Peter 1955

That fits in with my experience. I went from 1.1 to 1.3 and the difference for my job was night and day.

This was quite a while ago. I was under the impression that the original chain was 1/4". The 3/8" I fitted was certainly much more robust, and stayed in place far better. This was for absolutely attacking thorn hedges, and lowering them savagely. Ah. I think I've spotted the confusion, and it's probably my fault, oops. Mine is the Kombi attachment, and was probably a lighter rig than the dedicated pruners.

Now I'm not up on the numbers like other people are, but I used my pole pruner for trimming hawthorn hedges with its original bar and chain. It was prone to throwing the chain off. I swapped bar and chain for a 16" one for my 023, knowing that if it was not a success, I could use it on that. It's still on the pruner, and it has been a huge improvement with regards to staying put. The second suggestion from Jack is that profile I believe.

That rings a bell. I remember noticing that the ones I saw on roadworks gangs had fixed brackets, not three point hitch. They used to be very popular with them at one time. I suspect you could replace the missing linkage once the brackets are off, but bear in mind you'll need a counterweight to compensate for the compressor removal. Awful cab and transmission controls for use with the loader at max height and toe tip bucket though.

We used to have a 50E where I worked, if I remember the letters correctly. It came with a 3 point hitch, and an empty weight box on the back. Filled it with concrete, and ballasted the tyres, I think. It was a 4WD, shuttle gearbox ( pile of crap compared to the 50B one, with pedals for direction ) and we added third function for toe tip bucket. My but I loaded some grain with that old girl.

Not sure how much use my input will be, there are many more knowledgeable folk than me on here. I now have a Stihl 400, and it's an absolute pleasure to use. It's lighter than the 038 it replaced ( quelle surprise ) and very manageable. Whether it's too close to your bigger 462, I don't know. I also have a 251, and it's a gutless pile of poo. I really wish I'd got a 261, which might be a better fit for you. I'd suggest picking up a 400 in a shop to feel, even with the 20" bar on mine, it doesn't seem unwieldy. With the 16", it's lovely.

What a good concept. Well done.

I can see its appeal. I question its efficacy. Polesaw or Kombi with my favourite Oregon EIA blade would beat it for output and reach every time. If we're talking delicacy and accuracy, I can see where it scores in that video, but I think I'd reach for loppers or my battery chainsaw before that. Not knocking it, it has a place, but not in my van.

The improvement wasn't in cutting speed. The thinner chain was an absolute pain to keep on the bar when attacking thorn hedges. The thicker one, coupled with a longer bar was a delight to use. The difference was night and day.

I agree absolutely. You have to let it go at its own pace, you definitely can't force it. Looks like I shall be ordering the correct type this time. Teach me to read the details, eh?

Seems logical. I have been down the thicker line route, and I know it needs my biggest engine. Thanks for the advice, appreciated.

It was a big improvement on the pole saw. Just need to know if the batteries can handle the presumed extra load or not. Nothing to lose, possibly all to gain.

Thank you for that. Not a million miles away from my thinking. There is a case for sticking the .050 on the battery saw and see how it goes, and whether it kills the batteries much quicker. Hmmm.

Hello folks, advice needed please. I've made a mistake which is solvable, but I'm unsure of the way to go. I have a Mains Makita saw, and a 36v battery one as well. 16" bar on the mains, and 12" on the battery. I wanted to get them both onto identical 12" bars and chains, and bought a bar and chain to put on the mains saw. All good so far, but in my haste, I bought .050 instead of .043, which they both came fitted with. I don't intend to return the bar/chain, as they're usable, and returning them would be a hassle. For what they cost, I might as well swallow my pride, and buy a correct one next. The question is, do I get .043 for the mains, as I should have done, or do I convert the battery one to .050? I put a longer bar on one pole pruner years ago, which meant going from .043 to .050, and the improvement was very noticeable. Would changing to .050 be too hard work for the battery one? Your thoughts as always are appreciated.

Thanks for the votes of confidence lads, much appreciated. My memory is very fallible, and I know the 038 is a Farm saw ( I think it even says that on the saw itself somewhere ) I had a feeling that the 023 was farm spec too in its day, but I could be wrong. I often am. Especially when someone posted earlier that the 391 wasn't well regarded, it was clear that I needed a Pro spec saw. In all honesty, I could never justify a 462, it's just too much saw for my needs.

Noisy? Noisy? Some of my buggers play a bloody tune when it's charged!

