Best Chinese chainsaw, Farmertec Vs Neotec Vs ?

[Bubster]

I remember not long ago when American made saws such as Poulan and Homelite got bad names for making junk. Everybody was on the German and Swede bandwagon. I admit I still can't bring myself to buy the Holzforma 288 I look at on Amazon almost every day, but to have a saw that could almost be made into a full Husky for under $300 is going to win me over one of these days. Maybe.

 

[SimonHS]

A few more pics of my winnersView attachment 1103340View attachment 1103341View attachment 1103342View attachment 1103343View attachment 1103344View attachment 1103345View attachment 1103346

Are the D handles Neotec brand or other aftermarket brand?

 

[RedneckChainsawRepair]

G888 121.6cc Gen2 of MS880 that came out years back it seems now by Farmertec. Maybe 2021 22. Losing track that they have so many different saws to select from.

They even have the newer G266 the later version of MS260. G660 G444 G466 G366 G111T if into the older stihl stuff. I just cant make myself go to the older ones past those in stihl myself.

Are rev-limited 11.5k. But a quick 361 coil or farmertec unlimited coil takes care of that.

I run everything on 40:1 just like oem o p e too.

 

[RedneckChainsawRepair]

For zenoah chainsaw copies I always just bought joncutter version farmertec sells too.

G2500 and G3800 of the redmax 2500 3800 zenoah made was the one I tried for lighter saws years back.

The other sizes in 5800 6200 7500 I have well covered so never bothered with those.

 

[xraydaniel]

Are the D handles Neotec brand or other aftermarket brand?

It’s Neotec branded but made by a large manufacturer somewhere in Zeijiang or Guandong. They are made to order for all the different brand names such as Neotec, Holzforma, Jon Cutter, Coocheer etc. Same goes for the 5800 and 6200. Possibly a few manufacturers exist with the same tooling. I’m sure that changes often too.

 

[RedneckChainsawRepair]

JMO if wanting a D ring handle. Here in US the stihl rescue handle was 5 and thinking now 7. But they OEM stihl ones dont break like the aftermarket ones do.

I used the stihl oem ones on some high psi race saw stuff too. Stihl part # shown.

 

[SimonHS]

JMO if wanting a D ring handle. Here in US the stihl rescue handle was 5 and thinking now 7. But they OEM stihl ones dont break like the aftermarket ones do.

I used the stihl oem ones on some high psi race saw stuff too. Stihl part # shown.

View attachment 1103427View attachment 1103428View attachment 1103429

Thanks. I found some even cheaper over here. I ordered five.

 

[RedneckChainsawRepair]

Thanks. I found some even cheaper over here. I ordered five.

View attachment 1103478

I got to say. Thats got to be the first time something been cheaper over there.
https://www.lsengineers.co.uk/starter-grip-for-stihl-046-ms460-part-no-1128-195-3401.html

 

[SimonHS]

I got to say. Thats got to be the first time something been cheaper over there.
https://www.lsengineers.co.uk/starter-grip-for-stihl-046-ms460-part-no-1128-195-3401.html

You are not wrong!

Also ordered one of these at the same time, just because:

 

[gurwald]

I have 3 clone saws, farmtec 372, 660 and a 200t, the rubber all degrade in a few years and carb issues like high or low jet dont respond much or at all to adjustments.
They are fun to build but they mostly sit because I have real saws to use.
And resell value is close to zero.

 

[Maintenance supervisor]

I remember not long ago when American made saws such as Poulan and Homelite got bad names for making junk. Everybody was on the German and Swede bandwagon. I admit I still can't bring myself to buy the Holzforma 288 I look at on Amazon almost every day, but to have a saw that could almost be made into a full Husky for under $300 is going to win me over one of these days. Maybe.

I might find a reasonable deal on an oe 288 .... someday,but its gonna be hard to beat my 394xp for 300.00$!
Anyway as I said I wouldn't tear apart a cherry 288xp to try something out? Like an 066 piston swap. I DID tear apart a G288 to try it though.

 

[Captain Bruce]

Honestly, I'm surprised most tree crews aren't running Chinese clones. I'm sure they are not all this way, but the one's I've worked around are hard on equipment. If you're going to wear it out quick regardless of the brand, it makes sense to buy disposable. If he's buying them in 10 saw bulk orders, he's likely paying around $150 per saw. The Stihl/Husquvarna equivalent will cost 6x that. At that price, it's hard to justify spending any time working on them.

As far as being underpowered, that's a user issue IMHO. The Farmertec stuff is tuned a little sluggish when it arrives. If you're running a saw frequently, you need to be in the habit of tuning it from time to time. If your friend would open up a muffler for one and install it after the first few days, and re-tune it, most of his saws would run just as strong as their Stihl counterpart with the same muffler modifications.

I've been around a couple of MS180s. I don't are for them at all. I'd rather take the hit of an extra pound of weight and have an 026/MS260/MS261 or the Husquvarna equivalent. To me, the 170/180 series saws lend a lot of weight to the method of using 32" bars on 70cc saws for limbing.

I had a dealer pull the Low Compression crap with me a few years ago on my 036. Put a new spark plug in it and I'm still running it today. Compression is 150psi which is exactly what it was when I bought it used in 2010. It's been my primary felling and bucking saw ever since.

