Chainsaw recommendations

[cheechi]

Well I have a Husq 435 that I made into a 440 with an 18" bar. I have a poulan/cman 18" 42cc that has been a good saw and was actually worth the money for the repair to the clutch (apparently a common problem they have soft clutches and wear fast).

I was thinking since I had bought the 435 I would try to sell the cman but I know I won't get what I put into it back even by half. Shame too it's good now with some mods from the original design. I was interested in that 5020 Poulan saw a while back too, but I can't really justify 3 saws.

No matter what brand saw you get even the cheapos, if it will run correctly out of the box it will likely last for your needs so long as its not abused. And that includes a current model ryobi/homelite/poulan. Get it adjusted by someone who will actually show you how to make any future adjustments later on and test things, and generally how they start theirs & take care of them. That's more important for your needs than the brand or model #.

 

[sawin]

Well I have a Husq 435 that I made into a 440 with an 18" bar. I have a poulan/cman 18" 42cc that has been a good saw and was actually worth the money for the repair to the clutch (apparently a common problem they have soft clutches and wear fast).

I was thinking since I had bought the 435 I would try to sell the cman but I know I won't get what I put into it back even by half. Shame too it's good now with some mods from the original design. I was interested in that 5020 Poulan saw a while back too, but I can't really justify 3 saws.

No matter what brand saw you get even the cheapos, if it will run correctly out of the box it will likely last for your needs so long as its not abused. And that includes a current model ryobi/homelite/poulan. Get it adjusted by someone who will actually show you how to make any future adjustments later on and test things, and generally how they start theirs & take care of them. That's more important for your needs than the brand or model #.

I AGREE! Except for the outta the box thing. Manufacturers set the saws so they will pass all the EPA Regs. Carbs that are set like this have a good chance of self destructing after a while. Make sure that the dealer readjusts the carb and instructs you on how to start, maintenance etc.

Also they usually tell the owner to bring it back after 2-3 months, (break in), and they will adjust it again, NC. If he doesn't, you should ask about it as being part of the purchase. It does need to be done, and now a days they want to charge for everything. Years ago there was no problem bringing the saw in anytime to adjust the carb.

Once home, perhaps start it and let it run a tank or two of fuel at idle. Cutting wood would be the best for break in. Perhaps you have a friend that has a need, and would be trusted enough to use it a few hrs. Anything wrong would very likely show up quite soon.

And...I'm ok....I'm ok.......:I'm o........

 

[Farmall450]

Stihl Farmboss 290 all day any day.

 

[Audiocrazy28]

I use stihls all day. And we just got a new ms270 with a 16" bar about a month ago. It feels pretty good in your hands. Easy start, vibration is minimum and not too heavy. Plus they can take a beating all day long.

 

[R Walter]

I use four different Stihls for firewood and brush clearing. Stihl because there are 3 different dealers nearby who treat me pretty good.

The saws are a 261Pro, 460 and 2 361s. I run a 16in bar on the 261, a 24in bar on the 460 and one of the 361s has an 18in bar and the other 361 has a 20in bar.

The 361s are about perfect for the cutting I do which is mainly Pinon, Juniper, Cedar and Oak, none of it that big.

I buy chain in the 100ft length boxes and make up my own chains as I need them. I take out one link when a chain is stretched and use it again and then discard it for no further use. Learn to hand-file your chains to keep them sharp and don't forget to file down the rakers every time you sharpen.

 

[mikefromme]

The amount of bad advice and misinformation in this thread is staggering.

 

[Kyle.B]

Im not here to correct anyone or humble anyone. It undermines forums when advice is solicted, and people dispense "info" that is totally erroneous. Spend some time on the forestry forum, or arborsite, if you want to learn about saws. Youll find, that the aggregate opinion does not coincide with yours. Foregoing the erroneous input your provided. Not to mention most sales people dont know their back end from a tea cup, they are just there to tell you what you want to hear, and make a sale, let alone know anything about what they sell, as you have so clearly pointed out.

Want to know something about a saw, find the guy that makes his LIVING with it, as well as repairs it. He can tell you something, hes not vested in making a paycheck blowing smoke up your ***.

The point is not being right or wrong, but dispensing advice based on lack of knowledge, not such a great idea. If you dispense, and your not sure, at least declare you have no clue what your talking about, like " some salesman was blowing smoke up my *** and said x units where outsourced and made in china" for example.

If you want to provide factual advice, at least verify what you dispensing.

