Deciding on a new saw

[taylor6400]

I have had a MS361 I bought new for many years, probably 04-05. Run it mainly with a 20" bar, I have a 16" as well when I want to put it on. I cut firewood mainly, and live on 35 acres of woods plus my dad owns 90 more acres of hunting land so I do a lot of work there as well. Lately I have been cleaning up a lot of larger blow downs. I now have a big beech tree blown down and a large elm. I started debating on buying a new saw to handle some of this bigger stuff i have been getting into. I still love the 361, but when you bury the 20" bar in hardwood it feels it. New saw would probably wear a 20" most of the time and have a 25" as a second bar. Went to the dealer the other day and he had just gotten in a MS400. He gave me an out the door price with a 20" light bar of $900. Said he would give me $300 on trade if I wanted. His sticker price on the 462 is $1089 with an 18" standard bar. So probably another hundred or so for a 20" light. So the difference between the 2 is substantial. I like the idea of the MS400 being the same weight as what I got with an extra 8cc which is almost 14%more. But everything I see about the 462 is that its an awesome saw. I dont want to go 500i, he said he already has a waiting list of about 20 people. But he is keeping the 400 behind the desk for me to decide today. What are everyones thoughts? What about trade on the 361 at $300? What could I sell it for? Its in good shape, no broken plastic, bar is well worn, but it runs great.

 

[Lee192233]

I'd keep the MS361 and get the MS400. Treat the 361 to a nice new 16" bar and have a 20" on the MS400 for the bigger stuff. Then you have the added bonus of a backup saw should you stick a bar.
Have fun picking a new saw.
Lee

 

[Vintage Engine Repairs]

I think you’re wasting your time getting the 400 if you have the 361. Grab a 661 to pair with your 361.

 

[Ronaldo]

Keep the 361 for smaller wood and get the 462. You'll not regret having both saws.

Sent from my SM-G930VL using Tapatalk

 

[taylor6400]

I think you’re wasting your time getting the 400 if you have the 361. Grab a 661 to pair with your 361.

Interesting suggestion. I keep debating a chainsaw mill. This would make the most sense if I wanted to end up with a mill. But more than I would like to spend. However, with lumber prices right now being able to mill some boards for a couple deer blinds I want to build might make sense.

 

[Lee192233]

Those guys have more experience than I have. Maybe the the 361 and 400 are too close to bother?

 

[kielbasa]

Boy, my side by side experience comparing 462 to my 361 did NOT leave me hungry for the 462 - to me those seemed way too close together. And this was with 24" buried in oak....SAME bar and chain swapped between saws to get a true comparison.
But the 462 certainly did vibrate more - yuck. Maybe the 462 I test drove was a lemon? Personally if you're gonna be spending another grand on a saw to complement a 361, I would be leaning towards 500i or 661........my .02.

 

[taylor6400]

Boy, my side by side experience comparing 462 to my 361 did NOT leave me hungry for the 462 - to me those seemed way too close together. And this was with 24" buried in oak....SAME bar and chain swapped between saws to get a true comparison.
But the 462 certainly did vibrate more - yuck. Maybe the 462 I test drove was a lemon? Personally if you're gonna be spending another grand on a saw to complement a 361, I would be leaning towards 500i or 661........my .02.

Interesting...everything I seem to watch/read says the 462 way out cuts the 361. If i went 400 or 462 i think i would sell the 361 as i agree they are 2 close to justify the 2 saws. If i went bigger i would keep the 361. Im currently on a 1 saw plan. Only other saw i have is an old 018c that a friend was going to junk. Runs great actually. Its handy when i need it around the house and yard for small stuff.

 

[kielbasa]

and to be fair, my 361 is muffler modded and a low hour, but well broken in saw....the 462 had 4 or 5 tanks thru it so maybe still breaking in? Can't imagine it would get THAT much better with further run time though......
Go and try one out if you can, then you'll have a better idea of what you may want.

 

[jp233]

yeah, with lumber prices being insanity, if you are building a lot (deer blinds are a perfect example, where you don't need perfect wood most times and at least up here if you have to haul far into the yonder by hand you don't need or want 2by either)...... something that could run a mill just sounds like a good idea

 

[Vintage Engine Repairs]

Another angle you may wish to approach being more efficient is improving your filing. Have you got any pictures of the teeth on your chain? A sharp 30cc will cut faster than a blunt 90cc.

