# i know im oppening a can of worms. top handle saws?



## rjb (Jun 21, 2013)

im in the market for a new top handle corently have a 200t but it is tired so i am wondering what every one carrys on there belt and why and the good and the bads of the saws i am not hooked on stihl but that is most what i own. has any one used a tanaka if so for how long ( amount cut).


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## KenJax Tree (Jun 21, 2013)

After reading these 355T threads and getting sick of waiting for the elusive T540xp to appear i went and bought an Echo 355T and so far i love it,its not a 200T but it smokes a 201T outta the box, the 201 has more torque after the mods but the Echo isn't far behind and when its broke in they give the 201's a run for their money.

201T $625+$50 for mods so its actually usable=$675

355T $425 and rips right out of the box


I haven't found anything on the 355T i don't like.


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## ropensaddle (Jun 21, 2013)

KenJax Tree said:


> After reading these 355T threads and getting sick of waiting for the elusive T540xp to appear i went and bought an Echo 355T and so far i love it,its not a 200T but it smokes a 201T outta the box, the 201 has more torque after the mods but the Echo isn't far behind and when its broke in they give the 201's a run for their money.
> 
> 201T $625+$50 for mods so its actually usable=$675
> 
> ...



echo get bad rap imo they are fine saws for the most part!


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## KenJax Tree (Jun 21, 2013)

This is the first Echo i've ever used i've always has 020 and 200T so i can't comment on the others but i really like this saw. I also have a 201T that Brad modded and it shines in bigger wood but for someone looking for a great little saw and trying to save a little $$ ($200) the 355T is the way to go.


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## beastmaster (Jun 22, 2013)

Ive always liked echos. I must have 8 or nine of them laying around. Granted they didn't use to have the power, and they only lasted about a year and a half but they didn't cost much. I have a modded 330 that cuts pretty good, I like it better then the 338 husky. I love my modded sthil 201. We have a echo 355 at work and its a really nice saw, but the stock bar and chain are cheap. I took the bar off a new husky 338 and put it on the echo, big improvement.


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## KenJax Tree (Jun 22, 2013)

beastmaster said:


> Ive always liked echos. I must have 8 or nine of them laying around. Granted they didn't use to have the power, and they only lasted about a year and a half but they didn't cost much. I have a modded 330 that cuts pretty good, I like it better then the 338 husky. I love my modded sthil 201. We have a echo 355 at work and its a really nice saw, but the stock bar and chain are cheap. I took the bar off a new husky 338 and put it on the echo, big improvement.



I thought Echo had a different mount(A041) and the Husky is (K095). I know it'll fit but aren't the oil holes different? Did you have to drill a new oil hole?


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## treesmith (Jun 22, 2013)

had an Echo top handle years ago, can't remember the model but I never liked it. That was partly down to that I never had it running right but also it felt wrong after an 020 and the chain was 45 DL not 44 so my tired 020(black top) chains didn't fit which just annoyed me. I did the obvious carb, filters, lines, looked through ports, etc but that was the limit of my knowledge at the time. Moved onto a second hand 020t(orange top) then 200t, and bought one of the last new ones last year so should be ok for a little while. Never liked the Husky at all either. Maybe I'm just biased


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## beastmaster (Jun 22, 2013)

KenJax Tree said:


> I thought Echo had a different mount(A041) and the Husky is (K095). I know it'll fit but aren't the oil holes different? Did you have to drill a new oil hole?



No I didn't drill no new oil holes, didn't even think about it, it fit, I went with it. Thank for the info, I'll check to see if its oiling. I'v hadn't used the saw but for a test cut to see if it worked, but Iv done other swaps I better check.


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## KenJax Tree (Jun 22, 2013)

beastmaster said:


> No I didn't drill no new oil holes, didn't even think about it, it fit, I went with it. Thank for the info, I'll check to see if its oiling. I'v hadn't used the saw but for a test cut to see if it worked, but Iv done other swaps I better check.



There was a thread about this.
http://www.arboristsite.com/chainsaw/236288.htm


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## Guran (Jun 23, 2013)

rjb said:


> has any one used a tanaka if so for how long ( amount cut).



Hi RJB. I've got a Tanaka top hand saw. CS25. It's my primary saw when climbing. Think it's great. Just check that there is a proper chain on it. When mine came out of the box, it had a low kick back safety chain on it. Worthless.
Replaced it with a 91VX from Oregon, and now it works great.


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## miko0618 (Jun 23, 2013)

i run a 192t and a 338xp. 75% of the time i am running the 192. with a 12 or 14" light bar, its fine. i opened the muffler and after a few tanks of gas and some jet adjustment, it cuts well. its balanced very well and its very light. i really like it. my 338 is also muffler modded and sports a 16" standard bar. i don't like the ergonomics of it as much. the trigger should be larger. the weight of the saw is in front of your hand making it feel a little heavy even with a 14" bar. the air filter needs cleaned with every tank. but, it has all the power you need. it will run buried a 16" bar in hardwood no problem. i use it on my bigger removals. it is built very well. the echos feel generic to me. like brittle plastic. i don't like the toggle switch and the lanyard clip either.


