a funny thing happened on my way to pick up my brand new MS661....

[Big_Wood]

i used to be a .404 guy. now i realize .404 has it's place and that place is a landing or other dirty area's. in the clean and green 3/8's stays just as sharp, doesn't work saws as hard, and is much smoother. teeth don't last as long though. if a smaller sprocket was possible with .404 i would likely run it still.

 

[Trx250r180]

i used to be a .404 guy. now i realize .404 has it's place and that place is a landing or other dirty area's. in the clean and green 3/8's stays just as sharp, doesn't work saws as hard, and is much smoother. teeth don't last as long though. if a smaller sprocket was possible with .404 i would likely run it still.

Quit runnin those orange saws and the chain will work

 

[Big_Wood]

Quit runnin those orange saws and the chain will work

classic turd runner reply

 

[treesmith]

The oiler on an 044 is very effective!

 

[Bwildered]

I run .404 on my ms440 with a stihl light 32 inch. bar,it oils way better than the 3/8 did,stays sharper longer also,it is skip square grind.

What's the idea behind that? Running a bigger pitch on a small saw & having the same amount of oil go further.
Thansk

 

[Moparmyway]

What's the idea behind that? Running a bigger pitch on a small saw & having the same amount of oil go further.
Thansk

.404 edges last longer

as far as oil, IMHO, the larger grooves in .404 allow for more oil to be carried and delivered to the bar tip

 

[Bwildered]

.404 edges last longer

as far as oil, IMHO, the larger grooves in .404 allow for more oil to be carried and delivered to the bar tip

I must have had my beer googles on when I read the original quote, he was using a skip 404 square ground chain on 32" bar on the 440, that's an enthusiastic combination I'll leave that for those with them interests.
Thansk

 

[Moparmyway]

I must have had my beer googles on when I read the original quote, he was using a skip 404 square ground chain on 32" bar on the 440, that's an enthusiastic combination I'll leave that for those with them interests.
Thansk

Knowing him, its a ported 440

 

[Full Chisel]

And he's out west cutting that balsa wood.

 

[MustangMike]

.063 gauge 3/8 will oil better than .050 gauge, and I believe all of Brian's 440s are ported hybrids, hence the longer bars.

 

[Trx250r180]

The .404 has more space between the link pins ,so the space between the drive links is longer so it holds more oil in the channel ,and yes my 440's pull .404 fine ,your results may differ ,with other saws or wood types ,but my combo works good for me . I am not going to lug a 660 around ,when the lighter saw does the job fine ,and yes it pulls the whole bar buried .

 

[Bwildered]

The .404 has more space between the link pins ,so the space between the drive links is longer so it holds more oil in the channel ,and yes my 440's pull .404 fine ,your results may differ ,with other saws or wood types ,but my combo works good for me . I am not going to lug a 660 around ,when the lighter saw does the job fine ,and yes it pulls the whole bar buried .

i'm just impatient, in our hardwoods i couldn't bear waiting around for a small saw to try & cut something that will take half the time with a bigger saw. with cut & snig the machine carries the saw around all day.
thansk

 

[Trx250r180]

Are you running hopped up saws ? I tried a stock 440 for a while ,it lacked tourqe in my opinion,same with 372 felt like 60 cc saws to me. Only hardwoods i cut are maple or aldes,they cut easier than the doug fir that is a softwood,nevet cut an oak so i have no idea there.

 

[Bwildered]

Are you running hopped up saws ? I tried a stock 440 for a while ,it lacked tourqe in my opinion,same with 372 felt like 60 cc saws to me. Only hardwoods i cut are maple or aldes,they cut easier than the doug fir that is a softwood,nevet cut an oak so i have no idea there.

No, i wouldn't hop up a saw unless it was for some kind of competitive cutting where longevity & long term reliability wasn't needed, i find power with chain speed the best.
thansk

 

[MustangMike]

Brian, what kind of Maple do you encounter? There is a world of difference between Sugar Maple and Silver Maple.

But I agree with you, for bucking anything of decent size that is not real soft, there is nothing like a ported saw!

 

[Trx250r180]

Brian, what kind of Maple do you encounter? There is a world of difference between Sugar Maple and Silver Maple.

But I agree with you, for bucking anything of decent size that is not real soft, there is nothing like a ported saw!

I am not sure Mike,i just know it is native maple around here ,if it has a figure to it ,it is valuable for music wood ,like guitars ,if it has little black lines (Spalted i think it's called) that adds to the character in finished wood .

On the hopped up saws lasting ,there is some debate on that ,it really depends if the guy that hopped it up knows what he is doing ,they do take the right guy to run them and tune also ,and the extra heat they make from the higher compresion needs a good oil mixed 40 or 32 to 1 so the bearings live

 

[MustangMike]

But the muffler venting on a ported saw will help it to run cooler and last longer.

High test gas also helps to cool the running temp.

If you run high test gas, 40:1 or better, and maintain your saw, I believe a ported saw will live to cut as much wood as a stock saw, but it will do it a lot faster!

Brian, if you post a pic of a leaf from one of your Maples, I can likely tell you what it is (although Norway and Sugar are hard to tell apart, they are both hard). Silver is distinctive because the tips are very long, and Red (Swamp/Soft) Maple has a smaller leaf & less lobes.

 

[Ryan'smilling]

If we're talking about Maples on the West coast, they'd be Big-leaf maples, or Acer Macrophylum (iirc). They're soft like a silver maple and have huge leaves, as the name suggests. Decent firewood, at least for that part of the country, but nothing like sugar maple. Splits easy too.

I am not sure Mike,i just know it is native maple around here ,if it has a figure to it ,it is valuable for music wood ,like guitars ,if it has little black lines (Spalted i think it's called) that adds to the character in finished wood ./QUOTE]

 

[MustangMike]

Thanks for that info.

 

[Cope1024]

I am not sure Mike,i just know it is native maple around here ,if it has a figure to it ,it is valuable for music wood ,like guitars ,if it has little black lines (Spalted i think it's called) that adds to the character in finished wood .

Ask Mike Brown, he'll know. He sent me some nice pieces a few years ago.