I’m looking for a little bit bigger saw. As far as usage, I live on 100 acres of mixed hardwoods and pines so something always needs to be cut down, up, or out of the way. I also have an open fireplace and we run fires pretty much anytime it’s below 40°. I probably cut and process 3-4 cords a year but my kids, 13 & 15 are considering starting a small firewood business for extra money. I currently have an MS291 with an 18” bar and it’s great for 80% of what I do, but I want something a little bigger for when it’s not. I’m thinking something in the 65-70cc range that I can run a bigger bar. My dilemma is that everything I’ve looked at goes from 20” bars up to 25” with nothing in between. Is a 20” enough? Is a 25” too big? Also, I’m not interested in anything other than a Stihl. My dealer is close and great to do business with. Thanks in advance. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
You can do a lot with a 20” and 25” bar. I could survive with just a 50cc and 70cc saw. The Stihl 462 is an incredible saw that you could use a 20 and 25” bar on. It could easily handle a 28”.
Hello and welcome. As far as a powerhead I will leave this to others here to give you suggestions , I am no expert on that. I guess the first question is are you looking for a pro saw or a farm-ranch saw as Stihl calls them ? I guess you need to think on how much use it will get and what your needs are. As far as a bar I personally do not think that 25 inches is too big. Being on the tall side I find that the longer bar is easier on my back since I don't have to bend over as much , plus it is nice to have the extra length for some larger rounds. I thought that it seemed big myself after years of running saws in the 16 - 18 inch range. After a short time it just seems normal to me , a 16 inch saw now actually seems small. Good luck with your search and let us know how things go for you.
I think the 462 is a good bet You might consider having more than one bar and two chains for each size bar Welcome a board
Hello and welcome to FHC! Everyone here is more than willing to help you spend money on new saw's. Budget and return on investment is something many of us talk about when we first started nerding out on saws, soon CAD will consume. Here you will find the chainsaw ownership from 1 to 50+ with some being brand loyal, some just like saws. Some thought in end use will go a long way in getting suggestions. Buzz-saw hit the nail on the head with the grade of saw. Within each grade of saw are the models. Chud referenced the 2-saw option that serves many so very well, the 50cc and 70cc class of saws. Like so many thing in life, with a saw you get what you pay for. One think to consider is, do you have any good dealers near by and what brands do they sell? For the Stihl brand that 50cc and 70cc saw option that many like are the MS261 and MS 461 or MS462. Choosing a saw is really personal decision that include things like your height, arm reach, how is your back, how much do you plan to cut with your saw, how big of trees are you dealing with. If your looking to bump up with bar size the oiler is going to be the limiting factor for bar size. Check out the specs on the models that interest you and see what the max bar is. Once you get a idea on what you like, check out the threads in this section with saw videos, YouTube as well. In summery buy a 261 and 462 send them to get ported. Convert the ported 261 to 3/8 run a 20" lightweight bar. With your ported 462 run the 25" lightweight. Do yourself a favor go square grind/file on the chain. In all seriousness, you will find great advise here, hopefully you wont buy to many saws before you find what suits you best.
Hello and welcome to the FHC CMR4 Great to have you join us. Strictly Stihl user here. Been using them since 1985 and they have given me great service. I was a one saw user (MS290, early version of your 291) with a 16" bar for years. It was a very reliable saw i purchased new in 2010 and cut a lot of wood with it. Three years ago i found myself having access to larger wood (i scrounge wood roadside or storm downed trees for the most part). I bought an MS460 (77cc) powerhead and with a 28" bar it was a game changer. Good two saw plan. My 290 was replaced by an MS261 in 2019. Even better two saw plan. I run mostly a 20" bar on the 261 and have had it buried in big wood and it has handled it. The longer bar is a back saver too. To answer your question. An MS391 (Farm/ranch saw, 64CC's) with a 25" bar would be ideal for larger wood. Keep in mind you can buck wood much bigger than the bars lengths. Ive never used or owned one, but have heard its a good saw. Around $650 its reasonably priced compared to pro model saws. As far as i know Stihl doesnt make a bar size between 20 and 25". If you want to spend more, a pro model MS362 (59cc) or MS462 (72cc) are better options, but thats just me as most of my saws are pro models as i have CAD! CAD (Chainsaw Acquisition Disorder) has kicked in bad and now i own nearly ten. See my signature line. When i joined the forum two years ago i had two! We're a bunch of enablers here! Let us know how you make out and post pics of the new saw and any wood you cut!
I picked up a 462 a year ago.... I don’t have a ton of experience (it’s only my second saw) but I think it’s great! I run a 20” lightweight bar normally and throw on a 28” when I get into the big wood. It pulls the 28” no prob. The balance with 28” lightweight bar is also very good. I hardly ever reach for my 50cc saw anymore! My only issue now is whether or not go the extra step and get it ported! As many here will tell you chainsaws are addictive for sure !
A 462 would be a great choice, but that's lot of coin to drop on a saw you'll only use 20% of the time cutting 3-4 cord a year. 362 will run a 25" bar in hardwood OK, especially if you use a skip chain. It won't wow you with its performance, but it gets the job done. 362 with 20" bar is, in my opinion, the best all-around firewood saw out there (I'm biased because that's what I run).
When I need to I use my 460 with a 32" bar.It works well on the big Oaks,Maples, and Elms I come across.
Following up on BuZZsaw Brad's comment. When I went to a second saw 5 years ago or so, I went with the MS 391. I figured that I wouldn't use the larger saw enough to warrant going with a Pro saw, so I went with a large Farm/Ranch offering. I really do like the 391, especially when fitted with a new chain (I'm tougher than I should be on chains... read that, not as careful as I should be... and I'm still working on my hand sharpening skills). For me, I can easily get through rounds up to 24 inches, which greatly increases the potential hoard capacity of my efforts. I've had a couple issues with the 391. Just had it in for service, where I had to get a bearing and a couple related parts replaced (I'll look up the specific items, if anyone is interested). Fortunate to have a good shop that performs service work for what I believe is reasonable prices. The 391 is also kinda heavy. Not sure how it compares with a Pro saw of the same displacement, but I'm sure the work effort with a Pro saw versus the Farm/Ranch 391 would be something to consider. Always like reading the CAD threads. I wonder when my first Pro saw will come.
Did I mention how light, powerful and easy to start the 462 is? An upper deck home run for Stihl imo. I’ve never heard a complaint about a saw cutting too fast, or having too much power. Has anyone ever said dang, I wish I hadn’t got a pro saw!
CMR4 Welcome aboard! I hope you find lots of great folks on here. And, we love to help spend your money! (along with lots of photos of saws, trucks, dogs, etc.) FWIW, you could look into some used pro level saws and save some significant $$. Staying with Stihl, as per your original post. A used MS361 can be had in the $350+ range and is a beast of a pro grade 60cc saw. The same could be said for a 440, 441, 460, 461 (70+ cc saws). You get my drift. You could find some even older 036, 044, etc. There are many thousands of those saws out there. And lots of good saw shops will take in trades from their professional users, freshen them up, and keep us firewood hoarders going. Best of luck with your search and post some pix of what you end up picking.
I was talking to my buddy today about saws, because what else are you going to do when it’s raining. He was telling me about his 056 he got in his 20’s. He’s 61 now and the saw is still a runner. I’m always bragging on the 462 and he knows I want the 500. He is a stalwart old Stihl user in his tree business. Anyway he always tells me how he’ll bring his 046 to whoop up on my fancy computer saws. He hasn’t done it yet, maybe when I get the 500. He’ll say, I don’t even have to sharpen it, it’s ready.
