Oregon chains

josh1981 · Apr 7, 2009

I have a stihl ms290 and 180 I need to get a new chain for 180 and spare one for 290. Was thinking Oregon but how good are they? I have el stihl chain on 290 now and picco on 180.

How does Oregon compare? Cheaper? Better?

Any input appreciated

Urbicide · Apr 7, 2009

Stihl makes the best chain. Oregon chain is much softer (but easier to file than Stihl). Carlton chain is right in the middle.

PB · Apr 7, 2009

Cheaper and the industry standard. Just as good of quality as Stihl (if not better).

PB · Apr 7, 2009

Urbicide said:
Stihl makes the best chain. Oregon chain is much softer (but easier to file than Stihl). Carlton chain is right in the middle.

THe new "x" chains are made out of a harder material.

zr900 · Apr 7, 2009

Oregon chain has worked well for me. I have uses Oregon 91vx and pico and can't tell much if any difference other than price.

Same goes for Oregon LGX vs Stihl RSC. Both are good chains but i can get 2 oregon chains for the price of 1 stihl chain. If the stihl chain lasts longer its not by much and definitely not twice a long to cover the price difference.

josh1981 · Apr 7, 2009

How much lighter is 20 inch Oregon bar than stihl bar? And howis quality of it?

Oregon sounds good to me so far!

Turkeyslayer · Apr 7, 2009

I had always ran oregon lp chain until this year, now I run the lpx. I think that the lpx lasts longer than the lp, and still cuts great. :chainsaw:

Turkeyslayer · Apr 7, 2009

josh1981 said:
How much lighter is 20 inch Oregon bar than stihl bar? And howis quality of it?

Oregon sounds good to me so far!

I dont know about the weight, but the quality is top notch IMO. The power match bars seem to be very well made and sturdy. Around here the loggers use them as well as the local township crews. :chainsaw:

thejdman04 · Apr 7, 2009

Oregon is good for the money, woodland pro is good for the money as well. You get what you pay for. Stihl is the most expensive, but is the best oregon is good but a bit bcheaper. Woodland pro isnt real good but isnt real expensive either. For the money they are all good. Its just a matter of what you want to spend and how much you use your saw.

MaddBomber · Apr 8, 2009

In my line of work I deal with dirty skidded hardwoods (alot of people don't appreciate what that really means) the Oregon Power Match bar is second best only to the Windsor Speed Tip.... However, I did notice some distict similarities.
I have run enough Oregon SuperGuard and MicroChisel chains to say that they can't compete with Stihl chains. Stihl uses a much tougher material, but they are tough to shapen (worth it). I can dull most chains in under an hour, and i definatly notice a LARGE difference between the brands. Stihl has the quality. I get custom made loops for my Jonsered at the Stihl dealer. They Rip!!!! Go Stihl, or go :censored:....... Just go Stihl. You won't regret it..... There's nothin like a good pile of noodles.

dingeryote · Apr 8, 2009

MaddBomber said:
In my line of work I deal with dirty skidded hardwoods (alot of people don't appreciate what that really means) the Oregon Power Match bar is second best only to the Windsor Speed Tip.... However, I did notice some distict similarities.
I have run enough Oregon SuperGuard and MicroChisel chains to say that they can't compete with Stihl chains. Stihl uses a much tougher material, but they are tough to shapen (worth it). I can dull most chains in under an hour, and i definatly notice a LARGE difference between the brands. Stihl has the quality. I get custom made loops for my Jonsered at the Stihl dealer. They Rip!!!! Go Stihl, or go :censored:....... Just go Stihl. You won't regret it..... There's nothin like a good pile of noodles.

Agreed on Oregon chains.

If there is any chance dirty cutting is going to be involved, Oregon has yet to make a chain worth a tinkers damn.

The new blue LGX ain't bad(Cuts about like Stihl RSC) untill things start to get dirty or sandy. Then it's over quick, and any cost savings is out the window with files used up per volume of wood cut, and time lost between tank fills filing.

In clean wood I have to file/swap chains less with RSC or RM as well, so I stay with it.
Despite the ball busting from the Stihl dealer for running Stihl chain on a Husky, and the couple of bucks price difference.

Cheaper in the long run IMO.

