Stihl MS441 or 461 or 442

[CaseyForrest]

The 500i could feasibly fit a 1 saw plan. Not to discount the 241 (if you have or can find one) or the 261, which is the primary saw we use on our cutting table for a small saw if one was to have a 2 saw plan.

I will run mine primarily with a 20" bar, but we do have a customer that put a 42" bar on it with full skip chain and reported satisfactory results.

I had a 461, swapped that out for a 462 and still have that along with a 362. This cutting season will be interesting with the addition of the 500. I'm quite certain it will be used far more than the 462. More power with only a slight weight penalty is a win win. But I wouldn't kick the 462 out of the lineup, Its a solid saw and can still be found.

I personally would take the 462 over the 441 or 461. MTronic has been flawless for me and I don't like tinkering with carbs.

 

[Chris1044]

Still haven't bought a saw....500i vs 661 is the new dillema.

Reassessed my needs, and there's going to be a fair amount of milling...or at least halving trunks lengthwise...in my future. Have some swamp land and want to traverse using paths made from tree trunks - some boardwalk already built but want other paths to various spots.

Whose used the 500i as a mill? Likely not many, hence my lean toward the 661.

 

[Andyshine77]

I have reservations about running a Mtronic ore fuel injected saw on a mill, as they need way more fuel to stay cool. And when it comes to running any saw on a mill always go with the largest saw possible.

 

[Ryan'smilling]

Still haven't bought a saw....500i vs 661 is the new dillema.

Reassessed my needs, and there's going to be a fair amount of milling...or at least halving trunks lengthwise...in my future. Have some swamp land and want to traverse using paths made from tree trunks - some boardwalk already built but want other paths to various spots.

Whose used the 500i as a mill? Likely not many, hence my lean toward the 661.

395xp.

 

[farmguywithasaw]

500i is light and powerful. How they will hold up over the next 20 year hard to say. The candle that burns twice as bright burns half as long they say. 661 is a heavy and well built saw

 

[deye223]

500i is light and powerful. How they will hold up over the next 20 year hard to say. The candle that burns twice as bright burns half as long they say. 661 is a heavy and well built saw

From what I hear they have a bit of a problem behind the bar plate between the studs cracking but they may have fixed this though I'm not sure

 

[Andyshine77]

From what I hear they have a bit of a problem behind the bar plate between the studs cracking but they may have fixed this though I'm not sure

That was on the 462 I believe.

 

[Derrick Sawyer]

Is the 661 regular carb available? Then you could tune to lower rpm to richen up the mix versus mtronic. If not then the 461 would be your choice if buying new

 

[SAWMIKAZE]

A saw you'll have in 20 years ?

461.

I love 462s as well, probably my favorite new saw out there..but I don't plan on having it in 20 years. 461s are tough ass old school-ish saws.

 

[deye223]

That was on the 462 I believe.

I stand corrected

 

[toadman]

My 661 mills very well
no complaints, 120+ gallons & zero issues whatsoever.
Easy starting, powerful.
It's my go to for just about everything, and by far my favorite saw to run.
I have a ms 462, husky 372 x2, 394, 460 rancherx2, stihl ms460x2, ms-440 clone x3, stihl 290x3, 390, 291, 660, 660 clone x2, 025, t192, t193x2, t200 x4.
I would hesitate to mill with the 462 personally, but it would do ok for small or medium size logs in spurts, and is an easier saw to use for firewood & light falling than the 661.

 

[Derrick Sawyer]

I did have a 661, 2013 model i got that had a grenaded crank bearing, split the case, put in new crank, cylinder walls were fine, top was beatup a bit but smoothed it out and took a bit off the bottom with the oldschool sandpaper on glass technique, new piston fitted to around .018 squish, new smooth intake tube without those o-rings inside, and updated solenoid, thing was an absolute beast, rather heavy but gobs more power than 70cc saws, sold it to a buddy for $750 when i need cash, now i want it back but he loves the damn saw

 

[Chris1044]

Bought a 500i - 28" bar, 6 pack of oil and gallon of chain lube for 1275 before tax. Dealer was willing to talk and I was chomping at the bit some as well. Helped that I use them for tractor stuff as well I think.

