That's a ton of saw for firewood......but I'm like you in not wanting to deal with junk tools.
Be careful with that thing if you've never run a professional model saw......that thing is designed for big hardwood and west coast style cuttin!
Thanks for the info. Maybe I will just use it on oak and other hardwoods of that nature. Figured I would just use it for logs that are 24"+, but maybe I will just use it for the really hard wood. My dad's McCullochs are dead and now he is using an 18" Craftsman. Between the Craftsman and the MS291, we should be just fine for the small stuff. The thing that got me thinking about a 460 or 660 was a 48" oak that the farm owner just cut up two months ago. How the heck do you even think about cutting something like that with an 18" or 20" saw? If the 660 ends up intimidating me, I'll sell it and get something smaller, but bigger than the MS261.
FYI - you figured me out without knowing that much about me. I hate junk anything, and especially tools. I don't mind paying extra for good stuff that will last a while, and I take pretty good care of my stuff. That goes for vehicles, guns, rods/reels, bikes, tools, mowers, tractors, etc. However, I expect them to last quite a while.
The images I have from my youth with those McCulloch saws was that we were always trying to get them to run. For one reason or another, they were always broken or the chains were always dull. It just wasn't fun. My dad rarely had the right equipment for the job, or he pushed his equipment well beyond its limit. Hauled so much lumber for a deck in my brother's 2 year old F150 that he bent the tailgate and the front wheels were barely touching the ground. The steering and braking was horrible, and I figured that out from just trying to move it around in the neighborhood to reposition it so we could unload the wood. I could post all night with stories like that. Here is another deck story. Instead of learning from the previous experience 10+ years prior with the decking bending the tailgate and buying a cargo extender that installs in the hitch, my dad goes and puts his decking material on top of the truck's roof with the ends resting against the closed tailgate. So, the boards are hanging over the roof of the truck. He tied them down, but when he took the first turn they all slid off and into the roadway. Luckily, some guys that were heading into Home Depot saw it and helped him pick everything back up. So, he continues on at a snail's pace. When he gets to his property, he goes over a large root from a tree while trying to drive into the backyard. The boards drop down onto the roof and cave it in about 2 inches. Then, he wonders why I will not let him borrow my F350.