Husky 465 rancher becomes Makita 6421

I was doing a little research earlier on Husky saws that would be good workhorse saws for bucking tree length for firewood. I have a 455 rancher and that does ok, it bogs on the bigger wood sometimes. I was looking on the husky website and saw the 465 rancher but didn't see any reviews. I figure for the money it would be a safe purchase for a nonprofessional saw and the proffessional price tag.

suggestions? comments? criticisms?

edit: 465 rancher

 

465 rancher you mean?

 

yes, typo on my part

 

Its a decent farm grade saw. So what kind of bigger wood we talking about? Also what size wood?

For about the same money you could step into something like a Dolmar 6100 with more pro style features. Little more power and little less weight too. Minus the auto tune though.

 

This is a brand new saw right?that's probably why there no reveiws. I'm sure it's overpriced. Like said I would look into echo or dolmar or something else.

 

The 465 rancher is probably an ok saw. This being its first year of production there is bound to be a few glitches. The dolmar 6100 and husqvarna 562xp or stihl ms362 would be a much better choice.

 

Good questions MM. The price of this saw was in the mid 5's on the husky site. It's gonna cut tree length up to 24" round and at some point it will work often enough that I want it to run stronger than a 455. It will take up to a 28" bar so that was important too.

 

Keep in mind that the convention in marketing plastic-cased homeowner/ranch saws that are meant for part-time/occasional use is for manufacturers to suggest relatively long bar lengths, because the consumers using these machines typically don't mind if cuts take a little longer; what they care about is being able to get a particular job done when the need arises. By comparison the better, mag-cased saws are targeted at production users who care about cutting speed, so they suggest relatively short bars. Compare that 465 to the 555, which can be had for $589 shipped right now on eBay. The 555 is more than a pound lighter and has better antivibe and slightly more power than the 465, yet they suggest a 20" bar. Guess what: even if they don't suggest it, it will handle a 28" bar better than the 465. If you're looking at this as an investment in your prospective retirement firewood business, then the lighter, stronger saw that vibrates less is going to be the better choice.

 

Thanks Jon, your input on this was exactly what I was looking for. Is the 555 considered a pro saw? Mid 5's to 6 max is going to be my budget. The reason I mention husky is because they are all I have ever owned. While we are talking about this can u suggest any other saws that will fit the bill for what I'm looking for, for the same $ or less?
Thanks

 

The 555 is a slightly less feature-rich version of the 562, which is the full-on pro model in this size. I think the main difference is that the 562 accelerates faster, so it's better for limbing operations. If you'll mainly be bucking logs, I don't think there'd be a meaningful difference.

Makita/Dolmar is probably the best alternative, in terms of value. You could pick up the 6100 that MM suggested, or a 6420. The latter is heavier but can be upgraded to 80cc if you ever wanted to. Both of these have conventional carbs, though, so if you're not comfortable tuning your saw by ear then the 555 might be more user-friendly.

 

Is any of the red saws a consideration here?

 

I'm sure there's a similar Jonsered, but they're uncommon in my area so I don't know the product line well.

 

Looks like the 2258 and 2260 are the 555/562 equivalents.

 

Call Terry Landrum at Wicked Work Saws. He can give you a pretty good deal on Jreds.

 

can you tell me about jred's reputation and how it compares to stihl and husky??

 

There the same thing? It's just as good. All that's different is some plastic and the color. It's not like it's a copy by a different company, there made by the same parent company, literally the same saw. Parts swap on the similar models. Like Jon said the 555 is the Same as the 2258. All parts will change.

Their reputation is just as good. It's kind of like the GMC truck. More contractor grade I guess you would say, or at least how they use to be. CHEVY was the brand sold to the lawyers and stuff and GMC was the logger truck. Husky was the flagship model and Jred was the working man's saw.

 

Can't say Ive seen any dealers around my way, might have to check online to see who's the closest.
Will keep you in mind if that doesn't work out on who here has access to them.

thanks for your input

 

Would you feel differently if it was only going to pull 28" once in a while, with 20" being the everyday bar?