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## KenJax Tree (Jun 23, 2013)

miko0618 said:


> i run a 192t and a 338xp. 75% of the time i am running the 192. with a 12 or 14" light bar, its fine. i opened the muffler and after a few tanks of gas and some jet adjustment, it cuts well. its balanced very well and its very light. i really like it. my 338 is also muffler modded and sports a 16" standard bar. i don't like the ergonomics of it as much. the trigger should be larger. the weight of the saw is in front of your hand making it feel a little heavy even with a 14" bar. the air filter needs cleaned with every tank. but, it has all the power you need. it will run buried a 16" bar in hardwood no problem. i use it on my bigger removals. it is built very well. the echos feel generic to me. like brittle plastic. i don't like the toggle switch and the lanyard clip either.



Thats in the past for Echo,they got the 355T right.


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## miko0618 (Jun 24, 2013)

i don't have any experience with the echos other than picking them up in the store. i just see what my saws go through when i am in the tree and thought "i'll shatter this thing". if they are good, they are good. that was just my impression.


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## popwarlick (Jun 26, 2013)

*I run 192t*

And out of the box they are dogs. After racing saws 25 years I learned you can make any saw better than it started out. Take the muffler off,open up the port where it exhausts and still be able to use the deflector. Inside the muffler open up the middle part of the muffler. Sometimes the carb linkage has a little slack in it and dont let it open all tha way up..take a pair of pliers and take all the slack out by taking the linkage and squeeze some of the bend out of it. If that's not enough to make it run,pry off the plastic pieces on the hi and low. Now you can adjust the carb because it may need it from opening the muffler. You can take the carb apart,just the fuel pump diaphragm side,take a small screwdriver and bend the fuel pump lever up just enough if you look at the carb from the side you can see the bottom of the fuel pump lever,even with the carb bottom..try this ,if its not enough let me know.although this makes the saw fair bit louder.


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## KenJax Tree (Jun 26, 2013)

You can do all that to a saw?


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## popwarlick (Jun 26, 2013)

*You can do more*

Usually it's not worth it..one of the main things to is be sure you run the best fuel you can find. No ethanol at all and a little octane booster doesn't hurt,not that expensive.nothing pi.... Me off more than saw that won't cut. One thing though ,you do that to the saw the warranty is gone unless you know your saw dealer real well


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## PassionForTrees (Jun 27, 2013)

Stihl 020T still going like a bat out of hell ready for more! got a 200T and after the scare from the negative feedback on the 201's having to mod and all, I searched on Ebay for used 200's and got 2 pretty new condition for $900 bucks that's 2 of them!! Taking that saw away from me is like cutting my right arm off and Im a climber! I run a 16" bar with good Pro chain took out the arester if that's how ya spell it and Im happy as can be! I used to years ago have a 330 evl echo and it was rear handle saw but It did just fine, not a 020 but I still liked it better than husky's. I have heard good things on the new Echo and am inclined to try one out for training newbies, but I still have my 019 for that. :msp_sneaky:


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## rjb (Jun 27, 2013)

Thank you all for posting iv been working and sleeping than working again so I haven't had time to get on the site keep it coming I appreciate all the help and advice that you all have thanks


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## popwarlick (Jun 27, 2013)

*If you need some help*

On your saws I'll be glad to help you out. I've seen to many times you can get in a bind up high waitn on a saw to cut. Hey ,send it to me or pm me and I'll do what I can to help you get your saws running better. Least I can do for fellow tree people


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## just1 (Sep 8, 2013)

*ms 150*

has anyone used the new sthil ms 150 its supposed to be a pro climbing saw but it sounds a little on the week side I was wondering if it was a pos like the 201 or if they figured out something it sounds light and I love sthil but the 201 was a huge disappointment Im praying this saw will be different


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## zogger (Sep 12, 2013)

just1 said:


> has anyone used the new sthil ms 150 its supposed to be a pro climbing saw but it sounds a little on the week side I was wondering if it was a pos like the 201 or if they figured out something it sounds light and I love sthil but the 201 was a huge disappointment Im praying this saw will be different



Have you read any of the posts on the chainsaw forum about how to make the 201T perform? Coupla nice threads and some vids. Apparently, not much to it.


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## Matt81 (Mar 29, 2014)

just1 said:


> *ms 150*
> 
> has anyone used the new sthil ms 150 its supposed to be a pro climbing saw but it sounds a little on the week side I was wondering if it was a pos like the 201 or if they figured out something it sounds light and I love sthil but the 201 was a huge disappointment Im praying this saw will be different



There are many threads explaining how the 201T can be fixed to make it cut with or even outcut a stock 200T.

As to the 150T, i could not get rid of it quick enough. If it was mine i probably would have thrown it out of the tree!! Seeing as it was the dealers and he wanted an honest opinion i told him if the tree was entirely made up of 2" branches and trunk it would perform OK. This is the kind of saw you climb with to simply detail a trunk. I know i cannot afford to own a climb saw simply for this sole purpose.


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## Valandscaper (Mar 30, 2014)

I run a 338xp and love it. My only complaints are the air filter (already mentioned) and the exhaust location. The ups are I pulls a .325 chain and has plenty of power. This is the only husky I own if been thinking of trying a 201 just because I've got to drive too far to a husky dealer but I'm always at stihl


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