Best 50cc when modded?

[blsnelling]

Actually Brad my plan was to leave it stock for a little while and then ship it to you to have it worked over. Thanks for the input. My dealer has one in stock right now I think I'll go pick it up when I get some free time.

How good of a price do you get?

 

[Mastermind]

Does the 346 stand noticeably above the 550 or is it a stopwatch thing? Is the 346 about the same weight as a 550? Have not checked specs yet. Does the 261's torque advantage worth the extra weight? That was my biggest beef with my older 346, the need for a light touch.

just my luck i cant find the video now... but somewhere on youtube mastermind has a video of a modified stihl ms261 vs a modified 346xp vs a modifed jonsered 2152. the Jonsered was the fastest saw. it beat the stihl and husky by 1 second on every cut

If the stopwatch turns you on the 346 will win most likely. If Autotune is your thing then the 550 is it. But for a solid saw that you plan to work each day........a modded 261 is king in my book.

I still say a porting the 550 is a great idea.......I've got a couple on the bench right now.

 

[blsnelling]

I've got three MS261s "on the bench" right now. They truly are fantastic saws.

 

[diesel-lineman]

How good of a price do you get?

When I looked at them last week they were $509.00. Now that dealer days are over they are $559.00. Do you think that seems like a fair price?

 

[Jacob J.]

If the stopwatch turns you on the 346 will win most likely. If Autotune is your thing then the 550 is it. But for a solid saw that you plan to work each day........a modded 261 is king in my book.

I still say a porting the 550 is a great idea.......I've got a couple on the bench right now.

Don't discount the 545 either...that 545 that Mitch built is a strong, strong runner. It cuts circles around a Madsen's "Power Tuned" MS-260.

 

[blsnelling]

When I looked at them last week they were $509.00. Now that dealer days are over they are $559.00. Do you think that seems like a fair price?

$520 + 6.5% tax = $555, here. That's with a 16" B&C.

 

[Officer's Match]

Imho, the only reason to wait on the 261C is if you're going to leave it stock. I still prefer an adjustable carb on a ported saw, especially the 261. The mods I make to this model are extensive. I'm skeptical how it will adjust. Only time will tell. That's not to say the Auto Tune doesn't work. I've seen some tuning issues, particularly on the low end and throttle response. I'm speaking particularly of the 441C. I've learned to work my way around the issue, but it required some changes in my mods. Had it been an adjustable carb, it would never have been an issue.

Blasphemy! My 441 M-Tronic is so good it PREVENTS cancer.

 

[diesel-lineman]

$520 + 6.5% tax = $555, here. That's with a 16" B&C.

That's a pretty good price. I'm sure I can talk him down a bit when it comes crunch time. I would really like to look at a 550XP before i buy a MS261, but the problem is there are only 2 Husqvarna dealer around my area and the one caters to the local loggers and the only xp saws he will keep in stock are the 372, 390, and 395, and wants nothing to do with the new AT saws. The other dealer only carries home owner/land owner saws. I would love to buy a 550XP off of the fella who caters to the loggers, he really helped me out when I bought my 395xp off of him, and I have nothing against Husky, I absolutely love my 395, but the Stihl dealer support around here is top notch so that's why I'm leaning toward the MS261 for a new 50cc saw. If it runs anything like the MS260 that I have on my truck at work I will be more than happy with it.

 

[cheeves]

That's a pretty good price. I'm sure I can talk him down a bit when it comes crunch time. I would really like to look at a 550XP before i buy a MS261, but the problem is there are only 2 Husqvarna dealer around my area and the one caters to the local loggers and the only xp saws he will keep in stock are the 372, 390, and 395, and wants nothing to do with the new AT saws. The other dealer only carries home owner/land owner saws. I would love to buy a 550XP off of the fella who caters to the loggers, he really helped me out when I bought my 395xp off of him, and I have nothing against Husky, I absolutely love my 395, but the Stihl dealer support around here is top notch so that's why I'm leaning toward the MS261 for a new 50cc saw. If it runs anything like the MS260 that I have on my truck at work I will be more than happy with it.

Access some of the old posts about indiansprings raving about the 261 and how it's stood up to all his crew's use! Quite impressive!!

 

[diesel-lineman]

Thanks cheeves. I have always been impressed with the beating that our Stihls take at work. We don't do any major cutting with them other than storm damaged trees, a little brush clearing when we don't have our D5N XL with us, and cutting up old cedar high line poles when we are doing pole replacements. It's a shame that half the guys treat them like they are completely useless to us and just throw them around like it's an old grease rag or something. But they always fire right up when it comes time to use them.

 

[SkippyKtm]

One saw that hardly ever gets mentioned in the 50cc class is my German made 032 Stihl! One of the best saws ever made IMHO!!
Mine's still cutting firewood after 30+ years! How many of these new saws will be cutting firewood in 30+ years?!!

I have no doubt in my mind that my Husky 346XP NE will last 30 years, (it will probably outlast me). It all depends on the owner and the way its maintained.

 

[MCW]

I know I might cop some abuse for this comment but if I owned a tree crew and had guys that abused saws or had no concept of saw maintenance I would be buying MS261's over 550XP's without a doubt.
Better saws? Not necessarily.
Tougher and able to take more abuse? I believe so.

 

[spike60]

To me and my liking the 261 from Randy is my favorite. The 346s all lacked torque compared to it.

Isn't it funny how the heavier saws always seem to feel like they have more torque? :tongue2:

 

[MCW]

Isn't it funny how the heavier saws always seem to feel like they have more torque? :tongue2:

Not to mention the 261 is strato and probably a 20 year newer design
A more accurate comparison for the 261 is against the 550XP where engine wise the 261 is a slug. In fact it's a middle aged, balding, overweight Ubér slug

 

[blsnelling]

A more accurate comparison for the 261 is against the 550XP where engine wise the 261 is a slug. In fact it's a middle aged, balding, overweight Ubér slug

You're starting to sound like Saw Troll

 

[MCW]

You're starting to sound like Saw Troll

Heh heh. If the 261's were that good you wouldn't be modding them to get them to perform properly
Oh hang on, you mod everything
Remember I'm talking stock saws though Brad and by your own admission the 261's just lack anything special when stock.

 

[Tnshaker]

I have a 550xp and am considering selling it for a MS 261. The 550xp is unreal at limbing. If you have a bigger saw for felling and use your 550 for limbing then you will think it is awesome. They have better balance and feel the the MS 261 for sure. I however, prefer low end grunt of the Stihl. The air filter is much better. I feel the saws are close but prefer the MS 261 for a better all around saw. Make no mistake the 550xp is a real hot rod stock. I guess that is what has kept me from selling it so far. Plus I have a 5100 that is similar to the Stihl in that is a really good all around saw that like the Stihl is slightly heavier.

 

[MCW]

The air filter is much better.

x 10

 

[Mastermind]

Define "best".

 

[flyinlow]

261 - my favorite

I have a 261 that was modded by Stumpy and it has become my go to saw. I cut walnut, oak, hackberry, and hedge. On oak and hedge it is a little monster until the wood gets over 16" and then I grab the stumpbroke 361. Until the wood gets bigger than 16" you can't tell the 261&361 apart without a good stop watch. At 64 yrs old I will always grab the lighter saw when possible. My 261 has 210 lb of compression and I run AV gas w/ 40 to 1 stihl ultra. I don't know how you could go wrong with a 261-- it's a grin!!!