Thoughts on the new micro processor controlled saws

[HarleyT]

Quite simply the computer saws are better in every single way period you will get a lot of emotional arguments against this but factually the autotune/mtronic are better in every single way period .. You will hear wacky arguments about if the chicoms nuke us blah blah blah
Take a same displacement saw one with a manual carb and a new fangled computer peice of crap the new fangled piece of crap will run circles around the good old days saw every single time

Unless your saw runs like **** from day one and the dealerships cannot figure it out.....

 

[holeycow]

My automatic transmission has select shift. You just blew your argument!

Another one with only average understanding

 

[blades]

I know all the arguments for and against. Boils down to pocket book. I can fix the old style for minimum investment, new with some $400 piece of silicon in it doesn't thrill or motivate me. Nothing like having a vehicle with what they cost up front then being told you need a new computer module to make it run at some 4 figure number. Do engines last longer yes but not because of the computer chips but rather the significant advances in machining and metallurgy although there seems to be a fair number of engineers that need refresher courses in metallurgy 101. Not a fan of plastic intake manifolds either replaced to many from heat stress. The list goes on, I deal with it only because there less and less alternatives.

 

[dmb2613]

if there were more saws with Mtronic I would get hold to less saws that were burnt up lol

 

[Little Al]

The funny thing about micro processors, is that the smaller they get, the shorter they last.

& the more expensive they get an engine manage ment system "Gizmo/s cost some $ 2800 for my sons Audi TT sport at 13 months old they allowed him 5%for warranty Car now sold & replaced with a classic sports car you can repair with a hammer & chisel

 

[blades]

Ding Ding Ding. Got a truck sitting outside right now -intermittent short in a wiring harness- several hundred dollars to purchase harness let alone install it, or it could be the $0.10 chip on the gauge cluster still a couple hundred for that. No good way to localize further beyond where i am at. Course If I could get a known working gauge cluster cheap that would at least give a better indication. The key here is that it is intermittent. Once it becomes 100% it will be a bit simpler to track down.

 

[Huskybill]

Advances in technology will result in lighter more powerful saws with less down time, less maintenance and use less gasoline. The tradeoff is that you can't tinker with them like you're used to. The advantage is that you don't HAVE to tinker with them the way you used to. I wouldn't trade my twin turbo, fuel injected engine for a carburetor engine with points and a distributor for love nor money.

My first 2100’s and 266 had a summer and winter carb adjustment that’s it. Never one problem. I was out there all winter cutting firewood. In January’s 10 degree weather. At 300lbs I had my insulatIon on. I loved it.

 

[Sam R]

First thing to ask is, do you have software tools for saws you sell. If not, move on to a different dealer. That dealer only wants profit from sales and could care less about service after sale, he could charge for that service and pay for needed tools, making a loyal customer for years to come.

That's true what you say, I think our dealership is pretty recent Stihl dealer. I'm not sure we've even sold anything with M-tronics in it yet. I bet once they start rolling in around the winter time he'll see reason. Manager is pretty reasonable just doesn't see the value in it.. yet.

 

[DND 9000]

Depending on the dealer grade or certification (bronze, silver, gold or platinum), I think you must have it by the Stihl rules?

 

[ken morgan]

People hate change look at light trucks and autos they don't make them like they used to AND THAT is a GOOD thing

95 f350 360,000 miles
04 expedition 198,000 miles
97 expedition 240,000 miles
01 Dakota 198,000 miles

I am sure my 550xp will outlive me
I just bought a used 562xp I have so much faith in the tech
The 576xp... You literally have riding lawnmower horsepower in a format you can run all day ....

Things change sometimes for the better

I get the emotio9 atatchment to old tech that treated you well I was spoiled and the first saw I used was a 028avs ..if I find a used one I will snatch it up in a heartbeat .. Is it even 1/100 of the saw a 550xp is hell no ...

I love 2 stroke Detroit's ..they sound and feel right a 6.7 Cummins or ford will run circles around a 8v92 which is my most loved oil burner .. Its just the way it is things change Automatics are better than manuals in every single metric these days

I am content to let the computer do the work for me ... Doesn't mean I don't love the fact I can wind up a 12v71 with a good 13 speed roadranger ..but the 6.7with a auto 5 speed Allison can put more power to the ground than I ever could.

Too long didn't read the autotune / mtronic is just the start of a good thing


If

beg to differ, there is one metric where auto transmissions do not match up to manuals..and that is in end user costs for maintenance...blow a clutch and it is at the most3~400 for parts, thats clutch, pressure plate throw out and pilot bearings....screw up an auto transmission and the bare bones cheap rebuilder ones are over a grand....no contest.
auto transmission are great for skinny jeans wearing idiots that cannot manage 3 pedals..thats about it.

 

[InfiniteJest]

I love falling timber in my skinny jeans.....and my f'd-up back loves my auto. Better get over the hill and make some coin with the old 562.

 

[ken morgan]

I have a slush box on my truck, but not by choice...when it ***** the bed, and it will i will take that 4~5000 USD it costs here in japan for a ****** rebuild and by me a manual transmission and parts formt he states and swap it over.

