Looking at a new chainsaw. The one I have is super old. It’s a Stihl. Time for a new one

Brief.
Roundabout 16” / 18”. With a view of extending to 20”
Petrol
Cutting max of of 3’ dia
Usage 3 to 4 days a week at 5hrs a day.

Stihl seems to be where it’s at. HUSQVARNA Or Oregan look cheaper and have no reference point these.

Thoughts and recommendations welcome

I bought the MS210 (which fits your brief) to replace a fantastic but very old 011AV. The old saw was fantastic, the new one shite. It’s all plastic, falling apart and an absolute bastard to start. I’d avoid that one.

The one I have is super old. It’s a Stihl. Time for a new one

And…. What’s wrong with it?
I use an old 034 with an 18″ bar and full chisel chains and it’s a beast at cutting the same size lumps as you.

Husqy 550xp mk2… reliable starter even in cold weather, feels a bit more aggressive then equivalent stihl models but light enough you can fling it around like Leatherface if so inclined. I’ve only had one for the last month in my new job but it’s swiftly become my favourite saw ever. It’s had plenty of use since storm Arwen and slicing trees like butter.

Usage 3 to 4 days a week at 5hrs a day.

:-0

I’m guessing you know more about chainsaws than most of the rest of us put together…

Finbar

I’m doing a lot of cleaning up in Northumberland. A few people have asked me to do some groundwork in light of the storms. Hopefully it will lead somewhere.

Hence the question.

Depends what you’re cutting, hardwood or soft, felling or processing timber, how much of that 5hrs is trigger time, how often you plan to stick the 20″ bar on it and not least your budget. You won’t find a new saw that isn’t covered in plastic but what are described as professional are still made of metal where it counts. Realistically I would be looking at either a Stihl or a Husky, if only for the number of dealers to service, in the 60cc range to comfortably run an 18″ bar. At work we use MS362, 16″, and MS460, 20″, at home I use a Husky 550xp but only with a 15″ bar, and the subbies use Husky 550XP, 562XP and a 585 for larger dismantles.

I’d go for the Husky 550 for that kind of work. I used to have the 545 which is very similar. It will run a 15” or 18” bar and is light enough to use all day but still powerful. Will you old Stihl run a 20” bar if occasionally needed?

Or a Sachs dol-makita 6100, cheaper, excellent saw, far from excellent dealer support though.

Push the boat out, 500i, 400i or 462, or 565, 572

Bring realistic, ground work, heavier saw is ok ish…. But if you want this to go somewhere don’t skimp.

550xp MK2 or similar would be my choice too. But see what offers there are around. I have little 435II and when I wanted to get a new bigger saw I tried a Stihl but coming from a husky they feel cumbersome, quite vibration-y and not so well built. I know many swear by Stihl but my 2 huskys have been flawless other than the big one can be a bugger to start with older fuel in it (I think it’s because it’s got all the computer gubbins, the small one is fully manual) but once it’s running it’s fine. The 435 starts just looking at it and has been bulletproof if a bit underpowered at just 1.6kw.

If you’re serious about doing more you might want to consider getting a good value smaller saw on a .325 chain and then get a bigger 3/8 saw down the line. The big chain (especially a full chisel) is a real game changer for fast cutting on big stuff, but doesn’t play nicely when you want agility for shedding etc.

Depending where you are in N’land you could try mine to see how you get on. I’m just south of the border with co. Durham near consett.

What I gave is considered a domestic use saw. 12” bar Which is fine for small stuff

Doubt it will take a 16” bar tbh.

Thought about asking on Arbtalk?

arbtalk forums

Clearly lots of knowledge on here, but if you are thinking about a line of work, that might be a helpful extra source of advice / FAQs.

I climb, I know very little about saws – I have a GTA 26 😀

Also David Dixon in Hexham is a good husky dealer if you want to go handle some. Just don’t pay the price shown on the shelf edge – theres deals to be done if you ask.

Good shout Ben and Owen.

Much appreciated.

Initial thoughts was a Stihl Now heading towards HUSQVARNA

562XP running 15″ bars are our dailys, will cut up to about 3x the bar length on felling, balanced, run nice and fast, it’s not all about the big bars. Got some old plodders for cross cutting with bigger bars, 362XP and a Stihl 066 on 18″ and 36″.
I’m mostly on forestry and estate work.

