which saw??

[stihl fan]

Evening All , new to the forum.

 

I have been looking for a while now,and considering various options for a new saw.

 

I am an occasional user but I am fortunate to have a wood 20 yards form my back door and windfalls are fair game for firewood.

I have a little top handled Zenoh 32cc and have access to a jonsred 2240 with 15" , suffice to say these do the job in many cases, but with our location anything can present itself .

The farmer took down a oak tree the other day that was about 30"-36 in diameter so I borrowed a friends stihl ms390 with 20" bar and made short work of it in a few hours. For me the power of this saw commanded an awareness and a healthy respect (I suppose I'm at my limit here for the moment)!!

 

 

 

I think my needs could be met , if i could get something with a 16 " bar and with a spare 20" for occasional use (like the oak) and enough power to drive the same.

 

there are dealers locally for Stihl, Jonsred , Echo, Olemac , Husky and Tanaka

 

The saws I was thinking about were

 

stihl pro saws ms 362cm, 261cm, 241cm I like the fact that these saws have metal rather than plastic bodies .

 

But having made a few enquiries to date sadly the Stihl 362 cm sound like its too much saw for me at the moment .

 

I do like the jonsred's saws but can't figure out their numbering and

 

what are the old v's new models

 

or hobby v 's Pro saws.

 

the Olemac I thought were very heavy even the smaller ones.

 

the Husky I have avoided as they seem to have a share of reliability issues.

 

and The Tanaka's i think only go to 50 or 55cc

 

I am assuming that something in the 50-55 cc range is where I should be concentrating. I would appreciate any advice .

 

Many thanks in advance

[Woodcrafter]

Ms 261 would suffice nice medium saw easy to handle and can take on the slightly larger if necessary.

In my opinion a hell of a lot of saw for the money for an occasional user that with regular maintenance will last a life time.

[Starscream]

Do you have a budget? I have an ms 271 that pulls up to an 18" bar. It's brilliant. Not a pro saw but it's got some good grunt. I love it.

[Daniël Bos]

Husky 365 x-torque would fit the bill. Its a pro saw (magnesium case and what not), well proven design, nil-cost upgrade to 372 spec makes it the most power for the least money by a fair way!

[traktorz]

The Stihl MS 362 and Dolmar PS-6100 both are capable to use the 3/8" bars at 18" and slightly abore. Both are good candidates running the more robust 3/8" chains, if also dealing with not only fresh wood.

 

The Husqvarna/Jonsered also offers strong 60cc saws, where the pro saws are 560XPG/562XPG and CS2260W. Also this swedish originated group provides a series of semi-pro saws, CS2252/CS2258 and 545, 555 & 556, in both 50cc and 60cc classes. For the 50cc saws, the .325" chain is however the recommended.

 

Likewise, the german manufacturers also have attractive 50cc saws, like the Dolmar PS-5105, and even the PS-4605.

Edited March 28, 2015 by traktorz

[Stubby]

Husky 365 x-torque would fit the bill. Its a pro saw (magnesium case and what not), well proven design, nil-cost upgrade to 372 spec makes it the most power for the least money by a fair way!

 

+ one here for the 365/372

[Stubby]

I dont think you can have " too much saw " as you suggest . If you can use a saw you can use a saw and you very quickly get used to the extra power of a pro saw and work accordingly .

[Joe Newton]

Husky 365 or Echo 620

 

Aim for 20" max bar size to save you having to upgrade. Plus I'm against running max bar length on saws all the time.

 

An 18" bar on either saw would pull nicely, and they seem to both be solid reliable saws with little to go wrong. Ideal for the serious occasional user.

[TreeswingerPerth]

Husky 365 x-torque would fit the bill. Its a pro saw (magnesium case and what not), well proven design, nil-cost upgrade to 372 spec makes it the most power for the least money by a fair way!

 

 

good advise

[NFG]

Hi

 

There are a significant amount of pro users who post problems here which may skew your opinion on reliability. Any saw in use 8hrs + a day 5 or 6 days a week is going to require some sort of repair eventually.

 

Pro saws are generally easier to repair, last longer & are more ergonomic in use as well as parts for leading brands are readily available.

 

Dont shy from too much power, if you used a ms390 & that fits the bill then check out similar ones from Huskvana & Echo or Dolmar.

 

Check out your local dealer, if they seem helpful then chances are they will be if problems occur, Id buy my 365 again in the blink of an eyelid & a 390xp would be great.

 

 

N