In need of chainsaw advice

I’ll add my $.02 .
But first welcome to FHC ! All the brands you mentioned make decent saws . Go with the brand that has the dealer that you are most comfortable with ,and that will take time to address your questions ,and concerns . He’ll be the most likely to give you the best service and support down the road .

 

First of all thank you everyone for all the great responses!

I will be looking into a 50cc saw most likely. I do like Stihl. I have ran a Stihl saw and I feel like the market around me really supports Stihl the most. We have at least two reputable dealers that I know of. I still have not made up my mind. Since I posted this I saw a saw for sale. It was a Stihl MS250. It was disassembled and the guys was selling for parts. I bought the saw...or pieces that was once a saw. He said it needed a "new carb or something" but I found the tag that the shop had on the saw. It said needs crank bearings. The piston seemed fine and rod spun on the crank nice and smooth. On side of the crankshaft where the bearing was failing had some scoring. I don't know if it is too deep that I can't fix. The saw same with everything but the bar. I might try to see what i can salvage and rebuild the saw or part it out to put towards a new saw. This saw is more of a learning project for me. I have rebuilt car engines but not a chainsaw engine and I am excited to possibly take the route of rebuilding the saw. Are the MS25o's decent? I will maybe cut a couple cords of wood a year. I will also be cleaning up down branches and keep large growth away from out cabin we use as a getaway. I would love get a pro saw. But I am on a tight budget at the moment. We are moving in week and a half.....I will keep you guys posted and if I rebuild the saw I can take pictures along the way just for the heck of it. Once again thanks for helping a new guy out.

 

All of the above, and
forget the initial cost for long term use.
It's the cost/year over time that a pro tool will pay out whatever brand.

 

The MS250 is a homeowners type saw, Stihl has it listed as such on their web site. That being said, I've cut a ton of wood with my little Stihl 021 over the years, especially when I first started cutting wood (mid/late 90's). If you can rebuild it at a reasonable price and get it running good, it'll last you a good while. By the time it needs to be replaced you could put money aside for a newer pro type saw. Plus you will have gained a lot of knowledge in the process.

Good luck, NYH1.

 

My first saw was a 345 Husqvarna (45 cc) and that thing cut a lot of wood in the last 10 or 12 years. Still does. December will be 6 years in this house with a stove in the basement and that saw provided all the wood to do at least 90% of the heating. Until, in March of 2019 I joined this club & now I am the proud owner of 7 saws with one more on the way for 8!
Are you sure you wanna hang out with us?
It’s a slippery slope, be careful!

 

MS250 is a decent lower cost saw and if you do rebuild it they respond well to DIY muffler mods. It can easily handle a couple cord per year, maybe not as fast as a larger saw, but they are a good bang for the buck. I have larger saws for the bigger wood, but it has cut a lot of wood since I've owned it. Keep the chain sharp and perform some regular maintenance and it will perform well for you.

Welcome and glad you joined. Lots of good info here and a lot of great folks willing to share experience to help out anyone willing to jump into the lifestyle of the chainsaw totin', round splittin', cord stackin' firewood hoarder.

 

I can see myself owning several. This MS250 will have to do for the time being.
If i have to replace the crank I might just get a aftermarket short block.

NYH1- My grandpa bought a 021 new. He has passed but we still use this saw year after year. It's a great saw.

 

Post some pics and maybe some of the guys here may have suggestions. I've cleaned up some pretty rough looking parts and put stuff back together just to see if I could get it to run and sometimes it works great and other times it takes some new parts.

 

Do more with a DOLMAR That being said the little guy there has consistently embarrassed my cousin and his husky, but I would go with whatever dealer is fairly handy and you trust

 

Well my dad cut all the firewood for three houses for years with a couple MS-250’s. It helped that we as a family did everything else. He just cut. I still have his last one. The first still ran fine. He traded it in for one of those easy start models. Not a fan of those myself.
So it can be done, no question. Sharp chain is paramount in a smaller saw.
My little 550xp’s will run circles around a 250 but you’ve made a start. Go with it.

 

As I have said in the past check out as many saws as possible and choose the brand that feels the most comfortable.

 

hi guys im new and from b c canada i do firewood sales, IMO THE BEST firewood saw is the stihl 261 its the only saw, if you do a good amount of firewood its light, very powerful, can run a 20 inch bar for a joke, yes its more money, but being so powerful and light you dont need a bigger, heavy saw, i used the ms 250 1 year but found it light on power, when i was younger i had a dolmar 5105, a fantastic saw, i cut 100s of cords with it, was very reliable, never had s bottom end issue, ever, we had a local dealer here and they were popular in southern B.C., I FOUND the 5105 had alot more power than the domar 510, the 510 is fine is you do a few cords a year but its not a serious saw IMO, I FOUND THE 5105 HAD THE POWER OF THE 261 STIHL but is heavier, and cutting wood 8 hrs a day a lighter saw is everything, i owned a husky 550 xp wow it was fast but in my situation it was unreliable, if you can find a dolmar 5105 on ebay for 300$ or 400$ its a great saw when makita took over dolmar im pretty sure they just changed the color so parts are easy, these are just opinions from someone who cuts wood 4-6 months a year, woodstoves are so well made now, up here home heating with wood is getting very popular and it saves money, and were getting more business every season also check out the echo 501p pro grade 51cc saw i borrowed my friends 501 1 afternoon just to try it ,,, it was great not the jam of the 261 IMO BUT light and fast, if you can get one on a sale there great and theyoffer a 5 year warranty thats a good warranty,

 

Welcome to FHC!

 

Welcome dave mclenan ! Glad to make your acquaintance. I have a 260 pro with a 20" bar for my smaller saw and I agree with your assessment. Punches well above it's weight. Look forward to future posts and pictures!

 

X2 I owned a Stihl MS290 with a 16" bar for years Midmo . Great all purpose saw. I just sold it and it gave me great service for nearly ten years. Ive used Stihl saws exclusively for 35 years and cant say a bad thing about them. All three are reputable brands. Have owned an Echo hand held leaf blower for years and love it.

 

thanks i have a dolmar 61 i use When i need a bigger saw but really hardly ever use it, the 261 cuts most anything pertaining to firewood, one of guys in the same business has a saw ive never seen before up here, called a tanaka i think, says it has a 7 year warranty, we have a ex dealer here who can fix anything and he got it thru him, are they popular in the states? I think there made in japan, makita saws are getting popular here now as there is a dealer 3 hours away, i wonder if makita changed the saws mechanics since buying out dolmar, i just have 3 old dolmars in my shop all running great,, my favorite is the 5105, id still use it everyday if it was lighter, ECHO SAWS are becoming popular with casual users here i think the 5 year warranty is the reason and they had a big sale on the the timber wolf model 59cc it was 459$ canadian [99$ us] just kidding, probably about 350$ us alot of saw for the money, but heavy, but lots of jam. alot of homeowners bought them at that price and warranty. . SAFE CUTTING GUYS

 

Welcome to the forum. dave mclenan

 

Tanaka isn’t a big name here but several places sell them. I don’t know anything about reliability or anything. Dolmar is still Dolmar for now. Makita purchased them in the 90s. The Makita branded saws are Dolmar, originals were blue but now red. Same thing part for part. I hear once they no longer pass emissions they are gone but that’s dealers talking.