Stihl 500i full wrap handle

[AHPP]

12 minutes ago, Mik the Miller said:

 

Yes .... No .... i've just bought a used 500i (and spent £250 on bits - inc the full wrap - to get it up to spec)  

 

Define 'up to spec.'

[Mik the Miller]

1 hour ago, AHPP said:

 

Define 'up to spec.'

 

Needle cage, 7T rim sprocket kit, upper internal cover, rubber guard, bumper strips, chain catcher, spark plug (it's a tiny one ...), exhaust gasket, outer bumper spike, inner side plate, HD2 air filter, 2 filler caps, worm gear and spring ...

 

Extras:

Full wrap handle (yet to arrive)

Barkbox exhaust cover (Chinesium, also yet to arrive)

 

The previous owner hadn't done a great deal of maintaining, had lost the chain (more than) a few times and the saw was pretty messy and chewed up in parts.

A hand skoosher of Gunk and a pressure washer got rid of most of the saw dust, chippings, grass, mud and oil followed by 1/2 an hour of digging out the remains from nooks and crannies etc.

 

It starts and runs as-sweet-as and with a 20" bar is ready to go.

Starts much easier than my 660.

I will change the 20" bar for a 25 when the chains expire (next year probably) although I like to undersize 

The first job will be bucking a lime that I dropped and limbed a couple of weeks ago, the owners son wants the rounds for firewood, mine is not to question....

 

 

 

Edited Thursday at 12:01 by Mik the Miller

[AHPP]

14 minutes ago, Mik the Miller said:

 

Needle cage, 7T rim sprocket kit, upper internal cover, rubber guard, bumper strips, chain catcher, spark plug (it's a tiny one ...), exhaust gasket, outer bumper spike, inner side plate, HD2 air filter, 2 filler caps, worm gear and spring ...

 

Extras:

Full wrap handle (yet to arrive)

Barkbox exhaust cover (Chinesium, also yet to arrive)

 

The previous owner hadn't done a great deal of maintaining, has lost the chain (more than) a few times and the saw was pretty messy and chewed up in parts.

A hand skoosher of Gunk and a pressure washer got rid of most of the saw dust, chippings, grass, mud and oil followed by 1/2 an hour of digging out the remains from nooks and crannies etc.

 

It starts and runs as-sweet-as and with a 20" bar is ready to go.

Starts much easier than my 660.

I will change the 20" bar for a 25 when the chains expire (next year probably) although I like to undersize 

The first job will be bucking a lime that I dropped and limbed a couple of weeks ago, the owners son wants the rounds for firewood, mine is not to question....

 

 

 

 

So wear parts and DAWGS AND A MUFFLER then. Have you ever seen instagram.com? Loads of people on there have also made their saws heavier and louder and with more sharp bits that reduce effective bar length.

 

But if it makes you happy, great. Well done on bringing it back to life. They're excellent saws. 20" and 25" both lovely.

[Mik the Miller]

10 minutes ago, AHPP said:

 

So wear parts and DAWGS AND A MUFFLER then. Have you ever seen instagram.com? Loads of people on there have also made their saws heavier and louder and with more sharp bits that reduce effective bar length.

 

But if it makes you happy, great. Well done on bringing it back to life. They're excellent saws. 20" and 25" both lovely.

 

I don't use Instagram although I can imagine that there is a lot of nonsense on there as it's a Meta owned, American photo and short-form video sharing platform.

It'll be full of 'look at me I know everything' types, best avoided IMO

 

FYi, I am not looking to make any of my saws heavier and louder or to "add more sharp bits that reduce effective bar length" however I do aim to make the saw easier to handle and provide a quicker pickup with (if possible) more available power.

 

Reducing the effective bar length is also not on my agenda and fitting the matching, Stihl, outer bumper spike will (again IMO) assist in keeping the saw level when cutting at  the maximum depth as well as reducing paint damage to the front of the crankcase below the exhaust.

[AHPP]

In fairness I found myself wanting a bigger dog on mine the other day. For one cut. For about the second time in six years. But honestly, if you're happy, great. That stuff isn't important to me though. I don't cut that much.

[Stubby]

As I have always understood it the big dawgs are softwood dawgs coz of the thick chunky bark . 

[Mik the Miller]

On 06/11/2025 at 12:00, Mik the Miller said:

 

<snip>

It starts and runs as-sweet-as and with a 20" bar is ready to go.

The first job will be bucking a lime that I dropped and limbed a couple of weeks ago,

 

 

Holy cow, it's AMAZING  

What a fantastic saw.

Starts like a dream.

Cuts like a champ..

Stunning.

Why didn't I get one before now .... ??

 

 

[Ledburyjosh]

On 06/11/2025 at 12:17, AHPP said:

 

So wear parts and DAWGS AND A MUFFLER then. Have you ever seen instagram.com? Loads of people on there have also made their saws heavier and louder and with more sharp bits that reduce effective bar length.

 

But if it makes you happy, great. Well done on bringing it back to life. They're excellent saws. 20" and 25" both lovely.

Big dawgs aren't just for show.. they really are better. I've not used the huge WCS, they do seem to eat up quite a bit of bar length, but the stihl oversized ones. They grip much better on wide diameter angled cuts and or wobbly buttress bits of trees.

 

[Ledburyjosh]

From stihls repoonse:

'However, it’s worth noting that the wrap-around handle is only beneficial during the felling stage. Once the tree is on the ground and needs to be processed the extra handle can actually become cumbersome, getting in the way and making the saw bulkier to manoeuvre. For this reason, most UK operators prefer the standard front and rear handle configuration, which offers better balance and simplicity for the majority of tasks typically performed in British forestry and arboriculture.' 

 

It utter bollocks, full wraps are better for snedding, more ways to to the saw and more maneuveable. And much better for in the tree for the same reason.

 

The only thing they are shit for, so shit I'd say not usable, is high quality low foresty cuts. Fine for thigh high wanky arb felling though.

 

Rather odd that they only deem the 500i full wrap not suitable for UK work but they are readily available for 400 series, there is some ****************wittery going on in stihls Management...

[AHPP]

1 hour ago, Ledburyjosh said:

Big dawgs aren't just for show.. they really are better. I've not used the huge WCS, they do seem to eat up quite a bit of bar length, but the stihl oversized ones. They grip much better on wide diameter angled cuts and or wobbly buttress bits of trees.

 

 

Well I've not needed them much but then I don't work very hard. I mainly find the double dogs on my 661 annoying when changing chains on a flat bench.