basic starter saw?

[swinny]

Hi all

 

Just wondering what saw is best to start out with carving? Budget saw.

 

Was thinking : stihl 170,171,181 or husky 135?

 

Not going to be the best on vibes.... was thinking the 170,171 was good due to picco micro mini.... or the 181 shares the same chains as 200t! Husky seems a lot of cc for the money and 3/8s

 

Would be used as a chipper saw also

 

Many thanks chris

[Dan Earp]

The ms201 back handle or the ms 150 back handle or the mitox range is really cheap and a lad on here has had one running for two years.

 

Very tempted in buying there top handle and 60cc saw all for less than £500 to trail them out

[woodsculptor]

Our experience of Mitox is very different. We tried them as cheaper alternative once (you have these daft ideas sometimes in life!). The build quality was horrendous with the exhaust baffling inside the exhaust constantly failing. We got through 3 of them in a two week period, granted we were a little bit harder on our saws then due to lack of money but we weren't numpties :-). Most (not all) of the new Stihls are horrendous (again experience, not hearsay) from a reliability perspective too, its Husqvarna or Echo all the way for us.

 

 

Kim

[swinny]

Hi there kim

 

Thanks for the reply. What husky models do you suggest? Many thanks chris

[woodsculptor]

Hi Chris

 

All our smaller saws are Echo's. Granted they cut slower and are more primitive but I'm not caught up in the whole "I've modded it to cut super fast" thing. I just want something to work reliably so I can create my art. The Stihls you mention are all homeowner saws and so their engine and reliability are what you would expect (not very long lasting). All the smaller Echos are rated as professional saws and come with a 2 year warranty, when they fail (and because we're professional carvers they do), they fail reliably i.e. its a specific weakness that just isn't quite up to carving and you can fix it yourself as you've got the parts knowing that you'll replace a lot of that part (like the oil pump on the CS270WES).

For our larger saws we use Husqvarna's (395xp). We would also use (if we weren't happy with the Echo's) a 346xp and a Stihl 026 but I'd be buggered to find a saw to replace the Echo CS270WES for detail work.

 

Kim

[Nige156]

Less of the saw jargon.....let's see this bear :-)

[Nige156]

P.s if you turn up with a husky at my yard, you turn around an drive back home :-)

[swinny]

HAHAHA on your bike nige

[Nige156]

Just kidding....don't even leave yours with one :-)

[Spruce Pirate]

Resurrecting an old thread, but looking for similar advice.

 

I've started doing little bits and pieces of carving, not artistic stuff like proper carvers do, but chairs, tables, stools, very basic stuff. As time and experience builds I'm finding a big, round-nosed bar on a felling saw is difficult to get into the corners of things, so was thinking of getting a smaller carving saw to do the finer details, I might get more artistic as I do more stuff.

 

So, what do people recommend as saw and bar combinations? This will be a dedicated carving saw - I've got plenty of saws to use for felling or by the chipper, which also serve to rough out stuff.

 

Having a trawl through here saws recommended seem to be:

 

Stihl 181, 211. Husky 135. Echo CS-352, CS-360.

 

I picked up a Husky 135 once and it seemed to be made out of chocolate. A guy who used to do rhoddies for me used a Stihl 181 and it seemed an OK saw. No experience of a 211 or the Echos. I've got dealers for Stihl, Husky and Echo within 20 miles of me, so I'd favour them, but wouldn't rule out a Dolmar or Makita, probably would rule out the Mitox.

 

I'd probably go straight to Rob D for a Sugi bar as I like it on other saws, but I'd be open to other suggestions.

 

Any advice or suggestions welcome.