Need help deciding which saw

[StIhL MaGnUm]

Hello everyone I guess I'm the new guy on the board and yes I'am looking for some help/info on which saw I should buy.

I'm trying to decide on either a Husky 372XP,or maybe a 385XP,or my other choices are a Stihl MS044 Mag,or a MS066 Mag, on all of the saws I will be using a 28"bar.

I cut alot of Pine and lots of Oaks,Maples so alot of my cutting will be Hardwoods.I kinda like the Stihl idea just because I've never had a Husky but then again I've also cut alot of wood with my 064 ,and 029 Super.

So if some of you Guys can help me out I would greatly appreciate it thanks.

Rob
R.C.S. Landclearing Inc.

 

[treeclimber165]

046Magnum would be my choice for a 28" bar. We have 2 set up like that. We also have an 066 with a 36", I think we have made ONE cut with it in 6 months. (That reminds me, I gotta replace the fuel in it and fire it up this weekend) The 046 is a bit torquier than the 044, especially in hardwoods. Take an extra couple thousands off the rakers and hold on while it pulls itself through the wood!

 

[StIhL MaGnUm]

I also thought about the 046 Mag,but the Stihl dealer in my town says there really is'nt that much of a difference in between the two except for the price he quoted me two prices
1.MS044 Mag with 24" bar+chain $654.95

2.MS046 Mag with 24" bar + chain $724.95

Also 066 Mag with 24" bar+chain $909.95

He said that ever since the 046 debut he has'nt sold very many of them.

Do you think these are good prices??
What do you think about the Husky's??any good

I have heard alot of people have been having trouble with Stihl lately why is this?I myself have never had any problems with them and personally they are my favorite.

Thanks for your reply

Rob
R.C.S. Landclearing Inc.

 

[Sethro]

Stihl qoute

I think you should check with a different Stihl dealer those prices they qouted are about 75.00 to 100.00 to high on all the model's but I live in Wisconsin. Seth

 

[Bradley]

Get a Husky 372 or 385 which are the equivalents of the 044 and 046. Look under the thread "372 muffler mods" and port the muffler on your new saw like the pictures and descriptions show. I was always a diehard Stihl fan until I got the 372 and have used others such as the 357, 346, and 385. Unless Stihl comes out with something new, I won't buy another one. We've even used the ported 372 with a 36" bar to cut 40" of tulip poplar and it ripped, no prob whatsoever.

Steve

 

[stihltech]

decisions

650.00 for a 46, 600.00 for 44, 825.00 for 66.
Buy a saw with a good dealer behind it.

Now if you have to modify the muffler to make it run like a Stihl, what will the Stihl run like with a mod muffler? Better, LOL

 

[rbtree]

Nothing wrong with Stihls, I have oodles of them. But Husky just plain are better, these days, in my opinion. and the 372 will outperform the 044, come close to the 046 and weighs less than an 044.

Here is some of my 7 modified saws. notice the Madsen's tuned 372 and Walkerized 372. As well, I have three done by Dennis Greffard, who does a fabulous job. I'm pretty sure the 372 will outcut my 7.7 hp dual ported muffler (but stock) 066 magnum...maybe not in 36 inch wood, though. And that 3120 is likely the fastest woods saw in the PNW....

Notice the stump, rather decayed, eh? Canopy was mighty healthy...Search on my other posts for lots of pics from the removal of this behemoth. I have more to post still, of the craning today.

 

[rbtree]

My,that water does look inviting!!!

 

[WOLF_RIVER_MIKE]

beautiful timber rbtree. Whish we had more maple in these parts. Occasionally you find a sugar maple... killed several white tails out of a sugar maple, but most of the maple I run across down here is city silver maple. Beautiful in the fall but always small. Makes good cook wood. doesn't split worth a crap because all the limbs. Got more than our share of oak and cherry down here though. Great shots of that maple. Quite a bonus on this list. RB keep us posted on the new Husky top handle due out this fall from what I was told. Y'all be careful up there.

 

[rbtree]

Yeah, but looks aren't everything. that 16' butt scaled out at 550 board feet...... and it will likely go as pulp. My third monster maple in three months, all decayed.. and very technical work, and all low priced...Oh well, we love the challenge....

Hoping for some figured maple some day, that can pay up to $5 a board foot!!

Big leaf is the largest maple in the world, we have some here over 11 feet dbh...

 

[rbtree]

Hope this off topic stuff isnt pithing anyone off:

 

[rbtree]

Sorry, here's another, shows the very close quarters.

 

[Sethro]

pithed off

rdtree
How's it hanging ,and no I'm not pithed off.Those pics are great .We also have a lot of problems with the hard and soft maples roting from the inside out here in Wisconsin.I am a sawyer for a very large company here in the midwest we have mills here in WI and Iowa and the price you gave above is the norm but for white not a lot of heartwood hard maple can far be worth more with limited defect's pretrouding though the bark and slab.Maple is a funny wood to cut depending on which way the sap is going and what time of year it is cut sugar content and what not.I have never ran a Huskey so I won't agree with you on the 372. Seth
Sounds like their haven fun in Clearwater

 

[TheTreeSpyder]

Hey'brutha; those pics are what some of this is all about!

VERY sharp contribution and pix, very hard to really show the level of dificulty in a pic, it is almost always 2-3x as large and difficult shaking hands with it!

But enough about you..............

If i had 1 new, 440, 460 and was looking to have one supertuned; what would be your recomended path?

 

[Tony Snyder]

If you care most about making the most popular decision for the majority of any forum, buy a Stihl. If you don't mind not having the best power to weight, buy a Stihl. If you don't mind paying the highest prices for parts and service, buy a Stihl. If you don't mind paying top dollar for all of that, buy a Stihl.


Stihl has over stayed their welcome on a 20 or 25 year old reputation. Others have passed them up. There are not great differences, but there is a product developement gap. Look how many years it took the public to realize that McCulloch was no longer at the leading edge of technology and value. Meantime many thousands of saws were sold based on an out of date reputation.

Light weight and performance are the predominate attributes. Smart cutters do not want to pack more weight than they have to.

 

[rbtree]

spyderman,

I assume you already have a new one...If not and you want full performance gains, get a 372/385 from Dennis (or 2171 Jonsy, same as 372.) Otherwise, send the Stihl to him for about $200 US.

I just understood your PM, when I remembered the angry orangutan....

Nelson,

just get one and have it tuned, you'll never go back to Stihl...!! And, keep in mind, that my first tuned saw was an 044, a fine machine....

 

[Bradley]

RB, keep the pics coming, I wish more folks could post 'em. I f you get time, I'd like to hear some accounts of accidents on Ranier this year. Maybe try to get out there in September and do some playing around Camp Muir or something. Couldn't make it out this summer to climb it, hopefully next year. Maybe do some boarding in Feb. E-mail me if you get a chance at [email protected]. Thanks, Steve.

 

[toolmaker]

Buy a new Stihl MS460 (around $700.00) feed it nothing but good fuel, maintain it religiously, and forget it. I have one and I love it. Plenty of power, not too heavy, outstanding saw.

 

[Dave]

Hey RB, great pic of your groundies but shouldn't they have chaps to go with the sandals?

 

[rbtree]

Those old fellers would have chapped pates purty quick if'n they took off their hats....

......uh, they be the customers.....at least til my crew jumped in th' lake......



.....and I needed a tug on the line...