So talking to a guy friend of mine, by a nice fire on the patio while taking advantage of this awesome weather, he says he wants a pro chainsaw. He just bought the 50 acres behind his house, so the electric saw he's been using to cut up mostly fallen branches from box elders for his typical Friday night fires, has necessitated him to up the ante in his equipment. There's quite a bit of oak and maple and amazingly, no ash so he says. Some of the oaks are massive, and he says there's a few big ones that are down. Yes, I started drooling. Sounds like he'll want me to come out with my atv and check it out. He doesn't heat with wood, but aside from this year, he has great patio fires in a 3' wide fire pit ina nice brick patio every Friday night in summer and fall. So he goes through wood, but there's no way he'll ever use all the wood that he'll get from a mature forest. He already bought a new bobcat toolcat to bring the trails that were there years ago back, so he's serious. BTW, that is quite a machine. It's slow though I hear, so he'll want/ need an ATV at some point when he doesn't want to break that toolcat out. So over beers and a fire of a big wheelbarrow worth of ash and elm uglies I brought over, he wanted to pick my brain on saws while catching up. BTW, that elm is crazy good in the fire pit. A lot more flame than 2 yr seasoned ash. I mentioned the 6100 makita, stihl ms362, and the cs590 Timberwolf by echo. He wants a pro saw because the crappy mac gas saw he inherited doesn't ever run right ( little 30cc disposable saw) and he read about the advantages of a pro saw, lighter weight, more power, just better all around. A 60cc saw is a great 1 saw plan. He does have that electric saw in case he gets in a bind, or wants to limb so there's that. I like dolmar and Stihl, but have heard great things about the echos, particularly the cs590 for the price. He liked the 5 yr warranty for the echo. The echo and makita are 13.2 lbs no b&c. Makita has 4.6 hp, echo is less at 3.89 hp. 3/8 .050 pitch chain for the echo and makita, which is easier to find than the other sizes, but it looks like the 20" echo uses a 70 drive link size which is a bit non standard. My dolkita and my other buddy's ms460 take 72 drive link 3/8 .050 chain. I hear that the big difference between these two saws aside price is that the makita has a much better anti vibration system and between that and the pretty big hp difference is why I think the makita is a better saw, despite the better warranty of the echo. There's the ms362 as well, but that's even more cost than the makita, and honestly, I don't think you are getting more than the makita 6100 for the increased $. Otherwise, there's also the husky 562xpg for a comparable saw. Fire away..
The 362 is a solid saw. Pulls the 2 foot bar, and with the 18” bar it makes quick work of most of my cutting tasks. M Tronic works well for me. Kind of thirsty but I’ll live with that. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Problem with Echo, Dolmar and even Husqvarna here is an actual servicing dealer is a bit of a hike. We had a pretty good Echo dealer close by but the owner closed shop. Building is vacant and appears will be torn down. I don't think you can go wrong with any of the top tier saws as long as you have a local service guy that's decent should one ever be needed.
Go with the Stihl or Husq with the electric carbs. . Super easy. Just pull string then cut wood. Sounds like price may not be the biggest priority for your friend, especially if looking at a "one saw plan" I'd recommend getting the best and most reliable.
I have a ported 362 and it is super strong. Of course, that adds significant cost. If cost is a factor, I'd buy two used saws. Plenty of saws for sale on forums by reputable sellers. (Having only one saw is a hindrance.) I also have one Makita, a 4300 and love it, cool saw. Nothing wrong with all three of those manufacturers. If I were to have only two saws, I'd probably have something like... Makita 4300 for limbing and backup and a 60-70cc saw for big stuff. As far as that goes, I think a Makita 64xx and 79xx are same saw, just different top end. If he wanted bigger, he could easily beef it up.
I've got a 6421 dolkita. I should let him try it. That" little" 64cc saw cuts as fast as my buddy's magnum 460 Stihl that's an 80cc saw. We have the same bar length and the same chains and this was treated on the same tree, timed. And yes, the 64xx series is the same "chassis" as the 7300 and 7900. Just different top ends. I don't think he needs a saw that big, and probably would prefer a lot lighter saw. To be honest, if he needs to get into a big downed oak, he'll probably call me. Then I might" need" to go bigger on my dolkita. There's Stihl dealers all over here. Even a makita/ ex dolmar dealer close. How do you deal with an echo if you have warranty issues? I see most are sold through big box stores. But if you buy one from home depot, can you take it to the local dealer for warranty issues? I'd think so. The echo dealer is the furthest away, but not bad. The echo dealer also sells husky. He's had enough with cheap saws, wants quality. He's not averse to spending a little more. I think he should step up to a better than the echo Timberwolf cs590 IMHO, but it would probably serve him well.
Shop the dealer then the brand, unless you can service your self- Stilh - M tronics dealer only to reprogram if problems arise-- me not fond of that sort of thing. My primary saws are Dolmars 7900 & 79xx, plus a 64xx and Dolita 64xx ( home depot cast off). The Dolmars/ Makita are a bit heavier than some of the Stilh's 0r Huskies in the same cc class. The 7900 is about 20 years old- only problem I had with it was base gasket blew out but it took a pretty hard knock just before that happened. The HD cast off was a mistreated 64xx series in Makita blue and gray - carb was ethanoled to death and the Oiler assembly was melted repaired carb - replaced oiler no issues since. I have no particular issue with Stilh or Husky units . Just with Stilh one has to pay attention closely to model # as they have 3 levels of saws homeowner, contractor and pro. #'s being very similar. Lately there have been issues with new saws being tuned very lean from factory- that will burn up a jug and bucket very quickly if not sorted out up front. ( Thanks EPA).
So he got back to me. What about the ea5600? 56cc Makita USA - Product Details -EA5600FRGG Is this a downsized 6100?
I am a Husqvarna fan but my last two purchases have been Echo and they make me smile every time I run one of them.
I went 590 because I don't have unlimited money. Have no complaints. Not as fancy as the others but my saw doesn't pay my bills.
My friend ended up buying a brand new 6100. I'll probably get to try his out some time soon. The one that huskihl has is a very clean unit, if anyone else is looking for one. If it were me, I'd have saved the coin and got that "used" one vs the new one.
My buddy has used his new 6100 a good number of times since be bought it. He's very happy with it, and even texted me to tell me that is super smooth operating and easy to use. I might join him doing some work in the woods next week.
Chris wrote "Shop the dealer then the brand," {snip} That's great advice. All saws mentioned are 2 thumbs up, can't go wrong with any of them. That being said I'm happy with my Echo CS590. And as a side note, he bought 50 acres, trust me, he'll be buying more saws.
These men cut all this big wood just with a Stihl 391 Farm Boss&25 inch bar and standard Stihl non kickback chain.
