BBush
ArboristSite Lurker
I am looking at purchasing a new Stihl chainsaw in the near future. I have been looking at Stihl's product line and was kinda leaning toward the MS310 model. I went to my dealer to see if he had one of the 310's in stock. After talking to him for a few minutes, he told me that the 310 was a good saw but that it falls into Stihl's "mid-range" class and is not anywhere near the caliber of saw that the "professional" class is. The nearest saw in the professional line to the MS310 as far as price is concerned is the MS260. After looking at the specs, I notice that it is not near as powerful as the MS310, however my dealer says that it will keep up or possibly out-cut it. How can this be possible? My dealer tells me the 310 revs to 13,000 rpm while the 260 revs to 15,000 rpm...is this really true? Also, what is so much greater about the professional line of saws over the mid-range models. Do the professionals really last that much longer or cut that much faster? Are the professionals really put together that much better. If one is simply looking at price, then the professional line is a lot more expensive. Since I am not in the timber business, I feel that the MS310 will serve me well. I am just trying to decide if I really need to go up to the professional line. I just want to purchase a saw that has plenty of power to tackle the bigger stuff while lasting me for a number of years. I plan on putting a 18 or 20 inch bar on whatever model I decide to purchase.