Did you know that Stihl products aren't expensive??

[montanaman]

Was talking to my Stihl territory manager yesterday about this. I can't remember the brand and it's just as well, but there was someone out there with a $150 or less saw and they were pretty much designed to run about 24 hours........

That sounds really really bad but for the consumer it was intended for, that should be years of use.

Those who know better and want a saw they can depend on, don't buy a $150 saw!!

I wish I had some details on the lettering system you refer to because I try very hard as a dealer to be as educated as I can.

I do know about the EDR though and I do know that some companies do pretty much lie about it and call it an engine durability rating, while it has NOTHING to do with how long the tool will last!

Ken

 

[dirt clod]

From echo website

300-Hour Rated Products
With a premium brand like Echo, you expect professional-grade performance. And no engines in the industry perform like Echo. Every engine Echo produces is certified with CARB and EPA to its highest useful life* rating 300 hours. And thatç—´ the highest performance rating there is. Some manufacturers claim professional-grade performance and yet rate their engines at only 50 hours. Be sure to check the label and you値l find every Echo product will have a 300 hour or é„* category rating. Itç—´ a fact: Echo delivers the highest level of useful life in every product.

* EDP is defined by CARB as 摘missions Durability Period? EPA uses the term ç*¥seful life? which is defined as 套when engine performance deteriorates to the point where usefulness and/or reliability is impacted to a degree sufficient to necessitate overhaul or replacement? (U.S. Government, Code of Federal Regulations, Vol. 40, Chapter 1, Sec. 90.105, par. 5, ｧii)


I cant remeber where I got some of the other info. I did a lot of research as I was tired of junk. I have been buying stihl since then. Some of the stihls though are rated for homeowner and they have a edp rating of B which is 150hrs. The trimmer I bought was there pro grade it had a EDP rating of A which is 300hrs. The pro grade huskys that Lowes sells has a EDP of C or consumer grade which is only 50hrs, but they price them like a pro tool would cost . All should have either a letter of A,B,C or stamped with the hour rating. I understood that under the EPA requirement All models have to be tested and have a sticker as such.

 

[lambs]

Best time around here to buy a great Stihl saw is a couple weeks' after an ice event, when everyone who ran out to buy a saw to cut up a few trees decides it's more saw than they need.

I waited until two weeks after such a storm and picked up an 029 Super that had been through 3 tanks of gas for $200. Never regretted it. And I go to the dealer stores for everything I need. They are great. The saw cuts like a demon and has all the power I need.

I would not buy anything else but a Stihl. And I would gladly buy one from my dealer.

 

[Shmudda]

From echo website

300-Hour Rated Products
With a premium brand like Echo, you expect professional-grade performance. And no engines in the industry perform like Echo. Every engine Echo produces is certified with CARB and EPA to its highest useful life* rating 300 hours. And that逞ｴ the highest performance rating there is. Some manufacturers claim professional-grade performance and yet rate their engines at only 50 hours. Be sure to check the label and you蛟､l find every Echo product will have a 300 hour or 驗* category rating. It逞ｴ a fact: Echo delivers the highest level of useful life in every product.

* EDP is defined by CARB as 鞫藁issions Durability Period? EPA uses the term ?･seful life? which is defined as 螂謡hen engine performance deteriorates to the point where usefulness and/or reliability is impacted to a degree sufficient to necessitate overhaul or replacement? (U.S. Government, Code of Federal Regulations, Vol. 40, Chapter 1, Sec. 90.105, par. 5, ?ｧii)


I cant remeber where I got some of the other info. I did a lot of research as I was tired of junk. I have been buying stihl since then. Some of the stihls though are rated for homeowner and they have a edp rating of B which is 150hrs. The trimmer I bought was there pro grade it had a EDP rating of A which is 300hrs. The pro grade huskys that Lowes sells has a EDP of C or consumer grade which is only 50hrs, but they price them like a pro tool would cost . All should have either a letter of A,B,C or stamped with the hour rating. I understood that under the EPA requirement All models have to be tested and have a sticker as such.

300 hour rating....what a JOKE! Thats only 37.5 days at 8hrs/day. Most loggers and landscapers would go broke buying an Echo product!

Sorry, not for me! I'll keep my Stihl's...........

Craig

 

[johnk]

I have a 385 Husky and a 55 Rancher. Great saws and i wouldn't trade them. My neighbor has Stihls and used mine and is changing brands. hows that to start a War???

 

[dirt clod]

300 hour rating....what a JOKE! Thats only 37.5 days at 8hrs/day. Most loggers and landscapers would go broke buying an Echo product!

Sorry, not for me! I'll keep my Stihl's...........

Craig

I think you missed the point. A 50hr tool is rated to last at least 50hrs. A 150hr is rated to at least 150hrs. A 300hr is rated to last at least 300hr. That is the highest rateing there is. So regardless if a tool is good for 300hrs or 3000 hrs it would still be rated as a 300hr tool. Note some sthil is only rated for 150hrs. Echo brags about it becouse all of there tools are rated for 300hr. I still like stihl better. So many tools max out there rating system. It would be nice if they tested further to a higher rating. Wouldn't be a bit suprised if the sthil 4 mix would be the top rated in hours of all brands and designs. The power of the 4 mix is unmatched also. Notice also that echo brags about the hour rating but no mention of horsepower .

 

[praha]

Almost anything in a discounted department store is LESSER quality.
Even a brand name product. I'd NEVER buy any tools from them. Never.
They sell junk. Period. They dictate a price , hence the bearings, alloys, everything have to adjust to it. Final product...junk.
Their stuff is actually very expensive. Will have to be replaced over and over eventually./I am not talking about drywall and a similar stuff , of course. /.
I like Bosch tools. They are non profit company, so no pressure to make a huge profit.

joe

 

[MessickFarmEqu]

The hour ratings are just the amount of time that the exaust maintains its EPA certification. It has little to do with the overall life of the machine.

 

[montanaman]

The hour ratings are just the amount of time that the exaust maintains its EPA certification. It has little to do with the overall life of the machine.

I have to agree. Was just thinking that when Stihl did their oil testing, they were running 6 or 8 BR600 blowers for 600 hours. The one with the Stihl HP Ultra oil, at the end of 600 hours, picked up 10 psi of compression compared to the test out of the box. Now I do understand that it needed to break in a bit so compression should come up but to have 10psi more on a 600 hour machine that when the test was started tells me that this is in no way a machine designed for 300 hours!

It also gets very political too as far as this EPA stuff. One of the reasons that Stihl, a company that spends more on R&D than JD, came up with the 4-MIX is that they get emission credits. Not much different that the car makers needing to sell X amount of economy cars for each SUV. With the 4-MIX being so far advanced with emissions, it allows Stihl to build more commercial chain saws that may not be super clean. They are also building much cleaner saws too and a lot of the new designs are making very good power. Low emissions does not have to equal low power! The best way to get the emissions clean is to burn all of the fuel and fuel = power!!

Sorry to rant but I like what I sell!

The point was that when looking at the upper homeowner line, you do not save a dime by going to the box store!!

If you are a Husky man, that's fine too but find a local dealer to buy it from, not big blue!!! And don't kid yourself and think that quality won't go down now that they are in the box store! The saw is made by a company owned by Electrolux and they know how to build cheap saws!

Ken

 

[RWEST]

I have a 385 Husky and a 55 Rancher. Great saws and i wouldn't trade them. My neighbor has Stihls and used mine and is changing brands. hows that to start a War???

Heheheh.