Which Chainsaw to buy??

Arborist Forum

Help Support Arborist Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

snowgecko71

New Member
Joined
Jun 5, 2006
Messages
4
Reaction score
0
Location
Mississauga, Ontario Canada
Hi I am looking at purchasing my first chainsaw and I am wondering what to get. I am looking at the STIHL MS170. The other is a Poulan, not sure of the model number, but I know it has a 42cc/18" bar. As opposed to the STIHL that is a 30cc/16" bar. The STIHL is almost double the price.
Is the STIHL worth the cost difference?
Any information would be helpful.
Thanks.
 
Welcome,

The Stihl is way more worth it in just the dealer support it will have, assuming you're buying from a dealer. there are MANY other reasons, but I'll let other members who know them chime in.

ultimately, its your decision and we cant make up your mind for you, but we can help guide you in the right direction.
 
What is your intended use? It may possibly be that renting an electric would be the better choice but without some criteria it's hard to say. Match the tool to the job - and intended lifecycle. I've found that the 'price' of quality is much sooner absorbed than the 'cost' of economy.

If you intend to own one then, generally, the Stihl, Husky, etc... are the best value over time. But for a simple task there may be other viable approaches - such as renting.

Chaser
 
I had a Poulan and hated it. However, it was about 30cc, and the saw you are looking at is 42cc.

The build quality won't be as good as the Stihl, but there is no replacement for displacement.

Quite a puzzler.

What do you want to user the saw for? If it is limbing, the 170 is enough saw. If it is firewood, neither saw is big enough.
 
I recently purchased a new saw. I did a quite a bit of searching and reading on this site and in the end I purchased a Stihl. Twice the price-Yes but ten times the saw. I decided from all the reading I did that you get what you pay for.Like the others have said be sure to match the saw to the job. My MS170 is turning out to be a great little saw for cutting limbs and the occasional log out of my way on the river and for doing a little bit of thinning around the house but I would hate to try and cut a winters worth of firewood with it.
 
Dont know about the 170, I have a 180, and love it (even though its for sale on ebay!) Great little package, and awesome power and weight for the money. Excellent saw.
 
If you're just looking for a small saw for trimming up around the house then you should just buy CaseyForrest's 180. I've used it a couple weeks ago - it's a great little saw, barely used and he takes good care of his stuff.

I would stay far, far away from the Poulan. Very few people have had positive experiences with the current crop of Poulan, Homelite, McCulloch, and Craftsman saws. I've had a few come through my hands and they're a pain to work on, a pain to keep running right (if it can be done at all), and a pain to find parts for. There is NO way you're going to find parts for one of these buggers in the middle of a cutting session and need/want to finish up today.

With the little Stihl and Husqvarna saws, at least you have a good chance of being able to walk into a dealer and get the parts you need. And their products generally work when you need them to.

Read a few more posts around here and you'll find that a lot of folks have come before you with similar questions. It will probably be interesting to see how their thought process developed into their final choice.

And, of course, welcome to Arboristsite!
 
Wow!!! Thanks for all the replies and advice. I think it is pretty evident that for what I will be doing the STIHL is the better choice. Now I am wondering if the MS 170 will do the job or do I need something a little bigger. Many of you are asking me about my intended use, so here it is.

I just purchased a house on a half acre lot, and I also own a mostly forested 54 acres out of town. My house lot has a couple of fallen trees that need cleaning up and there are about 4 trees that I would like to take down to allow a little more sun in my back yard. The forested property is the same thing. Take down some trees, clean up and maintain. The diameter of the trees would be no more than 48".

Again Thank you for all of your advice.

BTW, what is the results link a couple of you have mentioned. I tried to find it in my profile to turn it on.
 
If you're going to be doing anything more than just trimming up small branches and taking down very small trees (12" or less, with most of them being less) then an MS180 will do the job. But anything larger than that will require more saw. Period.

Since you have not only a 1/2 acre lot but a wooded 54 acres, I suspect that your needs will end up exceeding those of the regular suburban homeowner. So, with that in mind, I doubt that one saw will meet all your needs. I have written this before, but here it is again:

I sincerely belive that anyone who owns land, heats with firewood, or otherwise has cause to use chainsaws on a regular basis will end up needing three saws to meet all of their needs and not be using a saw that is either too big or too small for the task at hand. Though you can do amazing things with super-small saws if you try hard enough, there is a reason that larger saws are made. Over the years since my childhood I've gone through a fair number of saws to finally settle on three machines that meet my needs as a recreational woodcutter:

1. I have found that a small 30cc-ish saw is really useful for trimming up the odd small branch that falls down in a storm, to prune trees, to trim yard waste to length for municipal disposal, etc. For me, this is also the saw that sits on the ground next to the chipper when I rent one; it is used to trim things that are oddly shapped and won't feed properly. I've been using a $90 HomeDepot "refurbished" 30cc Echo top handle in this capacity for years and couldn't be happier. Since these are not super-powerful saws, the trick is to keep the weight in the 7-9lb range and not try to make them do something they don't want to do. Along with the small Echos, Stihl's MS170/180 and Dolmar's 401 (though it has an edge in displacement, its pro-saw magnesium case keeps the weight down!) would also be in this category.

