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Small chainsaw

F

Firewood

Member
Has anyone had any experience with small chainsaws, say 12inch bar?
My small saw is 24 years old and is real tired so I would like to replace it for limbing once the tree is felled.
I see that Echo and Efco each think their small saw is the best. No surprise there!

Let the opinons flow.
 
I bought a 15" Poulan from Canadian Tire pretty cheap, and they're light too, 39cc engine. They're still just a cheap saw but great for limbing after felling. You can usually get them around 139 bucks (in Canada anyway)
 
I have a small Echo, 18 or 24" bar or so. I bought it used almost ten years ago and use it every year for similar tasks that you describe.
It still starts good and runs good with very little maintenence. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another one when the time comes.
 
echo comes with a five year warranty covers the whole machine not just the motor
no other company has that
this is also for a non commercial application
 
I had a small stihl (like an ms180 or something close) that worked very well. For the price I paid and the amount of work it did I was more than satisfied. I bought it for occasional limbing but ended up using it to clean up after 2 major ice storms before I got my farm boss. The farm boss works pretty good for both and it has more than enough power to cut larger trees.
 
As far as I'm concerned, anything in a non-professional saw line is a crap shoot... from any manufacturer.
Why not just have one good pro saw?
A Stihl MS361 is reasonably light, quite powerful (55cc) and well balanced with a 16" bar. It's also a good rugged saw.

Rod
 
I have the Husky 335 XP, a little pro saw with a 14" bar. It is a really tough little saw often used by pro tree trimmers who climb trees with their saw hooked to their belt by a 6 ft rope. There is also a comparable (maybe better??) Stihl model. I think you need to evaluate what specific tasks you need/want the saw for and then talk with guys who use them every day, and a good dealer who has both the Stihl and Husky lines. My son has a small Echo w/16" bar and it has held up well, but there is something strange about that saw... and unfortunately I do not remember what it is.

You do not want a small saw for felling. It is safer to get in, cut your wedge quickly, make the back cut and get out of there before an unexpected gust of wind makes the tree fall in the wrong direction. Any saw using a 3/8" chain will give fast cuts and long chain life. For this bigger work, I use my 1981 model Husky 266E, a 66 cc saw. It is fast, but too big to do any climbing with it.

Paul in MN
 
I have a echo I believe it is a 330. It has a 12 in blade and is very light, and used with one hand very easy. Now the only problem is what to so with the other hand since it is free. Why not pick up branches with that free hand and cut them into smaller pieces. That is what I tried. I got carless and let the saw get too close to my hand. The saw caught on the limb I was holding, spun around and cut the under side of my index finger from top to bottom, It was a real mess, but the doctor was able to get most of it back together. That was over a month ago. It it just now all healed, but is still a little stiff. The echo is a good little saw. Just respect it. Stan
 
Buy a Stihl, Echo or Husqvarna. As mentioned the Husqvarna 335xp is a great saw, so precision built that it has no rings on the piston. Very high speed. a little pricey though good If you are interested in production. My next choice would be a Stihl followed by an Echo. Rember you buy a cheap saw and you get a cheap saw.
 
I have an old top handle 015 Stihl that is great for limbing and cutting in trees when necessary.
It's starting to finally give up after 28 years of service to me, and I bought it used when I was 14.
I'll be getting the updated version of it as soon as I talk my wife into it, for anybody who does climbing it's the handiest thing.
 
Special thanks to 37chief for sharing the hard learned lesson. This is why I don't think I will get an "arborist" saw as it invites one handed use. (I am sure that many others have been Bitten by a saw during one handed use)
It seems that a the Echo small saw that is not special use oriented like the "Arborist" saw is one that keeps both hands on the saw.

For felling trees and bucking logs I have a Jonsered that has lots of life left in it so I am only looking for a small saw.

It is above Zero this morning so life is getting better!!
 
Remember, Good saws aint cheap, and cheap saws aint good. My favorite for fast cutting is my ms460 stihl. The old 034 stihl is also a good saw.
 
We have an MS250 chainsaw. 45 cc 16" bar. Very reliable except for a fuel line that cracked. It can be a pain in the a$s to start but will always start and when warm it will always start right away.
 
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