Haha, dude, if you're going to rant at someone about posting "factual advice" and "verify what you dispensing", you need to do the same

From Knuckles:

"No China"

"So allow me to set the record straight, they build the pro models in Sweden and the consumer models in Nashville, AR. They DO NOT outsource, any of their models."

"It undermines forums when advice is solicted, and people dispense "info" that is totally erroneous. "

From Husqvarna:
"Handheld products such as trimmers and chainsaws in the low-end segment are manufactured at the Group's plants in China."

Hmm, who to believe? I wouldn't want the forum "undermined"

texasfiremedic posted his anecdotal opinion, just like everybody else.


Sorry to "call you out" on it, but reading the thread I knew I remembered seeing "Made in China" somewhere in regards to Husqvarna when I was shopping for mine. Then you're post kinda irritated me.

 

[Audiocrazy28]

What's your budget for a new saw? Ace hardware sometimes has stihl homeowner saws for under $200.

 

[Heavy tech]

What ever you decide on, do yourself a favour and throw the safety chain in the trash where it belongs. Any saw shop should be able to get you a regular chain. I'd even grind the safety drags off if I couldn't find a normal chain. Also, get yourself saw pants, or chaps at a minimum, and of course steel toe boots, if not proper saw boots.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[sasquatch12]

Ok, i'll chirp in here with my saw. Lol
It's only a Poulan model 3400 anti-vibe,(56cc)-20inch bar, i bought new in 1988, and am still using it, always starts, usually on the first pull, and has cut 100's of cords of firewood. I've burnt wood for 40 years, so have used this saw every season since 1988.
It has never let me down, and have only ever replaced the plug,air filter,chain and bar.
Yeah, i realize i just happened to get a good one by luck. I cut 12-16 face cords of hardwood each year, but have also used it for limbing, and even ripping sheets of plywood etc.

 

[2mJps]

I have a small poulan and have owned and used alot of different saws. If i wasnt going to use it alot i would buy a cheaper saw because it will seat around alot and that is hard on any thing.

 

[cheechi]

The amount of bad advice and misinformation in this thread is staggering.

Thanks for your worthwhile contribution. Why don't you correct some of the bad advice and misinformation instead of trolling.

I AGREE! Except for the outta the box thing.

You are right, bad wording on my part. What I meant by 'out of the box' was take it out of the box at the store, make sure it starts, and make sure it's adjusted before its put on the counter and paid for. Even though I bought my Husq at lowes, I took it straight to Northern where they do warranty service for Husq and had them adjust it. He showed me how I can maintain it myself later on if it comes out of adjustment (you have to learn from someone, sometime right?) and what to do to keep it right. This is the kind of service you expect from an independent dealer and definitely don't get from lowes depot. And they didn't even sell it to me, though they have sold me plenty of other tools and taken care of each one the same.

And btw, all of my Husq tools have been at least assembled in USA, I think one of the blowers is even made in USA.

 

[ihrescue]

I have takin a number of free Macs and Poulans (Craftsman) that wouldn't run and rehabbed them to make them workable but two years ago I wanted a new saw. I bought a Husqvarna 445 with an 18" bar. I am very happy with the Husky, it feels at ease cutting, plenty of power. I would high recommend it.

 

[fourjeepin]

OP here. Thanks for all of the suggestions!

Electric saw:
I already have an electric saw and really like it for limbing once a tree is down. It is part of a pole saw and the bar is maybe 8". No good for taking down full size trees. And would not be any help if the power is out due to a nice storm which is what promoted this discussion and spousal blessing for tool purchase!

Big box:
I am inclined to purchase from them as I am employed by the local one.

Maintenance:
I don't know how to adjust the carb on one of these, nor have I learned to sharpen the blade, but I do tend to perform all maintenance myself. I am particular about how things are done and would rather screw it up myself than pay someone to do that for me.

Budget:
I would say $300 or less. I did purchase the 18" Poulan Pro a couple of days ago, but immediately had second thoughts. So I guess the new question is, of the Echo or Poulon, which should I get? The 20" Poulan got really good reviews online, but is a good bit larger than my planned 16" saw purchase.

 

[sawin]

OP here. Thanks for all of the suggestions!

Electric saw:
I already have an electric saw and really like it for limbing once a tree is down. It is part of a pole saw and the bar is maybe 8". No good for taking down full size trees. And would not be any help if the power is out due to a nice storm which is what promoted this discussion and spousal blessing for tool purchase!

Big box:
I am inclined to purchase from them as I am employed by the local one. Makes no nevermind. Who is going to set it up and keep the carb adjusted? Keep in mind that, most probably, the local dealer won't be real happy to work on saws from the box stores. You will probably be given 3rd class service.

