What Kind of Mileage Does Your Saw Get?

[Jakers]

So if I'm reading you right, you use 21 oz. of mix to cut a cord with the 660 ( 3/4 x 28 oz tank ) and 48 oz. using the 441 ( 2 x 24 oz ). You might want to check your 441's tank for leaks....

i think your reading that wrong. i think he was tossin a joke on the end about the 2 tanks full. i have the same set up with a 441 and a 660 and i see alot longer cut time with the 441 than the 660. but when big wood calls thats a small price to pay for the power addition of the 660. there is just no replacement for displacement

like i said earlier, i think if a guy was to actually break it down in a lab test running the same bar and chain on every saw you would see the smaller saws win. but thats not really fair because the bigger saws can run longer bars and do much more work for the amount of fuel they burn which makes up for the extra fuel usage. on the other hand the small saws cant run bigger bars for their oil system so you couldnt slap a 32" bar on a 250 to do a true big wood comparison. i just call it a wash out because the big saw saves alot of time and back ache in big wood, same can be said for a little saw in the brush. ever tried using a 660 with a 32" bar to cut the branches off an ash tree? my arms and back hurt just thinking of holding that saw up all day limbing. its all relative

 

[flyboy553]

It stands to reason that a big saw will use more fuel in trade for the work accomplished, just like a large truck will use more fuel than a small one.

In my original post, I was thinking about my 2 saws, a 359 and a 55 Rancher, fairly close in size, but not power.
The 359 is nearly twice as easy on fuel as the 55. While it may not seem to be a big deal on its face value, when you look at it over a years time, it is.

Look at it this way: last year I sold 108 cords of wood. Had I used the 55, in that same amount of fuel I would have only cut about 54 cords. To me, that is a big WOW!

Ted

 

[spike60]

This is a good discussion. There's so many variables: size and type of wood, fuel tank capacity, CC's of the saw. Plus old vs new: A Super XL Homie seems to go through a tank pretty fast, while while some of the newer strato and auto-tune saws are real fuel misers. The 555 and 562 are super efficient. But there are a few constants.

My main wood hauler is a 2004 Dodge Dakota. Generally, I can get 2+ good truck loads per tank of saw gas with almost any saw in average size wood. I run a lot of different saws, and usually have a saw that would be considered just right for the size wood being cut.

I think in 8" to 10" sized wood, a nice 50cc class saw is more efficient than a 70cc because the difference in power and cut time in that size wood is not significant. In 18" wood, the gap becomes apparent as you blow through the wood much quicker with the 70cc saw. So in that case, I'd say the 70cc is the more efficiant of the two.

I can fill a 372/2171 five times on a gallon of fuel, so that means that I can cut 10 pickup loads per gallon, which I think is pretty good. Or, the 2 1/2 gallon fuel can I mix up can net me 25 pickup loads.

But the big variable for me is when I rip the big blocks into halfs or quarters. That can more than double the fuel use, but it's way better than busting my hump trying to get them in the truck. And it also makes it easier when splitting them at home.

 

[benp]

This is a good discussion. There's so many variables: size and type of wood, fuel tank capacity, CC's of the saw. Plus old vs new: A Super XL Homie seems to go through a tank pretty fast, while while some of the newer strato and auto-tune saws are real fuel misers. The 555 and 562 are super efficient. But there are a few constants.

My main wood hauler is a 2004 Dodge Dakota. Generally, I can get 2+ good truck loads per tank of saw gas with almost any saw in average size wood. I run a lot of different saws, and usually have a saw that would be considered just right for the size wood being cut.

I think in 8" to 10" sized wood, a nice 50cc class saw is more efficient than a 70cc because the difference in power and cut time in that size wood is not significant. In 18" wood, the gap becomes apparent as you blow through the wood much quicker with the 70cc saw. So in that case, I'd say the 70cc is the more efficiant of the two.

I can fill a 372/2171 five times on a gallon of fuel, so that means that I can cut 10 pickup loads per gallon, which I think is pretty good. Or, the 2 1/2 gallon fuel can I mix up can net me 25 pickup loads.

But the big variable for me is when I rip the big blocks into halfs or quarters. That can more than double the fuel use, but it's way better than busting my hump trying to get them in the truck. And it also makes it easier when splitting them at home.

I agree. :msp_thumbup:

The fuel consumption is offset by being easier on me..

