Chainsaw recommendation

I’m looking for a new general purpose chainsaw. It’ll be my primary saw for cutting down 6-18” trees and turning such trees into firewood. I’m partial to Stihl as I’ve used them in the past but would consider anything. I don’t need top of the line but don’t want junk either. What’ve you guys got and like?

Stihl 261 would be my go to.

If you have a good dealer near by go with that. I cut 8-10 standard cord per year with a Stihl and a Husquarva and happy with both. My son likes his Stihl. I tell him Husky is better. That cranks him up and he cuts more wood.

Husqvarna 455 rancher with a 20' bar would be a good all around saw for what you're wanting it for.

I have run husky's and stilh for the last 35 years and jonsred before that.. The Stilh 500i fuel injected saw with a 20 or 24 inch Bar is what you should look at. With a skip tooth chain it is a wood eating machine!!

Got a sthil 261 for my work truck saw and a 55 Rancher for my personal b!tch saw. Use it for cutting/felling to cutting holes in ice, very reliable. My other saw is a Husky 562xp, same weight as the rancher but a pro saw, more power & $. I like the 261 cuz its power/weight/$ ratio is good. Stil, husky….both good, but if you’re walking around the bush a lot with it…..ya gotta consider weight.

We only carry two non climbing saws on the truck now, a 500i and a 261. The 500i is a beast for heavy use and big trees.

The 454 rancher if you want a saw that run and cuts.

Stihl 271 farm boss is what I have been using the last few years with no issues. Eric

X2

Used my 261 today to drop some 20" locust. A very good value saw for cutting firewood is the old ms250. I use it with my smaller 16in bar for alot of firewood cutting. Lighter weight than my 261 with the 18" bar. But, the 261 does have more umph behind it....at about 2x the price. The ms250 can be bought on sale around here for a deal a few times a year.
No regrets on either purchase.

I have both, husky and Stihl. I prefer the Stihl myself. But both are good brands if you stay away for the box store models.

I have a Husky and my son has a Stihl. Both are good.

X2 had a 261 for several years and it just plain works. It is a pro model. Stick with a pro model irregardless of brand and youll likely be just fine. Cry once, buy once....

I usually get upwards to 250+ cords on my Stihl 460's before anything major goes wrong. I sell firewood

Can't go wrong with a good stihl.

I have a Stihl , no problems . I hear husky is good also


While checking reviews on both recently , I kept coming across great reviews on Echo ....seems odd to me but alot of great reviews out there on a brand I would never have considered

455 rancher

mine is actually a Jonsered 2255 18 inch bar 3/8 chisel chain

it came with a 20 inch bar and low kick back chain

but I prefer it 18 inch bar and chisel or semi chisel and it cuts very well.

it is my go to general purpose saw , I need to get to rebuilding my carb I have the kit sitting here , my saw is a 2014 this is the first repair besides chains and bars.

I run a Stihl in 390 if your doing firewood your going have free wood offers that might be bigger trees then your planning on bigger is better.

I"ve had a lot of saws over the years..... but my last saw (s) I'll ever buy will be a Stihl. Simply the best. I have a 291 with a 20" bar and also a 180 with a 16" bar. Going to buy another 180 just so my brother can help me trim fence line and field edge trees around our farms.

Got a John Deere made by Echo been in alot of use since 1980 I believe

I was about to make a recommendation. Then I realized that I had no idea of your budget. No matter. Find a 50-70cc professional husty or stihl. New or used, don't much matter, just know it will need service. Can you do it? Do you need to rely on a dealer? That, my friend is all you need to know to make a decision.

Lots of great ideas and options. Im going to do some research on the saws mentioned and do some shopping. Thanks for the help!

+1
Or MS250, the MS 261 is the commercial version of the MS 250 so just depends what your doing. Im on my 2nd 250 in 10 years or so but use them hard, have a 391 and a 460 for the bigger stuff also. My next one will be a 261. A buddy who cuts a lot has one and loves it for power vrs weight ratio.

