In loving memory of Kenis D. Keathley 6/4/81 - 3/27/22 Loving father, husband, brother, friend and firewood hoarder Rest in peace, Dexterday

Saw shootout/ MS 440, ported MS 460, MS 461, and Solo 681

Discussion in 'Chainsaws and Power Equipment' started by DexterDay, Nov 23, 2014.

  1. DexterDay

    DexterDay Administrator

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    Had a little time today so I decided to run 4 saws in the same Cant with the same chain.

    The four saws I ran were a...

    Stock (double barrel muff mod) MS 440

    Stock (tri-port muff mod) MS 461

    Stock Solo 681 (no muff mod)

    Mastermind ported (tri-port muff mod) MS 460

    Solo ran a Solo branded bar and the Stihls ran a standard E series bar. Both sprocket tip..

    1416793345455.jpg

    All were ran with the same chain.
    Stihl RSL with gullets cleaned out. (Courtesy of a member here)

    1416793404020.jpg

    Pics of the saws..

    20141123_171750.jpg 20141123_171706.jpg 20141123_171902.jpg 20141123_171950.jpg

    The results were as follows. (Times may be a little off. So feel free to retime and post). I timed each saw twice.

    MS 440
    1- 3.19 / 3.15
    2- 2.88 / 2.91
    3- 2.99 / 2.90
    MS 440 10" Cant cut:

    MS 461
    1- 3.0 / 3.0
    2- 2.71 / 2.85
    3- 2.82 / 2.85
    MS 461 10" Cant cut:

    Solo 681
    1- 2.66 / 2.56
    2- 2.75 / 2.66
    3- 2.69 / 2.56
    Solo 681 10" Cant cut:

    Mastermind MS 460
    1- 2.28 / 2.34
    2- 2.41 / 2.47
    3- 2.52 / 2.63
    MS 460 10" Cant cut:

    The Solo was the most consistent and the smoothest. Without question. But you can see how the chain reacts to different saws. All tuned to about 13,800. Or as close as I can get them, per my tach.

    Interested to hear comments. :D
    I have some observations that I seen, but will save them till later.
     
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  2. cnice_37

    cnice_37

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    Seems like the 460 & 461 want bigger wood, very grabby in the high RPM range.

    20" bar?

    You keep a fine stable of saws, wouldn't mind running any of them!

    Smooth is nice, which saw has the best feel in terms of balance, power to weight, etc?
     
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  3. JRSDWS

    JRSDWS

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    I think you should've run a port Husky 372XPW in this test too!!! ;)

    First thing I noticed is the 440 seems to falter somewhere in there a little? Last pass maybe?

    The 461 sounds like it revved a little higher? If so...maybe you could've leaned on it a little more and beat then Solo time?

    Ether way, great video and thanks for sharing.
     
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  4. clemsonfor

    clemsonfor

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    Post, so I can come back later to watch these vids.
     
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  5. bigbarf48

    bigbarf48

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    Nice vids. The solo sure seems like its running well :dex:
     
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  6. Gasifier

    Gasifier

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    Nice saws! I don't know chit about saws. :rofl: :lol:But they all look, sound, and cut like nice saws. :thumbs: I "saw" Stihl, that is good.:rofl: :lol: Never had a Solo in hand before. I have had a McCulloch, a Husqvarna, and a couple Stihls. That's about the extent of it. :emb: Cool videos though. Thanks for putting them together for us.

    I think I need a slightly bigger and more powerful saw for all the trees I need to cut over the next few years. I'm going to have to start working on that. Maybe next year.
     
  7. DexterDay

    DexterDay Administrator

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    All 16" bars in 10" wood. :)

    The 440 is the smallest, but the last pass I added to much pressure (just as I did with the 460). Both of those saws had the slowest last time. With 3 cuts I got anxious to get a little more out of them.

    As for the 372? I would love to see where it fell in this line up.


