That's completely understandable. It's like the grip frame of a Glock. No thanks. The angle is just wrong. I'll stick to my 1911.
EFCO Brand - Please leave me your feedback!
- Thread starter dsavage
- Start date
Help Support Arborist Forum:
That's completely understandable. It's like the grip frame of a Glock. No thanks. The angle is just wrong. I'll stick to my 1911.
Machold
ArboristSite Operative
How many of you have heard of EFCO saws/trimmers? If so, where?
Yes, online, probably Bailey's
What do you like about the products themselves? (lightweight, noise, power, etc)
Everything; well built, operate smoothly; they meet the competition head on; but I'm not a heavy user (see Stihl Crazy's post).
What seperates brands like Stihl and Husky from EFCO?
Stihl and Husq have dealers, parts, etc all over the place and are usually reliable (depends on the dealer). EFCO is nowhere in Canada and suffers BADLY from a distributor in Quebec.
What would EFCO have to do to earn your business?
Put your distributor in Ontario!!!!
Market your product aggressively;
compete on price.
The problem in Canada is an indifferent distributor that wants to sell directly to the client but has no one really in Ontario (the guy who is supposed to service Ontario doesn't know much and directs you to businesses that are not dealers and servicers that will not do warranty work = USELESS
What other complaints or complements do you have for the brand as a whole?
EFCO Made in Italy, a country that knows small engines very well. Search EFCO on this site.
What would you change?
Co-ordinate your North American operation between north and south of 49. Push your product even if you have to sell low. EFCO makes very good saws, too bad very few know it.
Yes, online, probably Bailey's
What do you like about the products themselves? (lightweight, noise, power, etc)
Everything; well built, operate smoothly; they meet the competition head on; but I'm not a heavy user (see Stihl Crazy's post).
What seperates brands like Stihl and Husky from EFCO?
Stihl and Husq have dealers, parts, etc all over the place and are usually reliable (depends on the dealer). EFCO is nowhere in Canada and suffers BADLY from a distributor in Quebec.
What would EFCO have to do to earn your business?
Put your distributor in Ontario!!!!
Market your product aggressively;
compete on price.
The problem in Canada is an indifferent distributor that wants to sell directly to the client but has no one really in Ontario (the guy who is supposed to service Ontario doesn't know much and directs you to businesses that are not dealers and servicers that will not do warranty work = USELESS
What other complaints or complements do you have for the brand as a whole?
EFCO Made in Italy, a country that knows small engines very well. Search EFCO on this site.
What would you change?
Co-ordinate your North American operation between north and south of 49. Push your product even if you have to sell low. EFCO makes very good saws, too bad very few know it.
wilsonishere
ArboristSite Member
You can now buy a frame for a glock in 1911 angle! but I do like my old 45!
dsavage
ArboristSite Lurker
The AS has provided an overwhelming amount of feedback.
I cannot thank you guys enough. The members here are extremely knowledgeable about the products and markets and you have provided very good feedback which we be essential for the future of the Efco brand.
I want to improve and build on every piece of advice in this thread.
Thank you for the support!
7sleeper
Addicted to ArboristSite
To be honest, I didn't expect a feedback. But then again I just finished using one of my small Efcos outside and this brand does nothing but plesently suprise me. Hope it stays that way. The same here, if you stay actively in contact with the fellows here you will be suprised by the amount of feedback!
Good luck,
7
Good luck,
7
Glad we could help. I'd love to see the brand succeed. Any other help or suggestions, we'll lend a hand as best we can.
Me too.
Bret4207
ArboristSite Guru
I carried Olympic back in the early 80's when it came as a package from a large east coast Jred wholesaler. Nice saws back then. We sold a bunch as alternatives to Jred/Husky mid grade saws as they were priced better.
What you need is a good parts network, some very solid and "in for the long run" dealer support and easy access to older parts. Like so many other "off brand" saws, like Dolmar, Echo, Solo, etc, Olympic/EFCO suffer from a lack of brand recognition. Pick a name and stick with it! I know of a lot of customers with older saws that would pay good money to be able to obtain needed parts. It's relatively easy to obtain parts for 1960's Homelites, Macs and Pioneers, but we can't get parts for a 15-20 year old EFCO. That's an issue IMO. Selling new saws is fine, supporting them is where the $$$ is at for the company and dealer.
I wish you the best of luck. If I ever get ahead enough to actually get a legitimate business going I'd surely consider EFCO if you could meet some of the needs I mention.
