Battery chainsaw reviews

I had looked at this review but for me it could not address the issue of longevity. Having once owned a Yardworks cordless with a lithium battery, the saw did not last the first chain. I have owned a Stihl MSA 160 C for 8 years and it has run flawlessly and is on its 5th chain so based on this I recently bought the Stihl MSA 220C; a more powerful saw. Another Stihl battery powered product that I have owned is a lawn mower with a 14 " cutting width. I had it also for about 6 or so years and just recently sold it and bought another Stihl 21" self-propelled. The saws and lawnmowers can all use the same battery.

 

I didn't watch the whole video, so not sure what their conclusion is, but I just got a promotional email from Milwaukee this morning for their cordless saw...looks like it has 4.7 out of 5 stars from 752 reviews.
My brother has one and likes it a lot.

M18 FUEL™ 16" Chainsaw Kit

The Stihl rep we had in for training a while back said they are selling them like hotcakes to the utility crews.

 

Also forgot to include the FSA 85 grass trimmer that also uses the same battery.

 

I used my sister's battery saw and they are nice but the life of the saw is the battery packs. Unless they can get the price of replacement battery packs down, the life of the saw is the life of the battery packs. Why replace the battery packs only when you can get a new saw with battery packs for the same price? That is pretty much the case for any battery powered tool.

 

Are you saying the battery doesn’t stay charged for long or the battery life isn’t very long?

 

Neither. Sister had two batteries for her saw but I really didn't pay any attention to how long one could cut on a fully charged battery. Her saws are the ones that Lowe's sell; Kobota? Her saws were the 80V and the 40V saws. I also don't have any idea of the life of a lithium-ion saw battery; either shelf life or actual use life if you cut with the saw on a regular basis. We run our petrol powered saws for many years; of course over time the piston rings and bore can wear and the power starts to fade. What I was pointing out is that the saw may be fine as far as the electric motor, bushings, etc but once the battery is gone; replacing just the batteries at this time is as much as replacing the saw and batteries. So I would buy a whole new saw with new batteries and the old one gets tossed; I don't like that concept but it is the reality of the current battery powered tools.

 

The battery is less than half the price of the new saw/battery. I don’t think I’d be throwing the saw away.

 

And most people buy all the same brand cordless tools, so there should always be plenty of batteries charged up ready to go, and replacing battery packs once in a while is just the cost of doing business...there's no free lunches...you want steak or chicken, gotta pick one, and then gonna pay for it either way.

 

Great, that is good to know. It wouldn't hurt then to buy more batteries so you can cut longer if you are out in the deep woods.

 

I really like the instant start on an electric saw.

 

Stihl right now has a deal going if you buy a saw with charger and battery you get the second battery at half price . In the spring that was the deal when I bought the lawn mower so as it sits now I have five battery's more than enough to cut a pickup load of wood .

 

Thats what I like about the battery powered saw no guess work in starting a saw that's sat for a while .

 

I use a Makita XCU03 14" 36V cordless chainsaw. After processing 40 cords of wood in the last 12 months (when I first started processing wood) I'd say it has been working pretty awesome for me.

I love how convenient it is to use - just get some batteries, check the bar oil, and you're off to the races. I use 5.0aH batteries (I have a dozen) as I am on the Makita platform. I use their impact driver, hammer drill, impact wrench for auto work, leaf blower, portable vacuum, angle grinder, 36v rear handle circular saw........So if you're on the Makita platform already, it's really a no brainer. I'm a big fan of the quality of the products.

The battery life is ok....but you need to have the dual charger and lots of batteries. I bought an inverter for my car so I can run two of those dual chargers at once. 400w each.

The tool is quite light but the only thing I have to compare it to is a last week aquired Stihl 028 which is very heavy in comparison.

14" has worked out for me and I am much better at sharpening freehand now with a 5/32" round file.

The tool is also extremely quiet, no fumes, and I also really like the tool-less chain tensioning adjustment feature on it.

The only problems I've had is sometimes it overheats if I'm really pushing it......in which case it is constantly turning off.......and then I'll just take a break and let it cool down.

I bought the kit which included 4 batteries, a dual charger, and an angle grinder for $388. The batteries alone are worth $159 atm on Amazon for a 2-pack.....So you're basically getting the saw and the grinder for free.

That said I am very excited to get the Stihl 028 up and running. That thing is 35 years old and was given to me in a trade for 1/3 of a cord of dry firewood.

 

Also when we had the storm a few months ago all the practice I got using the cordless to process firewood came in super handy when the top half of a huge 75' white oak snapped off. I went right to work and cleaned up all the debris that I could at the time. Now I'm about to take care of the rest that fell down an embankment covered in brush into a brooke on the property.

 

40 cords on a battery powered 14 inch saw in 12 months? First off 40 cord for a year is an azzload of wood. What are you heating? Second, you do that 49 cord With a battery saw? Impressive to say the least.

 

Thanks!

No, I didn't buck all 40 cord with the saw.....Not even close! But I did split 90% of it with a maul by hand. The crotchy, knotty, nasty pieces (i.e. pin oak, green spruce, black birch, beech) I had to use the splitter for...but that was a small percentage. Most of my wood is maple - sugar, red, norway..... and oak - red, black, white. I got quite a bit of ash and black locust as well.

I get my wood delivered by tree guys who, around here, have to pay $250+ per truckload just to throw it away at the dump. So I save them $$$$, save myself $$$$, and get an awesome workout doing it!

Usually they do not buck to 16" so I have to use the chainsaw to trim them down.

I have a fireplace, 2000 sq ft. Cape Cod. I have electric minisplits.....and it gets expensive during the winter months....so I do what I can do save some $$$.

Some of that wood will take at least 2 years to dry - the pin oak, the elm, the red oak........This year is going to be weird because I'm home with the 3 kids who are doing full remote school.....So the heat will have to be on during the winter......which means it won't be.....and I'll be using the fireplace as much as possible.

This was the load of ash I got on 10-17....



And this was taken yesterday.......



And this is my trusty tire and what I do with the cutoffs - I chop 'em up and give 'em away.

 

Dude's a beast!

 

Round two by Project Farm.
I really like his videos!

Another great battery saw comparison.