Used 550XP too and it’s a nice light saw, but feels a bit tardy with a 20” bar after using my usual saw. Plenty good if you’ve not used the 562XP though 😄

Lot of people raving about the Stihl 500i and if you have a local dealer the Makita are rated.

Depends what chain your running too. Mainly pine I’ll be cutting. Thinking full chisel.

Dol-Makita are excellent for the money, extremely well built pro saws, but aging tech not compatible weight wise with the xx2 stihls, or 5 series husky. A good dealer helps but Makita UK are awful at supplying parts I understand. With Makita waving bye bye to petrol saws I can’t see that improving, but there maybe some dealss around. I picked up a 4300 from Amazon of all places for an absolute steal (£270 with b+c) in the summer and it’s a stunning little ripsnorter!!! Made me grin and grin and giggle and jump about a bit.

Or go on arbtalk and message shavey, he deals in Makita.

Final thought if you are able to drive a torx bit…. huztl. Do some research on ope, swap a couple of parts to OEM and they can be very good saws.

Full chisel 3/8 on everything to cut everything.

550XP had semi chisel in .325″ and tried it in ash.

I have a couple of stihls ( smaller) but my bigger machine is a Husqvarna 555. It’s a bit of an animal.

Used Sthil for years and used Husky for years. We currently use Husky as that’s what our national contract tells us to use. The only time I ever prefer Stihl is when cutting in water as I find they have more torque but are more than happy to use either. We currently use 550XPG and also have a 572XPG

550XP here running a 15″ bar. It’s ok on 18″ but I think it would struggle on 20″. I’ve got a stihl 462 that I run a 20″ and 28″ bars on and that is chalk and cheese against the Husky.

Robson and Cowans at Scots Gap are good guys and will keep you right.

Anything cheap is cheap for a reason. The domestic stihls are horrible – a mate has an MS181 or something and it’s even got plastic dogs. Imagine the equivalent Huskys are the same.

I’d suggest Husky 550 with a 15″ or a 560/562 with an 18″ (or 15″ for super speedy cutting). Depending what you’re doing/cutting your body will thank you for having the lighter saw for waving around all day. If you need to cut 36″ regularly I’d be looking towards a 572 or 585 with a 24-32″ on it.
Personally, I much prefer an ‘under-barred’ saw, purposely putting a smaller bar on to increase the cutting speed, however beware that this often exceeds the ‘rated’ speed of the PPE you’ll own. In my experience 90% of cutting is less than 18″ dia, the occasional double cuts required to do bigger stuff is far outweighed by the quicker cutting. If I was regularly felling 30″+ timber, I’d have a bigger (~70-80cc) saw to get it on the ground, then swap to the smaller lighter saw for snedding and crosscutting. Having a 2nd saw helps when you inevitably trap your main saw, especially dealing with windblow. Tension/compression can be a steep learning curve.
Full chisel 3/8 chain for preference, semi-chisel if you’re cutting dirtier material. Get good at sharpening that’s half of the challenge.
For reference, my current saws are a Stihl 201t (12″) (for climbing), Husky 254xp (15″) for general ground work, and a Husky 371 (20″) for bigger felling/ crosscutting. Don’t discount older well maintained 2nd hand saws, they still compete with current models and most of the spares are still available.
Take a look at what the lads (or ladies) around you are using on the job, that’ll give you a feel for what you’ll need rather than strangers on the internet recommending what they’ve got.

Run a Stihl 231 with a 16” bar for snedding, by the chipper, that sort of thing. It’s at the very bottom end of the ‘professional’ Stihl range but has lasted pretty well. It will run an 18” bar, but it’s not the best for that.
Bit lighter than the 362 that I run a 20” bar on for bigger ground stuff.
We’ve got a 661 as well but I hate the bloody thing. Heavy & with a 36” bar it’s unwieldy and also a pig to sharpen- takes bloody ages!

I reckon as we replace stuff over coming years, will probably end up transferring over to electric. (Apart from my 200t- I won’t give her up!)

We have a Husqvarna 540i XP battery saw which is very impressive, equivalent to a 40cc.

Btw, if you want it to lead somewhere then you’ll need the tickets and to do those you’ll need your own ppe and the appropriate saw (saw may well be provided though).

