Need advice on picking out a bigger chain saw...

[Stihl Learning]

Being a homeowner, I have a handful of different saws for whatever comes up at or around the house...a Stihl MS250, an Echo 58 volt electric, a DeWalt 20 volt electric for limbs, etc., and a Dewalt 20 volt pole saw.

We just bought 5 acres of "woods" around a small pond in New Hampshire and are clearing it for a driveway and a pad for a Park Model log home. So now, the tree cutting is getting more serious. We are cutting quite a few Beech trees of various diameters. I've been using the MS250.

But..I believe that I'm pushing it pretty hard. I keep the chain sharp, etc.

I want to buy a larger saw without spending the price of a larger, high-end saw.

I've been looking at a Husqvarna 455 Rancher (20") and an Echo 59.8cc Timberwolf (20"). The reviews seem pretty good for the most part.

Any opinions on these saws? Or other $500.00ish saws that you recommend?

Another random question...just yesterday, I went to put a new chain on the MS250. I had some brand new 16" and 18" chains.

The bar measures 16" from the body of the saw to the tip of the bar. But....a 16" chain doesn't fit. The 18" chain fit perfectly. How are these things measured? I thought that it would be measured by the size cut that you could make.

Thanks!

Rich

If your MS250 has a Stihl bar, the specs should be on it. Look for a 62 (16") or 68 (18") = number of drive links.

 

[Stubby]

If your MS250 has a Stihl bar, the specs should be on it. Look for a 62 (16") or 68 (18") = number of drive links.

Thanks for that information. I will check that out.

After I posted up the question, I looked in the Owner's Manual, and it states, "Actual cutting length will be less than listed bar length".

Rich

EDIT...checked it out...68 links / 18" bar.

 

[StihlsawuserMS361]

I agree with "cookies" and others. Buy once, cry once theory. Another advantage of that is for whatever reason you don't need a "pro" saw or equivalent anymore, and need to sell, they hold their value compared to lesser smaller sized units. Plue too,"one owner" saws hold their value, especially if taken care of. Even keeping the owner's manual helps.

As others said also, lesser time bucking pays off, even though on paper it doesn't matter of a "few minutes" here and there. Trust me, at the end of the day, it matters.

Good luck.

 

[LuDookie]

The Echo is basically a compromise....price, capability, and how much work will it see. For $350.00 I'm taking a chance on it..

The cabin is a park model camper..Basically a 13 foot x 31 foot long RV delivered on a tri-axle trailer.
It stays on the trailer, so we're going to install 8 concrete filled sonor tubes around the perimeter for it to sit on..

Rich

You’ll be happy with it. It’s a great gateway saw that will be there for you, like said, they are dead reliable and long lasting. It will pull a 2 foot bar just fine, and a sharp chain will make the work fun, causing fantasies of your next big saw. Congrats.

 

[Stubby]

You’ll be happy with it. It’s a great gateway saw that will be there for you, like said, they are dead reliable and long lasting. It will pull a 2 foot bar just fine, and a sharp chain will make the work fun, causing fantasies of your next big saw. Congrats.

Thank you for your affirmation!

Rich

 

[Stubby]

Like they say....you learn something new every day...

When I bought the new chainsaw the other day, I filled the 2 tanks, fired it up, and cut a log off of a down tree in the woods behind my house. It went well.

And that was it, until today.

I went to start it again. Same tankful of fuel (50:1 premix out of a gallon can). It wouldn't start....it kept flooding. I'd pull the plug, blow it out with compressed air, and try again. It didn't show any sign of even wanting to start. I checked for spark...it had spark.

I was baffled, because it ran so easily and well 2 days before!

My friend Carl stopped by during this ordeal. He tried a few things, then he pulled the plug (which was wet), and smelled it. He said, "that's not gas..".

Again, I was puzzled. So, I smelled it, and it didn't have much of a gas smell.

So, we emptied out the tank, blew everything out with air. I mixed up a gallon of 93 octane along with the little bottle of the oil that comes with the saw.