 

[Stihl 041S]

So who runs manual air bags in their cars.........
Or analog cell phones........
Tube radios and TV sets are dead without rare pricey replacement tubes.......
Who would trust the electronics in a new fangled aeroplane......
And if you needed a pacemaker.......
Electronics ain’t all bad.........
It’s just the level of development that the manufacturers demand before release.....

 

[blades]

not so much the level but qt of product on assembly line. classic example- less than$.05 e-clip in auto trans -parts ways from where it is supposed to be- 3k to repair- years ago manual tranny shear pins breaking, or the another one with sintered gears disintegrating- in to days dollars be about the same to rebuild. parts cheap labor is killer. most are not blessed with skill factor others its a time factor or just no place to do the work. plastic coated wires -rodents love the plastic due to some type of salt compound in plastic. On going problem for the communication and power transmission companies.

 

[holeycow]

I have a clothes washing machine. It is a pretty fancy front load POS. Something called a “pressure sensor” failed in it and it wouldn’t start. Thanks to all the generous people who give valued information away on forums like this and YouTube etc, I was able to diagnose and fix it. When I lifted the top of the machine I was rather shocked by all of the electronics under there. The sensor I bought was 180 bucks. It probably cost 20 cents to make. There is no need whatsoever for all of the electronics in a machine like this. Ridiculous. Oh, and it doesn’t even wash clothes very well...

There are astronomical profits in electronics. That’s one reason they are used in applications where they over-complicate simple processes. Engineers are losing their minds and designing electronics into everything. Everything.

Pharmaceuticals (chemicals), weapons, illegal drugs and more recently, electronics are the highest profit industries.

Does anybody know what’s wrong with my Frigidaire commercial chest freezer that got hit by a power spike and now the compressor won’t shut off? And the alarm goes continuously until it is manually shut off.. Electronic failure again. I have 2 fridges and 3 freezers. The newest, fanciest, most expensive one is the one that screwed up. The 40 year old fridge, the 30 year old freezer, the 25 year old fridge, the 20 year old freezer, and even the 30 year old water cooler are all ok. The 9 year old freezer is currently pissing me off.

Electronics are fantastic!! But when used Willy-nilly by semi-skilled engineers they are a pain in the ass.

Out of control geeks are running the world

 

[Huskybill]

Our front loader washing machine died. The bolts that hold the drum on wore slots. We replaced it with a top loader laundry mat brand heavy duty.

I went out to purchase a snowblower. I came home with a 55 cj5 jeep with a 4 way snowplow for $400 running. Just a frame and seat. Fast forward 25 years ago when I bought it she’s still plowing every winter. It sits all summer starts up in the fall and plows till spring. My 99 Wrangler I purchased new loaded so I could retire it and replace my 55 cj and plow with that but the frame is rusted. Looks like the 55 cj will replace the 99 Wrangler.

 

[Stihl 041S]

not so much the level but qt of product on assembly line. classic example- less than$.05 e-clip in auto trans -parts ways from where it is supposed to be- 3k to repair- years ago manual tranny shear pins breaking, or the another one with sintered gears disintegrating- in to days dollars be about the same to rebuild. parts cheap labor is killer. most are not blessed with skill factor others its a time factor or just no place to do the work. plastic coated wires -rodents love the plastic due to some type of salt compound in plastic. On going problem for the communication and power transmission companies.

Like how they make resistors....
They don’t make resistoothat are -+.5% accurate......
They make 2 million of them and then test them.....-+20% are cheapest ......there are the most of them. -+10% cost more and so on.

 

[blades]

Its the 20% that seem to get used most often. old appliances mechanical timers just wear out - electronic ones , give them a cross eyed look -poof dead. Power surges and unfilterd noise and heat/cold are the bane of electronics. Static shocks are another.

 

[Bmturner]

I think like anything people tend to report more bad than good experience .


Would some dealers here post facts :
% of electronic saws getting warranty work
% of manual saws getting warranty work
Type of use by class of saw ...



The 562xp or ms362 on a logging crew or fire crew gets a very different type of use than the big box saw .

All I can say that I have had many many trouble free years of use/abuse of autotune saws I have not seen firsthand or know anyone that can tell me firsthand of a failure due to electronics on a saw
A lot of people tell me they don't like them but when I ask why its vague computers suck type of answers ..
I know there have to be failures due to electronics I just never have seen any first or second hand

ALL mechanical things are prone to failure be they mechanical or electronic controlled

I still maintain the dislike towards electronic saws is emotional or nostalgia based not fact based

 

[blades]

solid state Ignition - ok - well except for over priced parts. but that has been available for more than 40 years. Auto tune - I really do not want a chainsaw that acts like cars now days, or a tractor or a weed wacker , lawn mower. Spent a lot of time in industrial service while all the items were slowly changing over to micro processor control - flippen nightmare. Is it better now well yes and no- from a mechanical aspect yes( advances in metallurgy and lubricants), from the electronic end well the components are better on average ( generally speaking less susceptible to electrical interference and static discharges) but the program glitches are a female dog. Over the course of years - strictly mechanical due to wear and tear - then electro mechanical ( another layer of problems ) - micro processor, adding a third layer of fun. I am biased- being from the old school.
Contrary to some opinions solid state components do have a finite life, just like the tubes of of old.