[OP]
Contributor
My not so old faithful Poulan finally took a dump last weekend, has no compression at this point. So I'm in the market for a new chainsaw. I want to stay in the low $300.00 range with an 18" bar. I have local vendors with Stihl and Husqvarna. So any pro's or con's on these 2, or other advice is appreciated.
A bus station is where a bus stops. A train station is where a train stops. My desk is a work station.
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I have 2 Huskys and I think they are great saws. They get lots of use at my place.
Member
Yep, I also have two Huskys. 455 Rancher and a 51. They are both great saws and see a LOT of use here on the farm.Originally Posted by Izzy Camire
The 455 is out of your price range Jeff, and probably larger than what you need, seems my old 51 was around $300 but i'm not sure they even make that model anymore. I'm sure they make one similar to it though and probably in your price range.
Although I've never owned a Stihl chainsaw I do own a Stihl leaf blower and string trimmer, both have been solid performers and don't think you would go wrong with one of their saws.
Contributor
My Poulan chainsaw suffered the same fate as yours. I decided to get whatever the local hardware store had. I ended up with an Echo chainsaw. It seems to work just fine for occasional use. I'm sure Stihl is fine too as I have two other Stihl products that work good.
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I'm loyal to Stihl because I've had them forever, and keep my old ones running. I also run a number of their small equipment pieces. Most of mine are several generations old in model number, as in 036, and 066, whereas new ones I haven't kept up with but the last I looked they were MS360, and MS660 for basically the same saw. Stihls are easy to work on-especially the Pro saws, but the Pro's are above your budget. Whatever the latest version of the 250 is would be worth looking at. It's a powerful light low-medium sized saw that will pull an 18" bar with no problem. It's the saw that powerline crews keep in their trucks around here for cutting trees that fall on powerlines. It's not a pro saw, but is a good little beast.
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Stihl, Husqvarna or Echo are all good saws.
Stihl are pricey, and only available at local dealers (no "big box" retailers) - but they are proven performers. $300 won't buy much in a Stihl saw with a 20" bar.
Husky 445 Rancher is close to your price range, and should be available with a 18" bar.
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My Stihl has worked well over the years. My reasons for purchasing it were the number of dealers in town who carry and service Stihl equipment. Also one of my neighbors told me all the tree cutters in the area use Stihl. If it is good enough for someone who makes a living using a chainsaw, then it will likely be good enough for me.
jtk
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
- Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)
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I should have added: I also have a MS180, and it gets used a lot. It's a nice little saw with a 16" bar, and costs about $230. Depending on what you need to cut with it would tell a lot about what size saw you need. I also have an MS290 that someone gave me. Check the power and weight of any model saw you get. The 290 weighs a lot for the power that it puts out, and I wouldn't suggest buying one of those.
My Wife wanted me to cut down a three stemmed Hickory tree last week so more light could get to her garden. Each of the three stems was about 8" diameter. I just grabbed the 180, and made quick work out of dropping them, and cutting them up. If it had been cold weather, I would have used a bigger saw, but the 180 did fine, and I didn't even break much of a sweat.
If you can sharpen a chain, bigger is not always better.
Member
The Efco MT 4400 is a pretty decent value for the money at $310. Power and handling is very similar to the MS 250 at 42.9 cc / 18" bar / 10 lbs.
http://www.chainsawsdirect.com/Efco-...aw/p10568.html
Member
I had to give up on a Poulan as well. It never wanted to restart when it was warm.
Bought a Stihl MS290 about five years ago and have been very pleased. It was a bit more than your budget, but I think it's been worth it. I just clean it and change the spark plug and filters from time to time. Only ethanol-free gas.
Lots of folks swear by Husqvarna.
Jonsered is popular in other parts of the country. Tractor supply just dropped Husqvarna and replaced it with Jonsered last year sometime.
"Live like no one else, so later, you can LIVE LIKE NO ONE ELSE!"
- Dave Ramsey
[OP]
Contributor
Thats funny, I was in TSC today and looked at the Jonsered, never heard of them so honestly I did not give a 2nd look.
A bus station is where a bus stops. A train station is where a train stops. My desk is a work station.
Contributor
I have a little Echo top handle saw that I used to use for climbing-now use the 180. Parts for it are a lot more expensive than for a Stihl. Back when a gas station here stopped selling non-ethanol gas without putting a sign up, I had to replace three carburetors on small Stihl stuff the next Spring. I bought the aftermarket carbs for no more than 20 bucks each on ebay, and every one of those is still running fine. I let the guys that work for me use the 036 for cutting firewood, and have since the late '90s when I bought that saw. For various reasons, it's on it's second aftermarket cylinder and piston kit. I think the cylinder/piston kits were about 45 bucks off ebay, and can be changed with one T27 T-wrench. It still runs like a new one.
Member
Just fyi - Jonsereds is a brand of Husqvarna. The saws all come out of the same factories in either the US or Huskvarna Sweden. Differences between the two labels are pretty marginal.
Contributor
Either a Stihl MS250 if your budget is firm or an MS290 if you want to splurge a little. There is a reason that Stihl is dealer only, because they won't play the price before performance game with the box stores.
Contributor
I love my Stihl chainsaw and several others of their. You can not go wrong with either a Stihl or Husqvarna.
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