    The 440 was on the shirt tails of the 461 which is kind of surprising, but kinda not. The 440 is well broke in. The 461 is not. Also, the Solo is still on the 1st tank of the new 81 cc top end.

    440 = 71 cc
    461 = 77 cc
    460 = 77 cc
    681 = 81 cc.
     
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  8. MasterMech

    MasterMech The Mechanical Moderator

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    I'd be interested to see what happens to those times in say... 24"+ wood? You need another mega-cant.....
     
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  9. rburg

    rburg

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    You have some mighty nice saws. They all look like good runners.
     
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  10. DexterDay

    DexterDay Administrator

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    Already in the works..

    Pretty sure the 681 owns that one. Just because of how smooth and the torque it has.

    The 460 is mean and may prove to be a contender. But torque shoukd shine over HP in big wood.
     
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  11. Freakingstang

    Freakingstang

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    I have an XPW... minus the W... hate huskys wrap handle for chain and bar swaps, and then an Xtorq "W" both mildy worked over by me.... next time, give me a shout. might even have a stock old 372 jug kicking around here I could throw on the new 365 for stock comparisons too, but who cares about that? :D

    I would like to see that MM460 and the solo in bigger wood. even changing up the depth gauges to individual saw could have made more of a difference, as in less depth gauge on the 440 and 461 might have yielded better results, as ever saw is different...

    didn't see where you mentioned, but what size rims? 8? If they all had 7's, then 8's would change some things up a bunch me thinks.. of they were 8's, put 7's on em' and stand on them and see where they all end up...
     
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  12. Certified106

    Certified106

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    Awesome, thanks for posting those videos. Also of those saws are lean mean cutting machines. Seems like the 440 and the 461 falter a little bit compared to the 460 and solo. You posting this video has me leaning towards having my 460 ported :D
     
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  13. SquareFile

    SquareFile

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    In before the lock:D
     
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  14. the GOAT

    the GOAT Banned

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    The ms362 would have been awesome.
     
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  15. mdavlee

    mdavlee

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    When you hit the cant like that and level the bar it will load the saw more that instant. If you can be smoother in the transition from tip up to tip down you'll get a little smoother cut. The 440 and 461 showed it the most. The 681 would probably cut faster with a little more load. The 460 didn't mind the transition as much and was a little grabby right in the middle. I'm not surprised at the cut times though. If you have a 20" cant you'll see the 440 be left farther behind and the 681 will probably be closer to the 460.
     
  16. DexterDay

    DexterDay Administrator

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    I see the same thing happening with bigger wood. The 681 will truly shine.

    460's are nasty :dex: That saw spools up so fast, it's unbelievable. And violent in the cut. Very violent. .

    :rofl: :lol::loco: :crazy:
     
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  17. Chvymn99

    Chvymn99 Moderator

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    Well worth the trip....:tree:
     
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  18. Certified106

    Certified106

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    I have a slot booked but have a few months to decide what saw is going. I'm really leaning towards the 460 at this point!
     
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  19. Moparmyway

    Moparmyway

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    That chain was THE most aggressive one in the bunch :saw: ................... seeing the videos, the rakers should have been 5 thousandths' taller so the 461 and 440 could pull it better :doh:, although it was intended for the ported 460 :yes:, it still looked to be a little grabby

    What are your thoughts on how she performed with the 460 and the Solo ? :sherlock:

    That Solo and chain are made for each other (But the chain is screaming for a ported 066 and 8 pin)!!!

    What kind of wood is the cant ?
     
    Last edited: Nov 24, 2014
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  20. DexterDay

    DexterDay Administrator

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    Cottonwood Cant and yeah, the Solo was Smoooooth with that chain.

    460 ain't bad. Once it settles in.

    May take the dawgs off the 460 and run a small spike. I think that's where a lot of the Jerk was coming from (big dawgs).

    But that is a really good chain. Thanks again for making it. Can't wait to try that lo pro when it gets back. :dex: