New Dolmar in the house

[Bearcub]

I have been needing (wanting? lusting after?) a larger saw for quite some time

My Stihl MS-210 is great for brush and smaller cottonwoods/poplars but I have some really big ones that need to come down for both fire safety and because of the potential for damage to my home

I have run into limitations with my little Stihl and while I realize power is not a substitute for skill and knowledge I also know not to shoot at a bear with a .22

A tool for every use so to speak

So anyway, without offending any loyal brand fans I did a lot of research and decided that in the size range I was considering the Dolmar PS-6400 was my best bet so I ordered one with a 20" bar

It was dropped of Friday while I was a work and after I got home I unboxed it and mounted an Oregon 72DPX Semi-Chisel chain

The fuel in my can was a few weeks old so I waited until yesterday morning and got a fresh gallon of supreme from the Shell station

I put in 3 oz of Amsoil Saber (normally run 2.6oz) and 1 oz of Seafoam and mixed her up good

I filled the oil tank with Itasca and proceeded to fire her up

Jeez, just a LITTLE bit harder to pull than my MS-210

Thank god for the compression release

Fired up on the 5th pull with full choke

Dropped the choke to half and gave her another yank and she fired right up

Let her idle for a few and then revved her up slowly to maybe half throttle to check the oil pump and it was oiling well

I had a downed cottonwood about 8" around limbed already

It was still about 4' off the ground at a 90 degree angle to another big blow down and I took off a 6' section

I took my time cutting 1" thick discs at 3/4 to WOT in the cut and let her cool a bit between every 10 or so cuts

I have to say this is a whole new world

It is by far the most powerful saw I have ever handled and just astounded me with the raw cutting power

It is a LOT of saw and I am very pleased so far



Thanks for looking

Michael

 

[1Alpha1]

Nice saw.

Congrats and enjoy!

 

[Fishnuts2]

Congrats! I think you made an excellent choice. Have fun but stay safe.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Bluefish]

Good for you Man, nice lookin' rig. Russ

 

[Paragon Builder]

You won't regret it! And it's got awesome upgrade potential when you get the itch!!

 

[Bearcub]

You won't regret it! And it's got awesome upgrade potential when you get the itch!!

Thanks everyone

Yeah, I waffled about the 7900 but just being a homeowner with a lot of trees and the "friend who has a chainsaw" who cuts stuff up for friends just to be able to run a saw I just didn't see the need

If I ever got a chance to go to the other side of the mountains and tackle those huge Sitka Spruce with a long ass bar I think the 7900 mod would shine

Who knows; maybe I will get a wild hair and have one of the forum porting wizards work their magic on it and pop on the bigger jug, mod the muffler, de-limit the carbs, etc

But wait, then I would need a spare saw to use while this one was away at the chainsaw hospital...

Hmmmm

This might just work

LOL

Thanks

Michael

 

[Andyshine77]

You now own one of the better saws ever made. Believe it or not, the 6400 will pull a 28" chain just fine, I doubt you'll ever feel the need for more power.

 

[nnero]

Nice! The 6400 always gets overshadowed by its bigger brother but that doesn't stop them from being awesome. You're gonna hear the it's too heavy for the displacement, blah blah blah crap. It doesn't matter, because you have an over built tank. A 6400 runs like it doesn't belong in the 60cc class. In a lot of ways, it doesnt though. I love seeing new Dolmar owners!

 

[RAS61]

I love my Makita/Dolmar 510. Dolmars are a great price/performance value. Good luck and enjoy.

 

[Ronaldo]

They are very nice saws and especially for their price! Looks great!

 

[wde_1978]

Nice choice and congratulations - You just doubled Your saws power!

I too think that the Dolmar PS-6400 is a GREAT saw , overshadowed by her stronger (more expensive) sister the PS-7900 (and her successors).
I have my PS-6400 since 2006. and never regretted my purchase - all she needed thus far was fuel , oil , sharp chain and the occasional sprocket , she is ready to rock whenever I need her to!
The PS-6400 behaves really well wearing a 20" b&c combo and even when buried in wood (in my case mostly beech & oak) she'll just keep pulling!

I too was tempted by her sibling PS-7900 , eyeballed her ever since I bought my PS-6400 , and luck smiled upon me almost a year ago when if found a used low hour specimen for sale - thus I now own both.

The PS-7900 is indeed significantly more powerful then the PS-6400 is , but she is also meaner if not payed attention to.

