Makita Duc254 Battery Chainsaw.

[slim reaper]

Hi, I bought one of these saws last week which I  used it in ernest today for the first time .

On the whole quite pleased with its weight and cutting performance ,but

It went through 4x5ah batteries in no time so wondered if anyone has converted to 1/4” setup and if so does it give an appreciable increase in battery life at all.

Cheers

slim

[Dan Maynard]

Hi, I bought one of these saws last week which I  used it in ernest today for the first time .
On the whole quite pleased with its weight and cutting performance ,but
It went through 4x5ah batteries in no time so wondered if anyone has converted to 1/4” setup and if so does it give an appreciable increase in battery life at all.
Cheers
slim

Yes, you can get the 1/4" parts from RobD at chainsawbars. I found that actually Makita make a 1/4" version and that's the sprocket that Rob sells, you can use panther or apparently possible to fit Stihl bar with slightly different chain length.

I think it's an essential conversion as the finer cut is so much better for pruning. Not sure I would say it makes battery last longer, I've only ever used 2 or 3 on conifer hedge whacking so wouldn't have said it was a problem.

If I'm dismantling then I use the DUC256 as more capable on bigger stuff.

[billpierce]

Not really noticed increased battery life or cut speed tbh. It's a definately smoother cut, better suited to pruning. Found the clutch cover gets clogged alot quicker on 1/4 panther which is a serious pita, often needs clean out before battery is used. So swapped back to 3/8p for now which has resolved this

[billpierce]

[slim reaper]

2 hours ago, billpierce said:

Not really noticed increased battery life or cut speed tbh. It's a definately smoother cut, better suited to pruning. Found the clutch cover gets clogged alot quicker on 1/4 panther which is a serious pita, often needs clean out before battery is used. So swapped back to 3/8p for now which has resolved this

Thanks for that, I did notice on Robs vid of fitting the pather bar it did look very broad inside the cover so maybe that could contribute to the clogging. It must clog quite quickly if your batteries last the same as mine 

I dont know whats going on but there were several other posts in this tread which seem to have vanished. 

 

Edited December 2, 2020 by slim reaper
more info

[Dan Maynard]

Looks like I was censored.

Guess part of the server changeover?

[slim reaper]

Did a few cut tests on the new 5ah batteries that came with the saw and compared the runtime  with a 4 year old 5ah battery on the same saw...pile on the left the old battery, on the right, one of the new ones..the former did 43% more. cuts..had the similar  result against the other new one...Could Makita be  sacrificing runtime to gain longivity I wonder?

 

[Stere]

Just being using mine was working faultless before last time I used it, but now getting  a red light (indicating overheating motor) after serveral cuts  so have to wait several seconds until goes green again.

 

Tried different batteries

 

Might be  knackered somehow?

[Dan Maynard]

Just being using mine was working faultless before last time I used it, but now getting  a red light (indicating overheating motor) after serveral cuts  so have to wait several seconds until goes green again.
 
Tried different batteries
 
Might be  knackered somehow?

Is it bunged up inside? I keep thinking can't see inside and surely must be cooling air ducts which could have sawdust in.

[Andrian]

On 07/10/2021 at 15:04, Stere said:

Just being using mine was working faultless before last time I used it, but now getting  a red light (indicating overheating motor) after serveral cuts  so have to wait several seconds until goes green again.

 

Tried different batteries

 

Might be  knackered somehow?

Hello! I experience the same overheating issue since day one. After making several cuts in a row the chainsaw stops and shows a steady red light. I have noticed the hottest part of the saw is the area just above the battery on the left side of the saw. 

Does anyone knows what could be the problem?