Time for a new chainsaw -- UPDATE

[Andy Hoyt]

My 20 year old 20" Poulan is on it's last leg; parts are becoming difficult to source; so it's time she got retired.

I'm not up to speed on what's what these days in saws and am hoping you folks might be able to enlighten me.

20" to 24" is preferable, with 18" as a last resort.

Please advise. Thanks, Andy

[Frank Pellow]

My 20 year old 20" Poulan is on it's last leg; parts are becoming difficult to source; so it's time she got retired.

I'm not up to speed on what's what these days in saws and am hoping you folks might be able to enlighten me.

20" to 24" is preferable, with 18" as a last resort.

Please advise. Thanks, Andy

I am confused about parts being scarce. I have a 3 year old 20" Poulan and am quite happy with it. As far as I know, there have been no major changes in the last 20 years.

[John Shuk]

Andy,
I've got a couple of saws Husqavuarna and Stihl. I have to say I'd go for the Stihl.Here is a saw that outta do ya just fine.
http://www.stihl.us/chainsaws/MS440.html
John

[roy knapp]

I have a Homelit 20" and its several years old and runs just great, but if i was to get a new one it would be a Stihl.

[Philip Glover]

Andy,

You only need to know one name: Stihl.
I've owned and used a bunch and Stihl is the best choice for performance, durabilty, and spare parts availabilty.
As far as bar length, it just depends on the size trees you're cutting. If the saw is only used for tree falling then the longer bars are needed. If, however, the saw will be used for trimming and bucking, get the shortest bar that will do the job. You're less likly to have an accident with a shorter bar.
The other thing with the long bar saws is weight. A saw with greater than a 20" bar will be more than 5hp and weigh more than 13 or 14 pounds. Believe me, unless you use large saws every day a 14lb saw will wear on you.
Hope this helps.
Reagrds,
Phil

[Joe Horne]

Stihl...............nothing more needs to be said!

[Paul B. Cresti]

Andy,

This is what I have

http://www.stihlusa.com/chainsaws/MS270C.html

I out a 20" bar on it, no complaints what so ever. Starts everytime.

[John Bailey]

Stihl's the deal!! Mine works great, always starts - never lets me down, just the trees.

John

[Gary Breckenridge]

Figure out your needs and wants and then go to a
Stihl dealer.

[Mike Vermeil]

Ditto, ditto, ditto, ditto on the Stihl. I had never used a chainsaw in my life when I got the Stihl 9 or 10 years ago, and I absolutely love it. It is the best gas-operated power tool I've ever owned, absolutely, without a doubt, bar none. Every gas powered tool I buy now is Stihl.

The only problem I've ever had with it was when my neighbor ran the bar into the ground and killed the chain. He's no longer my neighbor.

[Vaughn McMillan]

...The only problem I've ever had with it was when my neighbor ran the bar into the ground and killed the chain. He's no longer my neighbor.

Mike, pray tell, where did you hide the pieces of the neighbor when you were done?

I had an electric chainsaw that I loaned to a friend, and he used it to remove a stump. I'm not sure if even had a shovel, based on the condition of the chain when he returned the saw.

- Vaughn

[Mike Vermeil]

Mike, pray tell, where did you hide the pieces of the neighbor when you were done?
- Vaughn

He was a good guy, just not very mechanical. We moved away last year. I wonder if the deck he built is still standing?

[Joe Mioux]

In case no has mentioned it......STIHL!

Every two cycle piece of equipment I now own or buy revolves around Stihl equipment and its 50:1 two cycle motor oil combination. In addition to chainsaws, Stihl makes a great hedge trimmer. The blowers are good as well.

JOe

P.S. FIW, I do own a commercial Shindawa edger. I bought that from the place I bought the my other Stihl products....but I digress.

[John Longwitz]

...had a large hickory felled a few years ago and needed a new saw to cut up to firewood length. Got a Stihl MS260 Pro and had them replace the 16" bar with a 20". No problem with the 26" dia. trunk and not tiring at all to use. Lightweight with plenty of power and the Stihl brand chains seem to hold up for a long time between sharpenings.

[Adrian Rogers]

I was offered a few large red oak trees about three winters ago if I would remove them from the folks yard. (Blown down in a storm). I didn't have a chainsaw at the time, so I bought a Poulan with a 20" bar from Home Depot for $199. After using it for a day, I promptly returned it and bought a Stihl MS290 with a 20" bar. The difference is night and day. The Poulan would get the job done, but the Stihl was much beefier everywhere, especially the bar and sprocket. The Stihl had plenty of power, but the Poulan didn't. The Poulan also had some rinky dinky chain tension adjustment that didn't work very well.

The next day, I could could make 2 1/2 cuts to every 1 that my neighbor could make with the same model Poulan that I had the day before.

It's OK to save money, but the Poulan at Home Depot just isn 't adequate.