Looking for a lightweight limbcutting saw...

[KubotainNH]

I have a small Echo that is lightweight, starts easily and will idle all day without stalling. It's super good on fuel and fit my budget. I've used it to cut 12" trees but that's really too much for it, it shines on limbing and small stuff. A co-worker talked me into it because his father (who worked for a power company down South) said his company used them with little issue.

 

[newbury]

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I have dozens of huge beech, oak, and etc tree tops I need to process for firewood and burn pile now that the clear-cutting is done

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Why are you "processing them for firewood"? Can you sell the firewood for anything near the cost of your professional time? Process what YOU need to keep the home fires burning. The last time I looked CL was filled with "firewood" sellers. Unless you are delivering it to the affluent in DC for twice the going price it's barely worth the trouble.
Why not process them for wildlife management? LET THEM ROT.
It's the natural way. Great habitat for small animals and birds.

This is what I mean by limbing.

MOST of what I have to cut that is already on the ground is somewhere in one of those pics. Under the whole beech tree in Pic #4 there are at least 3 oak tops buried/behind it.
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Have a great Dad's Day weekend all!
Be well!
David

Your pics look similar to a 20 acre portion of my little 70 acre lot. Only the last pic looks like a mess.
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I realize you are asking for advice on a saw, but it seems a lot of it could be handled by:
A little cutting
Dragging (or get a good grapple) the stuff that is not where YOU want it to a place YOU want it.

I'd be more concerned about reseeding/planting (Feb? March?) and what the next crop is for your daughters. Once I get a tree to lie down mother nature takes it course. Rotting into the soil is not a bad thing and I think it's better than burning a brushpile (though not as exciting).

 

[MossflowerWoods]

Most of the wood is in roughly two areas. one close to the house, the other next to where the loader was located.

My plan is to buck most of the tops into 8' logs and stack them to dry closer to the house.

I have a grapple to move them around, I have a ton of small downed trees to lay down on the bottom to keep them of the ground.

My girlfriend is my crew and we will eat this elephant the usual way, one bite at a time.

I will burn much of this in my wood stove, but I will sell some of it for beer money. I will learn as I do this so I will be come a better rural homeowner and less of a n00b so that has value also. Mostly I suspect I will sell or give wood to my neighbors and friends. Goodwill also has value. I do not expect to turn a profit.

Most of the land is shockingly clear, and yes I will replant Loblolly Pine in the spring,at least 45 acres of it. I have excellent soil for trees.

I picked up a splitter yesterday at Lowe's on the Father's Day sale, which will also make this process smoother.

I am 90% sure I will buy s261's MS261, and I think I might go get an Echo CS-400 today for limbing/lighter work, and then sell my MS290.

As always, the Univ of TBN has been chock full of great ideas and knowledge to help me learn how to do these things I seem to want to do now that I live in the country.

Thanks again & Be well,
David

 

[RalphVa]

I like our Kobalt 40v one. It's plenty light to carry up a tree. No starting problem when you get up there either.

Ralph

 

[motownbrowne]

Most of the wood is in roughly two areas. one close to the house, the other next to where the loader was located.

My plan is to buck most of the tops into 8' logs and stack them to dry closer to the house.

I have a grapple to move them around, I have a ton of small downed trees to lay down on the bottom to keep them of the ground.

My girlfriend is my crew and we will eat this elephant the usual way, one bite at a time.

I will burn much of this in my wood stove, but I will sell some of it for beer money. I will learn as I do this so I will be come a better rural homeowner and less of a n00b so that has value also. Mostly I suspect I will sell or give wood to my neighbors and friends. Goodwill also has value. I do not expect to turn a profit.

Most of the land is shockingly clear, and yes I will replant Loblolly Pine in the spring,at least 45 acres of it. I have excellent soil for trees.

I picked up a splitter yesterday at Lowe's on the Father's Day sale, which will also make this process smoother.

I am 90% sure I will buy s261's MS261, and I think I might go get an Echo CS-400 today for limbing/lighter work, and then sell my MS290.

As always, the Univ of TBN has been chock full of great ideas and knowledge to help me learn how to do these things I seem to want to do now that I live in the country.

Thanks again & Be well,
David

Selling the farm boss is a good plan. The Echo plus a 261 sounds perfect, and will compliment your big saw when you decide you need one.

 

[frogpond]

I started with a Stihl MS180 and a 16" bar--your basic homeowner backyard occasional use outfit. I used it pretty hard on our 11 acres of thick second and third growth Douglas fir, hemlock, and red cedar. We are clearing up lots of old logging slash, pulling logs out of streams, cutting leaners, etc. The 180 kept needing repair, so I added an MS 291 with 20" bar. It had a lot more power and a heftier chain, and was the right saw for felling and bucking bigger logs. But I still need a smaller saw for lots of things, including limbing. After a while, my old-time saw repair guy told me it wasn't worth putting any more money into the 180. He suggested an MS 211 with 16" bar as a reasonable combination of heavier duty, more power, heavier chain, and only a little more weight than the 180. I've had it about a year, and have been very pleased with its reliability and power.

On the other side, my wife wanted "her own saw", so she ordered a Greenworks 40v cordless electric. I don't tell her what I think, which is that it's an unsafe toy--weak, no torque, very slow, very lightly built, and lacks safety features (no anti-kickback chain brake! --How do they get away with that?) But the manual is printed on rough, brown, recycled paper; so it must be good. By the way, It's not light. The weight with battery is the same as the MS 211.

 

[yomax4]

Your saw choice should be sized to your physical ability. I like an 026 pro with a 20" bar for limbs. I have an old 039 as a go to saw and a 44 mag for real cutting. Some guys on here use 088 saws. It's up to your body.

 

[MossflowerWoods]

So on Saturday on the way to Norfolk to have lunch with my future step-son and his lady, the Fiancee and I had the pleasure of meeting Mr & Mrs S219 and I picked up my NEW favorite saw, his very nice CS261 Stihl... They have a lovely craftsman style home with many features I wish to copy like the awesome poplar bark siding in the screen porch/sun room (SWEET!)

Anyway like every other TBN guy I've met he was solid gold good guy and I LOVE this saw!

yesterday I cut down a number of small trees, and a couple fruit trees past their prime, and a medium sized bradford pear tree. I also removed am over gropw crepe myrtle and got up on a ladder cut all the lower branches of the maple that had become a weeping maplein the front yard. I trimmed similar lower branches from a coupe other trees also.

The saw ran like a hot knife through butter an I can lift my arms this morning. And I did all of that on less than its first tank of gas. It starts easy, and runs awesome.

The Echo cs400is still in its box in the basement...

I am now gonna clean up my 20"Farmboss and sell it on Craigslist... I've found a new love...

Be well all,
David

 

[s219]

It was good to meet you guys David, and glad to hear you like the saw! I think it's one of Stihl's best new saws in recent years, and packs a lot of punch for a light 50cc saw. It really puts the bigger heavier Farm Boss to shame. I hope you get a lot of good years out of it.

While I mainly used the 261 for trees about 12" and smaller, it was used to fell a 36" cypress one time. My wife's uncle (former tree service pro) has an old Stihl 044, but it was misbehaving that day. So he asked if I thought the 261 could do it, and I said sure, but how are you going to cut a 36" tree with an 18" bar? He said just watch, and showed us young guys how it's done in like 1-2-3 cuts. Stands back as the tree falls, lets the saw idle for a bit, cuts it off, and then hands it to me saying "that thing is mean for a little saw!".

 

[MossflowerWoods]

S219, it is a great saw indeed!

I'm actually debating if I should even keep the Echo CS400 now...

Be well,
David