chainsaws thinking of getting a new one.

[shotty]

Started my tree business with a 025 Stihl. Cut with it for 10 years and bought more saws as the years went on, all Stihl. I gave the original one to my brother, that was 10 years ago and he is still cutting wood with it. Clean gas, proper mix and clean air filter will make'em last along time. Can't beat their high end torque.

 

[tntrex]

Oh and NO ethanol gas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Oklahomabassin]

Never carb kit or replace carb on my Stihl MS 290 mentioned in my earlier post. My dad has an old Poulan. It runs like a top. I remember he put a carb kit and new fuel lines on it. The only plastic on it, is the fuel tank lid and bar/chain lube lid. They don't make em like that anymore, that is why I can't recommend a Poulan.

If I were buying a chainsaw for occasional tree trimming, I might settle for something other than a Stihl. Otherwise, I won't have anything less.


Use good clean fuel mix. (I had a 1 gallon jug, that I used exclusively.) When I filled it the first time at the pump, I marked the level with a heavy black magic marker. When I would go cut wood, I carried fresh unmixed fuel in a bigger jug, so I could mix a new batch when needed, but I would always empty it completely, so I wasn't mixing it strong or weaker. Use ethanol free gas, it is good measure to run the gas tank dry when storing for long times.

 

[Eagle Eye]

My dad runs Husky's. Has for years. Cut wood for a living for several years (100+ ricks a year). Never had a carb problem at all, let alone having to replace them more than once as your post would imply. Stihl makes good saws, but your story would scare me off of one compared to my experiences with Husky.

It was cleaned one and replaced once. Replacement happened shortly after cleaning. This is why I said don't get em cleaned, get em replaced instead.
Didn't mean to make it sound like that was a frequent thing.

 

[YukonGlocker]

Never carb kit or replace carb on my Stihl MS 290 mentioned in my earlier post...

Mine neither.

 

[doctorjj]

Thanks for th e clarifications. That sounds better in regard to the Stihl carbs. I know they make great saws.

 

[swampratt]

I have been rebuilding carbs since I was 12, and doing engine work from that age also.
That is why I feel my old saws have lasted sooo long.
I never bought a new one, .
I have only had to use 3 saws in 30 years of cutting,, and all 3 are laid to rest. The 1975 saw was the last to go.

Looks like the Stihl may be the way to go,,, hope I can get 30 years from it.
I will go look Monday at them.
I may take the old 1975 echo apart all the way and see if I can freshen her up. Thing is only 1 person in the OKC surrounding area had a bar for it and it cost me 75 bucks!! Ouch.
Then less than 2 hours of cutting after the bar change she puked on me.. but was heading that way for the last 7 years or so.

 

[Eagle Eye]

I have been rebuilding carbs since I was 12, and doing engine work from that age also.
That is why I feel my old saws have lasted sooo long.
I never bought a new one, .

Not sure if you meant buying a new carb or saw...
From reading your posts about reloading, I figure you as an above average tinkerer.
I tend to think that for the average repair shop turnaround time is often more important than quality.
Also, at the time the cost for a new carb was $3 more than getting the old one cleaned.

That's simply what happened to me....

 

[Seadog]

Are used to work running a chainsaw for Wrights tree service. I loved the job but the pay wasn't that great. Now that minimum wage is around $10 and they're going to have a hard time finding people to start off working
there. Anyways the particular group that I work with used Husqvarna almost exclusively for our ground saws and Stihls for Our climb saws. I can't remember the models that we used except for those huskies were awesome. The only time I saw one ruined was when somebody forgot to mix the oil in their gas and they burned it up bad. Other than that is just regular maintenance change the spark plug change a borrow it when it was wore out sharpen your chain. I don't recall one ever breaking down on it's own accord. I know it took 45 minutes to run a tank dry and I could do that all day long. Fantastic chainsaws

I am not saying Husqvarna is better then Stihl. That is a great brand also and my grandfather swore buy them, I just don't have much experience using them.

 

[swampratt]

Old thread and i just got a saw.
Funny thing is out of all the saws my friends and i have when our saws break we reach for this old green Poulan,, it always saves the day.
maybe we got a rare good one.
Well i got a 14" poulan.. I will soon see if it is crap or not.
My old McCulloch really spoiled me,, over 20 years of service from it and 100's of ricks of wood and it never missed a beat.