A Saw is good for how many hrs?

[DDM]

I've never really gave it much thought but how many hr's is a saw good for?
I have a ms200t thats 3 yr's old it gets swapped out for a 4 month old saw when it runs out of fuel.This of course happens several times a day.Except for the appearence performance wise you cant tell them apart.If you figure on the average they run 4 days a week 6 hrs a day. So each saw runs 3 hrs a day.
3 x 4 = 12 x 52=624 X 3 = 1872 hrs That seems like alot of hrs for a 2 stroke.
Except plugs,Air filter and a new top handle "oops" its never had anything else done to it.

 

[NWCS]

saw life depends on the user. for example a Stihl 044.

in the hands of some loggers, that saw could last a month.

in my hands with doing side jobs, sitting in the garage the bulk of the time it could last 10 years. i cut probly 8-15 cords of firewood a year plus light side logging jobs and i have been getting about 5+ years out of a saw. so i have come to just expect no less than 5 years out of a saw. in that 5 years i expect to only need a set of rings and a carb kit.

my 036 Pro is going on 5 years and it has had just that, rings. still no carb rebuild yet. rings were put in when i woods ported the saw roughly 8 months ago but i am not sure how long it has been.

my first husky 181 lasted me 5 years. it was bought from a 70 year old logger in my area that was retiring. it needed rings, a carb kit and a handlebar. i paid $25 cash for that saw and had a total of less than $125 in it.

 

[Lakeside53]

1875... you're doing something right... Generally the 20T/200T and most Stihl pro saws are supposed to last 1800-2000 hours, but it really depends on the user/abuser. I've seen them last much longer, and much less.

If your compression is still holding above 140, and it's not showing signs of unstable idle (worn piston skirts), leaky seals or loosening crank bearings, it's got life left. Maybe a great backup saw for its sunset years.

On the other hand, you can drop $150 into it with a modest repair at a dealer... but if it still runs nice, you can get $275 to $300 on ebay... a new saw is say $500; so for for $225 you can have a new one. And the old one cost you $300/150 weeks - $2.00 a week... if I did the math right.

 

[bump_r]

OOOOH OOOHHHH!! Math! Suppose a guy had a fresh MS460. Suppose that guy put a tie-wrap on the handle every time he filled the tank (saw sees only occasional use, the mighty FARM BOSS is the primary saw, and this guy is trying to keep track of the 460's "break-in complete, retune carb").

Anyway, figuring fuel consumption rate for this saw, expected service life expectency, and fuel tank volume - how many handles full of tie wraps would I, er, HE have piled up in the garage before the 460 died?

Been pumping out babies for the last year and a half, so my sawing has been quite spotty for the last year - still has but 3 tie wraps on the machine. Sad. At this rate, I'll have to convert it to hydrogen fuel cell to finish it off.

 

[Vincent]

Hi there,

what is a " Indicator" for worn out piston-rings ? I use my 048 occasional now for ~25 years.
But the story of my 288 xp I do not know and how many trees she made.
Both run good but now i am a bit scary how long they do it.

Cheers Vincent.

 

[Lakeside53]

Hi there,

what is a " Indicator" for worn out piston-rings ? I use my 048 occasional now for ~25 years.
But the story of my 288 xp I do not know and how many trees she made.
Both run good but now i am a bit scary how long they do it.

Cheers Vincent.

Compression.... and it may last forever with limited use! The 048 is an overbuilt monster... Never have seen a bad cylinder in one of those!

 

[Lakeside53]

OOOOH OOOHHHH!! Math! Suppose a guy had a fresh MS460. Suppose that guy put a tie-wrap on the handle every time he filled the tank (saw sees only occasional use, the mighty FARM BOSS is the primary saw, and this guy is trying to keep track of the 460's "break-in complete, retune carb").

Anyway, figuring fuel consumption rate for this saw, expected service life expectency, and fuel tank volume - how many handles full of tie wraps would I, er, HE have piled up in the garage before the 460 died?

Been pumping out babies for the last year and a half, so my sawing has been quite spotty for the last year - still has but 3 tie wraps on the machine. Sad. At this rate, I'll have to convert it to hydrogen fuel cell to finish it off.

It's easy - the 460 will last right up until the time those babies you've been pumping out get their hands on it!

 

[DDM]

My 046 is the oldest of the saws i have i puchased it in 2001. I took it in in march to have the oil pump replaced and inspected.Dealer told me compression was still great and the cylinder looked perfect.This saw has had a 32" bar on it since new. It gets ran a average of 8-10 hrs a week.My 036 i had bought in 01 had an incident with a careless climber last summer.This saw was used Daily There was no telling how many hrs it had.The saw suffered a broken tank,Broken
handle assembly ect.I sold this saw to begley tree he replied how clean the cylinder was.Keep in mind I own a tree service my saws are run hard.The only oil i have ever used is stihl coincedence?

