Gonna pick up a 461 in the next couple weeks. I've read plenty on this one, really looking forward to getting into the over 60cc category. No plans to have it ported for the forseeable future and read a muffler mod really doesn't do much overall....this true? Would it be worthwhile to put a 460 DP on the 461. I read they will fit fineI believe, not sure though? BTW I'm gonna go with a 20" ES bar. Don't need anything above that for now.
I just got one last month. I'll be curious to see what what the members have to say. The saw is very impressive out of the box - 25" on mine and it ripped some big oak.
The DP cover does help. Gutting the baffle out of the muffler really doesnt net a ton of gains if you go the dp cover route though.
I picked one up last Spring. Admittedly, still don't have a whole ton of hours on it. However, in stock form, it is very fun to operate. I was cutting fresh white oak up to 28-30" diameter with a 32" bar and RS full comp and/or full skip, and it handled it. What more can I say. However, I got mine masterminded this fall and now it is neigh on unstoppable. I don't think you can go wrong with this saw, stock or ported, it will do the work! FWIW, I run my 461 with 25" B&C most of the time since I find that my 361 easily handles the 20" in hardwood. Glamour shot of the MS461 w/ 32" B&C Typical working configurations, MS461 w/ 25" and MS361 w/ 20"
IMO, muff mod including removal of the baffle, as well as swapping the coil for a 460 coil is very well worth the couple of bucks and little bit of time it takes.
MS461 coil is definitely limited. I think at 13,500 but not exactly sure. When I got mine ported, I also got an unlimited 460 coil to allow it to run at max/ ideal rpms, just north of 14K at WOT.
The 460 DP cover will fit on your 461. Somewhere in the neighborhood of 75% or so of the 460 & 461 are interchangeable, and the muffler cover is part of that. I can't tell you from experience if the DP cover makes a noticeable difference though. I had a 461 for awhile and spent several days dropping and bucking large trees with it including some ash trees that were in the 3' DBH range. Because of that I spent a lot of time with the 25" bar buried and that bone stock 461 never missed a beat, tank after tank. Frankly, I never really wished it had more power - in a word, it was perfect. Just because I do sip the Kool Aid occasionally I did get a DP muffler cover. I installed it and re-tuned, but never actually ran it before trading the saw off. This isn't the biggest tree my 461 went up against, but still a quality gratuitous Stihl shot!
You can buy an aftermarket can that has a larger stick opening, no baffle/birdcage, and comes with a DP front cover. The only thing needed after that would be to trim the limiter tabs on the carb and buy a 460 coil (if you want full potential ). Even with a good muff mod, the coil is a good idea. I believe it's limited in the mid 13's as well. My 461 will arrive at Cuddle lane tomorrow. Looking forward to its return!! :dex
My mind is stuck on the fact that the saw is going to run 10,000-11,000 rpm in most cuts. I totally get swapping the coil on a ported saw but other than making it easier to tune, I am still trying to figure out what the advantage is on an engine that will not see 13K in the cut.
No you're right, these saws aren't going to pull 14k in the cut. I do like the fact unlimited coils saws are easier to tune though.
Good to hear...gonna run a 20" and wear myself out doing all firewooding with this beast unless the old timer shows up to cut with his 361
I still like to tune to max RPM.. No? If my 460 would only Rev to 13,000 instead of 14,700, would it have beaten the 441's? Not likely. . I still want to hear the tune in wood, but I also would hate to blow a saw up because it wasn't tuned and was merely tapping the limiter. For the amount that a coil costs? It is worth it. In my opinion. Because even a simple muff mod will allow that saw to run a higher RPM.
You're power in the cut isn't necessarily related to what you end up with for max RPMs unloaded. I get what you guys are saying about it simplifying the tuning process however. Think about this, if you tuned a muffler modded 461 with an unlimited coil, and then swapped the coil back to the limited unit, would it change where your RPMS settle out in the cut? Unless there are timing differences, it shouldn't.
Unlimited coil is just easier to tune ( I need all the help I can get in that arena). Should not affect performance in the cut as far as I know. It will be real interesting when Stihl finally comes out with an M-tronic 75-80 cc saw. Just sayin'...
The more I read into this it it seems a lot like modding the motor/emissions on my truck. Just leave it alone because it works fine..lol.. Little mods like dawgs and oiler are fine.. Guy I know that deleted and tuned his 6.7 has been all over me about doing mine.. He blew his oil out of the exhaust yesterday when he snapped the turbo on a 2014. Ouch..