What you need is a good parts network, some very solid and "in for the long run" dealer support and easy access to older parts. Like so many other "off brand" saws, like Dolmar, Echo, Solo, etc, Olympic/EFCO suffer from a lack of brand recognition. Pick a name and stick with it! I know of a lot of customers with older saws that would pay good money to be able to obtain needed parts. It's relatively easy to obtain parts for 1960's Homelites, Macs and Pioneers, but we can't get parts for a 15-20 year old EFCO. That's an issue IMO. Selling new saws is fine, supporting them is where the $$$ is at for the company and dealer.
I wish you the best of luck. If I ever get ahead enough to actually get a legitimate business going I'd surely consider EFCO if you could meet some of the needs I mention.
I have run a cs56 a 962 and a 980 at gtgs and they all were good running saws. The efco dealers I have seen in my area rarely last longer than a year or so. Back in the 90's, we had at least one dealer that carried the Olympik brand only and one that carried the Olympic brand in addition to Jonsered and Poulan line. At this time, I think Tilton was the distributor for Olympic.
Stihl Crazy
ArboristSite.com Sponsor
I like the Efco trimmers. They hold up well. No issues with the ones I sold.
I still like Efco products as a line. If they want to get serious in Canada, count me in.
I still like Efco products as a line. If they want to get serious in Canada, count me in.
R2D
North pole greens keeper
Figured you Efco guys that are subscribing might want a piece of this:
Here is a dealer on eBay saying:
"THROUGH THE END OF NOVEMBER EFCO HAS A 20% SALE WHICH BRINGS THE PRICE TO 388.79.I WILL SALE IT $380.00 PLUS SHIPPING"
The 156 is the 56cc saw.
Here is the link:
THROUGH THE END OF NOVEMBER EFCO HAS A 20% SALE WHICH BRINGS THE PRICE TO 388.79.I WILL SALE IT $380.00 PLUS SHIPPING
Here is a dealer on eBay saying:
"THROUGH THE END OF NOVEMBER EFCO HAS A 20% SALE WHICH BRINGS THE PRICE TO 388.79.I WILL SALE IT $380.00 PLUS SHIPPING"
The 156 is the 56cc saw.
Here is the link:
THROUGH THE END OF NOVEMBER EFCO HAS A 20% SALE WHICH BRINGS THE PRICE TO 388.79.I WILL SALE IT $380.00 PLUS SHIPPING
7sleeper
Addicted to ArboristSite
The link doesn't work.
7
found it:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Efco-MT-156-Chain-Saw-16-/261132020635?pt=US_Chainsaws&hash=item3cccae6b9b
I hate living so far away! :bang:
7
found it:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Efco-MT-156-Chain-Saw-16-/261132020635?pt=US_Chainsaws&hash=item3cccae6b9b
I hate living so far away! :bang:
Last edited:
I have owned my Efco 152 for the past 5 years. I bought it new from Northern Tool. At the time I owned several firewood cutting saws and was looking for a mid-size model that could replace all of them. I figured its kind of pointless to "save" money by heating with firewood when I'm spending big bucks on multiple saws when you only really need one. I was looking at Husky saws and the salesman at Northern talked me into purchasing the Efco. I was skeptical as I had never heard of the brand, but I'm always one to try new products and the 5-year warranty sounded great. The 152 is the only chainsaw I own and I use it to cut 3-5 cords of wood a year (mostly white & red oak). I have never had any problem whatsover with it. It always starts on the 3rd pull cold, and 1 pull when warm. I haven't experienced trying to locate parts, but did a quick Ebay search and was able to find a few parts for the saw if needed. It would be nice though if there was a website to easily order parts as I am due for an air filter change soon. My favorite features of the saw are its reliability and weight. It seems lighter than other comparable saws which saves my back a bit. As far as name recognition goes, I don't think that very many people in the US know about the Efco brand. I told someone that I had bought an Efco and he says, "Oh, you mean Echo." It took me a long time to convince him that there is a brand called Efco. Also, I would push the "Made in Italy". To me Efco sounds like a brand name of cheap power tools manufactured in China or Taiwan. Italians did get two things right and that is food and outdoor power equipment. I will purchase Efco again in the future; hopefully I can get 20 more years out of my saw.
Follow-up thoughts:
1. The website sucks. Fix that fast. The format is crummy and the content is crap, even worse than most other OPE sites, which are also crap but not as bad. So much shopping and research is done online anymore, so capitalize on that. Make your product descriptions meaningful, your pictures and videos engaging, and the information/faq/how-to stuff complete, useful, and relevant. That will help. Look at the way we do saw evaluations and write-ups, the sorts of pictures that we post of saws on workbenches, in use, detail shots of different parts of the saw, and whatnot. THAT sort of presentation will sell. The crap on the site right now will not.