 

[bump_r]

It's easy - the 460 will last right up until the time those babies you've been pumping out get their hands on it!

Funny you should mention that, Andy. Handing the thing off to my son was on my mind from the get-go. Matter of fact, picking up the 460 was our first father and son (without mommy) adventure. Here he is on the dealer's floor trying to start it. Good thing it had the comp release feature! BTW, we picked it up march 25 of this year. I gotta run some fuel through it soon, it's starting to like living the life of one of THall's saws!

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Behind me you can see (sort of) the dual-port muffler cover, spare 28" RS chain, dual-spike/chain catcher (got the wrong one DANG!), and fresh jug-o-bar oil. Now THAT trip hurt by beer money reserves! I gotta get the correct spike/catcher for the 460 and figure a way to mount my current 361-spec one on the 170. HA!

The only oil i have ever used is stihl coincedence?

I hear ya. I'm stuck on Shell or Marathon premium gasoline and Stihl mix and bar oils. I have no desire to experiment with either - what I have works, and I'd never run enough to find "the ultimate".

Aside from anecdotal "evidence", I see no end-user being able to determine what oil is better than any others. Who runs enough saws with a large enough sample size in controlled conditions, with a documented set of oils AND collect the required objective measurements to ever statistacally/scientifically make that call? No one that is trying to put bread on the table by using the saw. Thus, I'll leave that research to the pros and trust their recommendations. If I ever find the same oils avaailable in cheaper non-orange bottles, well, that's a different story!

 

[Lakeside53]

Cool pic!!! The kid's already interested!

Thall's got his MS660 - mothballed (mounted on the wall) for his grandson!

 

[bump_r]

Thanks, that's a memory-makig pic, I tell ya!

So far, I've bought him a "Home Depot" toy saw from toys R us and a Stihl one from the dealer (OUCH!). Hate to say it, but preliminary subjective results suggest that the Home Deopt (Husky?) is superior to the Stihl. More testing to follow.

Wow, a mint 660! I hope the kid appreciates it!

 

[Cut4fun]

Hey bump, enjoy that time with the kids. They grow up way to fast and the time will never come back. Cherish it. (Not the saw bump I meant kids). lol. Nice pic and memory for you.

 

[bump_r]

Thanks C4F. That's what it's all about - making memories while living in the "now". The kids are a real gift. Now, to get 'em to quit crappin' their pants...

 

[Lakeside53]

Thanks C4F. That's what it's all about - making memories while living in the "now". The kids are a real gift. Now, to get 'em to quit crappin' their pants...

That's easy - no pants! wait...

 

[jefeVTtreeman]

toys are us

bought my son (4years) the toys R us model that makes noise and all he puts his next to dads new 650 and 346xp every day we load up and he reaches for the 650 guess somebody said they were smart at that age. Oh yeah just tell him
bob the builder doesn't crap in his paints.

ps his sister (3years) reaches for the xp

 

[DDM]

Forget the toys just turn them loose!

 

[bump_r]

That's easy - no pants! wait...

Been there already. Fella was running around without a diaper, and apparently felt "the urge".. Li'l guy bends the knees (not a full squat like a girlie-boy, mind you, but more of a "I'm going for a record!" hunker-down) and grabs ahold and lets it fly. Made me proud. Kind of. Next I gotta teach him how to grab from the SIDE not the END. Hardwood floors are great.

 

[SteveH]

Well, there in the photo, on the counter, one can also see the wad of cash. That is all this stuff requires!! If I had a wad of my own, mebbe I'd have more saws....

 

[THALL10326]

Cool pic!!! The kid's already interested!

Thall's got his MS660 - mothballed (mounted on the wall) for his grandson!

Dusted off weekly,LOL. That boy better like that thing when I hand it to him, if not I'm gonna be one very unhappy Grandpappy knowing all the teasing I took from a guy way up in Washington over that virgin 660,:hmm3grin2orange: :hmm3grin2orange:

 

[04ultra]

Dusted off weekly,LOL. That boy better like that thing when I hand it to him, if not I'm gonna be one very unhappy Grandpappy knowing all the teasing I took from a guy way up in Washington over that virgin 660,:hmm3grin2orange: :hmm3grin2orange:

Dont worry Tom it will be sold for a couple cases of beer...Lake was on the number with this..