\GoBillsInDallas/ Posted March 14, 2020 Posted March 14, 2020 1 hour ago, Marv's Neighbor said: Just when I was going to suggest finding some beavers!
dpberr Posted March 23, 2020 Author Posted March 23, 2020 Thanks everyone for your replies both on point and off. ? Decided to go with Stihl - a pro saw MS261. I managed to shop at a Husqvarna store before the governor shut the state down to make a more educated decision. 1
eSJayDee Posted March 23, 2020 Posted March 23, 2020 Since you've managed to get away w/ only renting one in the past, if you think your future use will be similar, I'd highly recommend you get a good, electric saw (assuming you don't consider that an oxymoron ) I have an 80v Earthworks. If you can get away w/ one battery, they're roughly equivalent of a gas powered saw of equivalent price (~$300), ie good homeowner or low end rancher's saw). My main complaint of my old gas saw was that more often than not, I spent more time & effort getting the dang thing started then it would've taken doing the task w/ a handsaw. W/ electric, you just make sure the battery is charged & voila, cutting away. The one downside is it's only good for about 11 minutes of HARD cutting. That equates to about 1 hour of work doing moderate cutting. But if you're felling & cutting up maybe a tree every yr or so, I think it's the way to go.
Nextmanup Posted March 23, 2020 Posted March 23, 2020 One important feature to look for is two handles so you can hold the saw with both hands. Like this one: 1
Gray Beard Posted March 23, 2020 Posted March 23, 2020 1 hour ago, eSJayDee said: Since you've managed to get away w/ only renting one in the past, if you think your future use will be similar, I'd highly recommend you get a good, electric saw (assuming you don't consider that an oxymoron ) I have an 80v Earthworks. If you can get away w/ one battery, they're roughly equivalent of a gas powered saw of equivalent price (~$300), ie good homeowner or low end rancher's saw). My main complaint of my old gas saw was that more often than not, I spent more time & effort getting the dang thing started then it would've taken doing the task w/ a handsaw. W/ electric, you just make sure the battery is charged & voila, cutting away. The one downside is it's only good for about 11 minutes of HARD cutting. That equates to about 1 hour of work doing moderate cutting. But if you're felling & cutting up maybe a tree every yr or so, I think it's the way to go. I have similar experiences with finicky gas saws. I only cut trees that are at most 6 inches in diameter. If they’re bigger than that I pay a guy whose prices are very reasonable. I got an electric one with a cord dirt cheap. It’s fine for my purposes.
Simon Posted April 15, 2020 Posted April 15, 2020 On 3/23/2020 at 4:33 PM, eSJayDee said: Since you've managed to get away w/ only renting one in the past, if you think your future use will be similar, I'd highly recommend you get a good, electric saw (assuming you don't consider that an oxymoron ) I have an 80v Earthworks. If you can get away w/ one battery, they're roughly equivalent of a gas powered saw of equivalent price (~$300), ie good homeowner or low end rancher's saw). My main complaint of my old gas saw was that more often than not, I spent more time & effort getting the dang thing started then it would've taken doing the task w/ a handsaw. W/ electric, you just make sure the battery is charged & voila, cutting away. The one downside is it's only good for about 11 minutes of HARD cutting. That equates to about 1 hour of work doing moderate cutting. But if you're felling & cutting up maybe a tree every yr or so, I think it's the way to go. Yeah, I finally bought an electric this year for the exact same reasons; too much time fussin and not enough time cuttin. I went with an Echo 58V with a 16" bar and have been very happy so far. Bucking trees that are 20"+ is no problem and it gives me close to an hour of work before I have to pull the battery for a recharge, which is just enough at this age. I'd definitely recommend the saw for any prospective buyers. An example of why I switched? Watch me start getting pissed off and about snap the pullcord when the saw won't start. 1
dpberr Posted April 17, 2020 Author Posted April 17, 2020 One thing I did not know about electric vs. gas chainsaws: The PPE chainsaw chaps are useless against electric chainsaws. Apparently, they will just keep moving right through the protective layers of the chaps, whereas the gas saws will get bound up by the threads by design.
eSJayDee Posted April 18, 2020 Posted April 18, 2020 (edited) Quote The PPE chainsaw chaps are useless against electric chainsaws. Apparently, they will just keep moving right through the protective layers of the chaps, whereas the gas saws will get bound up by the threads by design. I find that somewhat surprising. I haven't tested them on either (I don't wear them), but my electric saw shuts off when it's overloaded. What it takes to shut it down, varies w/ battery power (it shuts down much easier when the battery is almost dead as opposed to fully charged). So, the principle is the same, provide extra resistance, engine dies. Granted, it's a built-in safety feature, but I imagine they included it for this very reason instead of just conserving battery power when highly labored. Edited April 18, 2020 by eSJayDee Thought of additional point.
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