A little background, we moved in July to a place with 5 wooded acres - and heavily overgrown. I have a bunch of freshly felled 24" diameter green oaks down all over the property with more coming. I have been farting around with a couple of older Homeys Super XL's and a Stihl 028WB that have been OK. Today I decided it was time for my first new saw ever. I went with a Stihl MS361 and set it up with the Stihl 18" bar and 33RS chain. I went with the 18" (and considered the 16") because most of my cutting will be bucking on the ground and figured that would be a managable length. It was kind of an impulse buy and I almost went with the Husky 359. What's the general consensus on this saw - I was impressed the 4 hours I used it today. Any tips in terms of break-in or other wise? I am a Homer homerowner today but used to work for a tree co and have 1000 hours of saw experience - I still hope I am not in over my head.
First New Saw Purchase!
- Thread starter sawjo
- Start date
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Simonizer
Addicted to ArboristSite
sawjo said:
You my friend, have just purchased one of the finest saws on the planet. If you have any problems I will be staggered. I have not seen a failure or complaint yet on this model and work in one of the biggest shops in Canada. Have fun. Regards, Simon.
SawTroll
Information Collector
Great choise!
The 361 is a joy to use, and a breeze to perform routine maintainance on.
Power to weight ratio is great!
I also think your choise of bar and chain is very sensible, but would have opted for RSC chain instead of RS given the choise.
---seems to be about the general consensus on that saw, even though there are a couple of members here that dislike it.Simonizer said:
The 361 is a joy to use, and a breeze to perform routine maintainance on.
Power to weight ratio is great!
I also think your choise of bar and chain is very sensible, but would have opted for RSC chain instead of RS given the choise.
Butch(OH)
Addicted to ArboristSite
I have never run a 361 but have lots of handle time on it's daddy, the 036. Mine has allways worn a 20" bar because I can trim close to the ground without bending over so far. It does struggle a bit in hard wood with full bar cuts. I have no idea how many hours are on mine but quite a few. Only fixes have been a bar oil pump cleaning and tightening the carb boot plus the usual maintanance items like spark plugs and filters and drive rims. If there was any concerns about break in you are past them at 4 hours of running time. Run it and enjoy.
CNYCountry
ArboristSite Operative
I messed with the older saws for a bit too and then bought a 361 with a 20" bar. The more you run it the more it will wake up, break in seems to make a big difference in power. Running the 3/8" Stihl RS chain, cutters properly filed razor sharp with the rakers set right (.025" with new long cutters, progressively lowering to more like .035" at the end of cutter life) will put a big smile on your face. Resist the urge to knock the rakers down any more than that, it will bog, grab and pull with that chain. You may be able to get away with a tiny bit more with the 18" bar but it's probably not worth messing with. This seems to be a high RPM saw, it cuts fast by taking a lot of thin chips in a short amount of time, as opposed to the older slower turning saws that were torquey and would cut faster with the rakers filed way down. Mine is very smooth cutting and light, and has been very reliable thus far.
It seems fine power-wise for now as long as the chain is sharpened and set right, now that it has broken in. A few have said it's a little low on power, many of these guys cut professionally. There are a few others who cut professionally that like it. I think the key is letting it run high RPM's by not going crazy with the rakers and not leaning on it. Many here swear by a simple muffler mod by a place like Washington Hot Saws saying that this lets the true potential out, even claiming that the saw runs cooler that way. I will probably give it a try this winter myself when I am not using the saw all the time.
With 18 acres to manage myself of mostly northeastern hardwoods, I could not be happier with what I bought...
It seems fine power-wise for now as long as the chain is sharpened and set right, now that it has broken in. A few have said it's a little low on power, many of these guys cut professionally. There are a few others who cut professionally that like it. I think the key is letting it run high RPM's by not going crazy with the rakers and not leaning on it. Many here swear by a simple muffler mod by a place like Washington Hot Saws saying that this lets the true potential out, even claiming that the saw runs cooler that way. I will probably give it a try this winter myself when I am not using the saw all the time.
With 18 acres to manage myself of mostly northeastern hardwoods, I could not be happier with what I bought...
clearance
Addicted to ArboristSite
I am sure the saw will work just fine for you. Sawtroll rightly notes that there are some members who do not think much of them, Lobo sees consensus where there is disagreement, Simonizer is on crack but welcome to his opinion. Having used them as well as thier ancestors, the 036s, after been used to xp Huskys I am not at all impressed. For a weekend warrior they are o.k. and probably miles above cheaper saws but the are not the pride of the Stihl fleet in my opinion like the 020 or 066. Maybe a good saw, not a killer machine and certainly not one of the finest saws on the planet. Would have never voiced my opinion where it not for the unwarranted, over the top praise.
I picked up one at a local dealer the other day and then picked up the 260 and I
was like this saw feels almost the same. I had to do it again and I know the
361 is heavier but it feels very similar to the 260. I definitely feels right, very
balanced, unlike some other models.
was like this saw feels almost the same. I had to do it again and I know the
361 is heavier but it feels very similar to the 260. I definitely feels right, very
balanced, unlike some other models.
jokers
Addicted to ArboristSite
Hey CNYCountry,
Where in Remsen are you? I passed through there yesterday and might be again on Saturday. I could let you see what an EHPms361 runs like. This one would even put a smile on clearance`s face.
Russ
Where in Remsen are you? I passed through there yesterday and might be again on Saturday. I could let you see what an EHPms361 runs like. This one would even put a smile on clearance`s face.
