Stihl dealer wouldn't sell me an MS 200

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Swamp Yankee said:
Dealer is probably not an idiot

Especially if he's got Kubota. They weeded out a lot of the jerks carrying their product years ago.

I'd be willing to bet a Dunkin Donuts coffee and Boston Creme doughnut that he's on credit hold with Stihl like a lot of dealers, and can only move what they have in stock until they square up their account.

Food for thought.

Take Care
Click to expand...

You may well be right.....:confused:
 
saw

bye online call local area sales rep complin to him call still online complian go to nother dealer, nevor go back
 
erik m. said:
He talked about several saws. mostly the 171 and the 211.

And, as I mentioned, the 260 pro
Click to expand...

I have to agree! Not to say that you shouldn't give the customer what they want but he is absoloutely correct that there are better choices out there for that outrageous amount of money. If i'm spending over 6 bills it better be able to pull a 24" bar! I would rule out the 171 all together but I use a 211 commercially and can tell you that it will do everything a 200r will do for half the money. Other crews laughed at it at first and now i'm hearing they're starting to use them in their buckets with zero failure. I can tell ya that when thing craps out I will gladly buy another and another after that, and before the plastic police get here I wanna ad this thing has been dropped, drop kicked, drug and literally beat to death and fires everytime and has not lost 1 lb of compression after over 100 hrs and you can easily burry it the hardest of oak and just keeps pulling.
 
pgg said:
Somethings not right, the dealer was saying go for a 211 or 171, I'd agree, if not wanting a TH saw, the 211 would be the ticket, even an old 021 matches a 200T, I can't see the point of the rear handle 200 unless you're really needing a tiny compact saw, a 211 must surely be an improvement over the 021. The guy said think about it over the weekend and then see, doesn't sound like a money-grubbing shark, lots will say what a loser, but maybe this dealer's kosher
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huskystihl said:
I have to agree! Not to say that you shouldn't give the customer what they want but he is absoloutely correct that there are better choices out there for that outrageous amount of money. If i'm spending over 6 bills it better be able to pull a 24" bar! I would rule out the 171 all together but I use a 211 commercially and can tell you that it will do everything a 200r will do for half the money. ....
Click to expand...

You guys are most certainly right from a purely objective standpoint. I know that I do not need this saw. Given my needs, there are better choices out there. Except that, in this case, I don't really have a need at all. For my purposes I could easily make do with the old 026 and 028 here. This purchase is not about need. I just want a German made MS 200.

Part of the reason may be shallow in that the tree farmer that I used to work for is still a good friend of my dad's. I go out and help him trim now and then for fun, fellowship and old times sake. He has an MS 200 and he goes on and on about how it is the absolutely best trimming saw he has ever had. He really feels quite superior about it. I wanted to show up one day and pull out an MS 200 of my own. Just to show him that he isn't all that special. If I showed up with an MS 211 he would tell me that it is a good saw for someone like me, and then brag some more on his MS 200 (I know it sounds petty, but really it is all in very good fun, I have very deep respect for him.)

I am not the kind of person who normally just goes and buys expensive toys. I don't have a $30,000 bass boat, I don't have a $20,000 Harley, I have a beat up old Aluminum canoe and a mountain bike. I own a minivan for crying out loud. As I say, this was an unexpected little check in the mail, and sometimes you get tired of doing the responsible thing with money and just want to splurge. I thought I could afford myself this one fun senseless purchase without having to explain myself, and waiting over the weekend to think about it, before they would sell it to me.

Having to explain and rationalize a fun purchase takes a lot of the fun out of it. I'm wishing I would have stopped by the guitar shop, or the bike shop instead of the chainsaw shop with my fun money. If I go into the guitar shop with my heart set on a new American Stratocaster, I can't imagine that they would tell me to think on it. Or try to down sell me on a Mexican Strat. The difference is probably that the guitar dealer expects that you are buying for emotional/ fun reasons, whereas the Stihl dealer assumes that their customers have work that needs doing and are wanting the tool to do it.

It is just that, in my case, I was just wanting the saw for fun. I do think the dealer is a pretty good guy. The young owner of the business was actually one of my former logic students at the university. I will probably just talk directly to him sometime.

Anyway, I apologize for typing so much. I'll try to write shorter next time. You have a great website here.
 