2. I have also found that there are instances where a larger saw is useful, but a huge one isn't necessary. After trying a couple different directions, I've settled on the notion that a 10-11lb 50cc saw is ideal for my needs, and probably for most people's needs in this category. This kind of saw is small and light enough for larger "around-the-house" tasks, but can still do firewood and even cut your "big" saw out if it gets stuck. I used an MS290/20" for years, but got tired of it weighing so much and now use a 026Pro/16" for this purpose. Husqvarna's 350 and 353; Stihl's 250 and 260; and Dolmar's 510, 540, and 5100s would fit in this category.

3. Lastly, if you have any serious cutting to do then you will want a "big" saw. Sure, you can cut from both sides of the tree with your 50cc, but it will take all day. I'm very pleased with my 79cc Dolmar, wearing either a 20" or 28" bar. Husqvarna's 372, 385, 570 and 575; Stihl's 440 and 460; and Dolmar's 7300 and 7900 would fit in this category.

Obviously this just my opinion, but I think that it pretty reasonably meets the needs of most frequent, enthusiastic saw users without going too crazy. You may find that your needs can entirely be met with a 30cc and 50cc saw, in which case you can skip the 70+cc saw altogether. Just be open to the idea that having a couple saws has definite advantages and will make you a safer, more efficient saw user than the guy who tires himself out trying to make a single machine do everything.
 
You own 54 acres and you plan on maintaining that with a MS170???? The 170 would be good to trim bushes and cut small limbs, not cut down and buck trees! If I owned 54 acres and all I had in my cutting arsenal was a MS170 I would feel like I was in a fire-fight armed with a .22 rimfire.
I own 35 heavily wooded acres and sometimes feel 'undersawed' with my MS260 Pro!!! I do own a 38 cc Poulan that has been flawless for quite a few years and I use that for limbing and small chores, but would be lost if it were my only saw. I use both saws heavily, but the 260 Pro is first choice for me.

Computeruser is 100% correct in his post, you will probably end up with more than 1 saw. No way to get around it. he is giving you great information.

Will you be cutting trees for firewood? I paid $480 for my 260 Pro, but figured it paid for itself after the first 8 face cords of firewood I cut in March. Delivered face cords go for $60-70 here.

Please... do yourself a favor and get something substantial. Don't look at less than a MS260 (doesn't have to be a Pro model). You WILL need a decent saw eventually, get at least a 50 cc saw whether a Stihl, Husqvarna, Poulan or whatever.

As far as bar size, get the bar length that will make the saw feel balanced in your hands.
 
Last edited:
I'm with jpp and computer user... You already have trees down and a few more that will go? you'll end up with a saw or two..

Definitely get a small saw for trimming, limbing, etc etc, but if you're budget limited, think about getting the larger saw first.... You can use a larger saw for small work, but it's hard the other way... 48 inch with an MS170... hmmm:)

I'd be looking at an MS290/310 or, in the pro range an MS361... Other brand opinions will vary:jester:
 
I concur w/ getting the mid sized saw first. My 361 is fully twice as fast as the 025 in 11" wood. I would imagine the 170 would be noticeably slower than the 025. That's getting pretty slow...

A Husky 359 would be a good mid-sized saw, too.

If you use a small saw for medium work either you or the saw is going to wind up in harms way. You can get just as tired using too small a saw as too large a saw. Fatigue (yours or the saws) invites injury.

Chaser
 
Last edited:
I'm surprised nobody picked up on this:

snowgecko71 said:
The forested property is the same thing. Take down some trees, clean up and maintain. The diameter of the trees would be no more than 48".


The pros here are sure welcome to correct me if I'm wrong but...


Dude! 48" trees are not amatuer hour! That's some serious timber, and a rookie should NOT be trying to fell a tree that big!


One good thing - if you try it with the Poulan or the MS170, you'll grow old and die before you get enough wood cut to be dangerous. :laugh:
 
I don't use anything smaller than 60cc on the ground, 266XP, 371,2XP, 460 etc. More important, do you have saw pants, hardhat, ear and eye protection? Do you know how to fall, buck and avoid kickback? Wedges, an axe, etc.?
 

Latest posts

Back
Top