Husky 346xp or Stihl ms 260 I'm ready to buy now

[pbtree]

Stihl and Husky are both quality products, and they both have real stars as well as some real boat echoes in their line ups - the secret is learning which is which...

I have never heard a negative comment on the 346 until the above mentioned oiler issue - but I have heard of problems with 260's.

Just my 2 cents - both Ford and Chevy make good comparable quality trucks (dare I start another argument and hijack the thread? ) but then again some people swear by one and will not consider the other...

Just to stick my neck out - I prefer Huskies and I prefer Chevy's - but I am not saying that the others are bad or inferior - just different with their own issues...

 

[jokers]

It's a high-tech fecal-injected scientific spasmologizer that increases the output to stratospheric levels and gives you shinier fingernails to boot!

 

[rbtree]

By not messing with my saw, I know it will last a long time, and long life is as important to me as a few % cut speed differential. Anyone like to guess what is the effect on lifetime?

l

Hey lakeside, another nice fall day, eh?!!

My 4 year old 346 is still running like a raped ape..and will likely cut twice as fast as a friend's 260, that sports that ridiculously small muffler port.....

Modding a muffler allows a saw to run quite a bit cooler, which defeats the purpose of the EPA restrictions. Ask me if I care. Saws will last longer, that is a given. As well, I run full synthetic Mobil MX2T at about 36-1, with no carbon buildup worries as dyno mix might create at that ratio.

There is no evidence that a properly modded saw wears out quicker than a stock one, likely just the opposite.

 

[jokers]

For anyone speculating on how much improvement you can get out of a properly modified woods saw, check out this thread from EHP`s forum, the vidoes tell the truth and it`s hardly only a few %.Ed`s saw videos There are some race saws in this thread but many of the saws are everyday work saws.

Russ

 

[SawTroll]

Over here there classes as "optional safety feature" all our new government safety stuff is saying that we should get heated handles to reduce hand arm vibration syndrome.

My understanding is that you do feel less vibration. It might also have something to do with that when you have went cold hands the handles are warm keeping the blood near the surface and things like that, plus your nerves will be regestering this is hot rather than this is vibrating.

Seems logic to me, but your hands have to be pretty beat up already if the vibes of the 346 bothers you.....

My right hand is pretty bad ( not from extensive chainsaw use), but even the vibes of the old Jred doesn't bother me - but cold wet hands certainly does.

 

[SawTroll]

No.... the power changed from 3.4 to 3.2 when they original MS260 came out. The printed rating hasn't been changed with the larger bore, .........

:angel: I can't prove it right now, but I am pretty sure that the change in power rating happened some time last winter, as did the change in sylinder bore....

 

[Lakeside53]

:angel: I can't prove it right now, but I am pretty sure that the change in power rating happened some time last winter, as did the change in sylinder bore....

I'll dig around but I'm pretty sure it changed with the MS260 introduction. Would be interesting to see how the torgue has changed on the bigger bore models. It "feels" better, but who knows...

 

[pinus]

Stihls catalogue for 2003/2004 gives fo MS260 48.7 cm3, 2.6kw/3.5HP
And 2004/2005 the same values. The change appeared as SawTroll mentioned in some jan/feb 2005

 

[Lakeside53]

interesting. The change happened in Production from August 2004. Increase in cc and bore size (and porting changes I think).

 

[Lakeside53]

Hey lakeside, another nice fall day, eh?!!

My 4 year old 346 is still running like a raped ape..and will likely cut twice as fast as a friend's 260, that sports that ridiculously small muffler port.....

Modding a muffler allows a saw to run quite a bit cooler, which defeats the purpose of the EPA restrictions. Ask me if I care. Saws will last longer, that is a given. As well, I run full synthetic Mobil MX2T at about 36-1, with no carbon buildup worries as dyno mix might create at that ratio.

There is no evidence that a properly modded saw wears out quicker than a stock one, likely just the opposite


Yes, and I was buried in chainsaw grease and sawdust all day (inside).


Not sure if the newer "hotter" running saws wear faster, but I can't dispute that a properly modded saw would be a problem either. I just see a lot of talk on mods that take it too far... and at some point you apply a lot more stress on the engine than is reasonable (running at 16500 is not nice to a saw).

I'm not trying to dampen the enthusiasm of those that want more for less, or whatever, and moding is fun, but a newcomer to this site would think an 026 couldn't cut cornstalks without a few more holes in the muffler. I think there is a lot more talk about this subject than reality, but maybe it just reflects the active talkers on AS.

