In need of chainsaw advice

Welcome aboard dave mclenan


You'll find a lot of people of like mind here.


Although brand loyalties can be very strong

 

This is true even though I prefer Husqvarna I always tell people to try as many saws as possible and decide which one is the best fit for them. In the size they are looking to buy.

 

I've caught flack for my Poulan 4218, and I know plenty of people who've had nothing but problems with Poulans.. doesn't change the fact that the little 4218 has cut many a cord of firewood for us.

I will admit that I use the Stihl 034AV more than the Poulan these days.. It does simply outperform the 42cc Poulan.

 

I'm getting there too. I prefer one but don't hate the other. Choices are a good thing!

 

Welcome to the forum! Worked for a short time on the hill in the Zinc melting room in the late 60s and then went back to the coast for a lifelong career in the logging industry. Again welcome to the forum. Great people here.
Allan

 

hi i have a friend who has limited funds he bought the poulan pro 50cc saw for a very good price on sale he has many many cords cut with it he did change the bar and chain to a better one he said, when i see him i always ask him how the poulan is holding up, 4 seasons on it now and he supplies wood for his folks to, i guess they are capable of working hard, i know there heavy. but if your funds are limited, you do what you can, ive heard husky makes them in there factory but im not sure about that.

 

hi i worked for macmillan bloudel in the 70s in port hardy nimpkish area as a chokerman such a beautiful area up there, i was amazed at the fallers back then i was a young man then, and fallers were like gods to us lowly chokerman, man, some douglas fir trees were 10 feet at the butt, some bigger, what skill they needed quite a few fallers got injured or killed i remember, very very dangerous job, i lived in namimo area for 1 year loved vancouver island, im a welder also and we get to work the shutdowns at the hill a few times a year, the place is running stronger than ever eh?

 

i had a few folks ask me the question which saw, i think it depends on how much firewood you need, the dealer here pushes the husky rancher, which i personally dont like, 2 times now ive asked friends to try out my stihl 261, and said what do you think compared to the home owner saw, they bought, both said wow its so light and powerful, but it is an average of 150.00$ more, and if you do 3 -4 cords a year, maybe that 150$ isnt worth it. the dealer had a sale on echos and 1 friend bought a 501 echo and asked me what i thought,, i was very surprised, how light and punchy it was, it was appx 80.00 more than the husky rancher[on this sale] which was 5cc bigger, but heavier and slower IMO I LOVE the echo 501 and when the sale happens again im going to buy this saw, the 5 year warranty is great if they really do back it up, but ive never heard of a echo saw blowing up. also IMO if your getting up in years like me, a lighter saw is very desirable, .

 

i never thought id say it but the echo 501 is as good as my stihl 261 50cc saw, i dont know about durability, the 261 is very durable i use 1 in my business, when a sale comes to our area im going to buy a 501, and its lighter than the 261 [on paper] ,

 

I am 70 and use a 455 rancher all the time. 5 or 6 ounces of weight in a saw is not going to make or brake my firewood cutting

 

according to google the 455 rancher is 12.8 lbs [3.5] b- h power stihl 261 is 10.8 lbs (4.0 bh power} echo 501 10.4 lbs if you cut wood alot like me 2 pounds is alot, And to me trying out the 455 rancher felt like a lump, they are alot less money though, and if you just heat your house im sure it fine

 

Well the OP who started this thread was asking about cutting some wood for his cabin and his fireplace in his house. He also stated that he did not want spend a lot of money.
I am sure those saws you mentioned are good saws but my recommendations were based on the OP's criteria.

I have 50 running saws here so I can choose what ever I want when I want and I do go to the mountains and fall about 15 to 20 trees every year. So they do get used.

 

So you are saying you are not a Rookie!!

Always guess wrong, you are 70 and I have been reading you posts and figured you were much younger! Don't tell anyone, but years ago I figured Jack Straw was an old man...Hilarious, but old! Wrong again!

 

your right 50 saws to choose from i cant imagine how great that would be im humbled

 

I’m an old man now!

 

I have been collecting and working on them for quite a while now. A lot of those saws are free because the owners did not want to spend the money to repair them. Scored pistons and cylinders, bad cranks bearings. Stuff like that.

 

It is good to stay active.

 

I worked in Nimpkish as a Grapple operator in the 70s so there is a chance we worked together!

 

allan it was 1974 jul,y started, also worked in a place called phillips arm, went in on a beaver aircraft i was 17 yrs old, im a bigger guy so that helped we hitchhiked accross canada from new brunswick [my home province], and ended up on the island, my partner was a small guy and they put him in the cookhouse, great money, but i was lucky i never got killed, i remember choking logs and 1 day 1 came loose a huge one 8 foot in diameter easily, and i didnt notice it, it rolled by me 20 feet away the hooker was furious, and i got a strong warning, we were in nimpish 5 months or so, great memories.

 

That sounds like some pretty tough work and dangerous.

The hardest work I did was working on a rail gang for the Burlington Northern when I first got out of the military. Did not do that for to long.