What Chainsaw do you run?

I've had my trusty little MS211 since 2013, it has been a great tool. Small enough that I don't mind carrying it a mile or two when out camping. I have cut a few cords of wood with it when I had a wood stove and it also came on a 65 day camping trip and saw daily use. Heck, i just recently brought it up the Trans Taiga with me, worked great as always! I have replaced the chain several times, the bar once, the spark plug a few times and the air filter once. I have had it let me down when I wasn't maintaining it, lesson learned and has been great since.

 

I was close to picking up that same 550 XP mark2. Went with the 261 to stay in the Stihl family and my dealer is really close. Bought it in January. Both are top notch.

That little MS210 has cut up stuff it has no business even trying.... amazing saw for a homeowner line.

 

It really does come down maintenance just like anything else. I’m not a stihl guy or a husky guy... I’m a “hope” I get a good one out of the box kinda guy and go with it ;/)

 

I’ve got an craftsman that I actually use.. but I also have a McCulloch super pro 81 I’m trying to find parts for and fix up, and I have a old school pioneer that’s seized solid..

 

I have a dealer near me that sells either brand at the same location. So it’s great to touch and feel and hear from the guys that work there on there take on either saw. They claim the tree crews grab the 550’s soon as they come in stock... mine is in order and hoping to come in around thanksgiving....

 

We had a mac 10 old school sounded like a dirt bike kinda saw!! Remember grandpop using it in my early days. Oh the good ole days.

 

Having a good dealer is the only way to go. Either brand.

 

Iv got a husky 440 that I haven’t really gotten into yet. “Inherited it. 5 minutes into cutting darn thing cuts out instantly. Soon as it gets hot...it’s done. It’ll cool off and fired right up and cut until it gets warm.... it’s been a thorn in my side. Upside of it is that the bar and chain 18” inch bar will fit on the new 550 which I ordered in the 20” bar. We’ll see if I part it out or figure it out .

 

I agree. Nothing like the smell and sound of a 2 stroke!

 

Back in the day before Husky started selling to the box stores I owned a 266xp with a 28” bar and ran a skip tooth chain. I loved that saw and made a lot of money with it removing hazard trees on the side while I worked for the power company. Our crew cleared the the power lines from Fresno to Yosemite National Park. I moved to the PNW where my husky was stolen. I now run a Stihl 046 with a 28” bar and skip tooth chain. The saw is ported and thankfully has a decompression button for cold starts. When I’m in the trees or limbing/clearing small stuff I have a Stihl ms200t. Nice little saw with good power and great balance. It has a 16” bar. I don’t do much climbing anymore (though I still have all the gear) but we do burn our wood stove regularly.

 

Who’s going to fire up a chainsaw this coming weekend and what saw? Gonna be warm on the east coast so I may just lay low. Gotta deliver some wood this weekend which may be the extent of things

 

It’s raining here and I need to get the wood stove up and running but the maple trees are too close to the chimney. I’ll be running my Stihl Ms200t. Stay safe...

 

Took down a tree a couple of months back and I have to do some delimbing so the branches can season over the winter. Thinking about firing up my 251 which I just winterized last weekend.

 

Can’t say for sure but there is a fuel screen inside the tank that used to get gummed up on one of my Husky Ranchers. I used a pair of forceps or needle nose vise grips to pull it out of the tank so I could replace/clean. Learned this by making the mistake of letting the small hose drop back into the tank with the filter/screen removed...talk about a pain in the *** Once cleaned you may need to adjust your carb as you’ll get additional flow to the jets. It may be worth your time trying this in getting your saw to run...


Editing as I’m sitting here thinking...definitely check the air filter clean with fuel and a tooth brush or get a replacement because the fine dust eventually clogged mine to the point of little to no airflow

 

Iv had it apart to the point the engine was out looking for any obvious signs of concern. Then found out it’s under warranty and reassembled it and took in.... 3 times now and it’s the same thing.... annoyed to the point I just wanna give up.... but I’m gonna have a word with the repair shop this weekend. Thank you for the advise I did do a cold compression reading of 180 ... I don’t know what the reading is hot... I’m having a hard time trying to figure out if it’s spark related or fuel.... haven’t spent time playing with it when it’s hot and acting up cuz I’m always in the middle cutting and grab brother joes saw

 

Man...I get it...there is nothing more frustrating. With my rancher it was little phantom things which is why I mentioned fuel screen and air filter. Those were literally the last things I checked. Now they are always the first thing I try.

 

Husq 445 with a 16" bar (come with 18). Went smaller on the bar from recommendation of my buddy I got it from (owns a small engine shop). It fits my needs perfectly. I use it mostly for camping and in the yard when needed. Big enough to nearly burry the bar in hard wood and small enough still for limbing and logging. Starts very consistently and I've only changed the plug once in 3 years.

 

Verified it’s got an air leak after work.... now gotta figure out if I wanna spend more time and effort on it

 

Oh and picked up the new 550!! Got the phone call when I was leaving work!

 

Ok gentlemen I remember reading or being told how to diagnose a chain by the chips but I don’t remember it and couldn’t find it with a quick google search.
I sharpened the chain on my 20” 271 because it was getting dull, I used a harbor freight electric sharpener for the first time and although the chain seems sharp it cuts very slowly through anything that takes up more than 5-6” of the bar.
These are the chips from horizontal cuts.


And the chips from a vertical cut (quartering a stump so it’s flush for the stump grinder)