New Chainsaw

jkon

Hello,

I am new to this forum and thank you all for sharing and having me.

I need a new chainsaw and am looking at models with 16-inch bars. My old 25year old Mcculoch has seen it's last days...clutch gone and engine blown seized. I am an occassional saw user and want it mostly for cutting up limbs and trees that fall around my property. I was looking at a Stihl Model: MS250 but parts, manuals, etc. are most only available from the dealer. I have narrowed my search down to two makes and models...Echo CS-370 or the Husqvarna 240E. I like the tool free chain tensioning feature on the Husqvarna yet parts, mauals, etc. seem to be more readily available for the Echo. From what I can find on the internet both saws will provide plenty of power for what I want in a saw with engines very close in cc's around 36.0cc to 38.0cc. Maybe I have overlooked a better make and model and welcome your suggestions. Any help to steer me in the right direction would be appreciated. Thanks.

KevinE

G'day mate & welcome to the forum! I may be wrong, but my understanding is that the 240e is a re-badged Poulan chainsaw. If so, I'd give it a very wide berth! The 370 is a top handled saw & thus I wouldn't recommend it for the use you describe. How about the Echo CS 400? It's around $300 US.

A lot of people bag Echo, but I own an Echo chainsaw & I can't say enough good things about it!

Paul Toivonen

I would steer clear of echo,
Cheap and cheerful, but when they stop working, the fun ends.
Never heard of the re-badged Husky, maybe a Stihl is what you are looking for?
I guess it depends do you prefer Yank, Jap or Euro?

KevinE

Like I said, a lot of people bag Echo. Mine is a 350T that earns me a very good living. It cost me $700 & has only been used every working day for over 3 years It has never been near a workshop & I have no idea how good the Echo support network is, because I've never needed it. So I guess Echo really is just "cheep & cheerful". I use & abuse it & the thing just keeps working. My wife's uncle (age 62) is a farmer in the south east of SA & he has his grandfather's Echo chainsaw. It's pre-chain brake & apart from a broken handle, it works fine. So I guess, if you want a chainsaw, stay clear of Echo, because 40-60 years down the track, you may need a new one.

Jeff Darby

I've had good Holdens and bad Holdens...the same with Fords....opinions differ from folks to folks. We can only go from our own experiences...

__________________

Member: Australian Tree Association

Join the Australian Tree Association...Have your voice heard !

Arboriculture, A life long study for some, a passing phase for others

© Jeffrey J Darby 2011

jkon

KevinE...What do you mean by the 370 is a "top handled" saw? Thanks again for all your replies.

Paul Toivonen

I have only used the post 90's echo machines.
Perhaps the old ones were built well, back in the day?
Like most companies, corporate greed and profit may have seen quality suffer.
Hell, even the big two are starting to produce "Occasional use" gear.

jkon

Ok now to complicate things and back to Stihl...I am now considering getting the Stihl MS250 which has a bigger 45.4cc engine and an 18-inch bar for 30 bucks more at $299.95 What do you think about this saw compared to the other two?

royson

in medium saws there is really only 2 choices, the stihl ms261 and the husky 346xp make your choice based on the best deal you can get out of those 2.

forget the rest.

Tony Knight

MS 261

stihlman441

MS261 with muff modd

SawTroll

Forget those models, and at least get a Husky 440 - that is the cheapest saw I will recommend to anyone!

I just got a 560xpg, that so far has a 16" bar on it - bar length is useless for comparing saws!