This Post is about bars, again I know there will be a lot of controversy over this subject. Most of all people who make there living with a saw can relate to this Post more so than the homeowner who just cut wood for there home ect. Stihl bars, unless the ES, are way overpriced for what you get and are no better than anyone else`s cheaper bars. I think the ES bars are better than the Windsor Speedtips, Oregon PowerMatch, and GB ProTops, but not enough so to justify a large price difference.The GB Titaniums are about on par with Stihl ES bars and they are usually cheaper. Windsor does make an excellent bar without charging a fortune, but don`t forget that they are now owned by Oregon. If there really is any difference in quality between Oregon and Windsor, expect to see this difference go away. Windsor Mini Pro bars used to be fantastic. The last one I bought, the nose seized after about two tanks of gas. I don`t know if this is indicative of current Mini Pro quality, but the Oregon Pro Lite now on that saw is not having any problems. BTW, I don`t think Windsor makes the Mini Pro anymore. Oregon Power Match bars are bars for the masses. Buy from any of the big internet retailers and you get great value, of course this also holds true with Windsor. IMO, the PowerMatch bars offer the best bang for the buck when you compare useful life to initial cost. Oregon Pro Lites are good bars for smaller saws. The biggest downfall is the difficulty in changing the nose sprocket if necessary, but how many people change noses on a short bar anyway? GB ProTops and below are waaaaaay overrated as far as I`m concerned. I`ve had several and they seem to have soft rails. For example, I had one on a modified saw that formed a significant burr, showing about .015 wear before the chain needed it`s first sharpening. The bar didn`t get any better after being dressed. I have a few other ProTops that are similar to this although not as bad. If I needed a really long bar(which would be very expensive to purchase initially), I`d buy a Cannon. They have a pretty good reputation for wear resistance and not many really long bars are readily available anymore. It`s my opinion that short Cannons and short Woodsman Pro bars are for yuppie woodcutters who drive a flashy import car, or maybe they drive a '67 F150 but like to play the role of Dapper Dan at the woodlot. Anyway, I`m sure that you get my drift. Again I know this Post will draw a lot of controversy about bars but if you don’t make a living with your saw you probably have not had a lot of experience with multiple bars not to say that you don’t know anything about bars. And may I emphasize I run a shop and I service many of the saws that professional arborist use. So I have a big oversight of bars and chains that they use. Of course that doesn’t make me perfect in this discipline but damm close. I also have a degree in mechanical engineering so I can think outside of the rim of simple applications of bars an Chain and stress factors. Good example stretch on Chain how many people would be amazed at what brand of Chain stretch the most after just a couple of cuts with a particular Chain. This is a whole new subject to talk about at a different time. Have a nice day... Stumper