Well folks, after a lot of agonising, the smoke has turned white here. No, it's not the steam coming out of my beloved's ears, when she finds out what a new saw costs! Blimey, she was miffed that I had to replace the 023, and only calmed down when I told her it was nearly as old as our daughter! I rang my local dealer this morning, and I don't know whether to be reassured or worried. They had four 362 in, one 462, and by the sounds of it, quite a few 400. ( They tend to buy in large numbers, when I blew up the Briggs and Stratton on my lawn mower, I spent ages looking for one, and struggled to get one easily. I rang them more out of curiosity than anything, and not only did they have seven in the shed, they were £200 cheaper than anything I'd found. Got it on account as well ). I've decided that although the 362 would probably be a perfectly reasonable choice, the 462 would just be a " mid life crisis" saw, like buying a flashy sports car, so the middle ground of a 400 is the way to go. Once a few details have been sorted, I will let you all know how I get on with it. Now looking forward eagerly. Getting someone to properly service the 038 would then seem like a wise move, as it's only ever had me doing the most basic of routine maintenance.

What I heard years ago that Makita had gone overboard on the safety circuitry, and some batteries were refusing to charge after a couple of false fail attempts. Batteries still serviceable, but failing to charge simply because of a glitch. In the disco world, there were a type of speaker famed for overheating and cutting out, when in fact it may have been a component saying it had overheated when it hadn't.

Logical, Captain. All thoughts I have had myself, believe me. The leak is the main issue, that stops it being usable. I wouldn't expect fuel/oil mixture to stop drive, or am I wrong? If I'm right, I'm going to be looking for a chain oil leak, but if the bar is seated correctly, I can't guess where the problem might be. Thanks.

Join the club! I hadn't realised the gulf between the 251 and the 261, but at the time I thought that the 251 would be an upgrade from an 023. Shoulda gone for a 261.

Seems to be a lot of support for keeping the old saws going. The old girl never missed a beat this afternoon. I keep looking at the 023 in the shed, and wondering if it could be mended. Only issue with it is it's leaking probably from the crank seal, and onto the clutch. Runs like a dream, just won't turn the chain! And that is probably my cunning plan. As I said, I don't want it to cease to function and leave me with only the 251. I want to make sure that this time I really get an upgrade, and the 391 doesn't look like one. I have a really good dealer fairly locally, and my son works for a training company on my doorstep, so I know where to get the next saw, I just need to decide what. Thanks for all the advice fellas, much appreciated. I'm a little surprised how much support there is for the old kit, much like Trigger's broom. 😉

Thanks again chaps. The 038 is still going strong, but it could be over 40 years old! How much longer can it keep going? I don't want it to explode when I don't have a replacement already in my possession. I must say that the strongest vote for the 391 is price. It's looking more and more as if it's between 361/362 or 400. Looking at list prices, and using the 400 as the benchmark, a 362 is £200 cheaper than a 400, and a 462 is only £100 dearer. On those figures, you can make a good case for any of them. Well at least I've narrowed it down, I think.

Snap. All the heat in our house comes from wood, or ( when the cold weather payment comes in, ) coal. We use a lot of wood.

Thanks for those thoughts chaps, appreciated. As I'm merrily Googling, it appears to me that the 391 is spec wise just a modern 038. Same weight, same power. 361 and 362 are a tad lighter, and a tad more powerful. Strong contenders, but still only a minor upgrade ( seemingly ). The big leap in performance comes with the 400 and 462. Anyone have experience of these? By the way Gareth, I don't run an 18" bar on the 251, but I agree with you that it's gutless. I expected it to be a step up from the 023, but I don't reckon it is.

I'm not a professional, and can't justify some of the incredible machines now on the market. I had a Stihl 023 which I replaced at well over 25 years old with an MS251. ( And in my exceedingly humble opinion, the 251 is gutless compared to the 023 ). My other saw is probably even older ( I think someone dated it roughly in another thread somewhere ) an 038. Now given its age, I feel it must be living on borrowed time, so I've got to consider a replacement. I want it to cope with a 20" bar, ( the 038 spends 90% of its time wearing a 16" ) and ideally I'd like it to use the same bars/chains as the 038. Also, apologies to fans of other brands ( including my son, and his boss ) but I really would like it to be a Stihl. I bought a Husky leaf blower, and it's great, but it always feels wrong to be using it to me. So, my question to the folk here with experience and knowledge, what are my options? The obvious replacement is the MS 391. ( Like for like, ish ). I reckon a 261 wouldn't be man enough for a 20" bar, from what I read. Is the 362 a contender? What about the Pro saws? Are the 462 and 400 overkill, or are they the way forward? I worry about cutting edge technology sometimes, I've seen it make life an absolute doddle when it works correctly, and when it doesn't, it can render equipment virtually unusable. Floor's all yours folks, thank you for your thoughts. And yes, if there's something from another manufacturer that's the answer to an old git's prayers, feel free to suggest it. I'm only sitting here looking at pictures and figures, you folks are handling them. Ta.