Welp... I pulled the trigger. Going ring around the rosie, not wanting to pay the price the local dealer had, and going in circles with lots of phone calls, I finally said screw it, I am buying his saw. And it is a Stihl ms400cm with 25 inch Rollomatic ES bar and full chisel chain. Yippee, fired up! For the past 24 hours, it became a battle of... ms400 or ms462. But I wanted an m-tronic saw, which I've never owned. I could not find an m-tronic 462. I found plenty of 462's, a few dealers said they came in the past week or so. But they are all carb models, no m-tronic models came in. The 462 only weighs .4 pounds more than the 400 but I finally convinced myself to go with my intial thought process of 'upgrading' to a 400 over my ported 362 because at my age, I value each ounce of saw a lot, and I have been thinking that a 400 might be all I need. Mind you, that is with my intention to get it ported down the way. Time will tell if it's enough. After all, the ported ms362 has been 'enough' for years, I got by. But even though the 462 'only' weighs 0.4 pounds more, it IS more. Down the line, if the 400 doesn't awe me, I can get a 462 or 500. The dealer would absolutely NOT back off his price of $939. Said they have had three price increases from Stihl over the past several months, and they have a waiting list. Has 14 of the 500i saws on order and eight are already sold. That type of thing. And I could not find another 400, he had the only 400 I found in in this area! He had the only ones I know about. So, here's to hope it's as good as its reviews. There are a LOT of people who say this saw is great. Especially for someone like me! The sales rep complained that they are biting the bullet and order a several to a dozen or more of a certain model at a time, because they are afraid of not being able to get saws. The backorder situation being very bad. Down the way, I *might* buy one of those expensive 25 inch Stihl E S Light guide bars. They are def pricey! But, I think 30% less weight. I got a 25" on this saw, and I have a backup 20" bar and chains that I already own. I asked for this and that and answer was no to all. Except he did say yes to the hat. If I get tired of running this thing, I can just change horses and shoot pool or play golf. (See pic) EDIT: I forgot to say... the case... I am happy to find these non-rectangular cases return and this one is heavy duty and was $40. Based on what I have paid for the rectangular ones, I was happy to pay $40 for this. They also make a large one like this for larger saws. Not sure about smaller ones, they probably do. I guess an advantage of a rectangular case is that they stack well and also, you can put more stuff in the case with the saw. But I usually do not stuff extra stuff in there.
Congrats on the saw. And thanks for talk about the case. You think a 500i would fit in that? and that’s a 25” bar?
I think the Large size of this case fits the 500i but not totally sure; either way, either this Medium or the Large should work. I think I might have even seen an Extra Large for super large saws. And, yes, it's a 25 inch bar. I made them swap out the "too short" 20-inch scabbard for this scabbard that is long enough for the 25 inch bar. BTW, this case is Stihl brand. They used to cost a lot more than this and I just wouldn't pay $70 or whatever it was, but I will pay $40.
I just thought I would report back after first day's use because others are interested in this saw. All I can say is so far, I am impressed! This saw is really strong! I have a ported 362 and I thought the 400 would be about its equivalent but it seemed to me this 400 is stronger. And I have a 25 on it! Gosh, it digs and pulls and I am bucking big oaks! Love the sound, it really purrs nice at idle. Obviously stock, as I just got it. I was impressed that the chain never got loose from my afternoon's work. It was also easy to start. Based on what it did today, I very well might not need anything larger. Of course, an addict might want another hit but I probably wouldn't need bigger than this! Stihl has made another great saw!
Congrats on the new saw Bill. I didnt realize there was that small of a difference in weight between those two saws. Too bad the price difference wasnt that close too. Stihl site says 462 only available as as Mtronic in the USA.
With the same bar lengths? Ive picked them both up at the dealer but never one in each hand. The latter usually has at least a 25" bar on it. Kinda got me rethinking if i want a 400. There was a decent 462 for $700 on FBM a couple days ago. It was three hours away though.
I used the 400 again yesterday and, again, it was great. I would likely never do a scrounge with bigger hardwoods than this one I am on. All of the trees are 20" DBH to 36" DBH. This 400 is pulling this 25" Stihl bar just fine. So, with each ounce being super important to me at my age, I just cannot envision myself getting a bigger saw. Sure, a 462 or 500 would be 'better' if I were just bucking easy logs but this job and others I encounter have some cuts that are less than ideal, with logs stacked one atop another, limbs, etc. So, maneuvering more weight is an issue. That's my take at this time! I like the saw a lot, it's fun! And, again, surprising that it sure appears noticeably stronger than my ported 362. I need to use them both with sharp chains and see how they compare.
Kinda surprised you didnt get the 462 having wood that size to cut. With the small difference in weight and 67 vs 73cc's. The difference in price is the key.
At one point, I had decided I was going to get a 462 but could only find carb versions, not any m-tronic and I need the saw now, not in possibly six months or whatever it's going to be. Nobody knows about these backorders. The 400 is quite a saw but the 462 is, too. The 462 power to weight ratio is probably off the charts.