Dolmar is another brand to look at. They did stop making saws last spring but parts should be available for many years and hopefully someone will start selling aftermarket parts for them. My 6100p is a very dependable saw and is perfectly matched with a 20" bar. It will also pull a 24" no problem.

ived owned huskys and stihl for the most part, 2 years ago i bought a echo cs590 with a 20" bar because i got sick of working on my husky 266xp and the husky was a absolute pain to pull start. ive used the echo for 100% of my firewood production (except when i pinch the saw then i run the husky 61 to get the echo out) for the last 2 years (30 cord because of storm damage on my 40) and it has done everything i have asked for it plus some, i would run the echo next to any other saw in its class. I recently inherited a stihl ms362 and granted i havent run it much but so far i like the way the echo feels and for the $400 i paid for the echo 2 years ago i would buy another if anything bad happened to my current one. I also sold the 266xp since the echo took its place.

saws i own:
husky 61 16" bar, 18" bar and 20" bar(older saw, seems heavy, tempermental to start)
husky 136 14" bar (rides on 4 wheeler a lot)
stihl ms362 20" bar (runs excellent but im not a fan of the kill switch and doesnt ballance well for me for some reason)
mcculloch (cant remember the model but its old and vibrates terribly, runs excellent, heavy)18" bar
craftsman model? 16" bar (given to me and sits in the cabinet but runs good just doesnt have the torque the others have)
echo cs590 20" bar (my go to saw, starts easily, seems balanced to me, more then enough power to do what i ask it)

I had 4 Stihl chainsaws in the past seems like when they needed worked on parts was no longer available. Got a Echo it starts on second or third pull at lease for 6 years. Something a Stihl never did for me.

I own both Stihl and Husky saws. The last saw i bought was the Husky 545. Got it last fall. So far its been a piece of junk. Ran fine until the cold weather hit. Then it got frustrating. Couldnt even cut firewood on the last trip out to the trapline. Its in the shop now on warranty. Hopefully they can fix it. A buddy had the same saw and he said his just wont run in the cold. They have that new electronic fuel system. The other Husky I have is the 455 Rancher. It has a plastic oiler gear that strips out on a regular basis.

Havent had those issues with Stihls. The Echos seem to have great reviews. I looked online and the 590 Echo is about $400 in the US. The same saw here is almost $1000 !

Stihl Co. is proprietary if that matters.
Translation, if you work on your own, you will be buying your parts from the dealer.
My huskys have a cold weather lever that lets warm air into carb area for running in the cold.
They also make cold weather mesh air filters for many brands.

I've owned a number of different brands of saws over the years. I liked Jonesred, but they don't make them anymore as far as I know. I've never owned a Husqvarna, but know people who do, and they swear by them. I wouldn't hesitate to buy one if I needed another saw.

Right now, I have three Stihls that I've had for quite a few years, an 036, 026, and a 260. They've been pretty much trouble free. But, I found it pays to only run the pre-mix that comes in a can. When I store them during the winter, I don't have to worry about adding fuel stabilizer.

My dad has a MS 261 that makes me cringe. Stihl makes good bars and chains. The rest of the saw is sketchy. Still looking for the perfect chainsaw.

Run, two more and I'll have enough, maybe.

I have a Stihl 291. I cut firewood for us for the last three years and have been pleased with it. I did discover, having been ignorant, the yellow RS chains cut hardwood much better than the one that came on it,green. Anyone with a lot of experience have anything to add about chain selection. I’m going to get a fresh new one to tackle a huge blown over oak.

You will find that a full chisel chain will cut better than a semi chisel, the downside is that they don't hold up to dirty wood as good. Stihl chains are a bit more expensive but hold an edge longer , next would be Oregon. I use Oregon chans for the most part as I buy the stuff on a reel and spin my own.

Another thing is, stay away from the Stihl 2 stroke oil. It will leave more carbon deposits that a good racing oil. After having tried a few, I have settled on the oil made by Schaeffer. Its a full synthetic oil and leaves next to no carbon in the cylinder or exhaust. Makes a difference, more so if you leave the spark arrester in the muffler.

Just like knives, the more you keep after it, the easier it is to keep after.
Stihl chain is hard steel, Oregon a little softer, I like Carlton too.
Take the bar to dealer and tell what you want to do, and how, and how+often you sharpen.
And how experienced you are. He will be able to match you up frpm that and the numbers on the bar.
The higher dealer price is quickly offset by poke and hope on your own.

When I find chain I like, I buy multiples before they change them.
Then when those are used up and discontinued, the hunt starts again.

I have some husky x-cut to try out for first time soon.

There is one I forgot to mention. The Husky X cut. The older version of it was better than the current one, but its a good chain none the less. I think it is made by Oregon for Husky though and they just put their name on it.