Dashed, I sold my ms180 when I got my Makita. It’s not a powerful saw but it’s fine for a homeowner. It pulls a 14″ bar in hardwood, just don’t lean on the bar… Since you’re not leaning on it, you don’t need dogs. You can buy and fit metal dogs if you wish…. But at the end of the day it’s still a 31cc homeowner saw and it won’t cut better with them. Would I suggest it to a pro? No. But it’s good value for a homeowner. After selling mine I worked out it cost me about 75p for every m³ of firewood it bucked up, and it was perfectly reliable.
At the end of the day though….I don’t miss it. I do have a 365x-torq and the ea 4300 though!

Still got some of the older saws still running like 254XP and 357XP along with a stack of donors on the shelf. They’re good saws, but things have got lighter and faster.

When I gave up working in the woods full time we ran husky 357, 371 and 388 daily. I bought myself a wee 353g which was the smallest pro saw they did. It’s good but not a patch on a bigger pro saw. It’s cgkr a semi chisel .325 just now and there is a massive difference between that and a full chisel .325. a full chisel .325 ain’t that common.

ARB talk is a good resource. I used to waste more hours there than I do here.

I’ve full chisel .325 on my Makita. In the States the same saw gets 3/8.

I thought of going electric, but the battery just won’t last long enough surely? You’d end up needing loads of them or a generator running constantly to charge them. Any pros using electric for anything other than climbing?

As mentioned we use an electric saw and also have electric polesaws. We have couple of battery’s for it and a van charger. It’s great for quick jobs but if we’re doing prolonged work or working in water we would use the petroleum saw.
It’s great for using in built up areas as it’s a lot quieter. And bearing in mind if you haven’t got your finger on the trigger it’s not taking any power like petrol saw that sits there ticking over. And unless you are doing large jobs for the majority the actual trigger time isn’t very long.

Following this thread.

I use two MS181’s on 16”, and a MS461 on 25” at work. I could do with something that sits in between as often I find I have too much or too little grunt.

Battery can be pretty good. I’ve got a baby Makita DUC254 18v top handle. Was bought to use for small pruning jobs but has coped pretty well with some bigger stuff when the petrol saw has thrown a wobbler. (Inc soft felling this big oak).
It’s not for loads of torque so you need to let the saw do the work rather than trying to power through & it’s better to run the chain on the slacker side of ‘right’ to reduce drag but the batteries last a reasonable amount of time (needs 500mah really).
The slightly slower cut speed makes it pretty controllable too. I wouldn’t be averse to having a similar ground saw if it wasn’t going to be used for hours at a time.

Had a play with a Husky 550 XP MKII yesterday. Nice piece of kit.

So much so can get a brand new one for £520 delivered from Forrest and arb. In light of the new version the MKII is on sale.

Thanks for all the advice.

STW the font of knowledge.

That’s a good saw and a good price. Your could have got the same cc and power Makita (ea5600) with 18″ b+c for £425, but they are 500g heavier and as I said, spares support isn’t so good.

Once you’ve run 3 or 4 tanks through it open the muffler and retune it, it’ll give a bit more oomph. Then in time it’s base gasket delete, timing advance, or go the whole hog and port it.

I’d second [or third or fourth] avoiding Makita. My one got through it’s ignition in a couple of years of cutting clog and firewood. The 2nd ignition lasted 5 hours, the third less than an hour. My saw was made in Germany. They moved production to China…. If it wasn’t for that I would have bought an EA4300 but I no longer trust the company.

Very nice. Will be a good saw for the money. Next you have to decide what to fuel it with… I mean you don’t, you could take the standard unleaded + oil route, but I’ve got a new little saw coming and I’m going to run it on Aspen 2 from the outset. I hear you can have issues swapping down the line if it was something you’re interested in trying. I can’t make any claims to the veracity of those rumours though.

use esso supreme, it ethanol free.

We run all our kit on Aspen both 2 stroke and neat. AFAIK the issue with Aspen with old kit is it dislodges all the crap built up over time and bungs everything up.

No it I think, it is the other stuff that’s in pump fuel slowly degrades the rubber bits. Stuff like the fuel line and carb diaphragm go brittle. I’ve heard the swap to Aspen can cause trouble but I’m not sure it does, just the damage from pump fuel coming to light. @sui might know.

I’ve heard aviation fuel is alkalyte, so if you’re near an airfield that has UL91, that’ll be cheaper then aspen if you are able to buy it.

Cloggy I don’t say avoid Makita, they are good saws. Just be aware that the support isn’t that great.

Ms181 more than capable with 16” bar and carbide tipped chain on both soft and hardwood.