460 for sale but is 38 inch bar required?

I've got my eye on a more powerful saw a Stihl 460, something to get some rounds cut more quickly. I hear about shortening up the bar size helps the saw work a little bit better. My goal is not to have a gargantuan saw bar though so if its ok, would any of you replace a shorter bar on a more powerful saw so that you could have an easier way to get the saw around? Mostly Id be using maybe a 20+ inch bar instead of 32. One of the saws I'm looking at has a 20 inch bar but Im looking a bit in safety if that may render it more difficult to control when digging into wood.
Thanks

 

My MS460 wears a 20"

Good for cutting hard wood.
I have also used a friends MS461 with a 20. Good saw well balanced with a 20" easy to use. The owners manual for the 460 recommends 18" - 28"


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I have always used a 20" combo on my 461 and never had any control issues. If
I need something bigger, I reach for the 661 with the 25" combo. If I need something bigger than that, I reach for the 28" bar for the 661. If I need something even bigger, I'll reach for Scotty Overkill!

 

I'm just looking for more oomph as my 026 is best for a little bit of this and that but it doesn't do well for any hardwoods. I'm hoping to tackle a Pacific Madrone later for firewood and really get it in smaller pieces so that I'm not melting or roasting anyone who sits around my fire. The 26 doesnt look up to the task as a branch expert rather than the whole tree. I figure if I get a saw that may not see many hours but comes through in a pinch, I'll be glad I have a backup for more intense logs.

 

It won't be any more difficult to control, but one could argue that it will be less forgiving of serious error. Safety flows from your understanding of and care with what you're doing, not from being able to compensate for bad judgement with brute strength. Even a small saw can come back at you faster than you can react and with more force than you can resist, but kickback with a 460 driving a 20" bar wide open could be extremely violent.

 

Since your on the west coast 28" bar minimum.

 

My buddy's 460 wears a 20" b&c. It's a great combo. The shorter bar allows it to cut really fast.

I got a 20" on my dolkita that's 64cc at the moment. It works great as well.

 

I used to run a 24" on my 460 and always had a 20" for it as well. For moving around with it I never had an issue with the longer bar as it was only 4" extra length.

 

My 460 wears a 30" and handles that length without a problem, I cut a through a stump yesterday that must have been 29" and it worked great. I don't find safty or control any different with bar length.

 

This will definitely prompt me to more PPE and safety common sense. I use my dads farm boss from time to time but never handled a professional saw. With this advice you're damm right I will heed this caution. Most of the time when I cut logs up, I often dig in and then let the saw do the work. The more I press through, the more that saw bogs down and put myself at risk so I will likely try the saw out before buying. Bring a log or two of my own and be sure this is something I find feasible and worth the buy.

 

Yep. My 460 has been married to a 20" bar it's whole life. If it needs more than 20" I'll break out the 660 with 32"

 

My 460 has run a 20inch bar for a couple years. I have a 24inch as a backup but haven't needed it for a while. It might go back on for a large Ash that needs to come down. The 460 with a 20 inch bar is a very nice combo.

 

38 inch bar seems absurd for a saw that size.

My 441 (slightly less displacement, but similar size saw) started off with a 25 inch bar that worked great. I went to a 20 inch bar and I like it even more- it just hits the sweet spot for most of what I cut. Somehow even though it is only 5 inches shorter, that 20 inch bar seems much more maneuverable.

I hear you on wanting more saw than the 026. I've done a lot more work with my 260 than with my 441, but bucking goes a lot faster with a 70cc saw than with a 50cc saw and I find it more fun to use.

I wouldn't hesitate to put a 20 inch bar on a 460.

 

Hello sir, I have a ms461, and I love it....I use a 20 and 25" bar...I only cut hardwood and with the 25" bar the 461 is like a light saber LOL....with the 20" bar it will fly threw oak, hickory, hedge, anything....

Here I am cutting a maple for my dad...my 461 has a 25" on it...cutting the maple after cutting hardwood constantly is amazingly easy, it's no wonder guys cutting soft woods can use the big bars...

 

460/461 will not oil a bar longer than 32-36", especially if it doesn't have the HO oiler.

 

A friendly reminder that cutting speed doesn't really change much depending on bar length*. X number of sprocket teeth (on the clutch) at X number of rpm's = a specific number of chain driver's being drug down the bar, simple. Now the number of times a specific loop of chain goes around will change. Example 50 driver chain makes 2 times the round trips as a 100 driver. Cutting speed is in a linear measurement ie. FPM, MPH. Now for the * extra bar length does add some friction, a tiny amount that does absorb some power.
The only way to change chain speed ratios is to change the sprocket.
Don't shoot the messenger..

 

Bang.

You can cut a lot faster if you have the power to force the saw a bit compared to just letting it work under its own weight. That is where the speed 0f a large engine on a short bar makes things go quicker.

 

The first part is correct but the second is incorrect to be honest. The speed of the engine doesn't know how long the bar is. Same power head, same size wood , same chain only difference being bar length hanging out will not show any difference in cutting speed. Notice I'm not talking over baring a engine. Actually the extra weight is providing some of the additional cutting force.

 

until the capacity of the oiler is exceeded, more bar length will only add a negligible amount of extra friction. Increasing sprocket diameter will increase chain speed and therefore cutting speed so long as the engine has sufficient power. A short bar can help by limiting the amount of wood taken in one pass thereby keeping the saw within its power capacity. Simply choosing to cut the right size wood for the saw/sprocket combination would do the same.

While a longer chain will dull slower for any given amount of wood cut (each tooth does a smaller percentage of the work) sharpening a longer chain takes more time and people might be tempted to put it off longer than they would with a shorter chain....

 

A longer bar will increase friction. That reduces cutting speed. More HP and torque overcomes friction.