Tree Crews? as in gov't contracts...as in licensed arborists? Those tradesman wouldn't go near a work day with an electric toy....

 

[fields_mj]

Tree Crews? as in gov't contracts...as in licensed arborists? Those tradesman wouldn't go near a work day with an electric toy....

No, and that's just it. These aren't the bigger crews that do contract work for the power company. I'm talking about the small businesses with a 2 to 4 man crew. Most of the time when I watch one of those crews work, I'm surprised they all survive the year.

Around here, the crews that have contracts with the gov't or the power companies, don't end up doing a ton of work with a 2 stroke. They spend most of their time up in the bucket with a hydraulic saw. Once the saw is on the ground, they will take a few minutes to cut it up for you if you want. Otherwise, they just cut up what they have to and move on to the next job. I've not studied them closely, but it seems like they do pretty good work when they are off the ground, but they struggle to make a square cut on a log I'm sure they are capable, they just aren't trying to make "good firewood", its not what they are there for.

 

[SimonHS]

Just saw this.

Is it a scam? Or have they got the price wrong? Great deal if you pay $74.58 and actually do receive a G888.

https://www.oakrug.com/product/farm...ead-compatible-with-ms880-088-122cc-chainsaw/

 

[SimonHS]

Looks fishy! They have 572XP saws at $78.35.

https://www.oakrug.com/product/husqvarna-572xp-chainsaw-powerhead/

 

[Maintenance supervisor]

Scam

 

[Bubster]

Looks fishy! They have 572XP saws at $78.35.

https://www.oakrug.com/product/husqvarna-572xp-chainsaw-powerhead/
View attachment 1103729

Would steer clear, and hopefully these ******** don't scam too many folks.

 

[spuldup]

@xraydaniel I just unboxed a new Farmac F380W last night with plans to inspect it before use. Glad I did as the exhaust had some bad casting flash and the chamfer would have scored the piston in no time. Just the exhaust port. The rest were a little light on chamfer but fully serviceable. The head was cast "NEO TEC". The other thing was the crank was very dry, so i dumped some 2 stroke on it before firing. Crank play felt good. I cleaned up the exhaust and put it back together. Checked squish at .34"..thought about instant gasket delete but nah I'd try it stock first. Glad I did. This thing has some serious compression. My arm is still attached but boy howdy I need to rest it a day!
I did the initial tune and 5 minute idle, then shut it off for the night as it was getting dark. Haven't put in wood yet. The oiler was very ample for the attached 24" bar. I ended up setting it about half way open. I know inadequate oil is a gripe on these but this def. flings it out. I do not like the oil adjustment is on the front of the saw rather than in-between the bar nuts (though the plastic is molded for one?).
The air filter cover tilts to the flywheel side and I caught my knuckle on it 3 times, bled a lot. So that needs adjusted and filed, but otherwise I hope it's a runner. Will get a few tanks in before MM time.

 

[xraydaniel]

@xraydaniel I just unboxed a new Farmac F380W last night with plans to inspect it before use. Glad I did as the exhaust had some bad casting flash and the chamfer would have scored the piston in no time. Just the exhaust port. The rest were a little light on chamfer but fully serviceable. The head was cast "NEO TEC". The other thing was the crank was very dry, so i dumped some 2 stroke on it before firing. Crank play felt good. I cleaned up the exhaust and put it back together. Checked squish at .34"..thought about instant gasket delete but nah I'd try it stock first. Glad I did. This thing has some serious compression. My arm is still attached but boy howdy I need to rest it a day!
I did the initial tune and 5 minute idle, then shut it off for the night as it was getting dark. Haven't put in wood yet. The oiler was very ample for the attached 24" bar. I ended up setting it about half way open. I know inadequate oil is a gripe on these but this def. flings it out. I do not like the oil adjustment is on the front of the saw rather than in-between the bar nuts (though the plastic is molded for one?).
The air filter cover tilts to the flywheel side and I caught my knuckle on it 3 times, bled a lot. So that needs adjusted and filed, but otherwise I hope it's a runner. Will get a few tanks in before MM time.

Pretty much my experience with the Farmmacs and Neotecs. Some sharp spots on the plastics. Gotta check it out closely and inspect the cylinder, piston, and exhaust/intake. Oil/grease the clutch bearing, cylinder, and chain tensioner. Get rid of the Torch plugs. Silicone spray on the plug and boot spring. A nylon brace would be ideal for the end of the chain tensioner as it’s an open spot. Most guys like the front tensioner. I prefer the sprocket side like yourself. I don’t start these saws unless I perform the aforementioned items. I am careful when pulling because I have also pulled some skin off my knuckle.


Eta

My return F380 was an abused one and the Noker jug may have been an addon. I do know Neotec uses Hyway, Noker, and unbranded jugs in their saws.


Found this tiny defect with a small crack on the oil seal boss.

 

[spuldup]

@xraydaniel Which plug would you recommend? NGK 6703? I did not grease the clutch bearing, but did everything else you mentioned. I installed the D handle and it does help starting...some. Looks like it may get in the way during some cutting operations though. Saw fired today on 2nd pull and needed a little more richness on low jet. I did another 5 min heat cycle and did the tip test with no problems, so this carb must be decent at least. Social obligations tonight but I hope to get it in some wood tomorrow!