First impressions of new Jred 2171

[Woodie]

Took it camping this weekend, northern Michigan. Got about two tanks through 'er. Not near enough time to make any kind of judgement, especially given my relatively little trigger time on other saws.

But as a first impression, this thing makes stupid power. My 2159 needed to be finessed in 15" hardwood, the 2171 just needs to be held. (Does it sound to anyone else like Dr. Phil is writing this?) Seriously, though, with this one you just hit the throttle and it's go time. The one caveat, however: most of the cutting was birch...pretty soft stuff compared to the ash I've been cutting.

With that extra power comes some weight, too, and I agree with everyone here that it's a lot more than what Jonsered/Husky claim. According to specs, it's 1.1 lbs heavier than my 2159. According to my arms and shoulders, it's more than that. Lugging it up and down snow-covered hills all day with bad footing and lots of little brush to constantly grab at it (while it wasn't running!), let's just say at the end of the day I was tired. Dog tired.

It was a lot more temperamental to start, too. While I could always hear the pop on my 2159, I must have missed it on the 2171, cause I flooded her twice. Temp was about 30 F at the time. When I pulled the plug to dry it, it looked like the ground electrode was at an angle...not straight across like I've always seen them. I'll get a feeler gauge on it tomorrow just to make sure. Any other suggestions?

One of the guys I went camping asked to try starting it. I showed him how with the handle between his legs, which is the way I've always done it. I hit the decomp before I handed it to him, but for some reason he pulled it back out. Needless to say, he took that handle right in the onions. Note to self...always remember the decomp.

One other thing I've noticed so far...when I hold the saw up with the bar pointing directly down, I get the smell of raw mix coming from the engine. Is this normal? I don't remember it on the 2159.

All in all a good weekend, and a great saw. But I've reached the upper limit of "just one size bigger...that's all I need...just ONE bigger...". For an all day saw, the 2171 is right up at the limit for me.

 

[SawTroll]

.... According to specs, it's 1.1 lbs heavier than my 2159. According to my arms and shoulders, it's more than that. .....

Both models powerheads with empty tanks weights more than the specs say, but about equally much, according to KWF/DLG test reports.

....but the 2171 has larger tanks, and maybe you even have a longer/heavier bar & chain on it.

 

[woodfarmer]

i also use the 2159, 2171 combo, your right about the 71 being heavy for limbing. your 59 however should handle 18 " beech without any problem so i don't know why your having trouble with 15 ". to me there is a world of difference in these two saws, i think i has a lot to do with the catalytic in the 59.

 

[SawTroll]

.... to me there is a world of difference in these two saws, i think i has a lot to do with the catalytic in the 59.

The non-cat 359/2159 aren't really impressive in stock form either, but a way to get pro quality saw, without paying full pro saw premium......

 

[SawTroll]

.. It was a lot more temperamental to start, too. While I could always hear the pop on my 2159, I must have missed it on the 2171, cause I flooded her twice. Temp was about 30 F at the time. When I pulled the plug to dry it, it looked like the ground electrode was at an angle...not straight across like I've always seen them. I'll get a feeler gauge on it tomorrow just to make sure. Any other suggestions? ...

For saws that flood easily, it often help to open the choke at the faintest sign that it wants to start, not wait for a real "pop".
If nothing happens in 3-4 pulls, open the choke anyway......

Btw, my new 372xpg is a real easy starter, even when cold, and it is basically the same saw.:rockn: :rockn:

 

[Woodie]

i also use the 2159, 2171 combo, your right about the 71 being heavy for limbing. your 59 however should handle 18 " beech without any problem so i don't know why your having trouble with 15 ". to me there is a world of difference in these two saws, i think i has a lot to do with the catalytic in the 59.

The 2159 never had "trouble" so to speak, it just needed to be held-up out of the cut at times in order to keep the revs up...it sometimes wanted to bog in 15" ash. That was with a razor-sharp full-chisel chain, too. In all fairness, however, the 2159 never got fully broken in...I traded her in at about ten tanks. And I never got the non-cat muffler on it, either. She was still gaining power when I traded her in, so my guess is that it wouldn't have been a problem after the break-in.

 

[Woodie]

For saws that flood easily, it often help to open the choke at the faintest sign that it wants to start, not wait for a real "pop".
If nothing happens in 3-4 pulls, open the choke anyway......

Btw, my new 372xpg is a real easy starter, even when cold, and it is basically the same saw.:rockn: :rockn:

I think opening at maybe three pulls will be the ticket...pop or no pop.

I think the L side needs a little tinkering, too...it didn't want to idle particularly well after it was started until it got warm. Need a lot of throttle blips. Probably need to raise the T as well, although that won't help the starting.

Thanks for tips...keep 'em coming!

 

[Woodie]

....but the 2171 has larger tanks, and maybe you even have a longer/heavier bar & chain on it.

Although I had a different bar on it, it was a 20" solid RSN just like the old one. The saws have different mounts, otherwise I would have kept my Total Super Bar. The new one is Jonsered-branded, made by Sandvik in Canada as I understand.

The larger tanks probably have a good bit to do with it I would guess. And by the way, that 2171 USES every bit of those extra tanks! She's a thirsty one, she is!

 

[blis]

Both models powerheads with empty tanks weights more than the specs say, but about equally much, according to KWF/DLG test reports.

....but the 2171 has larger tanks, and maybe you even have a longer/heavier bar & chain on it.

well, center of mass affects alot how heavy it feels, for example, my dads 242xpg is lighter than my 353g according to specs yet my 353 feels lighter...

 

[outdoortype]

"But as a first impression, this thing makes stupid power. My 2159 needed to be finessed in 15" hardwood, the 2171 just needs to be held."

Just curiuos, what length of bar are you running on your 2159? I use a 16" and 18" bar w 3/8" pitch w/no problems on my 359. My 359 had plenty of torque with either bar setup even before I swapped to non-cat muffler. I cut mostly red & black oak averaging 14"-16." But I didn't swap mufflers until after 18-20 hours.

 

[manual]

learning curve, You'll get used to it, Readjust the carb, check the plug gap.
your on the right track.
You just bought the saw so it will get better while its breaking in.

 

[Woodie]

Just curiuos, what length of bar are you running on your 2159? I use a 16" and 18" bar w 3/8" pitch w/no problems on my 359. My 359 had plenty of torque with either bar setup even before I swapped to non-cat muffler. I cut mostly red & black oak averaging 14"-16." But I didn't swap mufflers until after 18-20 hours.

I was running a 20" RSN with 3/8 pitch (.058 guage). Same set-up as on the new 2171, but with a different bar due to the larger bar mount.

I don't have enough experience to say, but I wonder if the 2159 wouldn't have been a litttle happier with the 16" - 18" that you run? Remember, too, mine was still the cat muffler and wasn't broken in yet before I traded it in.