All been said , my Dolmar PS-6400 is still my "go to girl" as most of the stuff I have to cut just falls apart of fear when I approach carrying my Dolmar PS-7900!

Enjoy Your Dolmar PS-6400 , break her in and get used to HER power output and behavior.
But keep an weather eye out for a Dolmar/Makita 79xx as they do pop up occasionally , mostly when people don't know what they have or feel challenged by the saws power.

Neither of my saws feature the decompression valve and I am fine with that.
They can both be started without the deco with just a little bit of umph!

Also these saws don't have half choke , they have full choke+half throttle when choke is engaged , and half throttle upon disengaging choke.
Half throttle gets disengaged by blipping the throttle lever.
That is unless Dolmar changed something on newer production specimen (though I doubt it).

Before anything - stay safe , this is no longer a toy saw that is easily kept at bay.
A PS-6400 kicking backwards will hurt , a PS-7900 even more so!

 

[Ronaldo]

Since we're talking about new Dolmars. 2014 PS-5105H - got this from site sponsor, fordf150. I only have one full tank of fuel through it so far and really like it. Good power and very smooth. The heated handles are going to be great this winter!

 

[Ironworker]

Nice post enjoy your new toy.

 

[CR888]

l have a 6400 and they are a good solid saw, mine is 3-4 years old and going strong. However if buying new today, the 6100 would be my choice with reed induction. Although, the 6400 has 'proven' itself and has a good name so l get that too. l run 18" .404 RM on my 6400 and it goes good.

 

[MCW]

Having run numerous ported 7900's for many years, put 1000's of hours on them, and dropped 10's of 1000's of trees with them I'll say one thing...
A stock 6400 is still an impressive saw
About the only suggestion I'd have is to consider the HD filter kit as if you ever encounter any dust it will go straight through the stock filter. If you're in a high rainfall area with nice green trees then ignore my suggestion

 

[Bearcub]

Nice! The 6400 always gets overshadowed by its bigger brother but that doesn't stop them from being awesome. You're gonna hear the it's too heavy for the displacement, blah blah blah crap. It doesn't matter, because you have an over built tank. A 6400 runs like it doesn't belong in the 60cc class. In a lot of ways, it doesnt though. I love seeing new Dolmar owners!

Yeah, it is a tank

I have to get used to those huge Klingon felling dogs, although I have already discovered they are very functional

Also these saws don't have half choke , they have full choke+half throttle when choke is engaged , and half throttle upon disengaging choke.
Half throttle gets disengaged by blipping the throttle lever.
That is unless Dolmar changed something on newer production specimen (though I doubt it).

No, you are entirely correct. I misspoke. It is half throttle, not half choke

Still getting used to 2 separate controls when starting (on/off switch and choke)

I am used to the all in one control on my Stihl

About the only suggestion I'd have is to consider the HD filter kit as if you ever encounter any dust it will go straight through the stock filter. If you're in a high rainfall area with nice green trees then ignore my suggestion

If the postman doesnt screw up there should be a slip in the mailbox this afternoon for the HD filter kit. While its generally not too dusty around here I learned a long time ago how vital filtration is for any engine. Another case where there is no such thing as too much.

Thanks everyone

Michael

 

[nnero]

Ill be upgrading to the HD filter once I get my oiling issues ironed out. I get spoiled with the filtration on the 6100

 

[CR888]

Another good thing about 6400 is that you can get a near new OEM cylinders from the post for about a 100 bucks. l bought one as it was so cheap and l want to give porting a go. AS mentality renders a 6400 cylinder near worthless as there is a more powerfull option. Having a stock cylinder for refence will help me know how much power l have lost/gained. The filter is pretty bad in dry stuff, clearly not designed for our conditions. Some days my 6400 eats more than l do.I really want a 6100 though, they seem pretty snazy.

 

[Bearcub]

Since we're talking about new Dolmars. 2014 PS-5105H - got this from site sponsor, fordf150. I only have one full tank of fuel through it so far and really like it. Good power and very smooth. The heated handles are going to be great this winter!

Nice

Those 5105s sure get a lot of thumbs up ratings

My HD filter kit showed up today

Put it in this evening and fired her up in the garage to make sure everything went back together correctly

Forgot my earmuffs

Holy cow does that thing snarl

Didn't have time to actually go out and do some cutting

Thanks for looking

Michael

 

[nnero]

I almost got a 6400 p and c because of the price. Luckily the cylinder cleaned up and a AS member had an oem piston.

I know what the HD kit looks like but put pics up anyways!