My limited view: I get about 800 saws a year though the store for service, about 25% pro. I've seen maybe two performance modified saws - both walkerized 066s. None of my pro accounts give a rats tail about other than stock. Heck, I have trouble getting them to clean their air filters and muffler screens, and none every ask about decking the cylinders, porting, mufflers etc.. We do the usual two screw carb upgrades of course.. You can't believe how many muffler screens I clean on 20t/200t's - hey, a 20% increase in performance! I suspect you clean your air filters and don't have a lot of 200t muffler screens to clean


Might try MX/2T myself. I've just got a brand new 200t and 361 that haven't even been gassed. Would be interesting to try MX/2T and Bioplus from the beginning.


Admin : how about a poll on who has modded a saw, who wants to, who wont, and who's thinking about it.. or whatever...

 

[pinus]

Lakeside53, you have probably real information. I and probably SawTroll too are operating with numbers and data available from catalogues and Net.
Interesting for me, was the porting principle changed too for MS260?
Now it is rated rather as mediumsized universal saw, not pro

 

[SawTroll]

interesting. The change happened in Production from August 2004. Increase in cc and bore size (and porting changes I think).

It is not unusual that changes take plase a bit before they are reflected in the catalogs, so august 2004 seems likely....

 

[scotchguy]

Give the local guy a break

The stihl dealer support is strong in my area...husky is weak in this area as far as having dealers. Cost is really not a factor...I want the best saw.

Just ordered my Husky 346xp 18'' bar and a spare .325 chain from Baileys.
cost $427 to the door.

I did give the only local Husky dealer a shot at the sale. The saw was not in stock and it was going to cost $480 plus tax. He was angry that the Internet companies are able to give better deals than dealers can. I sympathize with him but this is a big price difference.

Since cost is not an issue, I would have spread some happiness around and paid the extra 50 bucks for the pleasure of walking out the shop with a new saw. Although we all have our limits and if the sales tax was 17.5% like it is in the UK, I might have bought it mail order.

One reason the Husky dealer support is weak may be that people buy there saws discounted over the web. I suspect we might be looking at a future where there is only Walmart.

 

[spacemule]

You all do realize that you're supposed to pay sales tax on Internet orders also, don't you?

 

[rbtree]

Lakeside, I rarely run my 200T, as I prefer the Husky 335's.....call me whacko....

ran a bunch of 020's over the years tho.

I've modded a few mufflers myself and done before/after tests....my memory is rusty but here's some appx gains:

335's-up to 25% faster
036 about 20%
346--25%
Husky 44 Rancher...don't know, but just did it, and it is now not far behind my fully modded 346!!
Echo 3400--abt 15%
372 Husky-abt 20%

imho, many of the pros that come into your store are as uninformed (not a reflection on you guys, just them) about saws, saw care, and saw mods as they are about proper tree care....

 

[pbtree]

Lakeside, I rarely run my 200T, as I prefer the Husky 335's.....call me whacko....

imho, many of the pros that come into your store are as uninformed (not a reflection on you guys, just them) about saws, saw care, and saw mods as they are about proper tree care....

I agree - you can call me whacko as well, as I love my 335. I have not played with the newer replacement, not the CA model with the 45 CCmotor, But I do like the saw quite a bit when climbing...

And I too have observed that quite a few "pros" are not...

 

[Acer]

I have both 346xp and the ms260. The 260 is 2years old or so, the 346xp a year younger. Originally, I swapped from stihl to Husky because the local Stihl dealers were so poor. I got fed up having to order every little part, their lack of knowledge about the product. But since I've bought the Husky, I haven't touched the Stihl. The Husky feels better balanced, accelerates better, and is easier to maintain.

 

[Davidsinatree]

From reading all the posts it looks like most people leaned heavily towards the 346xp. Thanks for the replies.....I'll let you know my take on the saw when i get my hands on it.

HURRY UP UPS!!!!!

 

[Sylvatica]

finally had to mill out the oiling port for the oiler

I have had a bad oiler on a old 371XP, but whenever one of our 346s was oiling weak, it was due to the poorly designed, easily plugged, small diameter, angled oil hole on the crappy laminated BAR, not the saw.

Once the bar hole is drilled out, enlarged and straightened with a a cobalt bit, the problem has gone away.

 

[bwalker]

You all do realize that you're supposed to pay sales tax on Internet orders also, don't you?

Sounds like GlennS.