2. Complete on price. I took a trip to my friendly Stihl dealer the other day and quite honestly, the current MSRPs for mid- and upper-end OPE is incredible compared to what it was 5-10 years ago. I can see why much of the homeowner market is shopping at Lowes, Home Depot, Menard's, etc. Assuming you and your dealers can still make a fair profit, undercut Stihl and Husqvarna on price. I suspect many commercial operations and institutional buyers would be amenable to the price advantage, even if the product itself was only 80% of the equivalent Stihl. Considering the number of tree companies and municipalities that equip their staff with Stihl MS290 saws, you should be fine with this approach.
3. Thin out the herd on the low end of the saw line. There are too many models that, by all appearances, are damned near the same. Confusing. And for what? Buck the trend - there doesn't need to be a saw at every $20-30 price increment - $159.99, $189.99, $219.99 - it makes people take you less seriously.
4. Get out of the big box stores or, if you insist on staying there, take better control of your in-store displays. For example, some Efco products are sold at our local Menards. The floor models are crammed off in a dingy aisle, missing gas caps, and looking indistinguishable in their neglect from the Hitachi saw, the McCullough, and other Chinese rubbish for sale there. This sort of display does not distinguish your product line or suggest in any whatsoever that it is a premium product, or even a step-up product, compared to the other saws on the shelf. There is also zero information about the product on display, no mention that dealers exist for service and parts, or that higher-end offerings exist should someone want a bigger or better model. This is a loss for the brand, for your dealers, and for your customers, and it makes you look like another low-end disposable saw offering.
5. Make your products more ethanol-tolerant than other brands. Don't necessarily tell consumers about this, though; they will start running E20 though your products and your competitive advantage in this regard will be squandered.
6. Do not over-bar your saws, particularly in hardwood country. Make this part of an education effort - along with proper cutting technique, saw sharpening, etc. - so that consumers might start understanding why a 35cc saw is not a good match for an 18" bar, for example. The European market has realized this some time ago and now 50cc/13" and 60cc/15" setups are the norm. Most laypeople first look to bar length as the measure of a saw, but with a bit of education and after trying their hand at a "euro-style" poweread+bar combo, many see the merit to the 4:1 cc:bar length argument.
7. Change the lettering of EFCO in the logo. It looks too much like Echo's slanted lettering. Maybe a half-round EFCO above the leaf, with a different script for EFCO?
8. Do away with gas tanks/handle in colors different from the saw body itself. Looks cheaper, like a low-end Stihl. Body color or gray is the word of the day. Not flat black. And the gray shouldn't look like faux metal, because that looks stupid and cheap.
9. Fix the website. Seriously, it is that bad that I am mentioning that a second time. Using the 4100SP's page as an example, wording like "High-torque engine ensures no slow-down even under the most demanding conditions" is asinine. What does that mean anyway, no slow-down? You mean it doesn't lose RPM or otherwise bog, even with a fully-buried 16" bar? Come on, that's just dishonest and it sounds stupid to boot. Likewise, "Exceptional cutting speed" is dishonest for a saw with a WOT speed of 11,700-12,200rpm. So why use that language? The key is to under-promise and over-deliver. Flowery language and puffery leads to disappointment.
10. Get some more peppy saws out there, particularly in the <50cc class. I have a hard time envisioning a 39cc, 12,000rpm WOT saw as being particularly lively. My 38cc Husqvarna 238 spinning 15,250rpm WOT and accelerating like a rocket fro idle is lively. Lively sells, and it impresses. Under-promise, over-deliver.
1. The website sucks. Fix that fast. The format is crummy and the content is crap, even worse than most other OPE sites, which are also crap but not as bad. So much shopping and research is done online anymore, so capitalize on that. Make your product descriptions meaningful, your pictures and videos engaging, and the information/faq/how-to stuff complete, useful, and relevant. That will help. Look at the way we do saw evaluations and write-ups, the sorts of pictures that we post of saws on workbenches, in use, detail shots of different parts of the saw, and whatnot. THAT sort of presentation will sell. The crap on the site right now will not.
2. Complete on price. I took a trip to my friendly Stihl dealer the other day and quite honestly, the current MSRPs for mid- and upper-end OPE is incredible compared to what it was 5-10 years ago. I can see why much of the homeowner market is shopping at Lowes, Home Depot, Menard's, etc. Assuming you and your dealers can still make a fair profit, undercut Stihl and Husqvarna on price. I suspect many commercial operations and institutional buyers would be amenable to the price advantage, even if the product itself was only 80% of the equivalent Stihl. Considering the number of tree companies and municipalities that equip their staff with Stihl MS290 saws, you should be fine with this approach.