There is more than one style of that Scoob. At least there was. Did I mention they change a lot lol.

I mentioned before. A demo on this at conventions would be great.
And the qualified demo guy cou;d sell a bunch.

maybe not a lot but I found what I like and how to make it work for me

https://www.baileysonline.com/chainsaws/chainsaw-chain.html

I like chisel chain , and the first argument your going to hear is , sure but it dulls faster

chain in sand , rock , dirt , ect ... dulls faster is a little misleading it isn't like you can stick your tip in the dirt 3 times with a chisel and 30 times with the semi
it might be more like the difference one run through he dirt vs 3 which I guess is 66% better
if you keep your tip out of the dirt and are cutting clean wood that wasn't skidded all over in the mud you can cut for several tanks of gas on a sharp chisel chain so why give up cutting efficiency. you can touch up your chain with a file after 3-4 tanks of gas and just keep going.

in Stihl terms
the Green RS is low vibration low kick back , you pay for lower kick back in cutting efficiency

the RM yellow has the warning for kick back

honestly both can kick back , it is like thinking there is a big added safety when only a little one exist , if you go prepared for potential kick back which is mostly just use good cutting form and watch your tip.


cutting speed is a function of 2 things chain speed and and chip size.

chip width doesn't change how fast you cut down , chip depth does so you see some bar chain combos for lower CC saws with a Narrow kerf so it takes less width to get more depth of cut less total wood displaced but all the wood you need to get through the log as long as it isn't a big one

you can tune your chain to the wood , you will see raker gauges that have a hard and soft wood slots on soft wood you can take a deeper chip than in hard wood without slowing down chain speed

so if you play with your rakers a bit you can find the sweet spot as fast as you can cut in your wood , green vs dry , hard vs soft all make a difference , if you try to take too much off at once it loads down the saw , take to little and you have a fine saw dust

it is called pulling chip for a reason you want to pull nice chip without bogging down the saw.

if you pay attention to the pitch of the sound your saw makes and keep the rpm up but keep pulling chip

bar length will play into it also the more chain your pulling the greater the load

say your cutting 16 inch wood and you have your 32 inch bar on , you have the same number of cutters in the wood with the same gauge chain be it 3/8 or .404 ,now if you have a saw that confidently runs a 32 in bar you probably won't notice much but if you know your going to be buckling <18 all day and you have an 18-20 inch bar you might want to put that on , it is also fewer cutters to sharpen and less expensive chain as well as being a little less drag on the saw

however if you run a 20 inch bar on your 50cc saw and find if you try and dig the dogs or push it bogs down , a 16 inch bar might make it cut faster for you and keep those RPM up and let you take a little deeper chip.

Years ago when i was logging I spent a year falling timber in Colorado. I had a Jonsred 920 super. It was the best saw I ever owned.

An interesting thing I learned down there was how they sharpened their saws. The crew was mostly Mexican and they sharpened their saws backwards. ( file going into the cutting edge rather than away from it) Their saws were razor sharp. Fast forward into the early 90s and I bought the woodbug chainsaw mill. A guy on Vancouver Island designed them. When I got the mill it came with a special chain sharpener and instructions. He advised sharpening the saw backwards too so I started doing it for the sawmill. Done right, a chainsaw sharpened this way will rip through an 18 inch log faster than I can walk. I dont sharpen that way for regular cutting though.

Thanks Pete……you’re not just a gun expert.

not sure I am an expert in either but I know enough in both to be reasonably useful.

The reason to sharpen the cutters " backwards " is that you don't pull as big of a burr on the edge. That burr will fold over and break off and if unlucky, the next tooth is going to catch it and get dull. but even after it breaks off, the cutting edge is going to be thicker than a cutter that has been sharpened towards the tooth and not away from it.
You don't sharpen knives by drawing the blade over a stone. You push it and that is the same exact reason.

That is also why the more expensive Oregon chain grinder has a switch on it that lets it run in both directions. So you can run the wheel towards the cutter while grinding.

I'll throw another thought into the equation. I for one like to run a larger saw. My go to is my Stihl 661 somewhat tunes up. Depending on what I am doing, it either wears a 24" or a 36" bar. The longer bar is mainly for bucking as I don't like to work bent over. The short bar is for felling and limbing. Some say that is a way to heavy saw for what I do with it. But that thing will cut a cord of fire wood in half the time that your average 50 + cc saw will. So the folks with the smaller saws are still bent over and cutting by the time I am on my second beer. Now if I had to swing a saw for 8 hours a day and got paid by the hour, I would pick something smaller and lighter as well. Here I pick out a tree, fell it then cut it up for lumber and firewood. The quicker I can work that tree down, the quicker I can get on with other things .... like posting Bs on here for example.