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erik m. said:
I wanted to show up one day and pull out an MS 200 of my own. Just to show him that he isn't all that special. If I showed up with an MS 211 he would tell me that it is a good saw for someone like me, and then brag some more on his MS 200 (I know it sounds petty, but really it is all in very good fun, I have very deep respect for him.)
Click to expand...

Now that makes sense. old lakeside swore by his ms200

just find another dealer and buy a MS200
 
First of all I have never ran a 200 or a 211, and don't know all the difference between the two. But if you blindfolded me and told me both saws act the same and I could choose which one I wanted I would pick the one that is almost 20% lighter.
 
My Stihl dealer, or one of them, is down the road from my Kubota dealer. Handy. Don't give up on the Kubota, I've had them almost fifteen yr. and they are the best machines I've owned. [tractors, I mean]

Weird about not selling you the saw, however. I don't recall ever having anyone not willing to sell me something, particularly that expensive.
 
Not to pile on, but at least as of a couple years ago the closest Stihl dealer here was always a pain to work with. Call up and see if they have new parts in stock, then when you go in person they're either out or only have used parts. Take chains to be ground and those get botched. Granted, maybe if I walked in looking to buy a new $700 saw they'd bend over backwards, but they didn't seem that interested in helping keep an existing customer.

Edit: Now that I try Stihl's dealer locater, it appears they're no longer a dealer. Guess I'm not the only one who had some trouble there. Oddly enough the place that used to do Husky is now Stihl.
 
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Erick,
Hey man, no justification needed. You want it, no eason not to have it..

I do not NEED a 346Xp NE or a ported 372Xp- Heck I haven't even RAN the 372Xp yet!!!! But I wanted them and had the expendable cash- so I made them a present to me(actually wifey bought me the 346XP NE before the sep.)

2Door
 
The mans a cock. Sure, he might want to give some advice, but if you`re set on that saw he should have got it in. Its a good saw and hes making a sale.
90 acres? Your FIL likes his daughters husband lots. Any woodland on it? My FIL ocasionally drops off some crabby old tools he doesnt want.
 
joatmon said:
HJ,

Just a little humor. You're Happy Jack and you called him Happy.

I hope everyone is Happy,

ole joat
Click to expand...

Sorry it was a typo

nmurph At the end of the day a quality 50cc homeowner saw with an 18" bar was all he really needed. That's what I told him.

He will be cutting blow-downs, and dead trees under 16" dbh. He does not even burn firewood. This is his 1st saw.

If he needs anything bigger I will stop by with my saw and help him.
 
i disagree.

Swamp Yankee said:
Dealer is probably not an idiot

Especially if he's got Kubota. They weeded out a lot of the jerks carrying their product years ago.

I'd be willing to bet a Dunkin Donuts coffee and Boston Creme doughnut that he's on credit hold with Stihl like a lot of dealers, and can only move what they have in stock until they square up their account.

Food for thought.

Take Care
Click to expand...

i have been in many dealerships that sell great products.service was non existent.i mean customer service.i understand some dealers warm up after you have been in a few times and spend some money.seems ass backwards to me but it's their gig.i bet they lose a lot of sales this way. i am not begging you to sell me something.especially for several hundred or thousand dollars.

another thing i don't get is being a power equipment dealer and being closed on saturday. seems like that would be you busiest day since folks are off and using their equipment.i think this is a big bonus in the big box stores favor.
 
erik m. said:
You guys are most certainly right from a purely objective standpoint. I know that I do not need this saw. Given my needs, there are better choices out there. Except that, in this case, I don't really have a need at all. For my purposes I could easily make do with the old 026 and 028 here. This purchase is not about need. I just want a German made MS 200.

Part of the reason may be shallow in that the tree farmer that I used to work for is still a good friend of my dad's. I go out and help him trim now and then for fun, fellowship and old times sake. He has an MS 200 and he goes on and on about how it is the absolutely best trimming saw he has ever had. He really feels quite superior about it. I wanted to show up one day and pull out an MS 200 of my own. Just to show him that he isn't all that special. If I showed up with an MS 211 he would tell me that it is a good saw for someone like me, and then brag some more on his MS 200 (I know it sounds petty, but really it is all in very good fun, I have very deep respect for him.)