 

[thomasinvancouver]

I have had a MS361 I bought new for many years, probably 04-05. Run it mainly with a 20" bar, I have a 16" as well when I want to put it on. I cut firewood mainly, and live on 35 acres of woods plus my dad owns 90 more acres of hunting land so I do a lot of work there as well. Lately I have been cleaning up a lot of larger blow downs. I now have a big beech tree blown down and a large elm. I started debating on buying a new saw to handle some of this bigger stuff i have been getting into. I still love the 361, but when you bury the 20" bar in hardwood it feels it. New saw would probably wear a 20" most of the time and have a 25" as a second bar. Went to the dealer the other day and he had just gotten in a MS400. He gave me an out the door price with a 20" light bar of $900. Said he would give me $300 on trade if I wanted. His sticker price on the 462 is $1089 with an 18" standard bar. So probably another hundred or so for a 20" light. So the difference between the 2 is substantial. I like the idea of the MS400 being the same weight as what I got with an extra 8cc which is almost 14%more. But everything I see about the 462 is that its an awesome saw. I dont want to go 500i, he said he already has a waiting list of about 20 people. But he is keeping the 400 behind the desk for me to decide today. What are everyones thoughts? What about trade on the 361 at $300? What could I sell it for? Its in good shape, no broken plastic, bar is well worn, but it runs great.

Only way I would replace a 361 with a 400 is if it was completely clapped out. I would be looking at a 661.

 

[dmb2613]

462

 

[Trailsawyer]

I would sell or trade in the 361, keep the 20" bar, and buy a 462 with a 25 or 28" light bar. If that one saw plan wasn't working, I'd add a 261!

 

[Maintenance supervisor]

Interesting...everything I seem to watch/read says the 462 way out cuts the 361. If i went 400 or 462 i think i would sell the 361 as i agree they are 2 close to justify the 2 saws. If i went bigger i would keep the 361. Im currently on a 1 saw plan. Only other saw i have is an old 018c that a friend was going to junk. Runs great actually. Its handy when i need it around the house and yard for small stuff.

Ive run both saws and the 361 holds its own easily against the 462, sometimes the "new is better " is based on buyers remose, the 462 felt peaky and lacked grunt.
The 361 is legendary for a reason.
The dealer willing to give you 300.00 towards a trade should clue you in on both the reputation and quality of the 361.
I'm definitely of the camp to go for bigger CCs if the motivation is to cut larger wood but I would also suggest a 395xp Husqvarna also for new saw purchase along with a 500i or 661.
There are plenty of regret stories in these forums about trading or selling an MS361.

 

[Trailsawyer]

I've never really sold any of my saws just because I purchased another saw. My experience with the 462 has been very good for the last 2 years. I can say that every time I've needed more saw than my 260, I've used the 462R. I have a 034, 2 036's, and a husky 61 in the shop, none of which have had more than a tank of fuel through them in 2 years!

 

[Oldsawnut]

I would just keep your 361 and buy a 25" bar for the once in a while cutting just use nice sharp skip chain and don't horse it around... However if you are set on getting a new saw the 462 would be the way to go for sure if you are wanting more power and a one saw plan. More proven at this point as well. Only thing the 400 has over the 361 in spades is better air filter..... JMHO... Haven't heard about the MS400 curing cancer yet

 

[johnsayen]

I wonder how the anti-vibe is on the 400 vs the 462? I have a 261 and am going to add either a 400 or 462 to make a two saw plan. I’ll post about that separately as I don’t want to hijack this thread. Am curious about the vibration comment earlier here.

 

[johnsayen]

I checked the Stihl international site and the 400 has the same vibe 3.5/3.5 m/s^2 as the 261, which is pretty impressive. The 462 has 4.8/3.6 m/s^2. Not sure if what that equates to in the real world but I do know the 261 is easy to handle.

 

[rwoods]

Unless you are cutting dead and seasoned wood, a buried 20” on a 361 should be no problem at least one with an opened muffler. My “woods ported” 361 is great; one of the reasons I skipped the 461/462 and bought a 500i.

Ron