Poured that in, and it fired right up, thankfully!

So, my takeaway is this....don't ever buy the premix fuel from a big box store. It doesn't come sealed, and I believe that I got someone else's return of crap fuel.

But, I'm still confused as to how it ran fine 2 days before, with the same tankful of fuel...??...

Rich

 

[LuDookie]

Like they say....you learn something new every day...

When I bought the new chainsaw the other day, I filled the 2 tanks, fired it up, and cut a log off of a down tree in the woods behind my house. It went well.

And that was it, until today.

I went to start it again. Same tankful of fuel (50:1 premix out of a gallon can). It wouldn't start....it kept flooding. I'd pull the plug, blow it out with compressed air, and try again. It didn't show any sign of even wanting to start. I checked for spark...it had spark.

I was baffled, because it ran so easily and well 2 days before!

My friend Carl stopped by during this ordeal. He tried a few things, then he pulled the plug (which was wet), and smelled it. He said, "that's not gas..".

Again, I was puzzled. So, I smelled it, and it didn't have much of a gas smell.

So, we emptied out the tank, blew everything out with air. I mixed up a gallon of 93 octane along with the little bottle of the oil that comes with the saw.

Poured that in, and it fired right up, thankfully!

So, my takeaway is this....don't ever buy the premix fuel from a big box store. It doesn't come sealed, and I believe that I got someone else's return of crap fuel.

But, I'm still confused as to how it ran fine 2 days before, with the same tankful of fuel...??...

Rich

Lots of times the canned fuel is alkalite , I think. It smells funny, for sure to someone not used to smelling it. I notice it most when I use gasoline… I smell it and it’s definitely “gas”. I’ve used a million gallons of the stuff with not a single issue, but who really knows? I do know that as good as the 590’s are, they are a bit notorious for flooding easily.

 

[Stubby]

Lots of times the canned fuel is alkalite , I think. It smells funny, for sure to someone not used to smelling it. I notice it most when I use gasoline… I smell it and it’s definitely “gas”. I’ve used a million gallons of the stuff with not a single issue, but who really knows? I do know that as good as the 590’s are, they are a bit notorious for flooding easily.

I also have a quart can of 40:1..same brand as the 50:1. I opened that one to compare smells, and it definitely smelled more like gasoline.

And immediately after dumping out the "bad" stuff and refilling with the new 50:1 it started right up.

Maybe it was a coincidence...

Rich

 

[Skateklister]

Being a homeowner, I have a handful of different saws for whatever comes up at or around the house...a Stihl MS250, an Echo 58 volt electric, a DeWalt 20 volt electric for limbs, etc., and a Dewalt 20 volt pole saw.

We just bought 5 acres of "woods" around a small pond in New Hampshire and are clearing it for a driveway and a pad for a Park Model log home. So now, the tree cutting is getting more serious. We are cutting quite a few Beech trees of various diameters. I've been using the MS250.

But..I believe that I'm pushing it pretty hard. I keep the chain sharp, etc.

I want to buy a larger saw without spending the price of a larger, high-end saw.

I've been looking at a Husqvarna 455 Rancher (20") and an Echo 59.8cc Timberwolf (20"). The reviews seem pretty good for the most part.

Any opinions on these saws? Or other $500.00ish saws that you recommend?

Another random question...just yesterday, I went to put a new chain on the MS250. I had some brand new 16" and 18" chains.

The bar measures 16" from the body of the saw to the tip of the bar. But....a 16" chain doesn't fit. The 18" chain fit perfectly. How are these things measured? I thought that it would be measured by the size cut that you could make.



Rich

I have done a lot of clearing and maintenance on 7 acres in NY. I recently got an Echo Timberwolf 20 inch that I use in the woods and for maintaining a rail trail. I don't run it 4 hours a day, but 4 hours a week. I love it, and wish I had bought it years ago. After I ruined a pro 60cc Husky that had a long life, I tried to get by with Stihl MS251 that I put an additional bar stud in. If you are young with many years ahead, get a top notch pro saw and remember to use fuel with the proper mix. If you want to save money I think the Timberwolf is worth considering.