Knowing you ya worked the cyl too.
First one those I ran about 30 yrs ago was at a mill bucking ends and flares.
It was 72cc and I about crapped myself lol.

You guys can come over and race anytime.

The other thing so you don't have to bend over as much is use an extension saw for limbing once the tree is down.

Poulan Wild Thing is the best by far.

I do almost the exact opposite with my 2166 when I am felling if I have a tree wider then the 24 inch bar I will put my longer bar on so that I don't have to do as much cutting from both sides.

I figure long bar for felling , shorter bar for bucking because even a 44 in log can be bucked by a 24 inch bar

I stand and hook the bar over the log so that it is near vertical , and let-her rip and it is almost entirely cut by the weight of the saw this cuts the track for the bar to follow and my rounds stay 16 inches instead of wandering I will go through and make a bunch of these cuts about 3/4 of the way through so I never get the bar in the dirt.

then with a bunch or rounds 3/4 cut through might be a couple three tanks of gas in by this point and on the same chain still because no dirt I will either cut though and roll the log over with the cant hook or tractor
or if that isn't an option , if do hit dirt and dull the chain I have almost all the wood cut through going fast or I can even finish up with the 2255 the kerf is the same

18 inch chains are about 20 dollars
24 inch chains are about 25
32 inch chains are about 35

and 18 inch chains sharpen a lot faster if I am going to play in the dirt

however in 20 more years I might be right there with you standing with the long bar not worrying about using up my 70 dollar chains (figuring inflation)

Does it come in one of those cool reusable blister packs ??

a friend bought one , we found we could over heat it in less than a tank of gas so he took it back and got a poulan pro well we didn't have to stop cutting as often but it had issue also so he took it back and they couldn't seem to get the oiler to work , they eventually did and found it was a clogged vent

but by that point he had a Husky and was happy with that.

Yup I ported it and emptied the muffle of all things that did not need to be in there to make it breathe out easier. This one has 91cc and I love it. Whenever I pick up a smaller saw, I think there is something wrong with it because they cut so slow.
I have not picked up the 380 clone in over a year and the little husky I only use for trail maintenance when I have to walk a lot and cut overhead. For everything else from felling to milling with the alaska frame, its all done with the 661
I thinned out a bunch of saplings the other day and slapped the 36" bar on it for that as well. The missus used the weed whacker with a circular saw blade on it to help.

Yes for larger trees i put the 36" bar on it as well so I can just cut from one side if possible, lazy guy that I am.
I do use the light weight bars from Tsumura 36" and Sugihara24" and found that it makes a heck of a difference regarding balance and handling of the saw.

pete I buy the chain on spools and make my own loops. So I am not sure what a 18 - 24 or 36" loop costs. I just get another spool when I run out

Just got a call from the dealer. My 545 Husky had low compression so they pulled the head. Engine was basically toast. They said only two things could have caused it, not enough lubrication or improper air. I know it wasnt the oil so it had to be the air. He said the carb was leaking a bit of fuel but because of the electronics they cant do a dunk test. My question was could the cold mess up the electric fuel/air mixture. He said he didnt know.....anyway warranty is going to cover the repairs.

Another friend had similar problems with the same saw in the cold. Back to Stihls for me.

Im pretty sure you just toss it in the trash after a couple cuts if you gever get it to run.

In some of those cases, the chain has a longer life expectancy than the saw itself.

Was that a dealer???

The 545 is notorious for stuck ring and loss of compression. I believe that is an issue because of tuning. You don't see it on the 550 that is set up for logging, the 545 is tuned for making blocks. Those carbs are effected by cold and hot they self adjust (autotune). This guy is a total knuckle head. All he has to do is plug it into the computer and it will tell him everything about that saw. It will throw a code for why the engine is bad (code 14 if my memory serves me is a air leak that wrecks the motor was more common in the 562).

I've literally rebuilt or worked on thousands of small carbs and I can't think of one autotune or Mtronic that had to be dunked to check for leaks. If anything leaks it's the electonic meter valve and it floods the motor (and throws a code for too much fuel).