Also, a lot of items in the box stores are not the same items you could purchase elsewhere. The stores demand cheaper from the supplier, and cheaper - built - is what they get. And it might even have the same model no. as a saw at the dealers./COLOR]

Maintenance:
I don't know how to adjust the carb on one of these, nor have I learned to sharpen the blade, but I do tend to perform all maintenance myself. This is a big part of the maint. These tasks are done over and over. The salesman -you?- in the big box store is not going to teach you. And it is not a called a "blade"!I am particular about how things are done and would rather screw it up myself than pay someone to do that for me. It doesn't take a whole lot of "screw it up myself" to blow up a saw, and they are mostly not worth rebuilding.

Budget:
I would say $300 or less. I did purchase the 18" Poulan Pro a couple of days ago, but immediately had second thoughts. So I guess the new question is, of the Echo or Poulon, which should I get? The 20" Poulan got really good reviews online, but is a good bit larger than my planned 16" saw purchase.

Nuff said.

 

[magnusk750]

Rcently bought myself a Hitachi/Tanaka small homeowner saw. Haven't used it much but so far so good.

 

[Davefr]

OP here. Thanks for all of the suggestions!

Big box:
I am inclined to purchase from them as I am employed by the local one.

The only saw I'd get at a box store is the Makita DCS-6401 (made by Dolmar).

It's the saw HD rents out in their rental center. These saws spend most of the time sitting on a shelf waiting to be rented. HD actual maintains them well.

After a couple years HD has to sell them for financial reasons. (depreciation??)

I bought one for <$200, put on the Dolmar 7900 piston/cylinder kit and it outcuts a Stihl MS660.

This saw is far superior to the "toys" sold on the shelf.

Try to find a HD rental center selling one off.

 

[Hpozzuoli]

Here's a pic of my jonsered Cs2255. I never had a Stihl myself, but cut with guys that have them. If I find something I like I stick with it. The makita next to it is the dcp7321. Makes the jonsered look small, but it isn't really that small. I just put my 16" bar on it in case I needed it for the storm.

I keep them in my shed with the rest of the yard equipment and tractor. You can also see the grey tip of the ryobi chainsaw. That is used for cutting roots and dirty work. It needs a new bar and chain right now.

 

[Busted_Knuckles]

By the way here is your Quote. From husqvarna.com
Electric lawn mowers and robotic lawn mowers are manufactured at a facility in the U.K. Watering products are manufactured at production facilities in Germany and in the Czech Republic. In China handheld products such as trimmers and chainsaws in the low-price segment are produced. In Japan and Brazil chainsaws and other handheld products are produced. In the new production facility in Poland walk-behind and ride-on lawn mowers are produced. In Sweden, trimmers, clearing saws , chainsaws and ride-on mowers are manufactured

Its customary, when you quote the www. you provide a link, being that you didnt, I had to go find it.

Uh, little problem there sport, that is their European and Asian Market Division that you quoted, not north American Sales. Apples and oranges.

http://husqvarnagroup.com/en/about/our-business/europe-asia-pacific


You go into any retail, or wholesale store in the USA, try and find on SAW that does not have a USA tag or a Made in Sweden attached to. Being that Husky sells around the planet, my guess is they sell their Asian imports abroad and not here. Either that or they own some other low end saw company we are not aware of, and peddle those saws under another name.

If you come across your salesman again, ask him to show you a Husky saw that was made in Asia. The poulan I just bought, clearly is marked on the box and saw "USA". After spending years on 3 saw forums, not once has mention of a non USA or Sweden Husky Saw ever been made, and COO is a big damn deal to those guys. There are knock offs, but they have nothing to do with husky, anymore than Loncin or Lifan have to do with Honda.

I think this is the link you meant to post...

http://husqvarnagroup.com/en/about/our-business/americas

Production

The greater part of production is at Group production facilities in the US. Handheld products such as trimmers and chainsaws in the low-end segment are manufactured at the Group's plants in China. Handheld products such as chainsaws and clearing saws are supplied by the plant in Huskvarna, Sweden. Handheld products are also manufactured in Brazil.

These facilities are specialized and highly flexible, in order to enable response to seasonal and weather-related variations in demand.

As far as the "Handheld products such as trimmers and chainsaws in the low-end segment are manufactured at the Group's plants in China"

Im going to go on a hunt to see if I can locate a poulan saw with a COO of China. To date, Ive yet to see any Husky myself with anything but a COO of USA or Sweden, there are 3 dealers in my area that peddle Husky.