3. Thin out the herd on the low end of the saw line. There are too many models that, by all appearances, are damned near the same. Confusing. And for what? Buck the trend - there doesn't need to be a saw at every $20-30 price increment - $159.99, $189.99, $219.99 - it makes people take you less seriously.
4. Get out of the big box stores or, if you insist on staying there, take better control of your in-store displays. For example, some Efco products are sold at our local Menards. The floor models are crammed off in a dingy aisle, missing gas caps, and looking indistinguishable in their neglect from the Hitachi saw, the McCullough, and other Chinese rubbish for sale there. This sort of display does not distinguish your product line or suggest in any whatsoever that it is a premium product, or even a step-up product, compared to the other saws on the shelf. There is also zero information about the product on display, no mention that dealers exist for service and parts, or that higher-end offerings exist should someone want a bigger or better model. This is a loss for the brand, for your dealers, and for your customers, and it makes you look like another low-end disposable saw offering.
5. Make your products more ethanol-tolerant than other brands. Don't necessarily tell consumers about this, though; they will start running E20 though your products and your competitive advantage in this regard will be squandered.
6. Do not over-bar your saws, particularly in hardwood country. Make this part of an education effort - along with proper cutting technique, saw sharpening, etc. - so that consumers might start understanding why a 35cc saw is not a good match for an 18" bar, for example. The European market has realized this some time ago and now 50cc/13" and 60cc/15" setups are the norm. Most laypeople first look to bar length as the measure of a saw, but with a bit of education and after trying their hand at a "euro-style" poweread+bar combo, many see the merit to the 4:1 cc:bar length argument.
7. Change the lettering of EFCO in the logo. It looks too much like Echo's slanted lettering. Maybe a half-round EFCO above the leaf, with a different script for EFCO?
8. Do away with gas tanks/handle in colors different from the saw body itself. Looks cheaper, like a low-end Stihl. Body color or gray is the word of the day. Not flat black. And the gray shouldn't look like faux metal, because that looks stupid and cheap.
9. Fix the website. Seriously, it is that bad that I am mentioning that a second time. Using the 4100SP's page as an example, wording like "High-torque engine ensures no slow-down even under the most demanding conditions" is asinine. What does that mean anyway, no slow-down? You mean it doesn't lose RPM or otherwise bog, even with a fully-buried 16" bar? Come on, that's just dishonest and it sounds stupid to boot. Likewise, "Exceptional cutting speed" is dishonest for a saw with a WOT speed of 11,700-12,200rpm. So why use that language? The key is to under-promise and over-deliver. Flowery language and puffery leads to disappointment.
10. Get some more peppy saws out there, particularly in the <50cc class. I have a hard time envisioning a 39cc, 12,000rpm WOT saw as being particularly lively. My 38cc Husqvarna 238 spinning 15,250rpm WOT and accelerating like a rocket fro idle is lively. Lively sells, and it impresses. Under-promise, over-deliver.
[video=youtube;c-xm8oW26HU]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-xm8oW26HU&feature=bf_next&list=PLCC66833424656D56&index=6[/video]
[video=youtube;xHLGgElaxxA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&list=PLCC66833424656D56&v=xHLGgElaxxA[/video]
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Machold
ArboristSite Operative
Hey! THANKS for the videos! Happens I read, write and speak Italian, no joke.
Jesus if you have a way, tell them to remake the videos. Its 2012, those videos would be good 40 years ago when such tools were hard to get. Nowadays there's an abundance of merchandise, cheap chainsaws for the masses in every grocery store, the pros are taken care of with market leaders, you can order your weed whacker and have it delivered the next day etc, you need to _have_ and _show_ something that people want.
But to make sales you need some commercial material that's gonna convince people that your product is the real deal. And felling and limbing a 8" oak with a short intro of a rhino and some sheep, with video quality almost as good as smartphones make today ain't it.
Sawing some draft wood, mowing 3" grass and trimming the ugliest hedge one could find and stuff like that, its filmed like a parody. 
Compare it to a husky promo... You have some nice scenery, good image quality, zoom on this, zoom on that, different angles, slow motion the chips flying, cut some soft wood. Drop a nice tree that makes a nice thud and not some turd that the guy pushes over (without success) with his hands. If the first one doesn't make a nice thud drop another one. And the third one. Limb the tree like its a race, not like you don't know where to cut (because you picked the most ******** oak to cut). Point out why your product is better than the competition. Where are the pictures of sweet chicks holding Efco power tools?
Here is how a product introduction should look like:
Husqvarna 560XP Chainsaw - YouTube
I know it probably cost 10 times more to introduce 1 model than it cost Efco to introduce 20, but they'd be better off now releasing that video at all.
