doobin

Jesus, its 2020 lads! ?

If you're running a shredding knife and mulching top down (as you should with a shredder knife), you'll want the shredder guard for sure.

Sorry- it might have been the one I chased out of my yard with a flamethrower earlier yesterday...

It'll be pressure not flow that causes any bending ?

Gonna have to be cash the other way, TB016 are desirable for some reason but that's long in the tooth at those hours and Avants are rare secodn hand and hold their money.

I was keen on trying a petrol Makita, but two things stopped me. Firstly, the power/weight ratio I was after was very specific, and only the MS241 or CS501SX really fit the bill. Secondly, my dealer said that although he sells Makita battery saws he won't sell the petrol saws any more as they had multiple issues with some of them under warranty and Makita not wanting to know.

I must have just been unlucky with the two crankshafts I had then. Was wondering if it was due to running on picco, but unless the picco sprockets are a fraction oversize on the bearing hole then it can't make a shits worth of arsehole! The 241 is only underpowered if you need more power. Your 261 is underpowered compared to my 362... Power to weight is a personal choice based upon the task in hand.

Saws were 2017 and 2019. Both had worn crankshafts after low hours of use. I sold the first at a big loss but DM saws badgered Stihl to sort the second as it was very low hours (74 as proved by their data download from the computer) They still tried to deny a claim however. MS271 is a domestic saw. Best avoided. Heavy for the power and lots of plastic parts.

I don't think it makes much difference. I might leave an MS462 or an FS460 for three months but it always starts quick and runs well. If it bothers OP though, the echo is all mechanical.? OP, are you in the South? You can come and play with both saws here and ring up as much of my firewood as you like....

They're making strong money currently, but so are diggers and the 016 is very popular. You'd do better to sell that first and then have some cash in your pocket as Avants are pretty rare second hand. Few on eBay but plenty of them are scams.

I've had bad experiences with two MS241s. It would be an ideal size for you, however I'd suggest you look also at the Echo CS501SX. Around the same money, tiny bit heaver and noticeably more power. I run both, the 241 is definately more ergonomic but as you will be just crosscutting rather than felling I'd say you will be fine. I'm learning to appreciate the Echo's 'raw' nature and the extra power, as I just don't trust the 241 any more. Big plus for Echo is a two year commercial warranty, whereas Stihl try to wiggle out of a worn crankshaft after eleven months and 74 hours use on the saw.... Both saws will run picco chain, so I would recommend that you get the dealer to supply them as such. It's a thinner kerf so makes better use of the avaialble power, as well as being much more forgiving when sharpening. Nice and simple. 16" bar is ideal. If you have trouble getting this then call DM saws- they have supplied both for me in picco from new, and I think they'll do mail order.

Handled an echo in the dealers today by chance whilst I was waiting. I don’t climb but was impressed with the weight and size. It was sporting a much smaller bar then yours and felt very well balanced. if I did climb though I think I’d have been tempted by battery. Surely an ideal scenario for battery power.

Yup, mechanise as much as possible in my book. Very hard to read tension and careful gentle test cuts are a must.

Pretty sure stihl hl series hedge cutters are two mix, and available in a faster reciprocating ‘trimmer’ (T rather than R) variant.

If you have any domestic customers you always loose with vat. No if no buts. You are essentially an unpaid tax collector and you are more expensive than the unregistered competition (or you get to keep less overall for the same amount of work) However, there are tangible yet hard to accurately quantify benefits. It allows you to grow your business faster, especially when combined with finance. More machinery (subsidised if you like by reclaiming the vat) makes you quicker on domestic jobs than the unregistered competition, therefore more profitable. And of course, you can take on work for commercial customers, farmers and the like, for whom vat is not an issue. You will also find that the higher quality domestic clients fully expect vat, and indeed may view those not registered as amateurs or cowboys. Like I said, the benefits are hard to put an exact figure on, and if you look at domestic jobs and the competition in terms of exact figures then you ‘always loose’. But I don’t regret going registered one bit.

First thing I noticed about the 462 (and the dealer said it too) is how quick it revved up. It’s really quick. I know everyone moans about how saws are getting too complicated, but would anyone genuinely go back to a twenty year old saw rather than what we can buy today? I know I wouldn’t.

Around the midhurst area

I can never get a tractor/operator and forwarding trailer when I need one, so there’s a demand locally to me at least.

Dogs tooth I use all the time on leaning ash/beech grown tough and slow on the South Downs. Is the sweep cut the same as a letterbox cut? I’ll look up danish cut.

What are the cuts they teach you in cs32?

I bought a 462 just before they brought out the 500i ?‍♂️ But I do love it. Incredibly quick on the throttle, well balanced with a a 20” light bar on it too.

What were you doing?

Because if I need that much power I pick up the 462. I’m jumping in an out of the the digger a hundred times a day, I want a light powerful saw. Yeah, it’s only half a kilo more but got to draw the line somewhere. The other consideration with choosing the other saws is that they can run picco chain, which is a worth a few hundred watts alone of extra power in my experience. Horses for courses.

It’s more an ms 261 equivalent at 3kw the ms241 is MS241s 2.3kw and 4.5kg And the echo 2.57kw and 4.7kg dry I looked at the 550xp and liked the feel of it, but I didn’t need that much power and certainly didn’t want the extra half kilo over the echo. so it’s less ‘walks all over both’ and more ‘horses for courses’ ? Should have said power to such a low weight. Ms462 must be up there for power to weight ratio?

They’re still available. I really liked mine, very ergonomic, but with two crankshafts on two different saws wearing in no time for no reason I’ve lost faith in them. I’m growing to like the echo cs501sx. It’s a right little ripper, but the ms241 is SO much more ergonomic. The fuel caps, the felling lines, the captive bar nuts and the anti vibe (especially the anti vibe) are all much better on the stihl than the echo. the power to weight ratio for both saws is unmatched. Nothing else comes close.