Scrounging Firewood (and other stuff)

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Even though the specs show certain saws with a lower weight than others the heavier saw will many times feel better in hand depending on the bar & chain combo on it.

Many of the Stihl saws come from the shop with a 20" ES bar on it, and they are very nose heavy. Instead, get the much less expensive E bar. It is much lighter, they are plenty durable, and the saw will balance 10 times better. Have them on almost all of my 60 + 70 cc saws.

I have hefted 362s in the shop with both bars, and the difference is night + day. I would prefer to have a Ver I with the E bar than a Ver II with the ES, but they often sell the Ver II with the ES and folks wonder why they don't handle well. Stihl does themselves a disservice here.
 
Many of the Stihl saws come from the shop with a 20" ES bar on it, and they are very nose heavy. Instead, get the much less expensive E bar. It is much lighter, they are plenty durable, and the saw will balance 10 times better. Have them on almost all of my 60 + 70 cc saws.

I have hefted 362s in the shop with both bars, and the difference is night + day. I would prefer to have a Ver I with the E bar than a Ver II with the ES, but they often sell the Ver II with the ES and folks wonder why they don't handle well. Stihl does themselves a disservice here.
That's what I tell guys too, but most won't listen, why would you want the weight that far away from you. I run the es light on mine which is a great bar, just don't mess up $$$. I also run the standard roller tips on my smaller saws most the time, they are so much lighter and if I wear one out I grab another as they are pretty cheap in comparison to the ES/sprocket nose bars. Guys talk about the weight of the powerhead and they often miss out on the weight of the bar which should be a major part of the discussion when talking about weight/how the saw handles.
One thing I've seen is that a saw will feel much lighter in hand when it has a bar on it that balances the saw out (it's also probably the right bar for that saw). Many guys think a shorter bar is lighter and will handle better, but that isn't what I've found. The bummer is many times I don't want to run that long of a bar on a larger powerhead, like when bucking off a pile, as they just get in the way. The good thing there is all your doing is lifting and dropping and there isn't as much flipping the saw from side to side.
 
Chipper, my ported 360 screams, but I think my 044 still has a bit more torque. Here is the 044 w/28" in Red Oak. It has base gasket delete and timing advance.


Is your 360 ported.
I agree, it shows real fast which has more power when you put a 28 on :yes:. For running a 20 I prefer the 361, but if there is a lot of wood that needs to be bucked up I want a 70cc saw, more limbing and a bit of bucking I'd choose the 361. I want to be clear this is if I'm running stihls that day.
Here's mine in a nasty piece of frozen red oak, I wish I got to cut more green wood.
 
So question for dolmakita 7900 owners. Spec says 105dB, . Really? That's a lot less than stihls which all seem to be 117-118 dB .Is the Makita noticeably quiet? Would be very very nice, given my suburban logging operation is close to neighbours.

Second question for chain experts, (Philbert). Is my new stihl 2 in 1 file for 3/8 * 0.063" going to have to find a new home? The Makita wears 3/8* 0.058".... I didn't know there was such a size.... I'm going to have to get my head around a whole new set of chain sizes and bar mounts (and brands)
I think the sound of a dolmar is pretty quiet, then you open it up a bit and they get very throaty.

As Mike was saying it's the width of the driver. There are three sizes in 3/8 chain 063, 058, 050. Stihl saws many times will run .063, huskys and dolmars .058. I prefer 050 as I can run it on any saw that I have an 050 bar for as long as the chain has the proper drive link count.

You can buy a bar adapter and run the stihl bars on it if that makes it easier for you. I have one for my dolmars as I have a nice collection of longer stihl bars as well as a cannon that is a stihl mount. I also have one for my huskys so I can run a stihl bar on them if I want, but I try not to do that as that's just not right:lol:.
 
Thanks, got it driving home from a dentist appointment. Guy has it sitting if his drive at the end of his cul-de-sac.
Tons more that needs bucking.

Pardon my ignorance but are these plain ole ants???? They were under the bark when I split. Hoping they are not termites....
Yes, normal black ants/carpenter ants. I set rounds with lots of them aside, then when I'm splitting I break the rounds open and torch them with a small self igniting torch :blob2:.
 
Yes, the 360 is ported (MOFO by Dr Al). The 044 is not ported, but I have modded it and it runs very well.
Bet that's a mean saw then, he does great work. One of the few saws that stood out in my mind last year was an 026he did, pulled a 20x3/8 like any stock 60cc saw I've ever ran. I have the 026 here of the guy you sold the 046(I think it was) to, I've thought about having Al build it. I use it to mount bars on to sharpen chains in the vise, it's kind of an expensive mounting jig lol.
My 440 is ported, but not for speed, it's got some nice grunt and like a 28. That's one of the reasons I don't run it with the 20 as much any more, it's just not that much faster than other saws I have and if I'm running anything longer than a 20 I'd rather run the huskys or the dolmars, but I'm certainly not against a stihl with a sharp chain for bucking. Not sure I said anything here, I let my 660 go down the road after a good run, so for the time being the largest stihl I have is the 440, but the baby stihls(35-40) outnumber the huskys by a lot.
 
That's a nice chunk of locust James :sweet:.
Now what about that chain, I know that saw is faster than that :yes:.
That chain did a ot of noodling be for that short vid. It was due to be touched up. T Roller ran the saw saterday and thought it was a pretty strong saw. I turn it up a little bit at the GTGs compared to just cutting firewood. No one wants to run it cause it doesn't have a sticker :laugh:. He wanted to try it cause he knew Del did it and he lives 5 minutes from him and ran some other saws he did.
 
kids today have no idea of a lazy 6
Some of those old 6s could be maid to run very well. My grandfather ran a 6 banger Studebaker that sent a ot of V8 cars home. Some home grown mods on that car but the one I'll never forget was the wax paper head gasket.
 
I've only got two plastic wedges, . . . I got in the habit, many years ago, of cutting into the log about twice the width of the bar, then grabbing a long stick and jamming it in the kerf, break it off, 3-4 times. Works as good as a wedge . . .
This class we were felling trees against the lean. Basically, have to lift it up several inches. Not just to keep the kerf open.

Philbert
 
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