in speed.
The top handled saw by Husky is the 338. It has made some changes that address the problems of the 335, but I have not run them for more than a cut or two. That said, I'd say it's the fastest top handled saw made.

 

[Kneejerk Bombas]

So, take his advice for what it is worth: NOTHING.
.

Who's advice are you going to take, a mechanical engineer that sit in his cubical all day dreaming of running a saw, or an arborist that lives his dreams running saws all day long?
Maybe if you engineers would get out and actually use some of the crap you design, it would be more clear to you why everybody complains about it.

 

[SawTroll]

95vp

Mike, is your small Huskies equipped with NK bars and 95VP (or H30) chain?
If that is the case, it might explain why they compares so favourably in the cut with more powerful Stihls.

 

[a_lopa]

Yes, the 336.

BITE,lol. mike your not serious.thats a p.o.s period i have room for 5 saws in the locker i wouldnt drag that behind the truck.in reality your better off climbing with as big a saw as your capable of ,can you tell me why not?something about going to kill an elephant

 

[Lobo]

Mike, is your small Huskies equipped with NK bars and 95VP (or H30) chain?
If that is the case, it might explain why they compares so favourably in the cut with more powerful Stihls.

Even if he were running NK b&c, it would still not make up for a difference of 75% in hp.

 

[Kneejerk Bombas]

Mike, is your small Huskies equipped with NK bars and 95VP (or H30) chain?
If that is the case, it might explain why they compares so favourably in the cut with more powerful Stihls.

No, it's got .325 on a 16" bar.

BITE,lol. mike your not serious.thats a p.o.s period i have room for 5 saws in the locker i wouldnt drag that behind the truck.in reality your better off climbing with as big a saw as your capable of ,can you tell me why not?something about going to kill an elephant

What are your five saws?

Do you say it's a POS because you've run it and don't like it, or you don't use small saws?

Climbing around witha big saw is hard, I like easy. It's also hard to lift and start a big saw and even positioning a big saw can be awkward.
I'll climb with a small saw until I get down to the big pieces of the spar, then either drop the spar whole or pull up a bigger saw.
So I top it out witha 30 something cc saw, then pull up what ever size I need to finish.

 

[SawTroll]

95VP/H30/S30 is .325........

......and availiable at least for 13" to 20" bars.
It is standard on all Swedish made Huskys and Jreds less than 52 cc's over here, and I think it is in the USA, too.
The only difference is that US E-lux NK bars is rebadged Oregon Pro-Lite, while the bars for Europe is made at the old Jo-Bu factory in Norway.

This is of course not proof that your saws have this cutting attachment, as they may have been ordered with another setup.

 

[Kneejerk Bombas]

No it's not the vp or lp stuff, just regular .325, LG.

 

[a_lopa]

No, it's got .325 on a 16" bar.



What are your five saws?

Do you say it's a POS because you've run it and don't like it, or you don't use small saws?

Climbing around witha big saw is hard, I like easy. It's also hard to lift and start a big saw and even positioning a big saw can be awkward.
I'll climb with a small saw until I get down to the big pieces of the spar, then either drop the spar whole or pull up a bigger saw.
So I top it out witha 30 something cc saw, then pull up what ever size I need to finish.

five saws 2x26 2x46 1x3120(p.o.s)but new well three years new lol.i havnt run one,i cant see any point to.yes i dont use anything smaller than a 26

 

[Kneejerk Bombas]

Ha, you climb with an 026! You-r-nuts!
Do yourself a favor, check out some of the new saws. Shoot, that 026 is like 25 years old or something.
Look, I got one like new and $101 is the best offer.

 

[a_lopa]

there too expensive,it takes too long and creates more work swaping saws over.

 

[tony marks]

mike is your saw 25 yrs old.. im the one that offered 101.. stihl ,if i got your word that its in good shape.. just let me know.. not that i need it . but i mite get it an let dan or dave modify it for me ,when they have time.
ps i thot the 25 yr old saws like that would be 028 . stihl a good saw.
ps im getting ready to embark in an out west [idaho] trip to pick up karrys [fiance]
house full of furniture shes been so worried about,, but im still interested in the saw if its running good. of course i suspect you wouldnt take twice that for it. but one mans trash is anothers treasure so let me know.

 

[Kneejerk Bombas]

I'm not sure how old it is, I meant the 026 model has been around about that long, but I'm not sure. This saw has very low miles, still has the original bar and chain. A buddy of mine asked me to sell it, he wants $150 out of it and said I could keep whatever I got over that. I think he said he got it 8 or 10 years ago, I don't know for sure.
The 026 I had, before this one got run through the chipper! How'd that happen?