Paddy1000111

That's the only thing is then it blows the milling out the window because it's hard enough on a 881 let alone a ported 661 plus the availability for big bars and the need for adapters and bla bla bla

Oh yea, 100%. I wouldn't ever want to swing an 880 in a tree. What I meant was, I was going to get a 661 for big jobs off the ground but it left things a little muddy size wise. I personally don't see a big enough gap between a 500i and a 660 to make it worth owning both and there's not much of a saving between a 462 and a 661 to make it worth owning both as for the bigger stuff it doesn't make much of a difference. I guess if I got a 661 then a 500i/462 are so close weight and size wise that it doesn't make it worth buying both a 661 and a 500i/462 apart from luxury. At the other end of the spectrum a 462 can run a 25" bar, my 261 will run an 18" which is enough for most jobs. Theoretically, if an 881 is more ergonomic and not a engine with handles anymore then I can have an 881, a 500i or a 462 and the 261 which seems like the perfect balance of saws with the add on of my 200T it covers pretty much everything. Obviously if I lived in a budget free world then a 661 as well would be nice as I wouldn't have to climb with the 881 but I am younger and can cope with more of a work out for now anyway.

Sounds like you need someone to run the machine, keep your hands free for 2 😂 Why do they want it hand mounded?

That looks like a job for a remote excavator. Sit in the truck in the warm and remote it with a coffee. 😂

Interesting. If I was going to be using a 16 bar that would be what I would have gone with!

What unicorn? I just see photos of a chainsaw... You okay Spud?? 😉😂

For me it's usually 2-3 strokes and I need a fill-up. Each to their own

Anyone had a crack with the 16" 261 tuning kit? Basically conversion to 3/8 PS chain? You're meant to get 20% more cutting power?

It also comes down to what you do. If you're passing the cost of the aspen onto the customer then run aspen. If you own your own forest that you harvest for firewood then maybe normal fuel. It all depends! On a side note I am off to buy more aspen for tomorrow 😂

Not sure if you got the answer you were looking for. It sounds to me like you don't have the square guide bars resting on the chain as that's the only way you could have the round file too high. Also I'm sure this is obvious but do you have the right size file for your chain? If you are filing a brand new chain with the 2in1 it takes a few passes, usually around 6-7 to take it from factory grind to file grind. Maybe you lost the geometry somewhere in going from stock grind to field grind? With the file on the chain both the front and back square guide bars should be touching the chain/teeth I like the 2in1 but I often just do it "by hand" with a normal file set. I found the 2in1 set the rakers really low, I confirmed it with a raker guide. Used to cut like buggery but often vibrated like a jackhammer in the cut

I'm going to go against the grain a little here. I'm 6'2 and I prefer a much longer bar so I don't have to bend over and throw my back out the whole time. I've put bigger than recommended bars on saws before just to save me bending over, however if I put a big bar on a small saw I would still only cut small logs. Plus if you're looking at buying a new saw then a bigger saw with a bigger bar will be safer and more future proof. Small saws with dinky bars kickback more aggressively and you often find yourself in strange work positions.

Take a look at Pulsar. You can get top shelf stuff from them for £150. Pulsar is good kit. I've been using the pulsar leggings for climbing when its chucking it down and not just am I always dry but they've never torn. They are the choice of network rail etc, they wouldn't spend that sort of money per staff member if it had to be replaced every year! You are going to have to properly measure your staff or take them somewhere to be measured as the kit sizes are a little all over the place.

Oh 100% he's not wrong that aspen is better to run all the time. It burns better, cleaner, the engine likes it more, it's better for plastics. It's also ny-on £20 for 5L as opposed to £5 for 5L... You have to pick your battles. For every 100L I buy I would save £300 by running normal fuel. Would I save £300 in maintenance, I doubt it.

Well I would climb with my 261 for most stuff but for chunking things down I want something that can handle chunking down big bits. I have been up a tree before on gaffs sectioning the rounds into quarters to throw it down. This is why I wanted a 661 as it would be the biggest saw I am happy to climb with but if the 881 has the ergonomics it will be a stop fill until I get 500i or something! I was a bit lost really saw wise, a 461 is too close to a 261 and a 500i is too close to a 661. If I have a 881 then a 500i seems like a good middle ground!

I use "ultimate" petrol mixed with stihl ultra and Stabil fuel stabiliser. Never had an issue with it, never had fuel really go stale but I haven't had it hang around long enough to really find out. I wouldn't "store" petrol, even with stabil in it. I have also bought 4 stroke aspen and mixed it with 2 stroke oil and it's a different beast. The saw feels zippier on aspen and it doesn't smell so bad. It also starts nicer too. It depends on what I am doing. If I am doing a load of work I will run petrol, if I am storing a tool or doing "bits" then I will run aspen.

Depends what they are doing? For ground work in torrential rain then I use Pulsar, they are the rail standard stuff. For in the tree I use Arbortec

That's what I thought! I was reading through the post. That's why I was surprised when Big Beech said it would void the warranty! Glad to know it can handle it. An 881 sounds like the perfect beast, enough power for milling but handle-able enough to use for take downs and bucking 👌

Interesting thinking about saw cooling/heating cycles. From an engineering mind there's obvious benefits to allowing it to heat up properly. The section of the piston between the exhaust and the chain gets hottest quickest and that can cause some damage if the rest of the piston/cylinder isn't hot yet. On the cooling down point it's interesting. Once a saw has been running flat out for a bit it's fully heat soaked and won't get hotter. If you allow it to shut off from hot without cooling down then something is likely to warp/crack. If you start it again soon after then things will all be at odd temps and tolerances will be off. Got to remember its not just the cooling fan but the intake air cooling too. I always knew about letting it idle first from turbo diesels etc where the turbo needs cooling or the oil cooks in it. I suppose in theory it's the same with 2 strokes oil cooks inside. I've always let things idle for a bit after, be it cars after a long trip, chippers after hard work or chainsaws after a big cut. Never been a negative!

Lucky I boarder on the anal side when it comes to saw maintenance. I wrap the saws in anti abrasion tape (the stuff that's used on helicopter rotor blades in iraq) so they never look like they have been thrown around in a truck. On the maintenance front I blow them out at the end of every day with the compressor on the truck and check the filters once a month. On top of that I boroscope the bore and save the pictures and replace all the filters, plugs etc every 12 months no matter the condition. Fingers crossed that doesn't happen to me! Interesting that you don't think there was any performance increase. Did you find a fuel saving? I'm not going to be regularly milling. maybe only 10-15 times a year. An 881 appeals to me as a usable saw instead of the 661 I was originally planning on. If I get an 880 then I will also need a 661

Maybe something I will put to Stihl CS. Why actively advertise a product for a job that would void its warranty! 😂

I would not worry about it, how are they to know you are milling? I guess it's more down to the fact that if they go out of their way to say you can't do it then it's a guaranteed way to mess up a saw?

That's also another reason for me wanting the 881 is the fuel economy. General feedback from what I have read says it's better on fuel, even when milling

As far as running in on a new saw, do you guys run a few tanks through cutting cookies and letting it get hot and rest etc before milling with it?

Good point! I know that letting them run out of fuel, especially when hot is bad for them but ensuring that it's fuelled up for the cut isn't something I would have thought about!

Funnily enough I was watching some milling with an 881 on some 70" timber and the guy got to the end of the massive cut and turned it off before it was even out of the wood and I had a little feeling of pain inside 😂