I found out a buddy bought an actual bandsaw mill, so that will help me out on most my milling needs. If I do end up needing to chainsaw mill I figured I'd buy another saw, probably something older and used to beat on. Can't see spending 1k+ on a saw to mill with to make foot bridges through a swamp. I also couldn't see running the 661 all day with the main type of cutting do 80% of the time - noticeable mass difference between this saw (32" blade) and the 462/500. So with that decided, it was between the 462 and 500.

Spent the day today with the 500i and my old 290. The 500 feels slightly heavier than the 290 but not much to be honest. Cut up a 25" diameter silver maple which was topped in a storm back in October along with some 30" diameter red oak logs that had been sitting since last year.

Pros: Started in one pull everytime i needed it. Instant throttle response, gobs of power and not once did I think I needed more. I wasn't beating on the saw too hard since its still breaking in, but the maple was easy cutting. The oak was harder but not an issue. No noticeable mass increase over the other saws I use but a bit more power. AV seemed great to me, not too spongy. Fuel consumption was pretty good i thought as well...

Cons: after two tanks of gas, the air filter did have a bit more inside the pleaes than I would have liked. I checked it after the first tank, shook it off, and then again after the second tank. Ill be getting an outerwear filter (looks like the 660 size will work).

Overall, I'm happy with the purchase. Time will tell, but I was smiling at the end of the day.

 

[toadman]

My 462 with a 25" light bar feels a bit lighter to me than my 291 with a standard 20" bar.
I am not sure why, I suspect it has to do with handle spacing and balance, as I'm pretty sure it's not actually lighter on the scale.
The 462 is much more nimble feeling to me than the 291, while being way more powerful.
I still use my 661 the most out of all the saws I own.
The weight doesn't bother me enough to hurt production times, and personally I just prefer the feel of it over all my other saws.

 

[Derrick Sawyer]

Cool , congrats on getin the 500i, prob good choice to focus on saw and not milling for now, ill get a 500i one of these days, all that matters gettin what u wanted and itll get stronger for sure

 

[Derrick Sawyer]

I did like my 462, real nice saw but sold it, wasnt quite up to par with my 044, but id prob chose it over 572 due to weight

 

[ihookem]

Odd that you have any 460s left on the shelf there. They are loooong gone from these parts. As soon as they put out the 441 here, the 460s all sold out. They were all but gone when the 461s hit the shelves what, 6 or 7 years ago now.

Each their own? Vibration is a HUGE issue when running saws. The older you get and the more that vibration matters. Whitefinger and autoimmune disease are two things that can set into your hands over time being exposed to high vibration. You can blow it off as BS, but these are not medical conditions that you want. And you most certainly will get older.

The older vibration list as published in the UK (they do not publish this data in the US) with the 460 data here. More vibration than the 660. Not good. But hey, to each their own. Its your medical future.

This here is really important.. I hand pounded with a hammer for 15 yrs. doing framing and demo. After about 12 yrs. I noticed I had carpol tunnel. It was surely from swinging a hammer. After about 14 yrs. I could be swinging a hammer and all the sudden the hammer was gone and found myself swinging a fist and didn't even know it till I saw the hammer was gone. It would fly right out of my hand and end up 20' behind me. It is bad enough loosing a hammer. It is much worse loosing control of a 5 horse chainsaw cause you cant feel what it is doing. May carpenters have hands that go numb and mine still does. This is why I like my 441 . It is not a computer . The vibration is less than my 034. My 441 is finicky, that is for sure. It used to flood easy till I figured out how it likes to be started. Once I get going, it goes very well. Weight does not bother me much cause when I use it I am cutting big firewood. I get all the firewood I wan for free , but it is usually big cause at the tree service places everyone takes the small stuff and anything bigger than 12" sits and anything bigger than 20" , sits longer, anything bigger than 24" , very few people can handle it. This is the only reason I have a big saw.