SinglerM
ArboristSite Operative
Well,
I finally got on with it. My Stihl MS660 w/ 32" bar and full skip chain, MS440 w/ 25" bar and full skip chain will be here tomorrow!
I guess I might as well call it the "Fishhuntcutwood starter kit"
I've read a lot of threads here, researching and narrowing down my options.
I got alot of guideance via email(Thanks Jeff) and on the phone(Thanks to Washingtonhotsaws)
I got more responses that I ever thought I'd receive to my numerous posts. I really appreciate everyones time in bothering to answer them.
I chose Stihl over Husqvarna, mainly due to their being more Stihl dealers (4 within 30 minutes drive time), all of them had alot of saws, bars,chains, ect. in stock. I found one that I really liked, in particular. Around here there's only one Husqvarna dealer, not counting Lowe's. The one Husqvarna dealer seems to mostly concentrate on lawnmowers, trimmers, generators and snowblowers in the winter. They don't have many chainsaws in stock.
based on the advice of alot of people here, dealer support is a factor. It ended up being a point of consideration for me also.
I wanted 2 pro saws, one that would handle a 28"-32" bar. I read alot of the threads here and notice that many here felt that if you were going to consistently run a 28"+ bar then the 660 was worth considering. I was originally looking into a 460.
The other saw I wanted to have a 24" bar. So I really looked alot into the 440 vs 441. Weight wasn't a factor for me in making a decision. I won't be walking around the woods all day cutting alot of stuff, I'm stumpgrinding. The 441 would have been my choice, I have read too many good things about it. But it came down to going with the tried and true 440 over the new 441. I didn't want to buy into the first generation technology (for any product category). If not for my concern on that, I would've definately went with the 441.
I was originally going to go with the MS361, but after reading and also talking to Dean at Washington hot saws, I decided that for leveling stumps around where I live, a 24" bar would get used more than a 20" bar(what I would've set the 361 up with)
At first I was worried about what brand of saw(s) to get, then what size(s) to get.
But after all of my reading here. It really became a matter of deciding what size bars I wanted to run, then buying a power head to match up to it.
The idea of want a bigger bar...then get a bigger power head, makes sense to me.
So 24" meant a 440, and a 32" meant a 660. For me at least. I know that both of these saws can handle bigger bars, but I wanted to sort of be in the middle of the size range for each saw.
They'll be here tomorrow, I can't wait:hmm3grin2orange:
I hope my summary of how I decided on these 2 saws helps someone else in their decision.
I bought a pair of 9-layer chaps, as well as the combo helmet/face shield/ear protectors. I've read all of the safety related threads I could find also.
Next it's dual port covers.
Thanks for everyones help. This is a very cool site, I'm glad to be a part of it.
Oh, I had to get full wrap. It just seemed right after checking them out.
See ya around.
Mitch
I finally got on with it. My Stihl MS660 w/ 32" bar and full skip chain, MS440 w/ 25" bar and full skip chain will be here tomorrow!
I guess I might as well call it the "Fishhuntcutwood starter kit"
I've read a lot of threads here, researching and narrowing down my options.
I got alot of guideance via email(Thanks Jeff) and on the phone(Thanks to Washingtonhotsaws)
I got more responses that I ever thought I'd receive to my numerous posts. I really appreciate everyones time in bothering to answer them.
I chose Stihl over Husqvarna, mainly due to their being more Stihl dealers (4 within 30 minutes drive time), all of them had alot of saws, bars,chains, ect. in stock. I found one that I really liked, in particular. Around here there's only one Husqvarna dealer, not counting Lowe's. The one Husqvarna dealer seems to mostly concentrate on lawnmowers, trimmers, generators and snowblowers in the winter. They don't have many chainsaws in stock.
based on the advice of alot of people here, dealer support is a factor. It ended up being a point of consideration for me also.
I wanted 2 pro saws, one that would handle a 28"-32" bar. I read alot of the threads here and notice that many here felt that if you were going to consistently run a 28"+ bar then the 660 was worth considering. I was originally looking into a 460.
The other saw I wanted to have a 24" bar. So I really looked alot into the 440 vs 441. Weight wasn't a factor for me in making a decision. I won't be walking around the woods all day cutting alot of stuff, I'm stumpgrinding. The 441 would have been my choice, I have read too many good things about it. But it came down to going with the tried and true 440 over the new 441. I didn't want to buy into the first generation technology (for any product category). If not for my concern on that, I would've definately went with the 441.
I was originally going to go with the MS361, but after reading and also talking to Dean at Washington hot saws, I decided that for leveling stumps around where I live, a 24" bar would get used more than a 20" bar(what I would've set the 361 up with)
At first I was worried about what brand of saw(s) to get, then what size(s) to get.
But after all of my reading here. It really became a matter of deciding what size bars I wanted to run, then buying a power head to match up to it.
The idea of want a bigger bar...then get a bigger power head, makes sense to me.
So 24" meant a 440, and a 32" meant a 660. For me at least. I know that both of these saws can handle bigger bars, but I wanted to sort of be in the middle of the size range for each saw.
They'll be here tomorrow, I can't wait:hmm3grin2orange:
I hope my summary of how I decided on these 2 saws helps someone else in their decision.
I bought a pair of 9-layer chaps, as well as the combo helmet/face shield/ear protectors. I've read all of the safety related threads I could find also.
Next it's dual port covers.
Thanks for everyones help. This is a very cool site, I'm glad to be a part of it.
Oh, I had to get full wrap. It just seemed right after checking them out.
See ya around.
Mitch
Last edited:
:hmm3grin2orange: 