Stay safe!
Dingeryote

MCW · Apr 8, 2009

dingeryote said:
The new blue LGX ain't bad untill things start to get dirty or sandy. Then it's over quick

I agree.
Don't under estimate Carlton or Windsor chain though. Guys here will argue for hours about which chain is best. When conditions get tough and dirty I've found Carlton and Windsor hold up the best in semi chisel, far better than Stihl. This has also been shown time and time again in Australia on hardwoods by guys who do a lot of milling (BobL, you there?). In full chisel on green wood Stihl has a pretty loyal following. I've used LGX on green, clean wood with no complaints but any full chisel in dirty conditions will struggle.

SawTroll · Apr 8, 2009

I prefer RSC by just a slight margin over LP and LGX (haven't tried LPX yet).

My wood usually is clean and green, and I touch up the chain pretty often - so not an acid test for stay-sharp though......

I believe the reason Stihl chain hold up better in dirty wood (they do) probably is thicker chrome, not harder metal.

Regarding laminated bars - the Stihl ones usually are the lightest ones, but nothing wrong with Oregon.

MCW · Apr 8, 2009

SawTroll said:
I believe the reason Stihl chain hold up better in dirty wood (they do) probably is thicker chrome, not harder metal.

Not trying to start another chain debate but either we get Stihl chain from the reject bin out here or Australian's have different views on what constitutes "dirty" and "hardwood" than the rest of the world

Not only that but it costs a small fortune here as well (ie; Carlton/Windsor USD$200 dealer price for 100', Stihl USD$320 for 100' - Oregon somewhere in the middle).
I have found the Stihl chain that I've used cuts very smooth though!
I agree Sawtroll that its mainly the chrome that counts too but there is also hard and soft chrome. I find "seemingly" softer chromed chains tends to create more burrs when grinding.

SawTroll · Apr 8, 2009

MCW said:
Not trying to start another chain debate but either we get Stihl chain from the reject bin out here or Australian's have different views on what constitutes "dirty" and "hardwood" than the rest of the world
Not only that but it costs a small fortune here as well (ie; Carlton/Windsor USD$200 dealer price for 100', Stihl USD$320 for 100' - Oregon somewhere in the middle).
I have found the Stihl chain that I've used cuts very smooth though!
I agree Sawtroll that its mainly the chrome that counts too but there is also hard and soft chrome. I find "seemingly" softer chromed chains tends to create more burrs when grinding.

The Stihl bars down under are GB as far as I know - are you sure the Stihl chain is the real deal, made in Switzerland?

tomtrees58 · Apr 8, 2009

yep we have used four over 30 years now its good we go Thur a couple 100' foot a year tom trees :clap:

tdi-rick · Apr 8, 2009

SawTroll said:
The Stihl bars down under are GB as far as I know - are you sure the Stihl chain is the real deal, made in Switzerland?

Yep, the Stihl chain here is the real deal.

I mainly use Carlton semi for firewood too.

You have me intrigued on the Stihl bars, I'll have to check next time I go to town.

MCW · Apr 8, 2009

SawTroll said:
The Stihl bars down under are GB as far as I know - are you sure the Stihl chain is the real deal, made in Switzerland?

Like Rick said I presume its the real deal as its coming straight from authorised Stihl dealers. My Stihl chain experience is pretty well limited to 3/8" LP and 3/8" standard semi chisel although I have had a few loops of full chisel in the past.

tdi-rick said:
I mainly use Carlton semi for firewood too.

You have me intrigued on the Stihl bars, I'll have to check next time I go to town.

I picked up a 20" Rollomatic Stihl branded/coded bar direct from GB but it was pretty old stock - not sure whether they are still made locally by GB or not? I've seen some Stihl bars delivered to local Stihl dealers recently that look like they have different packaging/labelling to typical GB bars. Didn't see where they're made though.

stinkbait · Apr 8, 2009

Oregon 72LGX all the way!

SawTroll · Apr 8, 2009

tdi-rick said:
Yep, the Stihl chain here is the real deal.

I mainly use Carlton semi for firewood too.

You have me intrigued on the Stihl bars, I'll have to check next time I go to town.

That is true Stihl stuff, for sure!

I don't think that there are any better semi-chisels out there than the RM/RMC - but I need semi very seldom - maybe once each 3rd year or so, to remove a stump.......

Oregon chains

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