Russ
SawTroll
Information Collector
clearance said:
I am well aware of your opinion, that is the main reason I made my reservation, as I don't really recall anyone else sharing that opinion.... :Eye: :Eye:CNYCountry
ArboristSite Operative
jokers said:
I own the house right across from Agway, the Kubota tractor place, my property is the corner lot bordered by NYSR 12 to my west, Agway is to the north.
Hopefully I have pi**ed off noone here too much so they come looking for me...
What did you pay to have EHP fix it up? It doesn't seem that bad to me now but we're talking about 440 type power once it's opened up, right?
jokers
Addicted to ArboristSite
CNYCountry,
Next time I`m out your way, whether it be tomorrow or whenever, I`ll try to get ahold of you. I was worried that I might not be able to find you but those landmarks are familiar to me.
Pis sed off anyone? Not me, but that`s a funny thought that any person could get so pis sed about someone`s words that they would go looking for them.
The price for the EHP treatment when I had my 361 done was $200 USD which included shipping back. I would ask Ed first before assuming that price will last forever.
There is nothing wrong with the perfromance of the 361 in stock form. I`m sure that it`s atleast slightly better than the 036/360 and very comparable to the 357xp. I currently own all three of these models so I feel it is fair for me to make that comparison. From what I understand, GlenS has been doing a long term comparison of the 361 vs 036 Pro. He is typically quite critical, if you know where he is currently hanging out, you could no doubt get a more detailed analysis.
I hope to let the modified 361 speak for itself. I don`t have a stock 440 but I just happen to have a stock 372 that we could run it against. That would be close enough, wouldn`t it?
Russ
Next time I`m out your way, whether it be tomorrow or whenever, I`ll try to get ahold of you. I was worried that I might not be able to find you but those landmarks are familiar to me.
Pis sed off anyone? Not me, but that`s a funny thought that any person could get so pis sed about someone`s words that they would go looking for them.
The price for the EHP treatment when I had my 361 done was $200 USD which included shipping back. I would ask Ed first before assuming that price will last forever.
There is nothing wrong with the perfromance of the 361 in stock form. I`m sure that it`s atleast slightly better than the 036/360 and very comparable to the 357xp. I currently own all three of these models so I feel it is fair for me to make that comparison. From what I understand, GlenS has been doing a long term comparison of the 361 vs 036 Pro. He is typically quite critical, if you know where he is currently hanging out, you could no doubt get a more detailed analysis.
I hope to let the modified 361 speak for itself. I don`t have a stock 440 but I just happen to have a stock 372 that we could run it against. That would be close enough, wouldn`t it?
Russ
CNYCountry
ArboristSite Operative
jokers said:
Yeah, we're real easy to find, I left it deliberately vague so someone would have to know the area a bit as you do. We're bordered by the railway on the east also, forgot to mention that.
I may or may not be around, will be in and out all day but mostly in. I am going to try to put wood in all day tomorrow but that depends on if others let me concentrate on that, etc...
To be honest, I don't have a whole lot much more than 6 - 8" that needs cutting, I have cut most of the wood that I'll need this winter and the only remaining tasks for the year are cutting small stuff out of a trail system my wife is building. I do have some bigger dead beech I have been looking for an excuse to cut though. Other than that I don't know what I have that would be big enough to really show off a warmed up mid size saw...
jokers said:Pis sed off anyone? Not me, but that`s a funny thought that any person could get so pis sed about someone`s words that they would go looking for them.
Ya never know, reading some of the stories on here!
I don't think I have.. :angel:
jokers said:
A good price even if it has come up some. I am going to at least do the muffler treatment, I understand this makes big strides towards making it run better.
jokers said:
Like I said, I'm very happy with mine; I went down to Houdins' on your advice and bought this, actually. I remember reading where someone said that the only 361 they had ever run that would keep up with a stock 357xp was one with a canadian muffler, the one digit different part number. What this tells me is the muffler is a major bottleneck, the stock porting may not be too awful bad. But I will admit that I know next to nothing about making 2 cycles perform. And again, I think getting the chain set up right is key, just like most any other saw.
jokers said:
Well, I will admit I'm curious to see what a modded 361 will do, I hear it's a world of difference, which is what led me to hypothesize that it would be more similar to a 440. I am honestly not picky enough to time cuts against a bigger saw, I do not cut professionally, etc, etc. I just enjoy and value a good running machine. This has been a pleasure to use vibration, weight, balance and power wise so far, but as with anything I am curious how much better mods could make it.
I'd look forward to possibly meeting you at some point if you have the time!
- John
neverenough
ArboristSite Member
sawjo said:
I think you will enjoy that saw for many years to come. I have 2 of the previous generation 036's with a few different bars. When I am running the 16 inch bar and just a decently sharp chain, it's unstopable. The saw can handle up to a 24 inch bar, but your really pushing it and it won't perform as great with the big bars. You should find the 18 inch bar to work quite well. Good luck and enjoy. As far as the break in and other wise goes, I'm very big on warming the motor up before using it. Nothing like 3 minutes or anything, but I like to start the saw and let it idle for maybe 15 seconds, rev it up a little, and let it idle for another 10 seconds or so before I use it. A little longer if it's cold out. It's not hard to cold seize a 2 stroke motor, therefore I like to let a little heat soaking take place before I load the motor. Break in...just use it.