The new computerized saws are some of the best saws ever made. There is a bit of a learning curve on the starting procedure. Many people don't understand just how smart these saws really are. I can run my MS400 in any weather and never think about adjusting the carb ever. The biggest hang up people have is starting them after several months of non use. Imagine you finish cutting your firewood in december at 30 degrees and put the saw away. Now it's july and a storm has left a tree for you to clean up. That saw is still programed to be running at 30 degrees not 90, and it takes it a minute to readjust to that. They also have built in factory resets that you can learn to do by reading the owners manual.

Yes the new Poulans are crap today, but back in the day when Poulan was an American company, Poulan made some (This word is unacceptable on Trapperman) fine saws. I still have some older Poulans that will cut with any modern Stihl or Husky.

Youll wear your arm out 'poulan' on one of those...:)

Yes that was the dealer. Good to know that about the 545. I will get rid of it. Im not sure I agree with you about the new saws though. I use a chainsaw almost daily and used to log professionally and Ive never had an issue with the old standard carb saws in any weather.

I was on the fence with the electronic tuning carbs at frost as well. having ran this 661 now for 3 years, I don't think I'll get one with a normal carb again. Start it, let it run for a little while to warm up and start cutting. never so much as a hiccup ... It does not matter if I use it up here or take it down to the coast with me, cold or hot weather. It never misses a beat. When i wear this one out, I'll get the same again and tune it the same way. The big dolmar I had way back when. I had to have a screw driver in my shirt pocket to tweak the thing depending on the phase of the mood, humidity and temperature ... When the thing was in tune it was a beast. when not it was a nightmare. This one on the other hand always seems to be in a good mood

I have one auto tune saw.
I jumpered it to the truck computer and it threw a knuckle head code.
If I buy another it might be the husky 550.

I do wish I could read the codes,
but I was that kid that tore lawn mowers apart for fun.

It sounds like these computerized chainsaws may suit my needs fairly well. Because I run a chainsaw year around. When I am not making firewood, I prune trees and cut brush.

I dont remember having an issue with adjusting carbs due to temp changes that much. Sure, I may have tweaked it a few times a year. Seems like cleaning an air filter regularly sure helped more than anything. What screwed me more than anything was vapor lock- why does one saw get away without any vapor lock and the same model sitting right beside it doesnt?

Me either. Our temperatures will fluctuate from -50 to 90 degrees in the summer and i seldom have to touch the carbs on my older saws.

My big Dolmar was a (This word is unacceptable on Trapperman) in that respect and not normal for sure. My Husky just needs a tweak now and then. but the Stihl on the other hand has always run just right. Even after I have messed around with porting it and doing a radical muffler job on it. It adjusts itself to the changed parameters just fine.

All mine (non-AT) needed adjusted if large elevation change.
Temp not so much.

Thing that is in my head about auto tune, real or imagined,
is when it gets an air leak, the AT compensates,
it leans out and fries without me catching it before needing top end
and finding leak.

LJ if you are not getting fuel I'd
crack open fill cap, good, it is the vent.
Not, change fuel line, filter, and compare routing to other saw.
No, pressure test carb. No, rebuild carb.

I never understood vapor lock- the saw starts out fine, Then vapor lock hits and it bogs to the point it wont run. I crack open the fuel cap and the gas is boiling. It would run just fine in cooler weather. After about a half hour it would run fine until it vapor locked again,

Other than Echo is there any professional grade saws that dont have the electronic junk ? I've never had an engine on a saw go until now...

Boiling gasoline, YIKES that can't be good.
Never seen that one.

Well.......bubbling.......looked like it was boiling.

water boils in a vacuum



if you pull the vacuum on the tank fast enough you could boil the fuel it would likely stop almost immediately when you open it

If it happens like that you more than likely have a blocked vent in the fuel cap. What happens is, that as the fuel gets pumped out of the tank and no air gets in, the pressure in the tank drops. if the temps are high enough outside as the temp drops the fuel will start to boil to the point where the fuel pump in the carb just gets " fuel stem " and quits. Open the cap, let air in and the fuel will stop boiling in a matter of seconds. Rinse and repeat ..... unblock the air vent and it should run just fine.

As pressure drops , liquids begin to boil at lower temps. Thats why you can't cook a potato on Mt Everest without a pressure cooker. The water will boil before it gets hot enough to cook that spud. Simple Physics

Pete beat me to it , proving that you can copy and paste quicker than actually write BS