homeowner saw

[daemon2525]

Yeah, I know it's my second post in less than 2 minutes, and that this has been asked before. But I am a poor person. I do not have money to buy many saws.

I have a little money coming in from a vacation time payout, and I have a chance to buy a saw. I have to do it right, I will not get two tries.

I currently run a 16" craftsman(poulan), 14" MCculloch (2014) and a McCulloch mini (tophandle).

I want a bigger saw.

I have money enough to buy about anything I want, However, I do not want to buy a saw that I will not use.

I picked up a 44 and said NO...

My current choice is the MS260. Its light, and big enough to handle a 20" if required (I'll run 18? 16?). I rarely have a bigger tree and will borrow a saw if needed.

The other saws that I considered were. (in no particular order).

Husky 40 to 60 cc saws. (Lowes, also My dealer sells H saws)
stihl 280
sthil 290
stihl 310
stihl 390
Poulan 295 (really I did consider) (save money to feed my children!!)

Is the 260 really a PRO saw that will run more hours than my other choices?

I want a saw that I can ACTUALLY cut lots of firewood with, and It is not about having the biggest saw in the neighborhhood.

The 260 seems lighter and built better.

Your profesional opinion will be greatly appreciated!

Larry in Ft. Wayne IN

P.S. MS260 price is $439

 

[sedanman]

If money isn't the stumbling block and you have have good local dealer support with Stihl, get a 361, a little heavier than a 260 but way more power.

 

[Patrick62]

My 2 cents worth

I fully understand the $$$ issue. The Mac tophandle sounds cool, keep it.
The 14" Mac sounds like a great backup saw, keep it as well.
Try and lose the renamed Poulan.

The Stihl 260 sounds like a great idea (I want one as well). There are other ideas that will be mentioned. I have a Jonsered that was sorta cheap, and the little thing is doing pretty well. I also have a top handle Echo that is awsum for stuff in it's size (like your little Mac??).

-Pat

Stihl MS460
Jonsered 2145
Echo 3400

 

[slowsuki]

if price is a problum you might want to consider a used saw, ebay you can get a light used 026 for 250.00 and if one is there the trading post on this sight is a great place to buy a used saw. i think for firewood a 036 pro or a ms 361 are good saws.but 026 will work just take a little longer.i have seen sevral 036 pro saws on ebay for 300.00 husky 365 is a good firewood saw think they run about 450.00 husky 359 would also be a good firewood saw.for a firewood and all purpse chainsaw look for 60cc as a minimum.you will be happy with the weight and peoformence.

 

[clearance]

I am with the good used idea, why buy a meagre saw like that when you could buy something big, old and powerfull. Kind of like being in the carlot and choosing between a new honda and an old 3/4 ton pickup. The Ebay prices seem kind of high. Any of these saws if they check out good, any Husky XP saw 266xp 272xp 288xp 371xp 372xp maybe a 365 Some Stihls 038Mag 044 + many more I am sure just not a Stihl guy but they make good stuff too. Some people here sell good saws in the 60-80cc range, I like around 70cc but whatever cuts good.

 

[daemon2525]

I'll look at the 361.

I went to my local Stihl guy and picked up every saw that he had.

He happened to be OUT of the 361, So that was the only one that I did not get a chance to see.

He said that is was a "best seller". so he did not have one. Coincidence?

AT 12.3LBS it's still slightly lighter than the others.

Thanks for the tip

 

[daemon2525]

thanks for the tips!!!

I am determined to buy a NEW saw.

I don't get many new things. And by golly, I'm gonna have NEW saw.

I am a E-bayer myself, but cannot (this time) afford to get screwed.

If I buy new, I know where my dealer lives.


Thanks
LLA

P.S. I'm always looking fos good used saws. I know a lot of people.

 

[TimberPig]

A rough idea of the budget and wood size will help with the recommendations too. As you probably already know, since most on here are saw nuts, they'll upsell you onto the bigger, faster, more powerful model, often when it is far more than really needed.
With some of the online deals, you can often get more saw for a given budget in Husqvarna than in Stihl, where prices tend to be higher han the online Husky prices. Not to say Stihl isn't worth the price, but if budget is limited, it may allow for more saw than you could buy in a Stihl dealer.

 

[fishhuntcutwood]

Hello fellow Hoosier. Based on what you've told us, I say go with the 361. But do a search on here for "firewood saw" as this type of question gets asked often. Read through those posts and that might give you some more points of view.

But I say 361.

Jeff

 

[361kid]

Based on what you've told us, I say go with the 361. The 260 is a great saw but there is a big difference between a 50cc and a 60cc saw.

 

[WoodTick007]

346xp

Why have you not considered the 346XP?