ms 310 or ms390

[zsteinmetz]

Need some help. I cant make up my mind which saw to buy. I was at the Stihl shop the other day and am debating on the ms 310 or ms 390. 390 has about 5 more cc but is about 70 bucks more. I will be cutting trees from 24" on down but I know power is nice. Do any of you guys own any one of these saws? Likes. Dislikes. Thanks Zach

 

[sawinredneck]

UHHHHHHHGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH................

Same weight, same saw, one has more power, one is cheaper. Why carry around the the same weight, with less power, for $70 none the less?

 

[Austin1]

UHHHHHHHGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH................

Same weight, same saw, one has more power, one is cheaper. Why carry around the the same weight, with less power, for $70 none the less?

do what he say's go for the 390. I have seen a 390 being used on 24'' poplar and was impressed with it's performance with a 25'' bar. But then again I tend to like all the saw's people pick on!

 

[ktm rider]

I really don't think you would be going wrong with either saw. I have the 310 and it is a very nice saw. But, for only $70 more you could have a bit more power with the same weight so I would agree with everyone else and go for the 390.

 

[RAMRod]

390 all the way....

I have a 390, have never had or run a 310, but I like the 390. Very good power, easy to start w/ the decomp...

The only reasons to go w/ the 310 which I can see are the $70 (as you're considering a new saw instead of used I'm going to take a stab that the $70 isn't really an issue for you) and it's going to be a bit less fatiguing at the end of the day running a lower hp saw. Just less torque to deal with which you're horsing around. And even on that... I'd say the difference would be very small/negligible, and may even be a moot point due to the 310 taking longer on the larger cuts.

Once you decide and give them a try, pop back with some notes on how you like it!

Rod

 

[TomKildare]

Hi zsteinmetz,

I've just bought a ms390 but after only 2 (yep, two!) hours, it had to go back to the dealer. They say it was a fuel problem (free repair) but we use the same fuel mix for all our Stihl saws from the same fuel can... It may be worth your while mentioning this situation to your dealer to see has it happened much to them with the 390?

 

[Ianab]

As the 310 and 390 are basically the same saw with a different piston / cylinder and stickers I would say if there was a common problem with them it would affect the whole range.

I'm guessing yours had a minor gremlin like a fuel line fell off the carby or something like that. Annoying but not a major failure

Cheers

Ian

 

[Peacock]

I had a 310. It was a pretty good saw, but it lacked in a couple areas for me. The powerband was a bit too narrow, so you had to really listen to the saw. It had plenty of power, just kinda peaky. The other problem was that if I leaned on it hard in a cut my glove would touch the chainbrake handle and engage it at exactly the wrong time.

I replaced it with a 280. Slightly less peak power, but it's loads more usable and is over a pound lighter.

 

[Canyonbc]

i dont no if you already bought a saw

but i have ran both the 310 and 390...that extra 5 cc's is nice...espically the decompression valve makes for alot easier starts..

that 70 bucks willk be well spent when cutting down the trees

but either one you go with, they are both stihls and damn good saws

 

[.aspx]

I have a 310 and enjoyed it. I enjoy it even more since I did a small (5/16") muffler mod. Night and day.

I've read a lot on this site (and others) that the 290/310/390's respond well to muffler mods. I'm surprised no one has come in here trying to persuade you to buy a 361 or 440 or 372 or ...

 

[Canyonbc]

really uh...i had not heard of that with the muffler...

its a solid saw...and i like how it runs..

my favorite smaller saw...of all times is definetly Stihl 260 PRO.....great saw

 

[.aspx]

really uh...i had not heard of that with the muffler...

its a solid saw...and i like how it runs..

I was actually cutting today in 20+" Alder, Fir, & Maple. Some green, some bone-dry and it did not bog down once (310). Usually when I'm deep in a cut, especially larger diameter wood I would bog a little bit (pre-muffler mod).

Just so you know. If you want I can post pictures.

 

[Canyonbc]

thats is awesome..

ya some pics would be great...how did you get the idea for the muffler mod, and is a diffcult thing to do

 

[.aspx]

To paraphrase Jeff (fishhuntcutwood) if you have a drill you can do a muffler mod. If I wouldn't have repainted the muffler (I'm too vain ) it would've only taken less than 10 minutes to complete.

I'll try to get those to you tomorrow night or I'll pm sometime later this week. Very easy.

The saw will suck through a tank of gas in about 10 minutes if running wide-open but in that 10 minutes you will cut more wood. I'm pulling a 25" b/c (full-skip) just as easily as I was pulling an 18" b/c.

Here is a picture from a thread that inspired me. This is not my muffler but rather of an 029. I just edited this image in MS Paint.

The blue represents what you'll see when you take off your deflector cover and spark arrestor. The yellow is the size of the hole that I drilled. The hole isn't that deep as the center section of the muffler is hollowed out.

I drilled the same exact hole through my deflector to match up. Put the spark arrestor screen back in and done.

Easy.

I will still upload you pictures of my muffler.

Here is a thread to read. 029 muffler mod

Keep in mind that my mod was way more conservative than this and I can tell a difference.

 

[.aspx]

is a diffcult thing to do

If a software developer can do it then anyone can do it.

 

[goof008]

Get the biggest saw you can (the 390) and do the mod. It helped my 290 a lot. Just a drill and a pair of tin snips opens it up, then remove the limit cap on the H and L screws and set them at one turn out each and you will have a great running saw. Good luck.

 

[Canyonbc]

Awesome...dont look bad at all and to get that extra power is amazing

thanks for the tips, and i will let you know how mine goes

 

[computeruser]

A bit late to the thread, but a couple thoughts all the same -

The only reasons to go w/ the 310 which I can see are the $70 (as you're considering a new saw instead of used I'm going to take a stab that the $70 isn't really an issue for you) and it's going to be a bit less fatiguing at the end of the day running a lower hp saw. Just less torque to deal with which you're horsing around. And even on that... I'd say the difference would be very small/negligible, and may even be a moot point due to the 310 taking longer on the larger cuts.

Got it backwards. Underpowered saws cause fatigue, not the other way around. And being overwhelmed by the tremendous torque of the MS390?! Seriously.

Given that the 290/310/390 are on the same chassis, all else being equal (which in this case it happens not to be...see below) it makes precious little sense to have less power in the same package.

As the 310 and 390 are basically the same saw with a different piston / cylinder and stickers I would say if there was a common problem with them it would affect the whole range.

Ian is right, again.

Get the biggest saw you can (the 390) and do the mod. It helped my 290 a lot. Just a drill and a pair of tin snips opens it up, then remove the limit cap on the H and L screws and set them at one turn out each and you will have a great running saw. Good luck.

Generally, yes, this is good advice. But in the case of the 390 you are in the same price range, more or less, as the 361. So buy the 361 instead. The only redeeming feature of the 290/310/390 series is the fact that these saws are cheap. As you move up from the 290 to the 310 that advantage diminshes somewhat, and by the time you've paid for a 390 it is gone. The incremental increase in price is far greater than the incremental increase in power.

And I'd be careful to rely on x-turns out as a method of tuning a saw. Tune it by sound, by feel in the cut, or with a tach, as these are far more meaningful methods for getting things set up right.