 

[branchbuzzer]

i think your reading that wrong. i think he was tossin a joke on the end about the 2 tanks full. i have the same set up with a 441 and a 660 and i see alot longer cut time with the 441 than the 660. but when big wood calls thats a small price to pay for the power addition of the 660. there is just no replacement for displacement

like i said earlier, i think if a guy was to actually break it down in a lab test running the same bar and chain on every saw you would see the smaller saws win. but thats not really fair because the bigger saws can run longer bars and do much more work for the amount of fuel they burn which makes up for the extra fuel usage. on the other hand the small saws cant run bigger bars for their oil system so you couldnt slap a 32" bar on a 250 to do a true big wood comparison. i just call it a wash out because the big saw saves alot of time and back ache in big wood, same can be said for a little saw in the brush. ever tried using a 660 with a 32" bar to cut the branches off an ash tree? my arms and back hurt just thinking of holding that saw up all day limbing. its all relative

I wuz hopin' he wuz jokin'

Main thing is just to be using a saw size reasonably close to what you're cutting without going overboard on the power needed to complete the task.

 

[Jakers]

i agree. and thats about the biggest factor

 

[branchbuzzer]

And lets not forget the number one cause of fuel inefficiency - a dull chain. Crappy mileage does one get, when to sharpen we forgit.

Speaking of chains, you also get into the issue of the wider kerf size on the biggo chains vs. picco. Confound(ing factors) it!

 

[spike60]

Went to do a little cutting today, and paid closer attention to fuel use thinking of this thread. I took a 359 and a buddy with a GMC 2500 short box brought his 346. True to form from my earlier post, each saw used about a 1/2 tank of fuel to fill a truck.

One other viewpoint on this would be to consider how many gallons of fuel oil you can save by burning the amount of wood you can cut with a single gallon of gas. That's what it's really all about. :cool2:

 

[dancan]

Since I don't block firewood as a rule and do mainly clearing jobs , this is how I know where I'm at for time with tank versus the clock , 026's get me about 50 minutes of falling , slashing , bucking and delimbing , 034super get's about 45 minutes , MS361 get's 60 minutes , 2171 about 45 minutes , 066 and 394 about 25 to 35 minutes depending on the size of wood .
These times are what I get , no smoke breaks , no cell phone breaks , no sitting , eating , or complaining that it's hot breaks , just start the saw and cut and repeat over and over till I'm outa gas .
I would expect less cutting time if I was blocking fire wood but I would expect the number of cuts to be close to the same .

 

[Fuzly]

Crappy mileage does one get, when to sharpen we forgit.

Can I borrow that one? :smile2:

 

[branchbuzzer]

Can I borrow that one? :smile2:

I herebah waives all muh rights forthwith!

 

[texastele]

I have a 310 and a 391. Until recently, really regardless of the size of wood that I was cutting, we would get 1/2-2/3 a cord per tank. Lately, two tanks leaves me a foot-tall by seven foot row short. I wonder if it has to do with changing fuel formulations, but I always buy my fuel at the same station by my house.

 

[H 2 H]

Bucking with MS 261; I can't wait for it to run out of fuel

I don't have a clue how much I cut on a tank of fuel; I just have it set so the bar oil runs out about the same time the fuel does. I haven't notice any extra bar wear and it's set to about 3/4 on the bar oil adjustment screw and there is a film of oil on the drivers when I check it each time I fuel up

Just about 4 gallons thru it now

 

[spike60]

Expanding on the discussion.........

Going to run my MTD splitter with a 5 HP Briggs this weekend. I know I can split a good deal of wood on a tank. But I'll try and quantify it this time.

I also know that I can cut my lawn 4, maybe 5 times on a gallon of gas if I use the basic 22" puch mower. The tank holds a quart of gas, and I can do the whole lawn and still have a some left in the tank. 45 minutes maybe? I can do the lawn in about a 1/3 of the time using an Exmark 36" belt drive, but that old Kawi FB460 is a gas pig. Even with the time savings, it will use more gas per cut.

Snowblower uses about a 1/2 gallon per storm. That covers the driveway, between the 3 trucks, path to the woodshed, path to the workshop. Usually about an hour for a good storm. Lighter storms take less time as you can move along at a quicker ground speed.

 

[Steve NW WI]

One other viewpoint on this would be to consider how many gallons of fuel oil you can save by burning the amount of wood you can cut with a single gallon of gas. That's what it's really all about. :cool2:

My Dolmar 7300 is my thirstiest saw, emptying a +-1qt tank on a 1/2 cord pickup load. Therefore, 2 cords per gallon. Roughly 40 million BTUs on the hoof, or about a tank (450 gallons) of propane, roughly $900. Considering my propane furnace is 80% efficient and my wood stove is half that, it's still 225 gallons @ $2.00 = $450 vs about $6.00/gallon of premium+mix and a buck added in for bar oil = $7.00. Add another $20 in gas to haul it to the yard and split it, and it's still $198/cord in cash savings, or $1500/year in an average year for me.

 

[redprospector]

I get about 26 mpg out of the 460's. The MS261's get about 37, but the ride is rougher.

Andy

 

[flyboy553]

I get about 26 mpg out of the 460's. The MS261's get about 37, but the ride is rougher.

Andy

Yeah, those Stihl's never have rode nice.:msp_wink:

Ted