Best 1st saw ???

[KGBFINGAR]

Stihl 361 or a husky 346 , both great saws .

K

[Urban-rustic]

WOW !!!

 

Been off the forum for a couple of days and come back to 20 replies, thanks to all for taking the time to respond.

 

There seems to be a 50 / 50 split generally for stihl and Husky's, I used both on my course but found the stihl easier to work on. A number of people outside the forum have warned me off buying a new saw as they are becoming less user friendly in the sense that more maintenace and minor repairs involve taking it back to a dealership / repair shop.

 

There in lies another dilemma, do you buy a new model saw so you know where it's been and how it's been used or do you risk a second hand recon which may be easier to work on, easier to get parts for, but there are no guarantees as to how long it will last.

 

Thanks again !!!!

 

Pete

[Daniël Bos]

New saws come with good warranties, 2nd hand ones come with none.

 

Any manufacturing faults are normally apparent within a few hours of use and will be fixed under warranty, 2nd hand saws may have developed faults in their lifetime which will mean you have to spend to fix those.

 

New saws are cheaper.

 

Husky 550 or 560xp (g) cannot be beaten for shear power, and are built to last.

 

As far as "working on them" what are you expecting to do with them?

Normal routine maintenance (filters, plug, cleaning, greasing etc) is easy on all modern saws, with hardly any differences between the main rivals.

The electronic carbs on these new huskies seem to be very well put together indeed.

 

As far as major surgery on any saw (piston replacement, etc) again there is not much difference in working on pro saws, though some of the entry level domestic saws can be a bit more of a pain to work on.

 

Just buy a 560, you'll enjoy it for many years to come, it'll do most trees you're likely to encounter and won't need hulk-like muscle to carry.

[Urban-rustic]

Sound advice, well received !!! Thankfully my local dealer sells both Stihl and Husquvarna saws.

 

Time to adjust my braces so I can reach the bottom of my pockets (gulp !!!) and reach my wallet.

 

Cheers.

 

Pete

[Coletti]

Seems quite a simple choice judging by the comments, 550/560xp gets another vote from me. Cannot fault mine, very well balanced and bags of power!

[WorcsWuss]

Seems to me that recently purchased MS261's are getting good feedback and not featuring in bad reports like the early ones did.

I have had my 260 since new 2001 and it's been absolutely faultless and a brilliant saw.

For a while I did think that it's replacement would be a Husky 550 but having now seen one working in the flesh [although I do think they look better than the 261!] it seems a pig to start next to my old Stihl and is quite heavy.

So I won't discount the 261 yet....

[Hoggin]

550xp It's luverly

 

Now its non-starting problems have been fixed... new software, pot and piston on a saw with less than four hours on it.

[Guss109]

I started of with a 261 but had issues with it all fixed under warranty it's a decent enough saw but then I bought a 560xpg and the difference is night and day. Can't remember the last time I used my ms261 since buying the 560

[Stubby]

There is a trend here don't you think ? Soooo when you get your 550 or 560 Take out the spark arrestor screen ( and leave it out ) set the auto tune as per the book. Remember the ignition is always in the ON position . The de comp valve pops out just from compression even if it does not fire so PUSH IT IN every time you pull the chord ! Hot start ONE pump of primer ( de comp in ) and pull . Remember the red lever is Choke , half throttle and resets to ON all the time . Don't flood it .... and and go cut wood . Enjoy .

[jrose]

My first saw and the one I'd go for to do everything would be a Husky 365 over a 550/560.

 

Cheaper than a 560xp by nearly 100 quid on FR Jones, more grunt maybe not quite as whizzy though. 70cc as opposed to 60cc, will pull a 18" or 20" all day long.

 

I'd steer clear of the 50cc saws if you want one to do everything, these are very good for limbing and small trees but not so good for ringing up...