 

[sean donato]

Like dookie mentioned, just about all canned fuel is Alkylate, which smells nothing like pump gas. It's highly doubtful you got a bad batch if it ran fine the day before, you just flooded the saw would be my guess.

 

[farmguywithasaw]

A fine choice of saw. I was going to recommend the 460 rancher over the 455 as the 460 pulls a 24” bar nicely but those 590s are sweet. As for the “true” fuel or whatever you want to call it it alsways smells like bad gas to me. I wonder could it be expired? It has a shelf life of 5 years

 

[LuDookie]

While cutting today, since we’re talking about it, I sniffed some of my TruFuel, and yeah, it’s a bit weird. It resembles gasoline but is pretty weak.

 

[Stubby]

Thanks for the replies...I guess I'll never know what the problem was...either genuinely poor fuel or just a coincidence, and it flooded. If in fact it DID flood ( like 10 times with me blowing everything dry with compressed air), how would I avoid the flooding from happening??

Just for reference about my age, I'm pushing 70....( I'll turn 69 next week..).

Rich

 

[farmguywithasaw]

Thanks for the replies...I guess I'll never know what the problem was...either genuinely poor fuel or just a coincidence, and it flooded. If in fact it DID flood ( like 10 times with me blowing everything dry with compressed air), how would I avoid the flooding from happening??

Just for reference about my age, I'm pushing 70....( I'll turn 69 next week..).

Rich

Need this soon then

 

[Stubby]

Need this soon then

I had never seen one of those before. At first, I thought it was a spoof, but apparently not.
It did make me laugh, though.....

Rich

 

[sean donato]

The pop with the choke on can be very faint, it should start in 3 or 4 pulls. Choke on pull twice, choke off pull. Should fire up.

 

[Stubby]

The pop with the choke on can be very faint, it should start in 3 or 4 pulls. Choke on pull twice, choke off pull. Should fire up.

I agree...the pop is faint, but I still heard it.

So, the day I got the saw, I followed the Quick Start instructions....set the brake, push in the decompression button, pull the choke out (closed), give up to 5 pulls until it "burps". Then, push the decompression button in again (it pops back out during the first pulls), push the choke in, and pull to start (no more than 5 pulls). It started very easily.

Tried the exact same procedure yesterday (about 10 different times, drying out the flooding situation each time)..all to no avail. It was like no compression was taking place. The decompression button never popped back out after the first 5 pulls, no "burp" whatsoever. The cylinder got so flooded that gas (or whatever that crap was) was coming out of the decompression button hole.

That's when we drained all the gas out, dried everything out, and refilled with the new fuel. It fired up perfectly.

I also started it up again today..it fired up perfectly, again.

It's as if the crappy fuel wasn't good (hot?) enough to fire up. But, it worked on day one... that's the baffling part.
Perhaps the stuff in the gallon can of mix had some settling in it, and some good fuel rose to the top...I dunno......

Rich

 

[coffeebrk]

Thanks for the replies...I guess I'll never know what the problem was...either genuinely poor fuel or just a coincidence, and it flooded. If in fact it DID flood ( like 10 times with me blowing everything dry with compressed air), how would I avoid the flooding from happening??

Just for reference about my age, I'm pushing 70....( I'll turn 69 next week..).

Rich

I turned 69 this year. I think you got an adreline boost starting it for the first time.
In the excitement of a new saw I'd be surprised if you didn't. Make sure you get angry with it the next time you're pulling, lol

 

[sean donato]

Some saws don't need the decomp pushed in till the rings seat and compression comes up. I don't use the decomp on small saws, and Don't advocate for using them on new stock saws either.

 

[Stubby]

I turned 69 this year. I think you got an adreline boost starting it for the first time.
In the excitement of a new saw I'd be surprised if you didn't. Make sure you get angry with it the next time you're pulling, lol

I'm always angry...that's just the way I am!..

Rich