I am not the kind of person who normally just goes and buys expensive toys. I don't have a $30,000 bass boat, I don't have a $20,000 Harley, I have a beat up old Aluminum canoe and a mountain bike. I own a minivan for crying out loud. As I say, this was an unexpected little check in the mail, and sometimes you get tired of doing the responsible thing with money and just want to splurge. I thought I could afford myself this one fun senseless purchase without having to explain myself, and waiting over the weekend to think about it, before they would sell it to me.

Having to explain and rationalize a fun purchase takes a lot of the fun out of it. I'm wishing I would have stopped by the guitar shop, or the bike shop instead of the chainsaw shop with my fun money. If I go into the guitar shop with my heart set on a new American Stratocaster, I can't imagine that they would tell me to think on it. Or try to down sell me on a Mexican Strat. The difference is probably that the guitar dealer expects that you are buying for emotional/ fun reasons, whereas the Stihl dealer assumes that their customers have work that needs doing and are wanting the tool to do it.

It is just that, in my case, I was just wanting the saw for fun. I do think the dealer is a pretty good guy. The young owner of the business was actually one of my former logic students at the university. I will probably just talk directly to him sometime.

Anyway, I apologize for typing so much. I'll try to write shorter next time. You have a great website here.
Click to expand...

Than buy a 441 and drop it on his 200 and say I win and walk away. trust me dude I can be as much of a snob as anyone when it comes to equipment but i've learned that sometimes less is better. I would never buy a 70 cc wild thing if they came out with it but when it comes to a $600 35 cc saw I like to think of them as experiments. Honestly 9 out of 10 times when the bucket raises the 372 is beside me and the 211 is de-branching down below and the 192 this time of year is pruning till I find the big stuff. I you wanna spend some money that bad, follow the dealers advice and get the 260 which will wallop the 200 and after the alpha male fades you'll have a great saw for years to come.
 
fishercat said:
i have been in many dealerships that sell great products.service was non existent.i mean customer service.i understand some dealers warm up after you have been in a few times and spend some money.seems ass backwards to me but it's their gig.i bet they lose a lot of sales this way. i am not begging you to sell me something.especially for several hundred or thousand dollars.

another thing i don't get is being a power equipment dealer and being closed on saturday. seems like that would be you busiest day since folks are off and using their equipment.i think this is a big bonus in the big box stores favor.
Click to expand...

Agree with you there Fishercat, (homeowner or not 9-5 doesn't seem to work for me) after work and weekends is the time for retail sales. Can't tell you how many times I needed something, its to late to get it and another job is scheduled first thing the next morning.

If I was ever to open up a place I could see a 12-8 weekdays and sat. half day Sunday being a little more favorable with Monday closed (if small). The welcome through the door, first impression is key. Hello, how you doing? Feel free to browse through the store, if you have any questions I will be happy to help. Not pushy but sutler and welcoming.

As for the OP and the ms200 rear handle, the dealer could have recommended the other saws for many reasons. "Think it over" could have been so you could research your purchase some more, impulse purchase can be a dissatisfied customer. Intentions could have been good, but worded wrong. His loss for not getting out your reasons of wanting what you want, and explaining himself better as well as making you feel comfortable in deciding.
 
Wishie22 said:
Agree with you there Fishercat, (homeowner or not 9-5 doesn't seem to work for me) after work and weekends is the time for retail sales. Can't tell you how many times I needed something, its to late to get it and another job is scheduled first thing the next morning.

If I was ever to open up a place I could see a 12-8 weekdays and sat. half day Sunday being a little more favorable with Monday closed (if small). The welcome through the door, first impression is key. Hello, how you doing? Feel free to browse through the store, if you have any questions I will be happy to help. Not pushy but sutler and welcoming.

As for the OP and the ms200 rear handle, the dealer could have recommended the other saws for many reasons. "Think it over" could have been so you could research your purchase some more, impulse purchase can be a dissatisfied customer. Intentions could have been good, but worded wrong. His loss for not getting out your reasons of wanting what you want, and explaining himself better as well as making you feel comfortable in deciding.
Click to expand...

Good thought, except you just killed your commercial accounts. They are in the shop before 7:00 am. So now you need to be open 12 hours a day....welcome to the 80 hour work week :)

Oh and Mondays are big service days...no skipping those either.
 

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