What's your favorite chain size for 50 cc saws?

[holeycow]

They are good saws at any competitor's top shelf price. A clutch cover/chain catcher/rim sprocket away from being possibly best in class.

They are not particularly heavy for their cc (my 420 is rated 1/4 pound less than the 421/4300, I believe).There's no denying they are fat. I guess that's the price to pay for an exceptional easy start.

 

[Philbert]

Some Photos for Comparison


Left to Right (above):
Oregon Type 80TXL 'SpeedCut Nano' (.325 pitch / .043 gauge / low profile and narrow kerf). *Up to 35cc.
Oregon Type 95 VP (.325 pitch / .050 gauge / narrow kerf). *Up to 55 cc.
Oregon Type 91 PXL (3/8 pitch / .050 gauge / low profile), *Up to 42 cc.

Top to Bottom (below):


Note in the top photo, towards the top, how much taller the Type 95 chain (center) is, compared to the other two, along with the different shapes of the cutters. This is also visible from the side. This chain is going to remove a lot more wood, assuming that the saw has enough power to pull it. Standard .325 chain will make a wider kerf, which requires more power than narrow kerf chains.

All photos are unused, Oregon chains. *Maximum, recommended powerhead ratings for gas saws, according to Oregon literature: note that there was some variation between different versions of Type 95 and Type 91 chains, which might have been due to publication errors, or to changes in manufacturer ratings. There is a newer version of the Type 95 chain, but it is still the only model of the 3 recommended for a 50 cc saw.

The Type 80 chain, I believe, is intended primarily for the newer battery powered saws, where the smaller pitch chain will provide a smoother cut than 3/8 pitch, but not have the tiny cutters of 1/4 inch pitch chain. Might also provide more efficiency on some corded electric and smaller cc gas saws. Oregon also makes a Type 90 PX chain (3/8 pitch / .043 gauge / low profile and narrow kerf), *Up to 42 cc. that is not shown here.




Philbert

 

[Husky Man]

What's up Doug.
Very nice saw, yes. Ive been known to have one or two of them from time to time .
Now I know why so many people have problems running that vanguard chain . Did you get a deal on it cause it wouldn't cut anymore, or did you do that lol.

Dayum Brett, I missed that, I was in a Hurry when I met the seller. He was in Tigard, OR, a small detour on my way Home from working in Lincoln City all week, but the work truck had different plans, and it blew an air hose between the turbo and the intercooler, so I had to go to our shop in.......... wait for it.............. TIGARD, OR. I messaged the seller asking him how close he was to the shop, he was only about 5 minutes away, and would meet me there, make Lemonade and all, NO Detour on the way home. I was distracted by needing to deal with the truck, and kind of in a hurry, The powerhead looked really Clean, and it started easy, and sounded Great, so I was Happy. I haven't had much Luck finding any 346XP's that were in Nice shape and reasonably priced, not a $50 Barn Find, You Suck, deal, but I felt it was a fair price for a great saw that I wanted.

I have 13,16,18, and 20" bars that fit my 445, 543XP, 353 and 550XP, so I didn't pay as much attention to the B&C as I Should have, figured those are cheap and easy to get.

I did have a bugger of a time finding the serial # plate, it was hidden(VERY Well) behind the Handle on the clutch side, rather than low on the front on the recoil side like most of my Huskies.

Yep, I definitely missed something that I should have caught, but I am still Very Happy with it, Hopefully, I will still be happy with it after I get to CUT some wood with it(YES, that issue has been resolved) it just won't be Today, last night, the wife noticed water on the garage floor, the water heater is leaking, so it is off to Lowe's for a new one in a bit, but that one has a 1993 installed sticker on it, so I would say that it has done it's service.


Doug

 

[nitehawk55]

Good seeing Bob in that chain comparison video , I worked with him at Stihl Canada for many years.....a great guy .
Something to consider with trying to run full 3/8" chain on saws below 60cc is the pressures on your clutch side crank bearing . If the saw is struggling with it you are over working that smaller bearing/crank size and in time may have a premature bearing failure and I have seen cranks snap off too ,even running your chain too tight can have the same effect . Run the .325 or a 3/8P the saw manufacturer recommends, your saw will thank you in the long run !

 

[Bobby Kirbos]

My Echo 490 came in 325. I converted it to 3/8LP and the thing is an absolute light saber. YMMV.

 

[Dave P 71801]

I too like the idea of I'm only running two sizes of chain for all saws personally I run 3/8 LP .050 on all my climbing saws and then everything else runs 3/8 full size .050 that way I can buy two spools of chain and have all my saws covered Ive even convinced my boss to set the saws like this. I prefer Stihl chain over everything else I have tried. Here is how I have all my stuff set up

CS-2511t 12" bar w/Stihl 61PMM3 (3/8lp-.043) only saw that doesn't use chain off a spool.
MS192T 12"-14" bar w/Stihl 63RS (3/8lp-.050)
MS200T 14"-16" bar w/Stihl 63RS (3/8lp-.050)
021 14" bar w/Stihl 63RS (3/8lp-.050)
026 18" bar w/Stihl 33RS (3/8-.050)
MS260 16" bar w/Stihl 33RS (3/8-.050)
MS310 18" bar w/Stihl 33RS (3/8-.050)
044 20" bar w/Stihl 33RS
MS460 #1 25" bar w/Stihl 33RS
MS460 #2 30" bar w/Stihl 33RS
O66 36" bar w/Stihl 33RS
MS660 42" bar w/Stihl 33RS

 

[holeycow]

Weird. If you have all those saws, then why would not having your 461 a bit ago possibly keep you from working?

weird.?

 

[KiwiBro]

1/4" skip scratcher square grind.

 

[Cord_Nipper]

I've got a 2018 Rancher 450 .325 20" and a 2000 Rancher 55 3/8 20".
The .325 runs a 20LPX80 and the 3/8 runs a 72LGX72.
I honestly have never timed either in a cut but the .325 seems faster.
At one point I was debating converting either it to 3/8 or the 3/8 to .325.
However I think I've settled on putting an 18" bar on the 3/8 55 instead and keeping the 450 .325.