But to make sales you need some commercial material that's gonna convince people that your product is the real deal. And felling and limbing a 8" oak with a short intro of a rhino and some sheep, with video quality almost as good as smartphones make today ain't it.
Sawing some draft wood, mowing 3" grass and trimming the ugliest hedge one could find and stuff like that, its filmed like a parody. Compare it to a husky promo... You have some nice scenery, good image quality, zoom on this, zoom on that, different angles, slow motion the chips flying, cut some soft wood. Drop a nice tree that makes a nice thud and not some turd that the guy pushes over (without success) with his hands. If the first one doesn't make a nice thud drop another one. And the third one. Limb the tree like its a race, not like you don't know where to cut (because you picked the most ******** oak to cut). Point out why your product is better than the competition. Where are the pictures of sweet chicks holding Efco power tools?
Here is how a product introduction should look like:
Husqvarna 560XP Chainsaw - YouTube
I know it probably cost 10 times more to introduce 1 model than it cost Efco to introduce 20, but they'd be better off now releasing that video at all.
MechanicMatt
Cut Split Stack Burn
Yeah Tornado, that there is a commercial.
Makes me want to go out and buy a new Husqvarna right now. Except Id get a 562xp, I .png "Love :heart:")
the 562xp.
Makes me want to go out and buy a new Husqvarna right now. Except Id get a 562xp, I the 562xp.zogger
Tree Freak
Jesus if you have a way, tell them to remake the videos. Its 2012, those videos would be good 40 years ago when such tools were hard to get. Nowadays there's an abundance of merchandise, cheap chainsaws for the masses in every grocery store, the pros are taken care of with market leaders, you can order your weed whacker and have it delivered the next day etc, you need to _have_ and _show_ something that people want.
But to make sales you need some commercial material that's gonna convince people that your product is the real deal. And felling and limbing a 8" oak with a short intro of a rhino and some sheep, with video quality almost as good as smartphones make today ain't it.
Compare it to a husky promo... You have some nice scenery, good image quality, zoom on this, zoom on that, different angles, slow motion the chips flying, cut some soft wood. Drop a nice tree that makes a nice thud and not some turd that the guy pushes over (without success) with his hands. If the first one doesn't make a nice thud drop another one. And the third one. Limb the tree like its a race, not like you don't know where to cut (because you picked the most ******** oak to cut). Point out why your product is better than the competition. Where are the pictures of sweet chicks holding Efco power tools?
Here is how a product introduction should look like:
Husqvarna 560XP Chainsaw - YouTube
I know it probably cost 10 times more to introduce 1 model than it cost Efco to introduce 20, but they'd be better off now releasing that video at all.
What, that husky commercial? No way!
Man, that thing was shot in the city park in stockholm, with "Sven" mcclure, also seen in "secret days of our stormy lives hospital"
A real commercial for the US Bubbamerica market needs real world action! yes suh! let's set the scene....
We need a fat guy in overalls and a baseball hat, not "Sven"! It's the *rules* and stuff. And over yonder, cousin Zeke, he is yanking on his saw, kinda sorta painted some colors....got some duct tape on it here and there.. through the whole commercial..we'll use him later loading the trailer. One closeup you see he is yanking on what looks like "brand x", you know, the "big" competition to what you are sellin'....
There's a pickup in the background with four different wheels and tires. Beyond that is an old N series Ferd with a converted manure spreader as the 'tote 'er home" buggy.
Under the pickup is a heinz 57 dog sleeping in the shade.
Over to the other side of yonder is a skinny old phart standing over a smoky fire burning kielbasys and brats on sticks, and he keeps yelling at the other two guys, because they are stoopid young punks (stoopid young as in their 50s and 60s..).
Next to him kinda hanging out the tailgate is a '48 Timber Wrangler with a six foot bar he bought brandy new when he came home from the war and and made enough money and used the GI bill and got the farm. It runs on kerosene and has a crank handle start.. It is maintained with cannibalized parts from a '37 hupmobile. He hauls that out all the time and tells the stoopid young guys he's ready if they need any serious cuttin done when their fancy schmancy new shiny wonder saws won't cut the mustard, let alone any trees...
The tree they are cutting is an old twisted fenceline tree, got about 20 yard of old fence and barb wire in it, and they only dork up the chain three times to get it on the ground...but after that, you zoom in and finally get to see the new fancy schmancy saw..it did the job!! Yaay!
let *me* film these videos, I'll give ya troofiness in advertising! And look at "Sven's" gloves, ain't a lick of dirt on them, no oil stains! WTF!
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